Over the Edge

Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 1
Over the Edge

“Barbossa, ahead!”

“Aye, we're good and lost now.”

The self proclaimed captain responded to Mr Turner with a jovial expression on his face. The rest of the crew's minds were nary the wiser to what lay ahead, but Barbossa knew what to expect. Mostly. The trip had been arduous, not to mention bloody cold. But if all was to go according to plan, he knew what had to be done.

“Lost? "

Ah, there it is, he thought. The fear of mortality. Miss Swann's features were more confused than afraid, but a reaction he expected nonetheless. Her composure during the voyage had impressed him to say the least, but she was still a child compared to him when it came to the sea. He shot a look back at her, madness almost evident in his eyes.

“For certain you have to be lost to find a place as can't be found. Elseways, everyone would know where it was.”

Mr Gibbs promptly looked overboard on the port side, the change in motions the ship catching his attention, not to mentions Barbossa's questionable dictations. It was about to get interesting.

“We're gaining speed.”

There it was again. Barbossa admitted to himself that he wasn't completely aware of the events to unfold, but he had the capacity to enjoy it more than the rest of the crew.

“Aye.”

The rest of the crew began to eye each other in worry. Will even more so, deeply concerned with the glint in Barbossa's eyes. Realising he was ill concerned with no one but himself, Will commanded to the others.

“To stations!”

No one hesitated to agree with him. Everyone's worry for their supposed Captain's sanity put to the back of their minds. More than half the men were not going to die for a man they barely knew. He was the supplier of payment, and the supplier of directions; nothing more. Those more familiar with the Barbossa's actions still followed the order, loyalty ever present, but not taking front runner over their own lives.

“All hands to stations!” The order wasn't needed, with every man and woman doing their part to keep steady. There were captains for a reason, however. Commands needed to be given and crews organised, despite Barbossa's apparent lack of will to do so. As such, Will took it upon himself to take charge. “Rudder full. Hard aport! Gather way.”

In the hectic mass of pirates upon the Hai Peng's deck, Barbossa finally started to take command. Albeit, not in a way anyone wanted him to.

“Nay! Belay that!” his voice spat as he ordered the crew, many of whom looked on in confusion. “Let her run straight and true!”

Sauntering toward the front of the ship, the rest of the crew followed suit. But those already there could not believe their eyes. The world just...stopped. A cascade of water over flowed from what was apparently the edge of the world, the darkness of the sky continuing on behind it. Nothing but a vast empty space. A void. No stars, no clouds, no horizons. Nothing lay beyond the waterfall at worlds end. And the Sai Peng was heading for it.

Will was the first to approach Barbossa with the fate he had given them, his voice dark and his eyes burning. “You've doomed us all," he stated.

“Don't be so unkind,” he said, a hint of faux hurt in his voice, “Ye may not survive to pass this way again, and these be the last friendly words you'll hear.”

Will had had enough listening to him. Taking charge, he continued to bellow orders to the crew, none of which spoke against him. Many of them wouldn't have, even if they had the chance.

“Tie her off. Hard aport.”

The pirate's knew when to listen to those above them, but did so in vain: the current was far too strong for the ship to pull out off.

Barbossa just stood there, an aura of confidence and enjoyment radiating from him. The rest of the hands on the deck scampering left and right around him like insects, futilely attempting to throw the ship off course.

The drastic aport turn seemed to help their cause, but all it did was change the direction the ship was facing, the current seemingly not bothered by the crew’s attempts at saving their hides. The ship continued to drift along with the waters falling from the worlds end.

“Hold on!” Will yelled, grasping onto the ropes hanging from above his head.

But Barbossa thought it was brilliant. They were all fighting for their lives when faced with something new, while he could enjoy it for what it was. An adventure. Beyond the falls was a world many sailors saw, a world many men and women were destined to travel to, but a world few ever came back from.

But he would. Sure, he'd have to bring back Jack, he thought, but there was nary a thing that didn't hold consequence of some sort. Being a pirate had taught him at least that much.

“Strike yer colours, you bloomin' cockroaches.”

His words ended in hearty laughter, but it didn't matter. The rest of the crew had little reason to listen to him. They were falling into the dark, endless abyss of the damned, which many deemed a more frightening and terrifying prospect than their captain. The water seemed to fall forever, never stopping. Just...darkness. Perpetual Darkness.

– – – –

The sudden burst of water would have been enough to wake many of the crew. The sudden appearance of the sea below them, compared nothingness at least, was a pretty drastic change. Despite the water being present, it was very shallow. How Will had been unhurt from the fall, let alone one into shallow waters, was beyond him.

But understanding he could, in fact, simply stand up, he did so and took in the surroundings. Many of the others were doing the same; Ragetti seemed to be paddling for dear life, much to Will and the others amusement.

There was land, and not far away either. Close in fact. And standing in the shallow waters was doing nothing for them, but it was common sense to head for land, and most men were following that logic. Many of the Chinese men were already wading through the low tide too, and Will thought it idealistic to follow suit.

The sand was white and clean, no dirtied rocks or sparse pieces of seaweed anywhere to be seen. The same could not be said for their ship. Or what Will assumed was there ship. Wooden frames and timber littered the beach nearest the water, but not nearly enough to constitute the whole of the vessel.

Finally reaching dry land, he looked around at the men, and two women, around him. He hadn't bothered to memorise many of the Chinese, but from what he could tell the rest of the crew were present and accounted for.

Pintel proceeded to ruin that for him.

“Where's Barbossa?”

- - - -

Barbossa continued to fall through the darkness. The ship was gone. Not that he had made much effort to hold on. His knowledge of the worlds end was limited, but Tia Dalma had assured him all ended up in the locker one way or another, so his worry was cast aside for now. He had grabbed his hat though. He liked to look good when he was mocking Jack. The nothingness was fading though. He didn't know how, or why, but he could quickly feel it becoming...something.

“Birds?” he asked himself, opening his eyes.

The sounds of chirping echoed around him. There was no reason anything living should be in the locker, let alone birds. There'd be no point. Jones wouldn't collect the souls of mere animals. They were not worthy of his time.

But as clouds approached, and the darkness faded around them into a painted mixture of grey and white, they were there. Birds. He could hear them. There may have been no more than a few, but he could hear them.

But they were not his immediate concern. The clouds meant there was a sky, and a sky meant he was somewhere, which also meant that somewhere was very, very high.

He could feel the air hit him as he fell, and holding onto his hat for dear life, Barbossa took in the whiteness around him. The clouds were clearing, through which he could see a bright blue sky on all sides. And out of the unnaturally thick clouds, he could see the world below, coming ever closer. Too close.

“Damn it!” he continued to yell at the top of his voice, as if it would somehow help the situation.

Not that it would. He was closing in on a small forest and despite the buildings he saw from the sky, there was no one nearby. Bracing for something that could out right kill him seemed pointless, but with nothing better to do, he braced for impact against the thick trees.

Upon making contact, he quickly realised one thing. It bloody hurt. The small branches came fast and quick, whipping his face and hands. Thick grunts and pained sounds came from his mouth has he made his way through the foliage towards the ground below.

But though the forest appeared rich and dense, the trees were not as tall as he had thought, and the branches not as thick. He soon hit the bottom by way of a large bush than continues to soften his fall. Despite his wavered strength and weakened resolve, he slowly and drunkenly made his way out of the bush, standing tall when he was finally free of the green shrubbery.

Placing his hands over his face and different part of his body in quick succession, and giving his visible skin a once over, he deemed himself acceptable, or at least to the point where nothing wrong with him needed treatment. His hat was in good condition too, as were his sword and pistol. His hands were covered in scratches, and he had a small gash on his forehead. Though he gave a confident smile, knowing what he'd just survived, and laughed, as if to mock the universe itself for trying to down him.

“Nothin' worth cryin' about.”

He then cast his eyes skyward, trying to see where he'd fell from. He could see beyond the trees through a small open canopy, and he could also clearly see the clouds which he had original fell through.

“What the...?” he said, staring absent-mindedly at the space above him.

The clouds were barely above the trees! He wasn't even that high to begin with?! The clouds weren't exactly interweaving with the trees, but he could at least tell they weren't that high in the sky. With his previous dive with death now seeming less impressive, he let out an exasperated groan and glanced around for anything to tell him where he was.

It was definitely a forest; of that much he was sure. Dense and thick, just as he'd expected. Green burst from every corner and, he was sure, every shade of every colour was represented by a plethora of different flowers. Leaves of differing sizes and shades clung to the sides of every tree.
However, it was far from a paradise. Light had very little presence, spare for the canopy above. And creatures could be heard growling and screeching from beyond the foliage. The sounds came from every way he could hear, with no way of telling how far away, or even what they were. And the air was musty, and the forest had nothing to be seen in any direction, with flora being the only thing viable as everything blended together in mix of greens and browns...

“This can't be a good thing.”

Barbossa rubbed his forehead in frustration, wincing at the gash he forgot he had. He was lost. Tired, frustrated and lost.
Suddenly realising that he was, in fact, alone as well as lost, he passively wondered what could have befallen the rest of the crew. They were nowhere to be seen from the sky, let alone the ground. Perhaps they all perished in the abyss?

“No. This isn't the Locker.”

Of course, he was sure of it. This wasn't Jones' Locker. It was a forest. A living forest. Nothing like what he expected, or what Calypso had described to him, for that matter. Davy Jones' Locker was a damned place. Dead and dusty to all but those who were trapped there. Meaning he was the only one who didn't make it there properly.

“Great. Havin' successfully gotten lost, I've also givin' Jack free reign of the bloody ship when they find 'im!”

This was not looking good. Not for his well being, nor for his pride.

“At least he's out of me way.”

As much as he needed to save the man, he loathed him all the same. Not to mention Jack had killed him once before. The absence of another Jack disheartened him, but seeing as the little monkey had survived without him before, he was none too worried for it.

Rustling from the bushes behind him brought him back to his senses. Something was near. And from the sound it was making, it was big. Quickly spinning on the spot, he drew his sword to face the...creature...

“By God...”

There was what appeared to a large lion with wings facing him. It had deep orange fur and an even darker scarlet mane. The wings protruding from its back seemed bat like in their appearance, folded away at its side as it stood half emerged from the greenery. The fangs jutting out of its mouth were large and sharp, and as it growled at the pirate captain, even more could be seen from within its maw. The beast's tail was also a sight to behold: long and poised, with a large black spike at the end.

The forest was dark as well as dense, and with no way of know which way to go, at the risk of finding another beast to face alongside this one, Barbossa chose to do the one thing he was best at.

“Has not been me day today. And now. I'm 'fraid 'tis not yours either.”

Blade drawn, he lunged for the beast and thrust his sword forwards, slicing to the right of his side. Despite the wings and the apparently strong legs, it was slow in the closed space of the trees, and suffered with a large, deep wound to the knee.

It let out a huge roar, doubling back in pain. Barbossa looked on and felt pride in injuring a dangerous beast he had only discovered less than a minute before. But he did not let his guard down; he knew it would not give in so easily. The beast then charged forward in spite of its injury and attempted to lunge at the captain.

However, having a smaller body in the space he was in gave Barbossa the advantage, and he stood his ground until the creature came close, only to dive between some trees and stab at it as it charged past, shaking and struggling to run at all.

The beast once again howled out in pain, but did not stop to suffer. It charged at Barbossa and rammed its paws between the trees, prying them part. Barbossa looked up in shock, having witnessed the creature practically rip two trees from their roots, and he gave out a nervous laugh as the beast eyed him, anger and irritation evident in its face; two things Barbossa knew to run from when faced with a wild animal. And with said animal still needing to get its large body through the enlarged gap in the trees, he seized the chance while he could.

Knowing the beast was injured, he ran as fast as his old legs could take him, taking advantage of it while he still had a chance. Running through the over growth was easy given his sword: it made little work of the foliage that got in his way. And given his small size, compared to the monster at least, it would still have to claw its way through what was left.

But it appeared to be futile. The pirate could hear trees falling in the distance, crashing to the ground. The beast wasn't as weak as he'd thought. Having tired of running, he realised he would have to face the creature eventually. He launched himself to the side for cover, and then waited for it to pass him, or at least come towards him for a clear strike.

Barbossa waited with confidence for the wild monster to approach, before realising there were no sounds coming from the direction he had travelled. How had he been so stupid!

“The beast can fly,” he lamented, stepping back as he looked up towards the sky.

The trees hadn't been destroyed to chase him; it'd made space to get airborne! Its leg was injured, of course of wouldn't bloody run after him!
The rustling then resurfaced from above, and from the top of a tree, he saw the beast crawl its way on to a branch, eyeing Barbossa the whole time. Priming its wings to propel itself forward, it readied to lung at the pirate. Ready for the final kill.

But it couldn't. It didn't have the chance. Barbossa held his pistol forward, and with a smirk painted on his face, pulled the trigger. The creature fell unceremoniously from the tree on to the ground, landing on its side. It growled at the captain, and winced in pain as it tried to move.
Barbossa stood above it, high and mighty. He had bested a magical monster. A new beast never before witnessed by any man, or so he assumed. The beast, despite its ultimate fate having already been decided, tried in vain to swipe at the pirate.

He merely smiled and thrust his sword deep in its chest. The beast, having finally succumbed to him, lifelessly slumped on to the floor.
Barbossa laughed. Deep and raspy, holding his sword above the newly slain creature at his feet.

“Down with ye, ye winged beastie,” he spat, laughing at the forest around him, “If ye hadn’t tried again, I may have killed ye honourably.”
Then there were sounds from his left. The sounds of animals and the rustling of leaves. Judging by the sounds made, they were smaller creatures. He admitted he enjoyed the thrill of killing an enemy or a beast should it gain him, but killing creatures or civilians for fun was not among his personal code. Not anymore.

He was a pirate, true, but not a monster. If there was no gain to be had, and no threat posed, they could keep to their ways. Still, this was a new world, and with it came new dangers. This...thing clearly showed that.

Cautiously and quietly moving towards the sound, Barbossa drew his sword. Scaring the creature would not only let him see it, but also let it escape should it pose no threat. If it was a threat, however, it would work in his favour; scaring it away or allowing him the first strike. Sword in hand and brimming with confidence, he cast aside the leaves and pointed his sword forward, getting the jump at whatever lay on the other side.
“C'mon then, beasties! Be there more of ye wantin'-”

What greeted him was not a monster, but three small...horses? The sight alone was enough to surprise him, but they were...unnatural to say the least; one was a unicorn while another appeared to sport wings. The manes and coats were also of unnatural nature; orange, purple and yellow among the other colours present. They were cowering under his shadow, almost crying as he stood above them, bloody sword in hand.
“D-don't...h-h-hurt us....p-please,” the white unicorn whimpered, barely able to breath as it did.

Barbossa's eyes went wide. They were talking. The horses were talking. That was...new. And they were crying.

His mind was processing this new information at a rather slow rate, hundreds of questions forming in his head. Were they meant to talk? Could horses really cry? Were they dangerous? Could everything here have wings? And were they usually orange?

Were they...children?

The pirate didn't know what was going on, or what they rightly were, but they were apparently...children? He had next to no experience with the things, but he had to do something...didn't he? Where were the women when he actually wanted them?

He put away his sword and reached out for the white one, making sure to lighten his features while he did. And he forced a smile. Children liked smiling, surely. Deciding that would be the best course of action, he attempted the biggest smile he could muster, and tried talking to them, should his new found aura of kindness and merciful nature fail him.

“It be fine, little...thing. Ye just stop y-”

He was cut off by the orange one pushing the unicorn away and attempting to buck him in the arm. The little horse managed to land her attack, but only to some degree of success; the hit didn't hurt, instead, the winged creature succeeded in merely shoving his hand out of the way.

“G-et away from h-her!”

With tears still streaming from their eyes, the three horses turned around and ran for the overgrowth, shouting and squealing at each other.
“Run away! Just...just keep running...away!” one of them yelled, out of breath and panting for air.

Barbossa just stood there, unsure of what to make of what had just transpired. But despite these thoughts plaguing him, as well as the questions the horses posed, he realised he now had an opportunity to get out of the forest relatively unharmed.

If these things were indeed...children, children who could talk, they had to live somewhere. He couldn't imagine them living in a place with flying lions roaming among the trees. Assuming they knew where they were heading, of course.

He let out a tired sigh. Today was not going as he had assumed it would, but he had to make do with what fate handed him. He had wanted an adventure in another world. He had wanted to go where few men ventured and even fewer returned. And he had it.

“Best careful what ye wish for,” he said sighing, following the path the small horses had taken, and pushing the leaves and flowers out of his way.

“Lest ye end up regrettin' it.”

Hello Beastie

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 2
Hello Beastie

The animals scampered to and fro around the small cottage, working their own way between the freshly placed food and their homes. Among the many present, one could hear sparrows, squirrels, rabbits and even robins; each creature living in relative harmony with the others around it.

Placing the final bowl of food in the bird house above her head, Fluttershy let out a sigh of relief. She loved looking after the animals in her home, she really did, but feeding them could be exhausting at times. Having the natural ability to fly certainly helped, but sometimes there were just too many. Mating seasons didn't help matters, bringing even more tiny mouths to feed. But it didn't matter. She was done now, and all the animals were happy to get a free meal.

Looking around her home, and seeing the content faces on all the animals, she yawned and cracked her wings as she lay on the couch, glad to be free from work Even if it was just for a little while. But it was too early to sleep, and not the type to nap at every chance she got like her friend, she pleased herself by grabbing a nearby book. The more friendly animals proceeded to sit on the couch beside her, some even giving the illusion to be reading along with her, nodding and turning their heads as she did the pages. But she didn't mind, as long as they enjoyed themselves.

Their paradise didn't last. Out of the silence, screams and yells emanated from the garden outside. The smaller animals scattered around the cottage, heading for the safety of their homes. The larger creatures simply stood there, suddenly turning their heads towards the noise. Fluttershy did the same. Realising the noise was, in fact, somepony rather than something, she stood on her hind legs and peered out of the window behind her.

Applebloom, Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle came careering down the path towards her home, screaming and shouting at her while they did. They started banging on the front door once they reached it. The banging was hectic and fast.

“Help us!”

“Open the door!”

In a small rush of panic, Fluttershy sped to the door, quickly obliging to their request . The foals wasted no time in rushing at her when she did. They were shouting and crying, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't understand a word they were saying. Their coats were dirtied with mud and gravel, and bits of leaves and twigs could be seen sticking out from their manes. Their breathing was ragged and their eyes were red: bloodshot from tears.

“Oh dear, wh-” Fluttershy worriedly attempted to get a word in, but they didn't stop. They were still shouting things at her things she couldn’t understand. Their voices were muffled by their crying, and speaking at the same time as each other did nothing but confuse the yellow mare further.

“It's alrigh littl-” They started shouting louder in protest, shaking their heads and looking over their shoulders. Their shouting increased, still spewing unintelligible words and sentences.

“One at a ti-” They weren't listening to her. There was tears glistening on their cheeks, and their breathing was hard and ragged, which meant they probably weren't even trying to listen either.

“ONE AT A TIME!...” She didn't like raising her voice, and was somewhat surprised herself that she had, but at least it gave her the chance to work out what was going on. “...please?”

The three crusaders looked up at Fluttershy, blinking and shuffling their feet under her gaze. They just stood there shaking, occasionally looking behind them towards the trees outside. But their crying hadn't stopped, and they looked just as scared as before.

“S-sorry...” The all said at the same, sniffing.

“It’s okay, I’m sorry too.” Fluttershy looked at them, her usual reassuring smile returning to her face. “What happened?” Applebloom chose to speak up first.

“We w-was in the...Everfree forest an'...an’...”

“It's okay. Just take your time.”

“...An' a monster tried ta’ eat Sweetie Belle!” Fluttershy’s eyes widened, and her mouth hung open. It had tried to eat her? Oh, this was terrible. The poor things. They should have known better not to go near the forest! Fluttershy gave a quick glance towards Sweetie, looking over for injuries. Spare the dirtied coat and mane, and being positively terrified, she seemed to be doing fine. As well as could be expected, anyway.

Scootaloo spoke next, nervously stepping towards Fluttershy before she did so.

“And...and it was r-really big, and stood on both its back legs like a Diamond Dog. It had h-horrible teeth and long, black claws! A-and it hit a huge Manticore out of a tree without even touching it!” She was barely breathing, and when she did her voice came out as coarse and raspy.

“Then it killed the Manticore with a big, big sword, and then it came for us! It had blood on its claws and face, a-and it tried to eat Sweetie Be-he-helle!” The orange Pegasi’s tears began freely streaming from her eyes, and soon after she began openly weeping on the floor.

A huge monster?! With huge claws and horrible teeth?! That sounded awful! The poor fillies. No one deserved to be put through that. And they still looked terrified. They needed to be at home. Their families would want to know what had happened. And they would also be able to help them more than Fluttershy could.

“Come on now. I'm taking you home.” She gave them a reassuring smile, but they still kept looking beyond the cottage into the forest. “Don't worry, the monster won't come after you. I promise.”

Hesitantly, and very, very slowly, they made their way out of the house. The foals didn't bother to wander further than they needed to, and constantly kept to Fluttershy’s side. The forest was just out of sight, beyond their vision, but that simply meant the same could be said for the monster.

Once they were down the path leading to the cottage, the children increased their pace, almost rushing towards their homes. Closing in on Ponyville, Fluttershy looked over her shoulder towards the trees in the distance. She had lived in her cottage for years, but never once encountered a creature she couldn't deal with. Or one that sounded so...beastly.

“Come on, little ones. Hurry along,” she said as her voice shook and wavered, “Your families are probably worried about you...”

- - - -

The small horses may have gotten loose of his senses, but their tracks hadn't. The ground was moist and fresh, leaving a clearly etched trail of prints in the forest floor. But the path was everything but simple. Whether they had just taken a complicated route from the start, or simply had gotten lost, Barbossa didn't know. Frankly he didn't care. He would just be relieved to be free of this God forsaken forest.

The thick layers of greenery took time to get through, giving him opportunity to think over the events that had transpired, and the consequences they brought. Only he had failed to reach the Locker. Out of all the worthless cockroaches aboard that ship, out of all the useless men, all the dispensable men, he was the one who was lost among an unknown world.

“Not that it matters!”

Slashing at the foliage in long, hard swipes with his sword, he pushed forward, almost roaring to himself at the world itself as he did. He hadn't the map upon his arrival, meaning they likely had it in theirs. He never carried his piece of eight on his person. Ragetti had it on his. They had everything of his they needed to free Calypso, and he was stuck here!

"Arrrggghh!"

Continuously slashing at the trees, and pushing whatever was left to the side, he stormed through the landscape. Despite his nerves being tempered and his ego being frayed, he was dealing with it. There was a way to and from Jones’ Locker, so that logic must also apply here. It had to. He had arrived under the same circumstances, so he would be able to leave by them as well.

Still moving forward, his barrage against the forest paid in his favour, eventually leading him out onto to an open path. It consisted of dirt and gravel, but was obviously unnatural. It was distinct and clear, and unlike most of what he had seen so far, held nothing in the way of plant life. It was barren and empty. Something the pirate captain did not complain about.

“How in God’s name did the horses do it?”

His frustration came out as tired and gravelly but he honestly didn't care. He was free of the forest. God knows how they got through without cutting their way out. Their tracks continued on to the path he had found, but were of no use now anyway. He had the path itself to go by.

Finally stepping out onto it, he took a gander down each way the path could lead. Looking around the path itself, it didn't seem to stretch that far ahead in either direction. On his left it continued on, only to apparently lead deeper into the forest.

His right, on the other hand, lead on to what he hoped to be a way out; rays of light were visible in the distance. The dirt track also had little hoof prints leading that way too, leaving Barbossa with little doubt as to which way to go..

“Best be seeing what this world has te offer.”

Rather more confident now that he had some bearings, he stowed away his sword and ventured on towards the end of the path. He also refilled his pistol, finally having a decent chance to do so. Once outside the forest, everything that was once over growing simply seemed to stop, as if the land on the outside refused to let it go on any further. The dank, mustiness of the forest gave way to fresh air and sunlight. And the terrible creatures squealing in the shadows were replaced by the sound of running water.

Finally free of the accursed place, Barbossa basked in the sunlight, glad to see it back in full force. Heading towards the sound in front of him, he took a hearty drink of the fresh, streaming water, having had nothing since long before the ship even went down.

“Right...” the pirate said as he gave his old bones crack of relief, flexing his back and shoulders, “Now what?” He spoke to no one in particular, feeling doing so would stave of the boredom and insanity.

Moving along his new found path of choice, a small building caught the corner of his eye, his route more or less leading right up to it. Continuing onward, the captain once again took notice of the prints at his feet.

“Ah...”

He hadn't planned on discovering where the small animals had gone, but saw no reason not to after coming this far. They were the only link he had in this world, if he could even call them that.

“There be nothin' else worth doin'...”

Letting a weary laugh escape him, he ploughed onwards. The search for a way back to his world had to start somewhere, “Can't let ye have all the fun now, can 'a Jack.”

But for now, there was the present issue at hand. The horses would no doubt have informed someone of him, and judging by the way in which they left his favourable company, it would likely have not been a good impression they shared. However, nothing could be accomplished without first reaching a destination, and seeing as the small building was the only one he knew of, it would have to suffice.

Unfortunately, arriving at the cottage had brought forward something new to consider.

“I'm not likely te be enjoyin' me stay here...”

There were so many animals. Birds. Squirrels and rabbits. And enough burrows and bird houses to hold all of them and more. The scent of flowers was heavy in the air, and it was easy to see why. The roof was adorned with many of them, and a flotilla of butterflies and coloured insects decorated the flowers themselves.

Even the animals themselves seemed overly happy, each one having bright eyes and wide smiles gracing their faces. Water from the river flowed beneath the bridge to the house; lilly pads floating freely with the flow of the water. Everything was so alive. Everything was...so...

“Sickly sweet...” he muttered to himself.

Everything was too bright. Too happy. Too colourful. Nothing like the forest. Even Barbossa himself felt out of place given his current surroundings; the dark blues and greys of his clothes and body contrasting with the greens and bright hues of the landscape.

Everything just felt...wrong. The utter audacity of the world, its vibrancy, just made him want to repel it. Push it away. Even the grass at his feet made him feel uneasy. But if he backed away from everything that was presented to him, what had his life taught him? This house was a start, and he'd be better off staying than leaving.

The animals surrounding him were apparently inclined to disagree. They had all stopped to look at him, seemingly displeased with his presence. Many even looked...angry. Not one to be threatened by fluffy creatures and butterflies, Barbossa continued his way towards the door. A lone white rabbit stood on the porch with its arms crossed, apparently trying to dissuade him from going further.

“Anybody home!”

No reply.

“I mean ye no harm!”

Spare some birds fleeing from his voice, there was still no response emanating from the house. The pirate wasn't exactly lying, feeling it best to assure his noble intentions, assuming his image in this world had already been tarnished by the children. He gave a quick shrug towards the rabbit.

“At least ye can't say I failed to attempt an accord.” He gave a crooked and smile and headed for the door regardless.

If there was no one inside, that meant it was free pickings for a good look around. There should be books, or at least some form of information to be had inside that could prove useful to his cause. If there were...living things inside, he could attempt to strike up a deal of sorts.

However, the small white rabbit once again stood in his way, it's tiny arms spread across the door and it's face defiant. It was almost comical given its less than threatening appearance. But the pirate had decided to take this world with a pinch of salt.

“Go on!” Moving his hands in a motion to shoo it away, he approached the small animal. “Be gone! Away with ye.”

The rabbit stood his ground, body unmoved despite Barbossa's protests. With the age old act of shooing the animal away failing to work, he rolled his eyes and pulled out his pistol.

“I'll ask ye again. Away.” The creature looked up at the item pointing towards him, and despite its evident confusion, could at least tell the item posed a threat. But the small rabbit still refused to move. Its façade of bravado and composure had faded, yet it still stood its ground.

He grinned sarcastically. “A brave doorman to be sure, and a' commend ye for yer duties.” Firing his pistol in the air, he gave a deep cackle as the small rabbit, as well as every other animal in the vicinity, scampered and fled the flash and bang of his flintlock. “But ye have yer priorities, and I have mine.”

It had never been his goal to harm the animal, given he didn't rightly know what it was in this world. For all he knew it was some sort of small child. He may have been a pirate, but he wasn't an idiot. Scaring it away solved both issues, and without the need for blame to be put on his record. His intentions were strictly honourable as far as he was concerned, and there was no reason in creating quarrels were there weren't needed.

Honourable or not, the house in front him most likely had something of use to his cause. Even a confirmation of where he was would be useful at this point. While exploration would be certainly be more fruitful, he'd rather not stick out unaided in a world that was potential populated by talking animals, and judging from the horses reaction to him, they were likely the sole population.

The inside of the building encouraged a sigh from Barbossa. While it was certainly less...flamboyant than the outside world, it was still rather too picturesque. Much of the furniture consisted bird houses, with the rest being overcome with small foot walks and holes. Pellets and bowls lay across the floor, many up turned in what he assumed was the panic he had just caused. Despite the number of lodgings present for animals, there was no smell, which he assumed would be the main issue with housing as many of them as he could see. Perhaps they were trained.

He then noticed something else that caught his attention, rather surprised it hadn't been the first thing noticed. Everything was...rather small. Not so much that he would struggle to accommodate, but not fit to his scale anyway.

“Figures. The young ones weren't up te me shins. A grown one wouldn't get much bigger.”

At least he hoped not. They were smaller than foals he had seen before, but if the grown ones were the size of the horses he knew, they would have no issue harming him in groups. Even with a pistol and sword.

Laughing nervously, he rubbed the back of his head. “It needn't come te that.” Not if he was careful enough.

To the right of the entrance was a door that led into what he assumed was a kitchen. It was basic, having nothing more than what he would expect to find. While food would be welcome, the pantry contained nothing but flowers, nuts and some hay. The nuts were not to his liking, and the rest was downright inedible.

Moving instead to the room almost directly opposite, there was nothing of obvious value spare for a book left casually on the couch. Its navy blue cover was none to exciting, being empty spare a picture of a cowering horse among some black shadows. Wondering about its usefulness, he picked it up and read the title.

“The Silence in the Library by Ink Slinger?” Must be a pseudonym, he thought to himself. It was an romance novel, but having no use for it, and having looked over everything else he deemed worthy, he moved to the stairs.

The steps were slightly awkward, given his size, but it was not something he needed to get used to. The single room atop the stairs was apparently a bedroom. There was a single bed, as well as an assortment of different pieces of furniture. Flowers and various feminine decorations were situated around the walls, as well as on the small fireplace to his side.

Among the ceiling's beams were more bird houses and actual nests, although all were empty. The open window gave him a good idea of where the birds had gone. More importantly, there was a chest at the bottom of the bed and a bookshelf come desk to the left, just beyond the fireplace..

“This should do.” he exclaimed as a smile of intrigue crept onto the man’s face, excited with the thought of actually finding something worth his breaking and entering.

Walking up to the bed and opening the chest, his excitement soon shattered when the treasure revealed itself to be an assortment of hats, socks and shoes. Barbossa wasn't exactly expecting gold doubloons, but something more worth his while than clothes. The hats were somewhat gaudy, but otherwise not too undesirable. Maybe a bit too feminine for the good captains tastes.

“What swine keeps hats in a chest!”

With a slight air of frustration and a scowl on his face, he slammed the chest shut. There were probably many who kept clothes in chests, but that didn't stop him complaining about it. The house thus far had supplied nothing of use and it was beginning to get irritating. Believing the bookshelf would be more likely to hold information, he moved on to it, groaning as he stood up.

The desk itself contained little apart from common writing materials, but it was obviously the bookshelf itself that most interested Barbossa. There was probably no more than a dozen or so books on the shelves, but hopefully at least one would hold some useful information.

The shelf was less a library of knowledge and more a collection of love stories. He pulled out book after book, each ones blurb telling the tale of love, lies and loss. The newest one earning a special response from the old pirate.

“Boundaries by Tiger Lilly: Mare love transcending the limits of gender and friendship.” Quickly widening his eyes in surprise, he cocked a smile after letting his breath get away from him, Barbossa tossed the book on the floor with the rest. He didn't know whether to be amused or curious, given this was clearly a women's house.

Continuing his apparently fruitless search of the bookshelf love built, and the collection of books rapidly depleting, something finally caught his eye. It was a small book, old too, but it seemed to one of the two only non-fiction books present. The other being a guide to animal health.

“Field Guide: Ponyville Edition” was all that was written on the dulled, dark red cover, an image of what appeared to be animals jumping accompanying it. It was fairly worn, and the pages were dirties with long hours of use. Opening it up, the book was marked all over with ink and pencil. The random pages he found having ticks and notes next to impressively clear images of animals. Among the many notes present on the pages were things like “likes cherries” and “so very fluffy.”

“Ponyville?” Barbossa struggled to stifle a laugh. “Now I've heard everythin'.”

Quickly flicking through the rest of the book, searching for some form of map, he smiled at finally finding a somewhat complete one at the back. It was not as detailed as he would have liked, with the woodland outside “Ponyville” being the main point of interest. However, the addition of different segmented maps for other areas seemed to make up for this.

“It'll have te do.” While not what he wanted, it was far from useless. A small heart and “My House” marking what he assumed was his current position on different maps throughout the book. Although he had hoped for information on the world itself, an extract on a small town was a good place to start.

But everything was surprisingly well done for a common guide; the text was crisp and the pictures were all of a very high quality, like no book or map Barbossa had had the pleasure to see.

Pleased with his new found bounty, he gave the area around him a quick glance over, confirming he had not missed anything of importance, and headed towards the stairs. Half suspecting someone to have arrived home in his search, he slowly looked around the interior before making his way down. Surprised his venture into the home had gone so smoothly, he confidently went through the door into the garden outside, not wishing to tempt fate.

Finally outside, and with a guide to the area in his possession, he walked back down the path he came. Taking the book out of his jacket, he opened it on the various pages at the back that contained the segmented maps. Many focused on areas such as forests and fields, but there were a few that focused on the nearby town.

“Now...where be me next port a' call?” Looking over the map he deemed the most useful, he moved his finger over the various named areas nearby. Not many places spoke out to him; the town hall and boutique not being among locations he really had any interest in or need for.

“Hey!”

The sudden breaking of the silence was enough to coax Barbossa out of his new found book. Not far to his right were two horses; one yellow with wings and the other a violet purple one with a horn. They were standing on what he believed was the path leading up to Ponyville. He suddenly regretted slowing to read the book rather than actually leaving.

But next to the yellow one, he saw something that irked him more. A little white rabbit was stood there waving at him, a smug little smile spread across his face. No words were spoken, yet the pirate still knew what it had done.

“Little bastard.”

At Wits End

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 3
At Wits End

“Do...do you think Rarity will be mad at me?”

“Oh no no no. I think she'll just be glad you're safe.” Having already taken Applebloom and Scootaloo home, Sweetie belle was the only crusader left with Fluttershy. Applejack was just relieved to see Applebloom was safe, and despite her expectations, she wasn't going to be punished for going into the forest. Both Scootaloo's family and the Apple's believed the fillies had been through enough.

Over the course of the trip home, all three children seemed to have somewhat calmed down, albeit still occasionally looking back the way they had come. Sweetie Belle had long since stopped crying, and the sniffling and worried looks and not long faded either. While Fluttershy guessed it was because she was going home, she liked to think she'd played some part in cheering the fillies up.

Finally arriving at Rarity's Boutique, Sweetie Belle picked up pace and ran through the door, with Fluttershy calmly following behind. Alerted to the sudden noise in her store, Rarity readied herself with a quick check in the mirror and straightening of her mane. Her face dropped when she instead got a view of her very messy little sister.

“Sweetie Belle! What happened to your c-” She was cut off when the little filly charged into her head first, eager for some sort of familiar contact. She started to cry again.

“I'm so sorry big Sister!” Rarity was more surprised at the turn of events than anything else. Coming to her senses, and realising her sister was upset, she looked towards Fluttershy for answers.

“There was an incident in the forest. They said they were...attacked by a monster.” Rarity's eyes went wide. Attacked?

“Are you okay? Did it hurt you?” She didn't know if she was angrier at the monster for what it had done, or her sister for disobeying her.

“We got away b-before it got us...”

Thank Celestia. She had told her umpteen times never to go in the forest. They had all been told. But right now, being angry at them wasn't important. She was scared, and worsening her state of mind would just be cruel.

“Shhh, it's okay. You’re safe now. That's all that matters. I'm just glad you're okay.”

“So...so y-you’re not going to punish me?” She didn't plan to, but she still wanted her to feel guilty.

“We'll see about that.” She gave a sneaky wink towards Fluttershy. “Thank you for bringing her home. Are the others okay?”

“Oh yes, they're fine. I think they were just happy to be back at home.” Continuing the small talk on the events transpired aside, she soon said her goodbyes and left for home. Rarity was her best friend, but seeing as what happened to Sweetie Belle was more important, she left them to be alone.

Stepping outside, she realised it was still relatively early in the afternoon, being just after three at the most. Being spring, the sun was still relatively high in the sky, and with her duty of taking the children home completed, she wondered what to do with the rest of her day. She had already fed the animals and cleaned their homes, after all. And she didn't want to waste coming all the way into town.

Then her mind went back to the monster. With its long black claws and terrible teeth. It's power to down a Manticore and the intelligence to use tools. She hadn't seen or read about a creature that matched its description, let alone one that could stand on its hind legs. Diamond Dogs stood on their hind legs, but couldn't do so for long. Even then they wouldn't be a match for a Manticore. Still curious about the mystery monster, she worked out what she was going to do.

“I'll ask Twilight. She's bound to know what it is.” Even if she didn't, she could bet she'd want to find out. That is, if the library didn't have an answer already.

The library wasn't far, being barely ten minutes from Rarity's home. But Fluttershy made good time getting there anyway, given that the sooner she got there, the sooner she could get the answers she wanted. Eventually arriving after a brief five minute walk, she politely knocked on the front door. Twilight often said just to come straight in, but she still thought it was nice to be polite. Shortly afterwards, Spike came to answer the door.

“Hey Fluttershy.” He turned back inside. “TWILIGHT! IT'S FLUTTERSHY! Come on in.”

Having been invited in, she sauntered her way through the library's doors. Glancing around, she saw her purple friend piling books back into the many shelves situated around her. Having put the book she was currently handling away, she turned around to greet her friend.

“Hey Fluttershy. You don’t want another romance novel already, do you?” This ushered a small blush from the yellow mare, not that there was really anything to be embarrassed about.

“Not today, no. It's something a little bit more important.”

She then sat and explained the situation as she understood it to Twilight. About the Cutie Mark Crusaders and how they came running into her home. How scared they were, how tired they looked. And finally about the monster they had described. The beast with black claws and horrid teeth. Its abilities and it looks. As much as she could remember from how the girls described it. Throughout the tale, Twilight seemed deep in concentration, absorbing every word and analysing every piece of detail that left Fluttershy's lips. After stating the last of her claims, Fluttershy let Twilight take it all in. She was already thinking.

“Why were they in the forest in the first place?”

“Applebloom said they were being Cutie Mark Crusader Species Spotters. They didn't think they'd find many interesting animals anywhere else.” She knew they could have found just as many animals outside the forest, but resolved not to point out what couldn’t be changed. Twilight's brow furrowed, still in deep concentration.

“Well that aside, I've never heard of anything like this.” She was disappointed. She hated not knowing something. But all that meant was that she had a chance to find out. She looked above her head, and after confirming her choices, she pulled out three books, all from the same shelf. Opening the first one, titled “All the Strange, Strange Creatures”, she began ploughing through the pages, looking for anything at all related to their mystery creature.

Fluttershy sat on her haunches, unsure of exactly what to do with herself. Sure, Twilight would probably find an answer for her questions, but that left her doing nothing in the meantime. Remembering she was in fact in a library, she grabbed a book of a nearby shelf that piqued her interest. It wasn't a romance novel, but she saw no point in starting a new one anyway. Spike occasional left his duties to ask Fluttershy about the monster or fetch a book for Twilight, wanting to somehow be involved with finding out about the mystery monster.

This continued until Twilight had exhausted the final of the three books she had pulled out. She'd read most other books in the library pertaining to magical creatures, and couldn’t think of any piece of material that had a reference to their mystery monster. But that wasn't the only issue: she needed first-hand knowledge on the creature. The crusaders may have seen it, but as children she couldn't rightly trust their judgement on what it looked like. The truth was stretched even farther when she considered that not only were they scared, it had also been retold by Fluttershy, who may have got minor details incorrect

“I need to see it. The information I have could be inaccurate or wrong.” She groaned in frustration. “And some of what you told me is just too vague.”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean like, does horrible teeth mean they were sharp and scary, or just disgusting? Does it always walk on its hind legs, or was it trying to intimidate them? We can walk on our back legs if we try.”

Fluttershy had to admit she had a point. She was sure she had got everything right, but if Sweetie belle, Scootaloo and Applebloom were wrong, that meant she was too. She just pictured the scariest thing she could with what she was told, that didn't necessarily mean that's what it actually looked like.

“Can I take some of these books to your place? That way we could start at your house tomorrow and search around the entrance to Everfree, and I wouldn't have to go back and forth to town” Fluttershy looked behind her friend to the books she was pertaining to. There were...quite a few. Wait a minute...

“We?” She didn't much like the thought of looking through Everfree solely for a creature that may or may not want to eat them.

“I could get the others together tomorrow to help. I don't know where Rainbow is right now, and I'm pretty sure Applejack's looking after her sister.”

Fluttershy decided to give in. She did want to know more about the strange animal, after all. Plus, if her friends were there to help look for it, she was sure nothing bad would happen. “I guess you could put the books in my r-”

“Great, just let me grab my saddlebag.” She skipped off upstairs and rummaged around for a few seconds before coming back down with the item in question. Twilight then began levitating various books from her pile into the bag on her back. After she had apparently gotten “enough for now”, she and Fluttershy headed for the door.

“What about me, Twilight?” Oh. Twilight had almost forgotten about her assistant. The wide grin plastered on his face and his bouncing up and down more than showed how eager he was to help.

“I'll be back later for more books. I promise you can help out tomorrow.” Spike gave her a dubious look. It wouldn't be the first time he got left behind when something cool was going on. “Just find all the books that might be relevant to the mystery monster. You can help me look through them at Fluttershy's.”

Somewhat pleased that he might be a part of the fun for once, he hurried off to complete the tasks his friend had gave him; spurred on by the fact he might get to catch a glimpse of the “Mystery Monster of the Everfree Forest”.

Finally leaving the library, Twilight and Fluttershy set off for the shy mare’s cottage. They attempted small talk to pass the time, but subject matters eventually reverted back to their current mystery. Now that her studious friend was involved, Fluttershy began to feel rather confident about finding about this creature. She felt like a policepony or an undercover detective.

The books on Twilights back weren't heavy, but after carrying them most of the way to the cottage, the weight began to get heavier under her tiring muscles. Her friend offered to carry them for her multiple times, but she refused. The cottage wasn't that much further anyway. However, nearing the edge of town, the sudden arrival of a certain someone prompted the two mares to stop in their tracks, much to Twilight's relief.

“Angel!” The little bunny rarely left the comfort of the cottage, one of the reasons being that he wasn't normally allowed to. His breathing was somewhat deep and wavered, but if he'd come all the way from his home, it was to be expected.

He began shaking his arms in the air and hopping around, holding a manner of different poses while doing so. After he was apparently done doing what he was doing, he proceeded to point down the dirt road he had come from. The two mares just looked at him, attempting to hold off their laughter. Fluttershy then had an idea and walked up to him, speaking in her most child friendly voice.

“Are you hungry mister silly billy? I'm sure I gave you enough food.”

Slapping his forehead in frustration, he proceeded to draw what appeared to be an angry face on the dirt at the mare’s hooves. He then proceeded to draw and arrow pointing from said picture to a simple square house. Finishing his masterpiece, he continuously pointed between Fluttershy and the house, obviously flustered as well as irritated that he couldn't get his point across.

“There's...is a monster in my house?!” Sarcastically clapping his paws, he nodded and attempted to pull his keeper along the route to their home. Fluttershy instead then turned to address Twilight, much to Angels annoyance.

“Oh no. Do you think it's the monster from the forest? Maybe it's harmed the animals.” While concern was evident in Fluttershy's voice, Twilight's response held more intrigue than worry.

“If it is, I want to get a good look at it.” Although this was certainly not the best of circumstances, with Fluttershy's home and her animal friends in danger, this could be the only chance they would get to see it out in the open.

“If we hurry we could help the animals too.” Shifting the satchel on her back into a more comfortable location, Twilight set of in a sprint for their destination, Fluttershy following with her bunny friend riding on her back. With the weight of the books on her back, however, the purple mare regretted not bringing them in moderation. She wanted to just leave them on the ground there and then, but argued against herself that they would get stolen or ruined.

“Oh, I hope the little dears are okay.” They were both breathing harder, Twilight more so. But with the cottage just out of view, she persevered. Just a little further.

And then they saw it.

The creature was tall. At least two or three heads taller than either of the mares were. It stood on its hind legs as if it had four; the loss of balance or need for support Twilight had theorised not being present at all. It wore clothes of...some sort of heavy material. It looked so out of place compared to the plants and the trees. And it wore a hat. With feathers! She hadn't thought it would even wear clothes at all. There were no sign of huge black claws, or its horrible teeth, but then they weren't up close. Everything else fit the criteria though.

It was coming down the path of Fluttershy's cottage, holding what appeared to be a book. The fact it could walk and read at the same time alone made Twilight jealous, but she vowed to save that for another time. It also appeared to be talking to itself. Carefully putting her bag on the ground, she searched for the will power to do...something. While she was scared, her curiosity won out in the end.

“Hey!” Fluttershy slowly turned her head to face her friend, shock clearly present on her face.

“What are you doing Twilight?” Her voice came out as little more than a squeaky whisper. Fluttershy just stood there, mortified her friend had dared call out to the possibly pony-eating monster.

“It's reading a book. It could be intelligent. We should try talking to it.” The creature had turned to them now, staring down the trio as they whispered to one another. Well, those who could talk anyway. Angel simply waved at the...thing.

While the two ponies conversed down the path, Barbossa stood there, considering his options. These two horses...well, horse and a unicorn, seemed passive enough, but there was no proof they held peaceful intentions. They had just seen him come out what could have possibly been their house, and the yellow one looked like it could be related to the child from earlier, seeing as they both had similar colour schemes. Then again, he didn't know if that was how it worked: he was making it up as he went along at this point.

It also annoyed him to no end he had forgotten what winged horses were called. He knew of Greek mythology, and many other foul creatures that roamed his world, but he had forgotten one of the most rudimentary.

On the other hand, he had the book. The maps of the surrounding land would prove useful at getting around, but it was the maps of Ponyville that interested him. Among other things, he now knew the locations of a school and a set of orchards. He could gain access to information on the world itself, as well as masses of food at the same time, before being able to decide on an appropriate course of action to get home. He knew his plan was flawed, but it was the one he was most comfortable with.

“Can you talk?” The purple one had begun to approach him, slowly but surely, still weary of his presence.

All he needed to do now was get away.

However, as much as he loathed the thought, he wasn't the escape artist Jack was. He couldn't just run towards something and, by chance alone, get away using whatever he found. If anything, that was one of Jacks only redeeming qualities when having him on your side: he was good at getting out of trouble. However, the Captain didn't consider himself a complete failure at the art. He wouldn't have survived as long as he did otherwise. He crookedly smiled towards his addresser, answering her question.

“I'm 'fraid not. Sorry te be wastin’ yer time.” Walking backwards, he proceeded up the path in the opposite direction the mares had come, shrugging his shoulders and holding his hand innocently in the air. He continued to watch as the unicorn continued to walk further forward as he walked further back.

“Do you have a name?” The question surprised the pirate, but he saw no need to keep it from her. He didn't exactly blend in.

“Captain Hector Barbossa.” He gave a sarcastic bow, and even tipped his hat for the occasion. “Pleased te' be meetin' yer acquaintances.” He ushered his hand towards the mare, obviously wanting her name in return.

“Twilight Sparkle.” This was great! She so felt proud with herself. She'd not only found out the creature could speak, but also discovered it had a name! She would have to write it down.

Her pride soon faded when the creat...Hector began snorting at her, eventually giving way to bellowing laughter. After a few second, letting his hysterics die down, he wiped away a tear from his eye.

“Aye, and a fine name it is too, to be sure.” He'd had an idea. “If ye were named by a child.”

“What's that supposed to mean?” She hadn't meant to let the question slip out, but his response had just come back too quickly. He simply smiled back at her.

“Nothin' to be offended for, Miss Sparkle. I'm sure yer friend's name be just as bad.” He had no idea if it was, but assuming that everyone was named like this, there was a good chance of it. He motioned to Fluttershy to get his point across.

“You're insulting my friends now?” Rather than letting her emotions take over, she took a deep breath, and calmed herself; she wasn't going to let him get the better of her good nature. “There's nothing wrong with her name.”

“My apologies. What be yer name then!” He called out to the shy Pegasus, who hadn't moved since she'd arrived on the scene. He hoped he had the situation thought out well enough.

“F...t...rs...” Her speaking barely above a whisper wasn't assisted by the fact that she was talking away from the pirate, trying to avoid eye contact and hiding behind her mane. Seeing where this was going, remembering the pattern from their own initial meeting, Twilight decided to speak in her steed.

“Her name is Fluttershy.” She regretted her decision soon after hearing his reaction.

“A name as withered as her nature, it appears. That be really helpin' your cause, Miss Sparkle.” His smile widened, showing of his teeth. They really were horrible. And she really didn't like the way he said her name. She needed to change the subject, seeing as she didn't know what else to do; Fluttershy was crying, and she didn't want start any trouble with Hector. Not yet, anyway.

“What are you doing here?” She would not let him get the better of her.

“Plunderin' for anythin' I deem worthy o' value.” He shook his new book in the air. “I presume ye be the owner this rather...fine home?”

“No.” She didn't want to give him anything else to talk about; anything to use against them. He was just trying to get under her skin. And, unfortunately, he was winning.

“Must belong to yer friend then. There be nothin' else worth takin' in th' hole anyways.” He moved back some more, apparently confident with himself.

“And I'd be watchin' out for her, Miss Sparkle. I'm sure her tastes in lovers be not of the gentlemanly persuasion, if ye be catchin' me drift.” Twilight wasn't taking this anymore. Making fun of her was one thing, but not her friends.

“How dare you!” She'd had enough. He was tall, sure, but that didn't mean she couldn't talk him down from his high horse. No one talked about friends like that! If she couldn't fight him, she would be sure to make him rethink making fun of Fluttershy. She sauntered towards him, eyes flaring and horn aimed forward. “You can get away with insulting me, but you w-”

She couldn't finish. Barbossa had grabbed the mare by the head and in a quick, flawless manoeuvre, shoved her to the side and kicked her in the ribs, pushing her into the river next to the cottage in the process. It was shallow, but he knew it would at the very least disorientate the animal.

Quickly making sure the shy one was still quivering and crying under her own hooves, he ran for the side of the house, and towards some trees in the distance, but not before hearing Fluttershy call out to her hurt friend.

“Twilight! Twilight are you okay?!”

He knew simply running from the start would be useless. Normal or not, they were horses, and any horse was faster than a man of his age. And even if Twilight couldn't catch him, he was certain the other one could, seeing as she could fly; he considered it pure luck that Fluttershy was too frightened or preoccupied to give chase.

The other option was to attack, but was that awkward due to the same reasons. Trying to land a hit would be hard enough, but with one able to fly off for help, and the other in possession a horn, he didn't want to take his chances. Lulling one of them towards him was easier, and much more likely to succeed. Plus, pushing them in the water would give him time to escape without harming them. Well, without harming them permanently anyway. He had planned to do the same to the yellow one, but as before, he was thankful she didn't seem inclined to attack.

But holding them back with his sword would have been unacceptable. They had no reason to be grievously harmed or killed. It would further no favour of his, nor would it have been honourable to do so; he considered himself a gentleman of the sea, and unlike many pirates, had learned the hard way what befell those compelled by greed.

The lack of allies or resources should he get caught was also an issue, but that wasn't the point.

Still running, and rather proud of how he handled the escape, he looked towards the trees ahead of him. Opening the book, he searched for the last page he'd had his eye on, eager to assure himself he was heading in the somewhat correct direction. Satisfied he was, he nodded his head and stored the book into his jacket. It may have held little in terms of descent co-ordinations, but made up for it in quantity and information on the wild life.

The section of the book he'd had open only focused on a specific corner of Ponyville, and the many orchards and fields that were present there. Given his current state of well-being, and the arduous task he likely had ahead of him in the evening, he only had one thing on his mind.

Food.

Barbossa is Hungry

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 4
Barbossa is Hungry

“Well, that failed miserably...”

Pushing against the ground below her, Twilight groaned as she stood up at the river’s edge. It wasn't deep, but the water wasn't her problem. She winced again as she felt a pain at her sides.

“Great.” Her ribs hurt, she was cold, and she her mane was dirty. Thank Celestia she'd dropped the books beforehoof. It would have awful if they'd got ruined.

“Twilight?! Are...are you okay?” Fluttershy was rubbing her hoofs over her eyes, sniffling and rubbing away her tears as she loomed over her purple friend.

“I guess. I think he broke some ribs though.” Fluttershy's face dropped, her emotional state fading in favour of a more worried one.

“Should I get help?!”

“No. I can fix some broken ribs...” Slowly trotting out of the drink, she paused to levitate the water from her fur. Her horn gave of a faint magenta glow, causing steam to miraculously emanate from her body, the dirt and grime going with it. Giving herself a once over, as well as a swift shake, he turned to her friend.

“Did you see which way he went?” Not that it mattered. He was probably too far away for them to catch him anyway. Not that she was particularly in the mood to see him.

“N-no. I'm sorry. ”

“Don't be sorry. You didn't do anything wrong.” attempting to walk further, Twilight let out another groan of pain. “Can I come in? I'll need time to concentrate if I want to heal myself.”

Reminding Twilight they were heading there anyway, Fluttershy collected her friend’s books and ushered her inside. The books were heavy, but she wouldn't let Twilight carry the saddlebag with broken ribs. After slowly making her way inside, the purple mare proceeded to lie down on the couch in Fluttershy's living room.

“Oh.” Fluttershy let out a bitter sigh. “He didn't even wipe his feet...”

“Fluttershy, he was robbing you. Wiping his feet probably wasn't his biggest concern.” Her response came back harsher than she'd meant it to, but sitting there with some broken ribs wasn’t helping her temperament.

Lamenting her friend was probably right, Fluttershy dropped the heavy bag on the floor next to the couch. Twilight usually wanted time to do more important spells, thus Fluttershy busied herself reading some of the books her friends had brought with her. The yellow Pegasus often marvelled at the things Twilight and Rarity could do. The ability to levitate objects being the most desired. While she would never give up her wings, having the ability to use magic would surely be useful, especially when tending the animals. A loud cracking noise stemming from Twilight promptly brought Fluttershy out of her daydream.

“Was that...meant to happen?” She knew her friend was magically capable, but her spells didn't always go the way they were meant to. However, after a long wince and a small stretch, Twilight turned to face her.

“Sadly, yes. It's kinda like clicking your joints. I have to sort of break the rib in reverse. Kinda. I know what I mean.” She attempted a giggle. “Medical ponies use the same spell, except they can do it with more control and less...cracking than I can. It has the same overall effect though.”

Hopping off from the couch, she gave another long stretch of her body, and happy that she was indeed fully healed, she jumped up and down on the spot to prove her point.

“See? Good as new.” Fluttershy was pleased enough with the result as well; her friend was better, despite how unpleasant the resulting sound was.

Coming away from her small triumph, Twilight remembered the reason she got hurt in the first place. Going through her saddlebag, she pulled out a small notebook and a quill, and began fervently writing down what little information she already had.

Captain Hector Barbossa

Fluttershy frowned at the name, but given how he had behaved towards her, the reaction was entirely justified in Twilight's mind. He didn't have to be so cruel; they were only trying to talk to him. Well, Twilight was anyway.

“We should have a look around. He was stealing stuff from your house.” It was evident where he had gone too. Trails of dirt and muddy prints were spread throughout the cottage, only fading when they led upwards into Fluttershy’s bedroom.

Deciding to follow the route Hector had apparently taken, they began in the kitchen. Rummaging aside, it appeared he hadn't paid much heed to anything in there. He had raided the food store, but apart from a few nuts that had been spat on the floor, nothing appeared to have been eaten. Twilight continued to write into her notebook.

“What are you writing down?” Not that she minded. Despite how mean he had been to her, she was still curious about him; she hadn't seen anything like him in her life, and she prided herself on knowing about any animal she could find.

“Just anything I find, really. I mean, apart from his name and the ability to talk, we haven't got anything concrete to go on.” After finishing whatever she was writing, the duo continued through the house, coming back to the room they were in previously. Angel had returned to his cushion on the floor, apparently quite content with just lying there while the two ponies investigated the thing that had threatened him not an hour earlier. Seeing Angel laying there, a thought suddenly occurred to Twilight.

“What happened to all the animals?”

“Angel said...Hector scared them away.” At least he hadn't eaten them, Twilight thought. That would've made the situation more tragic than it needed to be. Although she wondered how he had managed to scare them away, given there was usually so many. Angel had tried to explain it to them, going as far as to draw another picture, but it still escaped them as to what had actually happened. Noting the mystery down, along with Angel’s picture, Twilight once again returned to the investigation.

Standing aside for a few moments, Twilight allowed her friend to search the room to see if anything had been disturbed. Though when Fluttershy turned around and confirmed everything seemed fine, this brought forward more questions than answers. Sure, she was happy he hadn't destroyed Fluttershy's home, but then why had he broken in in the first place?

But after pushing forward, taking the investigation into Fluttershy’s bedroom, Twilight regretted that she’d asked.

“Oh no.” Fluttershy gave out a weak cry as she saw the state of her room. While for the most part everything was fine, the same could not be said for her small bookshelf. Books lay all across the floor, as did some of the ink and pens that had sat on her desk. Some of the books were even open; showing rips and tears from where they had made contact with the hard, wooden floor. The chest at the bottom of her bed also sat ajar, with much of its contents lying around it messily on the floorboards.

As Fluttershy headed for her chest of clothes and opened it, Twilight stood behind her, not really knowing what to do. The yellow Pegasus was sniffling again, and although she knew how to cheer her up when she was upset, Twilight didn't really feel she was actually sad. She looked hurt.

“Has he taken anything?” She guessed he probably hadn’t, seeing as he only appeared to have had a book when they last saw him.

“N-no. Everything's still here.” Giving a slow, wavering sigh of relief, she closed the lid of the chest and pushed it back into place. It wasn’t neat, and everything had been aimlessly thrown in, but her bookshelf was a more immediate concern.

Seeing as it was her speciality, Twilight began levitating the books back in to the bookshelf. She made sure to show each one to Fluttershy before she did, seeing as Hector had apparently stolen one. Having replaced most of them, one book brought back a memory of what the captain had said to her earlier.

“You know, if you did like mares, like that, it wouldn't bother me or anything.” Her words came out as rather forced, but she didn’t want her friend to think she was ignoring the issue. She really didn’t mind what her friends got up to, but she had no real idea of how to respond to something like this. There was a few seconds of silence before Fluttershy responded.

“I read one book. I don't see why that has to make me a filly fooler.” Her rebuttal came back as cold and emotionless. Twilight tried to talk back, but Fluttershy just avoided eye contact, turning around to pick up some more books. Fearing she'd disappointed her, Twilight hurriedly attempted to fumble together an apology, but not before Fluttershy responded, this time with a small, bright smile on her face.

“Thank you.”

With both of them silently agreeing to drop the matter, they returned to sorting the books back on to the shelf. Sorting the last one into the place, and having mostly repaired the broken ones, Twilight patiently waited for Fluttershy to decide what one had been stolen. It didn't take her long to figure it out; she only had two books there that weren’t romance novels.

“He’s taken my old field guide.”

“Field guide?”

“Well, when I first came to Ponyville, I wanted to learn about all the animals. So I bought a field guide from the town hall, and went around looking for all them.” Twilight cocked her head to the side, trying to piece together why he’d want a book about animals. “It showed all the areas where different kinds of little creatures lived, and I ticked each one off after I found them.”

“Wait, it showed you where they were? Like with maps?”

“Oh yes. It shows different sections of the fields and forests.” Seeing as it was Fluttershy, Twilight could see why such a book would be appealing. She even seemed to gleam talking about it.

But if the book did contain maps, that could explain why it was stolen. She didn't know what reason he had for a map, but deduced it was because he didn’t know his way around the area. You didn’t exactly see many of his kind around Ponyville.

“Does it have maps of the town?”

“Maybe a few, but the book’s meant for areas with wild life.” Twilight had been to the town hall a few times, and knew it sold things for people coming to visit. Canterlot had the same sort of thing at the tourist centre, and seeing as the book was likely made to promote tourism in Ponyville, it would be silly not to have some form of town map in it somewhere.

That still didn't explain why he needed it though. Ponyville wasn't very large, and there were hardly many places for you to get lost. He could have even got a new one from town hall himself. Then again, maybe he just didn't want to be seen.

After finishing cleaning up the bookshelf and its surroundings, the pair returned to the living room downstairs. Still rather upset with what had happened, Fluttershy began sweeping up her floor. Twilight happily offered her hoof to help, levitating what she could out the door why Fluttershy swept up the rest.

With the floor clean, Twilight sat on the couch and looked over the notes she had gathered, reworking anything she had learned to be false.

She had no references to his ability to take down a Manticore, but judging from his claws, he would have no problem using tools. And while they weren't black, the tips at the end were. He also appeared to be able to walk on two legs indefinitely and without much effort on his part. He also didn't appear to solely eat ponies, seeing as he tried to eat nuts. Hector also seemed to be somewhat civilised despite his cruel demeanour, as he could read and wore clothes, although she didn't know why he needed to. He also bowed when introducing himself, which at the time seemed quite gentlecoltly.

That still left the issue of what to do about him. At this point it was getting late, and she still found no reference in her books as to what he actually was. Searching for him at night would most likely fruitless, seeing as he wore dark clothes. Spike would have more books ready back at the library, but she still doubted how useful they would be.

“We'll need to look for him tomorrow. It's getting late, and I'd rather not go after him on our own.” She needed the others. Rainbow was fast, and she would be much better at giving chase should he try to escape again, as would Applejack, given how great she was during the running of the leaves. Plus she was strong, and having a greater number of ponies would likely give Hector a much harder time of escaping anyway.

“Should we tell them tonight? That way could start earlier tomorrow.” Twilight stared at her friend, somewhat surprised at her eagerness.

“I'm surprised you want to find him.”

“I know he was very mean, but I would still like to learn about him. And he didn’t try to hurt us straight away. Maybe he was scared?” Twilight was inclined to disagree, given he had broken her ribs and hurt Fluttershy’s feelings. And he didn't seem scared in the slightest. Then again, if she was approached by two strange ponies, she would have been wary of them as well. But that didn’t explain what he’d done. She needed to know more about him to make a proper judgement. They'd found out he wasn't a rampaging monster with a blood lust for little ponies, so that was one thing he had going in his favour

“And yes, we'll try and tell them tonight. Hopefully we can get them all together for tomorrow morning.” Maybe tomorrow they'd be a little more successful…and a little less broken.

- - - -

While fate seemed to have sent him into yet another otherworldly forest, the promise of food at the other end was enough to keep Barbossa moving forward. Any kind of food would be welcome, but he would receive apples. While he enjoyed the fruit, most especially a granny smith, they were so damned expensive. Fruit was a rare thing, especially for those who sailed the seas. They kept little longer than a week, two maximum. And even then there was always the chance that when he finally made port to acquire some, there would be none available.

Apples and descent caviar were the only food he would willingly pay good money for. But not too good; while apples were rare, caviar was an expensive delicacy. But there were certain salesmen in Tortuga that procured both products, and Barbossa made it his duty to visit them whenever he dropped anchor there.

The trees leading to these apples were not thick, nor were they hard to get through. The book said that there was a set of orchards aptly named “Sweet Apple Acres” west of them. The land surrounded the town, and unless he arrived on someone’s doorstep, it was assured he would reach either the orchards themselves or the conjoining farmland eventually. The time spent walking also gave him a chance to look over the book, mainly the pages containing information on animals.

“A Manticore?” After searching through a section on the forest he had apparently fell into, he finally found the creature he had slain. While there were fewer notes on this “Manticore” than the more adorable creatures, it still had notes scribbled around the picture. Apparently it was tameable.

“I'd like te see someone try.” The brute had tried to kill him. If it could be tamed, he would willingly bow to any man who was successful in the endeavour. Or horse. It was still bizarre to think that this world was indeed filled with talking horses. His old mind had seen many wonders of the world, but it seemed this world held so much more to offer.

Almost losing his balance over a stray root, he replaced the book to his great coat, not willing to break his neck when he could simply read it later. It was in good timing too; he could see a large, red wooden building in the distance through the trees. It had white support beams and an aged, slightly damaged roof.

“A tad off course, then...” He was displeased he had lead himself to the farm land, but given they likely had harvested fruit there anyway, it would just take more effort on his part to reap his spoils. The orchards were hardly far; some apple trees noticeable beyond the wooden building. Coming closer, he realised the wooden hut was likely used for storage rather than living in, seeing as there was a whole manner of strange farming tools laying around it. It was likely an old stable or hayloft.

He thought it slightly ironic that the horses of this world were in charge of the farmland. He half expected a lowly human farmer to be tied down and grazing on grass. Stepping forward towards the edge of the trees, he finally came to a white picket fence. Like everything else in this world, it was slightly smaller than his frame was accustomed too. Not that it bothered him in this instance. On the contrary, it meant he barely had stretch to step over it. On the other side of the fence was the hayloft, meaning he already had suitable cover from the farmers.

Slowly peering around the end of the red hayloft, he narrowed his eyes, struggling to actually see any farmers. There was only two; an orange mare wearing a very nice hat, which Barbossa noted would not go unwanted should it be available, and a rather large red horse, which he deemed closer to being “normal” than the others he'd seen. They were bucking trees just beyond the field he was in, and collecting the bright red apples that fell from the branches. The orange one appeared rather strong, shaking an entire tree with one kick, but the red one seemed dangerous, apparently needing restraint to stop himself from destroying them. He made a mental note not to anger it, rather enjoying the thought of actually living.

It was only then he noticed that they had tattoos on their flanks, in the same fashion the yellow and purple ones from earlier had. They were hard to make out, but they were there. As far as he could tell, they were merely for decoration, but he wondered why they all appeared to be in the exact same location. Maybe it was a rite of passage, or simply the current fashion in this world. Either way, it didn't do much for his situation wondering about the horse’s arses, so he instead began looking for something useful, seeing as the horses were in his way of his free fruit.

Suddenly hearing a heavy grunt, he noticed the large red one had begun moving from its position under the trees, heading towards the storage shed with a cart full of apples in tow. The orange one soon followed, trotting off to the left, outside the pirate’s field of vision. The sun was setting, and he guessed they were likely heading in for the night, storing the produce before night fall to avoid it being bruised or stolen.

“I'll be sure te remedy that.” Seeing as they had a fresh harvest, he doubted they would even notice if he stole half a dozen or so. The last cart alone held enough to feed a whole ship and its crew twice over!

“Did y’all lock the barn this time Big Mac?” The barn? Must be what they call the shed.

“That were just one time, and you know it!” The bickering between the horses went on for a few moments more before Barbossa heard the loud clanking of bolts at the front of the barn. Moving to the left side of the barn, he could see the two horses heading towards a small wooden house. Compared to the cottage from earlier, it looked normal; like something one would see in the poorer parts of London. It was maybe even a little desirable. He surmised maybe not all the beings in this world were as flamboyant as he thought.

Taking his chance, he crept around the side of the barn facing away from the house, and took a gander around the corner at the lock. The bolt didn't seem that big, despite the noise it had made, but it was a still a reasonable size bigger than he had hoped. It was likely made of solid iron or steel, and wasn’t rusty enough to break with force. However, as it was facing the house, attempting to pry it open would be risky, opening it more so, seeing as it made quite an audible sound. He also couldn't muster the energy to go the long way to the orchard through the wood, having gone almost a day and a half without food already.

Not wanting to risk running past the house, he went back behind the barn. Pulling out his sword, he wedged it between the wooden planks of the structure, twisting his blade to splinter the wood. He repeated the process until he could pull apart one of the planks, followed by another, at which point he pushed his way in the barn itself.

Sparing the many large bundles of hay, the sole use of the barn seemed to be storing apples. And they were there by the dozens; bushels and bushels of many different kinds. And one of every colour too; green, red, yellow and even orange. But everything was placed with the front door in mind, so getting through the barrels was awkward. Once in the centre, he looked at the many kinds of the fruit present around him. But seeking out his favourite, Barbossa went straight for the one filled with the bright green ones. Picking one out to taste, he was surprised by what he received.

“Delicious...” It was so juicy, and sweet, and sour. They were incredible. The skin didn’t even catch his throat. Letting himself savour the flavour, he finished the apple he was eating and tossed the stem on the floor, having already eaten the core in its entirety. “Maybe this world wasn't a complete waste of me time.”

After eating a three more of the juicy treats, he grabbed six more and put stowed them away in his pockets. Readying to leave, happy that he had enough to last at least another day, his heart sank when he heard the clank of a door and the accompanying turn of the hinge. Shoving his way over the bushels and barrels, he froze when the door finally opened.

“Ah don't see why ah should hafta get the royal galas. Big Mac were the one who forgot to bring em...in...”

Coming through a smaller door in the larger one at the front was a little yellow horse with a red mane, which itself was topped with a large pink bow. The pirate easily recognised her as one of the small foals he had met in the forest. He just stood there, half over a barrel of apples and smiling awkwardly when the little thing just screamed at him. Knowing full well what was about to happen, he bolted through the barrels, knocking more than a few over in the process of fleeing the barn. He could hear the sound of someone fast approaching from outside.

“Y’all promised it wouldn't come for me!” She was talking to someone outside; having ran from the barn crying and wailing to whoever was there. He couldn’t hear the other voice, but it was likely telling her to calm down. As much as he pitied the thing, it was neither the time nor the place to be attempting negotiations or apologies.

Not wasting any more of his precious seconds, fearful of the red one coming and removing him from this world in a manner he deemed less than pleasant, Barbossa crawled back through his makeshift door and jumped the fence. He ran towards the trees nearer the orchards, seeing as they were thicker than the ones he had come from.

“This is just not me day today...” Still running, he heard the little one yelling in the distance. Her voice was stern and angry, rather than the sadness he had expected from the wailing child..

“Ah will NOT calm down! It WERE in there! Y’all promised me! Y’all said it wouldn't be stupid enough to come ta the farm, well who ain’t stupid enough now!”

“Tis not hers neither.”

Continuing through the thick foliage of the orchards, Barbossa slowed to a brisk walk, thinking over his current situation. He had originally planned to get food, and search through the school at night, but after his run in on the farm, Barbossa felt less than motivated. The day had been long. Even before arriving in this world, the trip had been trying for him and his crew, not to mention cold. He was tired. Getting back to his own world was one thing, but falling to fatigue was an issue in of itself.

Adventuring further in the through the trees, the farm barely within eyesight of where he stood, he came across a small apple tree. While the tree wasn't exciting on its own, it was the small wooden house within the branches than called out to the pirate

Walking up to it, he peered through one of the small windows and, assured it was empty, half-heartedly crawled up the steps leading to a door. The tree house wasn’t too unsightly, being painted red and pink, but the heart shaped shutters were somewhat too feminine for the honourable captain.

Being careful and assuring it could indeed take his weight, he forced his way through the small door, pleasantly surprised of its interior. It had curtains and small furnishings, as well as some pictures fixed around the walls. There was even a crudely drawn map of the town, although it wasn’t something he could see himself using any time soon. Sitting in the middle of the floor, he finally noticed a small portrait of three horses sitting on a small, turquois table. It was the three children he had found in the forest.

“I'm doubtful they'll be comin' here anytime soon.” After the event at the barn, he was sure they wouldn't want to risk coming into the nearby orchards. Even if they did, he doubted it would be the day after they'd seen a monster nearby. But he didn't care either way. Even if they found him, the small tree house offered him a roof and a few precious hours sleep.

Taking of his hat and placing it on the floor, he made himself comfortable, using it as a makeshift pillow. It wasn't the best place he had slept in, but it was far from uncomfortable. Taking one last look at the rising moonlight, he closed his eyes, none too eager to find out what the next day would bring.

Swords Crossed

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 5
Swords Crossed

Despite the day still being young, and the more relaxed residents of Ponyville still in their homes, Twilight was adamant her friends meet her early. She and Fluttershy had visited them the night before, telling those who were unaware of the strange creature stalking the grounds of their town. While some needed more convincing than others to visit the library before noon, those who had already been involved with the creature were all too happy to help.

“Get on with it Twilight.” Rainbow Dash was the one who needed convincing.

Her friends were sat on their haunches in front of a large blackboard that Twilight had set up. Along with what she had written, there were also pieces of paper and some small pictures, one of which was a rather crudely drawn sketch by Angel. Despite having more knowledge on the matter than her friends, Fluttershy still sat on the floor, eager to hear what else her purple friend had to say.

“All right. Most of you already know about the incident with the Crusaders in Everfree forest...”

Rainbow and Pinkie Pie simply shook their heads. Twilight had told them they would be helping to look for an animal, but not much else. Then again, that’s what the meeting was for.

“They were apparently attacked by a strange animal in the forest. Today, we're going to look for it.” The two ponies just widened their eyes, Rainbow now feeling a lot less tired and Pinkie a little less active. However, Twilight was quick to reassure everyone present.

“Don't worry, they're fine. However, I don't believe it is a monster. We met him after he came out of Fluttershy's house, and-”

“It was in Fluttershy's house?” Twilight inwardly groaned. Dash was a great friend, but she would be a better one if she didn’t interrupt her explanations. After giving the light blue Pegasus an accusing stare, and Rainbow quickly hushing up, Twilight continued with her account of what happened.

“We met him at Fluttershy's cottage yesterday. His name is Hector Barbossa. He said he was a captain and w-” This time Pinkie was the one who interrupted.

“What's he a Captain of? Oooh, is he a pirate?” This time grumbling audibly, Twilight was about to give her the same look she’d given to Dash before realising...

“He might be, actually. He talked kinda piratey. Spike, write that down.” Promptly doing so on a small piece of paper, Spike finished the note and stuck it up on the board with the rest.

“I'll start again. We met him yesterday at Fluttershy's cottage. His name is Captain Hector Barbossa. He had stolen a book, and when we approached to talk, he talked back. He called Fluttershy names, made her cry and kicked me in to the river. We don't know where he is now, or what his motives are, but there are things we now know about him.”

Pausing to give the information time to sink in, she watched as everyone bar Fluttershy started frowning and asking questions. Even Spike looked upset, but then Twilight had vowed to tell them all at once rather than letting them whisper among themselves. Rarity thought it was some sort of hell spawn who tried to eat her little sister, while Applejack saw him as a pony attacking thief.

“Now, I know you all have questions, but please wait until I've finished. While I appreciate your input,” she motioned to Pinkie Pie. “I'd like to explain everything we know before we add new ideas.”

Seeing everybody silently nod, Twilight cleared her throat and began her presentation.

“Right. First off, what he actually looks like. I know I'm not the best at drawing, but this is him.” She pointed towards a sketch of the captain. It wasn't crudely done, but Twilight knew it didn't do Hector justice. It was a rough sketch, made completely in ink, featuring his main body and long legs. She couldn't get his clothes right, but made sure to draw his big jacket, boots and hat, seeing as they were the easiest and most identifiable. She also gave him beard, but it was nothing much like the one he had; stretching up towards his ear and extending down his torso.

“As you can see, he permanently stands on his hind legs, and has long forelegs with claws, like Spike.” Spike waved with a smile and waggled his fingers. “He doesn't need to balance himself, and his hind legs are strong enough to kick an average pony down. His forelegs are flexible, and he has the ability to grab stuff like Spike can. He wears a large jacket with more clothes underneath, boots, and a greenish bandanna under his hat. I don't think he has much fur either, but he had a small beard and some more on his head.”

While everyone mostly just remained silent, Pinkie often ooh and aahed at something that caught her interest. Twilight had no doubt they would know who he was if they saw him, but at the very least she hoped her description would at least give them an idea of what they were dealing with.

“And as I said before, he can talk. He also seems intelligent, as he can read, as well as...plan attacks. He also doesn't seem to like eating flowers, oats, nuts or hay, but may enjoy apples. As far as tools go, he apparently has a sword of sorts and a thing that explodes, but I couldn’t see them. They might have been under his jacket though. And…that’s pretty much it. Any questions?”

Instead of what she expected, everyone kept quiet. She knew her collage of information on the captain was informative, but she’d expected someone to ask something, or at least put a new idea forward. Eventually Rainbow raised her hoof to catch Twilights attention.

“So...does it eat ponies or not?”

“I don't know. Maybe. But he didn't eat me or Fluttershy, and he took the time to break into the Apple's barn to steal food. He might be an omnivore.” Rainbow just stared back at Twilight with a blank expression on her face.

“It means he might eat meat as well as vegetation. But he seems talkative. Don't just assume he's going to eat you if you see him.”

While it was easy for Twilight to say that, trying to talk to a creature that potentially had a thing for spit roasted pony wasn't something the others fancied risking their time doing. But they trusted her, and at the very least she’d convinced them that the creature wasn’t a bloody thirsty killing machine. Pinkie even seemed somewhat excited.

“But the fact remains we still have to look for him. He seems smart and, as much as it pains me to say this, not completely evil. If talking fails to work, we'll have to catch him. Besides, I doubt he'd be much of a problem if we cornered him in a group. He had to resort to pushing me into a river to get away last time, after all.”

Despite how hesitant a few of them seemed, it wouldn't be the first time they'd faced something bigger or stronger than they were. Fluttershy had dealt with Dragons and Manticores, and at the very least the others had fought numerous Changelings at once.

“So how we gonna go about doing' this?” Applejack brought Twilight to her next point of interest. She was so glad she planned all this out beforehoof.

“We'll need to split up into groups; Rainbow and Rarity, Applejack and Pinkie, and finally, me, Spike and Fluttershy.” She had thought long and hard about whom to pair everyone off with. She wanted at least one pony with strength or flight in each group, to assure that at least one could catch or fight Hector off. She also didn't want any one group paired in such a way that allowed Barbossa to have an advantage. Plus she needed to bring Spike along anyway.

“And if you find him, try talking to him. Ask what he wants, and maybe we can help him. In the end, hopefully he'll either go away on his own, or tell us why he’s here.” Rarity spoke up soon after Twilight had finished. She asked somewhat calmly, but it was obvious she was still worried.

“Twilight dear, I do trust you, really I do. But what if it does attack us?” Twilight had thought about it. She had to. But she didn't know the danger he posed, or whether he had the tools the Crusaders and Angel claimed he did. In the end, if talking should fail, she chose to play it safe.

“If you think you could take him quickly or by surprise, do it. But keep your distance. We don’t fully know what he’s capable of.”

- - - -

Continuing to read his new book, Barbossa quietly sat alone in the small tree house. He had been awake for at least an hour, and due to changes in his plan, he pondered his next move. His planned raid on the school wasn’t going to happen now, seeing as it was the middle of the day. Children went to school during the day, and seeing as they didn't seem to like him here, he thought it best to not push his luck. However, he was fast running out of ideas.

He furrowed his brow and pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn't know what to do. He'd even considered going back into Everfree and jumping around until he found the way he'd originally came through. He'd had saner ideas though, like searching for the public library, or simply asking a local for assistance. That was likely what he should have done when he had the chance.

“Bugger.”

Looking back, it was hardly the best idea he’d ever had. Sure, he got away with the book, and he wasn’t sat in a prison cell, but at what cost? From what he’d read in the book, the yellow one was practically like a child, fawning over how “fuzzy” and “pudgy” even the harsher animals were. And the purple one had even acted cordially towards him; she may have even helped him. Maybe if he’d let her get a word in edgeways he would have listened. But no, he’d thought himself above the prim purple creature and kicked her in the river.

He’d also likely cemented his new reputation too. Assuming the animals from yesterday didn’t know the children, he could have easily asked them for help, but doing the same now would be significantly harder. He’d never been one to ask for help before; his pride didn’t allow it. Help was for the faint hearted, and unless a problem could be solved on your own or with your own men, it wasn’t worth the hassle solving. But perhaps this would have been the one time to push his pride to one side. But hindsight was a wonderful thing and if he had to approach a talking horse for help, he may as well have some say in which one it was. He didn’t fancy letting the authorities or the big red one find him first.

Coming to the conclusion that he had to leave the small tree house, he closed the book and returned it to one of his pockets. As much as actually enjoyed reading about all the different creatures that could kill him, it wasn't getting anything done. While his patience was strained due to the lack of progress in getting home, his confidence wasn't. It may take time, but he wouldn’t be stuck in this world forever, he wouldn’t let Jack keep the Pearl, and he certainly wouldn’t let anyone but him take credit for saving the seas. There wasn't anyone who could continue his plan, but assuming someone else just so happened to think of it, he had still thought of it first.

Leaving the small abode in no poorer a state than when he’d entered; he forced his way back out of the small door. Getting out was more awkward than getting in, given his size and the ramped steps at the entrance, but he was soon stood outside no worse for wear. Having read about the surrounding area beforehand, the pirate had a rough idea of what parts of the town lay where. To his left was the way he came and, consequentially, Everfree forest, while somewhere to his right was the main entrance to Ponyville.

Not planning to simply take the entrance into a strange, foreign town, he instead planned to find an alleyway or side street to hide in. Hopefully then he could monitor how many animals were actually there and maybe even find one to talk to. Approaching a large group didn’t entice him, seeing as they’d likely want to harm him now, but if there was one wandering on their own, he could gain their trust and use them to further his own ends. It was fool proof.

“I'd like te see Jack cope this well.” He gave out a hearty, cackled laugh. He envied Jacks ability to plan things as they went along, sure, but surely even Jack would struggle with what was happening.

Then again, he'd likely become the centre of attention like he always did. The horses would probably even like him for it too. It seemed like the kind of thing Jack would make happen for himself.

Groaning Jacks idealistic experience away, Barbossa got back to his previous line of thought. He would have to head back towards the farm in order to reach the outskirts of Ponyville. The buildings there would surely be enough cover, at least until he could judge what course of action to take.

Once the farm was squarely in his sights, he realised that despite the size of the land, there were no farm hands or apple pickers. Not even the two from last night. Surely they weren't they only ones who picked all these trees?

“If they are, they ain't holy.” Putting the image of two monstrous horses endlessly destroying trees to one side, he saw the red one come out from the barn. It was pulling the cart from the night before, filled to the brim with barrels and bushels apples.

He was probably heading off to sell them, seeing as Barbossa had likely bruised more than a few of the stock during his semi-successful raid on their stores. Keeping behind a tree, he watched as the large red horse eventually left the confines of the farm, going through a large wooden arch and eventually out of sight.

The captain pondered heading back down for more food, seeing as no one was actually present on the farm, but he soon tossed the idea out of his mind. He still had four apples, and despite how empty it appeared, there was likely someone around somewhere.

Choosing to instead take the more interesting route he had already planned, he made his way for the outskirts of town. While the maps he had didn't show all the alleyways and side streets, he assumed it would be easy enough to navigate.

Walking around, making sure to keep to the shadows, he didn’t see anything of any worth around the town’s boundaries. Ponyville also didn’t appear to be as clear cut as he’d thought, with buildings having apparently been built wherever there was space. The lack of coordination also meant there weren’t many streets he could simply walk into.

It also meant there weren’t many places to hide. If he wanted to get into Ponyville, this wasn’t the way to go about doing it. Not that he needed to actually go in; the sounds of chatter and vendors haggling gave him a good idea of what was going on in town anyway.

“A market place…” While he had to stay between the trees, he could still see into a few of the streets. Most were busy, and if it was still as early as he thought it was, they weren’t going to get quieter anytime soon. He didn’t know if markets were different in this world, but he wasn’t going to make another stupid mistake. If he wanted someone’s assistance, he would have to make do with finding a lone wanderer and working it out from there.

Continuing along the route to the front gate, he kept close to the trees and surrounding bushes. He wouldn’t walk directly into town, but if he waited long enough, someone was likely to walk by the front gate on their own. All he'd need to do was come up with a way to earn their trust. Maybe if he offered food or-

“I found it! Applejack! Look, look. Over there!”

Turning around, there was now, somehow, a bright pink horse about ten yards away from him, sitting in between a few trees. She was ushering someone else towards her and pointing in his direction. He couldn't help but laugh at how ridiculous some of their colour schemes were. The other one appeared to be the orange farmer with the nice hat.

“♪ Mr Pirate ♫” The pink one was waving at him now. Not like the rabbit had; it was as if she was glad to see him. Her friend didn't seem too happy though.

Barbossa stood there, waiting for them to make the first move. The pink one seemed...friendly enough, but he wasn't sure about the other one. He'd seen it kicking the trees; if she attacked him, he'd have to fight back. Unlike Twilight and Fluttershy, he knew she could hurt him.

However, as much as he had planned to talk to one, now that he had the chance, he didn’t really know what to say. The horses appeared to be thinking along the same lines. The farmer was anyway, the pink one just kept waving at him.

“Y'all stole my apples!” So they wanted to talk. She had blurted it out, probably looking for something to say, but it proved they wanted to talk to him. And that boded very well indeed.

“Aye. What of it?” In an attempt to seem sociable, the captain walked towards them. But to his surprise, they both suddenly moved back. Even the pink one seemed a little less bright..

“Y...y'all need to pay for what you took...” She was trying to act confident, but it was failing.

“Fine.” The pirate reached into his jacket and pulled out a small bag of coins. He doubted they were acceptable, being Spanish silver, but if it was simply to prove good faith, it was good enough for him. He picked out four reales and held them out. “Here.”

They were too out of range to reach for the coins, but if anything he hoped it would bring them towards him. Not that he needed to attack this time; his priorities had changed. Seeing as he needed some locals to help, it might as well be these two. They didn't seem too trusting of him though. Apparently money wasn't a big enough incentive in this world.

“Will ye be takin' me coins or not?” The horses still didn't move. The pink one had even ceased waving, taking up the same worried stance as her friend. The pirate crudely groaned.

“Do I have to toss 'em te ye?” He had shouted it an attempt at sarcasm, but to his surprise, the orange one nodded. Rolling his eyes, he threw each coin at the mare, one by one. He watched as her worried expression replaced itself with a furrowed frown and half scrunched eyes.

“These ain't no bits!”

“Aye, they be Spanish silver reales. And four be more than plenty for the apples I took, of that ye can be sure.” She didn't seem as pleased by the offering as Barbossa had hoped, glaring at him from where she stood.

“They be all I've got. Shall I be taken' 'em back?” He asked with a crooked smile on his face and his hand stretched out, and as he had expected, she kept the coins. Not that she looked pleased about it.

“Uh...T-thank ya kindly...But ah still don't trust you.”

“And why be that then?” The pink one answered this time, puffing out her cheeks as she glowered over at him.

“Because you hurt our friends.”

“You must be speakin' of Miss Sparkle and her friend. It were nothin' personal, I assure ye.” Maybe kicking down that horse really wasn't the correct course of action to take. However, he would just have to try harder to compensate. Once again attempting to move forward, this time slower and with his hands in the air, he was pleased to see the two horses stayed put.

“Me intentions are strictly honourable, and it were merely down te unfortunate circumstance that I took the actions I did.” He said clearly. “If I could go back te change it, ye can be first to know I would, but if ye’ll just hear out a poor o-“

Suddenly feeling a huge pressure on his back, Barbossa grunted as he was forced face first to the ground. Attempting to look up, all he could see were white flashes and sparkling shapes that weren’t there. His head wasn’t much better, still throbbing from the impact. Finally coming to his senses, and realising he had been shoved on to the ground from behind, he looked up to see a blue horse with...a rainbow mane?

"Are you guys okay?!"

“What're y'all doin' Rainbow?! He were talkin' just fine!” Barbossa didn't know what was going on, but the farmer sounded angry. Not as angry as he felt, though..

“Twilight said to take him down if we could. And I'm pretty sure he didn't see it coming.” And the new one sounded cocky. Too cocky.

Pressing one elbow against the ground, he slowly pushed himself to his feet, but before he could respond to what had happened he felt two hooves push against his ribcage and send him back to the floor. Opening his eyes, more controlled than he rightly should have been, he looked up at the horse aptly named Rainbow.

“Yer pushin’ me…” He growled at her, spitting as he spoke. The other two clearly knew Twilight, and while they seemed ready to listen to him, he couldn’t say the same for this…Rainbow. She was already getting on his nerves.

“Yeah, well that's what you get for trying to eat my friends.” Giving the pirate another light nudge to the chest, he clumsily fell back to his previous position on the ground. Gritting his teeth together, he clenched his fists before getting back to his knees.

“I don’t know why Twilight said to be careful. It doesn’t seem so tough.” She turned around to face Applejack, rather proud of her accomplishment.

Grabbing the rainbow tail in front of him, he yanked it back while attempting to stand up. The shift in movement allowed him to swing the blue mare back behind him while he caught his balance. Too shocked to react to the pirate, Rainbow ended up being forcefully flung into the trunk of a tree.

Not one to stay down after hitting a tree, Rainbow flew straight for the captain. But having his senses returned to him, he easily saw her coming and pulled out his sword, slamming the hand guard into her face. Hearing a crack and a grunt of pain, he trembled on his feet before looking down at her.

“That'll teach ye to mess with me.” Spite dripping from his mouth, he stared down at his former opponent. His legs hurt, and his back was aching, but by god, he wouldn't let anyone down him and get away with it. He didn’t believe attacking the other two would help in any way at this point, but the blue one had been asking for it. Praying his loose temperament hadn’t lost him his chance at speaking with the other two, he sheathed his sword and announced back to the horse with the fetching hat.

“Now,” he caught his breath, clutching his sore chest. “I’m guessin’ I’ll be gravely regrettin’ doin’ what I just did, as well as the madness that occurred wi’ Miss Sparkle, but I assure ye, there be r-“

Catching him in the side, the winged horse sent him slamming back to the ground, barely missing a tree as he fell. With the blue horse standing over him he elbowed the mare in the ribcage, hoping it would at least give him a chance to stand. After cantering slowly backwards, the pirate got back to his feet and once again pulled out his sword. Jumping up in the air, Rainbow began flapping her wings, hovering in mid-air with her forelegs outstretched like fisticuffs. He knew deep down he would regret doing this, but he wouldn't let something like her make a fool of someone like him.

“Ye bloody INGRATE! What the hell’s yer problem!?” He stared her down, still wheezing from his kick to the chest.

“You are! You hurt me and friends, and you expect to get away with it?!”

Suddenly diving forward and slamming her head into his stomach, the captain felt his legs give way under him as he slid to ground, winded and struggling for air. Not letting her get another shot in, he elbowed the same spot in her sides he had hit before, and shoved her out of the air. As she hit the ground, he heard a loud crack and wail of pain from the mare as she clutched one of her forelegs. This was going all wrong. He’d only meant to teach her a lesson, not begin a timberland brawl with her! She was ruining his chances!

Standing above her, he lurched back as she flew up and bit his hand, taking hold of his sword as it fell from his grasp. Catching the hilt in her mouth, she flew out of his reach and dropped it into a nearby tree.

“Ha. What you gonna do now?" She was shaking, and her snout was covered in blood, but she still somehow found the energy to shake her flank at him and make crude noises with her tongue. He'd had enough. He didn't care anymore. She was making a fool of him, and as far as he was concerned, any better man would have given into temptation and killed her long ago. Clutching his stomach, he smiled and gave out a cackled laugh before pulling out his flintlock, aiming it towards her.

“I'll be shootin' ye down, that's what!” The blue mare just stared at him, before widening her eyes in realisation. “I’d like te see ye be so hardy when ye can’t fly!”

He would treat her like the rabbit. He'd simply fire a shot close to her, scare her silly, and force the others to listen. If his rare acts of kindness weren't getting their attention, he would make them listen instead. Besides, if he just so happened to clip her wings, he wouldn’t be the one complaining.

Readying the trigger, and aiming for the tree at her side, he was ready to fire when the pistol just…moved. He just stood there, mouth hanging open as the pistol floated in the air in front of his face. Reaching out for it, he flinched as it flew away from him and towards a white unicorn. She was out of breath, and her purple mane was ragged and frayed.

“Think yer all smart with yer fancy sword.” The farmer spun a rope multiple times in the air from her tail before whipping it towards Barbossa, quickly looping it over his mid-section.

“Let’s see how y'all like what we got!”

Flailing his arms in confusion, and somewhat frustrated he was being treated like a common animal, he angrily moved to remove the rope, only for another to snag around the previous one, along with his right arm. This was getting out of hand. He didn’t need this.

“Wait a bloody minute!” He jumped back in an attempt to pull the rope from her grasp, only for it to fail miserably and instead give her a chance to pull him to the ground. Lying on the ground, and getting his left arm to support himself, he pushed himself up into a sitting position.

“Yippee ki yay!” The pink one then attempted to recreate the feat her friend had, only for the rope to fall apart and hit the pirate in the face.

In a final attempt to get himself heard, he grabbed the ropes and forcefully pulled them in his direction, dragging the orange horse down tail first along with them. Grunting in pain, he kneeled forward in an attempt to stand, still finding it slightly hard to breath. The pink one and the farmer were quiet, and the cocky one was sat off to the side nursing her leg.

“Finally…if…ye’ll j…just LISTEN te me!” Slamming his fist on the ground and letting air escape his nostrils, he prepared to finally speak his piece only to feel something hard connect with the back of his head. Appearing to keep stance for a few moments, the heated look on his face faded as he collapsed to the ground.

Dropping the branch to the ground and carefully walking up to the pirate, Rarity prodded his stomach multiple times before carefully shaking him. Pinkie then proceeded to do the same by poking his face with a stick before turning back around to her friends.

“Heeeeee's outta here!”

“What do you suppose we should do now? We can't just leave it here.” Rarity asked curiously. While they'd had a briefing on what to do, Twilight had focused on finding and talking to the creature rather than defeating it.

“Ah reckon we should go get Twilight.” Seeing as they had no other options available to them, they all agreed and sent Pinkie in search or their purple friend. After she’d gone, Applejack turned to face a rather bloody Rainbow Dash.

“Although we might not have needed to if somepony hadn't got all prissy an' attacked 'im!”

“Oh sure. Feel sorry for the giant. It isn't like he broke my leg or anything.” She sniffled before wincing in pain.

“But y'all were the one what started it! Me and Pinkie were fine, discussin' money and whatnot with 'im. He even paid me back for the apples he took.” Not the correct kind of money, granted, but that wasn't the point she wanted to make right now.

“He had a sword, Applejack. A sword!”

“And ah sure as hay don't see you cut into little iddy biddy pony pieces. If he wanted to use it, ah'm pretty darn sure he would have.” Rainbow could tell her friend was right, but turned her head towards the ground rather than admitting it.

“I thought he was gonna attack you and Pinkie Pie. He had his legs in the air and everything. Twilight even said we don't know what he could do. I just didn't want to risk either of you getting hurt.”

“And ah thank you for it, sugar cube. But we mighta saved a whole lotta hassle if ya hadn't got all ahead o' yerself. I'm not sayin' he didn't deserve it, but he were at least tryin’ to talk to us about somethin’. We should probably get y'all to the hospital too. Ya didn't exactly fare too well against 'im in yer little fight.”

“Fine.” she struggled onto her good hooves and leaned against Applejack. “But only once I'm sure you can deal with him...”

“That's all very well and good, but what do we should with it?” Rarity motioned to the unconscious mass on the ground. “What if it wakes up?”

“Don't y'all worry nothin'. Why’d ya think I brought the rope?”

Parlay

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 6
Parlay

Everything ached. His back, his legs, his head. Most especially his head. It was as if cannon fire was going off and his skull was attempting to fight back. He didn't know if he was drunk, dead or dying, but he was sure it was one of them. Or maybe even all three.

“Mary mother o' God...”

Reaching up to rub his temple, he suddenly realised something. He couldn't. His arms were bound. The prickling feeling of rope was scratching against his hands and wrists. And the pressure was tight around his legs and torso as well as on his back. There was also the sickly sweet smell of pastries and cakes. Raspberry. It felt warm.

Quickly opening his eyes, he flinched back, seeing a bright pink horse breathing into his face, smiling with her eyes wide open.

“Hello Mr. Sleepy head,” it said, turning away from him, “Twilight! He's up.”

“What the..?”

Shaking his arms, they defied to move against the rope, which also seemed to be tied to a small wooden chair.

The pirate watched as the purple unicorn eagerly climbed down from a ladder and rushed towards him, almost knocking her friend over in the process. Trying to grab hold of his senses, he looked around his current location. It was musty, and there were colourful books lying everywhere around him, piled in neat, even stacks. The building also appeared very ambitious, stretching into the sky, with bookshelves going just as high themselves in some places. He'd seen much taller buildings and ships, but it was still slightly impressive. Everything was made of clean cut wood, with the shelves being much darker than the rest of the furniture. It was a library.

Sparing the pink and purple horses, there was also three more at the other end of the room, as well as what appeared to be a small...dragon? Focusing his gaze and lowering his eyebrows, he could see his things. His jacket, as well as its contents, lay heaped on the floor in the middle of the group, each member of which was holding something that belonged to him. Even his hat was being toyed with. Clenching his teeth and gathering his strength, he violently shook from side to side, fighting against the ropes that tied him down.

“You can try all you want Hector, but I cast a stasis spell on the chair and the rope. You're not going anywhere.”

Taking her up on the kind offer, he did try and escape his prison. But the chair was built like iron, rooted to the floor, and the ropes did nothing but flex under the movement, even becoming tighter the more he struggled against them. Growing tired under the pointless struggle, he stopped for breath before instantly wasting even more effort trying again.

“Finished?” Twilight said confidently.

He yelled out at the purple mare, bearing his teeth and widening his eyes, but not before attempting one last time at escaping. But the chair still didn't move, and neither did the rope. Accepting his fate, he straightened his back and looked down at the horse, a faux smile resting on his lips.

“A pleasure te be seein' ye again, Miss Sparkle. Te what do I owe this most gratifying honour?”

“You put my friend in hospital, Hector. Not mention hurting me and upsetting Fluttershy. What do you think the honour is? Think yourself lucky I even chose to heal you.”

Healed? He didn't feel very healed. The others had since turned around to face him, seemingly more interested in him than his belongings.

“So not a friendly kidnappin' then?”

“We haven't kidnapped you. We've restrained you.”

Her friends nodded along with her.

“Aye, a wise choice too; I can't say I'm too fond of ye after striken' me down,” he crookedly smiled back at the group, “but I assume ye have some form of proposition for me? Seein' as ye went te all the hassle of tyin' me down in yer magic chair.”

He knew from experience to get negotiations under way as soon as possible, especially since his current situation was anything but what he was used too. Usually a kidnapping involved fighting your way out, or giving the captor an offer they couldn't refuse. But not only did escaping seem unlikely, given his current predicament, but he had no idea what was actually going on in their heads. They were talking horses for Christ’s sake.

“We just want to talk to you.”

Barbossa eyed her cautiously. They'd went to an awful lot of effort to simply talk to him. He'd assumed they wanted to do something along the lines of warranting his arrest, seeing as he had two accounts of thievery and another two accounts of assault on his already tarnished new record.

“What manner of talkin'?”

“Just questions. There are a lot of things we’d like to know about you.”

She seemed quite happy about how things were going, even going as far as to compassionately smile at him. But he guessed it was likely to due to his lack of freedom more than anything else. However, he could make use of this.

“But if I have te answer your questions, Miss Sparkle, then you in turn must answer mine.”

This was a brilliant turn of events. Sure, he was captured in...some sort of magical chair, and at the mercy of multicoloured mares, but he'd have a chance to find out whatever he wanted if he played his cards right.

“Do we have an' accord?”

“Oh, of course,” She said, eagerly nodding her head, “that was easy. And call me Twilight.”

“Whatever ye say, Miss Sparkle.”

He gave a sly grin, slightly raising his eyebrows. Just because he was the detainee, it didn't mean he couldn't try and enjoy himself. He also felt rather stupid calling someone Twilight. Miss Sparkle seemed more refined, if only ever so slightly. She should take him calling her that as a compliment.

“But first and foremost, where am I?”

“Ponyville Public Library," she answered with a smile.

Not believing that anyone could be that dense, he rolled his eyes and grated his teeth before asking again.

“Aye, I got that much. But where, pray tell, is…Ponyville.”

As funny as the names in this world were, he controlled himself enough to ask the question. Finding out what he wanted did take priority over laughing at his captors.

“Uh, Equestria,” the mare answered casually.

While he had no problem with her answering what he asked, it still annoyed him at how simple some of the names were. And was everything named after horses? Then again, right now that wasn't really important.

“And be there a way out?” he asked seriously.

“A...a way out?” she asked, cocking her head, "I guess you could go over the boarders into Gryphus, if that's what you mean. But that’s going into griffin territory."

Scrunching his nose, he shook his head. He would ask about the griffins later.

"I mean out of this world. I didn't begin in this world, Miss Sparkle, and I'm not plannin' te spend the rest o' me days here either. I fell from the sky above that bloody forest. I fell from my world and into yours. And I be sure as hell wantin' a way back out.”

“You're fro...from another world?”

The rest of the group just blinked along with Twilight, confused and surprised at what he was saying.

“How is that even possible?”

“In my world, there be an afterlife; Davy Jones Locker, and me crew and I were headin' there te rescue...an old friend from the everlasting turmoil a never ending sentence poses, but for some reason I didn't make it. There be a way out o’ Jones' Locker, and I assume the same logic be applicable here. I just don't know where that logic lies.”

The group just stared at him, obviously unprepared for what he had said. Twilight would have been quick to question his claim, if not for the simple fact she had neither seen or heard of anything like him. She had read many books on the many creatures that roamed their world, and nothing even came close to what he was.

“So...y'all don't know nothin' about what happened?”

Looking at the horse with the nice hat, the first one there, spare for Twilight, who actually seemed willing to talk to him, Barbossa accepted to himself that he didn't. He had no idea how it had happened. The only being he knew in his world capable of this kind of magic would be Calypso, and seeing as he had the idea to free her, sending him to another world would gain her less than nothing. And seeing as no man apart from him had been brought here, circumstance was his main guess of how it had happened.

Or perhaps fate. His last resort of reasoning was fate. If Calypso herself were here, that would surely be her reasoning, her belief. Everyone had a fate to fulfil. Maybe his existed here.

“No. Not for the time bein'.”

"And is this what y'all were tryin' te tell us this mornin'?”

"I wasn't plannin' on tellin' the whole story, but aye, I was. At least until yer friend saw it fit te take me down."

Ignoring his comment towards Rainbow, not wanting to start any arguments while he was somewhat calm, Twilight once again took hold of the conversation.

"So...you want our help?”

“Seein' as I have next to nothin' to know about this world, and as yer the one offerin’, then aye...”

He grumbled. Owing a favour was never a desired situation in his book, but being offered help, that was a different story. And if all he had to pay was answering her questions, then there was nothing for him to lose. He was surprised the negotiations were going as smooth as they were.

“...yer assistance would be appreciated.”

“Um...well...we could help you, I guess. Right guys?”

As well intentioned as her question was, everyone in the room just eyed each other, unsure of how to respond. Rainbow was in hospital, Fluttershy had been bullied, Twilight had been injured and Applejack and Rarity both had sisters who had been scared half to death; all because of him. Applejack seemed somewhat more passive about what had happened, but Rarity had taken it to heart. Seeing their responses, Barbossa decided to offer his own spin on his situation, attempting a less than threatening grin while doing so.

“Just keep in mind, the sooner ye be finden' me a way back, the sooner I'll be able te leave.”

Their looks of apprehension didn’t fade away. The realisation was there, but most still seemed inclined to avoid helping him, simply on a manner of principle. Twilight knew they could be brought around, but given what he had already done, it would take time. She had been the one to offer help, yet even she still found it somewhat hard to look him in the eyes.

But she knew helping someone in need was always the right thing to do, and he certainly seemed to be in need. He wasn't the nicest creature she'd met, but he also wasn't the worst. If he was truly unworthy of their help, he wouldn't be sat there talking to them. Right?

“It's still kinda sad.”

Everyone turned around to face Pinkie as she sat there, sniffling and rubbing her hooves over her eyes. Her hair was limp and her behaviour was bleak compared to the bouncy nature of her previous antics.

“You went to rescue a friend who died, and you got lost before you could help him...”

“Aye, tis’ a cryin' shame, but Jack can fare well enough on his own two feet.”

His response was quick and inconsiderate, but still held a glimmer of truth, much to the chagrin of Barbossa himself. He had no idea of the prisons Jones created for those he took, but he remained motivated in knowing Jack was likely suffering some form of torture.

“We've got a friend called Jack. Well, kinda like Jack.”

The pink one grabbed the farmer and pulled her into the pirates line of sight. She sat there, smile wavering as beads of sweat rolled down from her forehead.

“And what be yer name, exactly?”

While his question was directed at the farmer, it applied to the rest of those present as well. If he was to let them...assist him, he would at least call them by name. He was nothing if not fair to those who served him well. Those who weren't simply faced his sword. But restraint, he thought, would be a wise thing to practice while he was here.

“Applejack.”

Barbossa grimaced. One his favourite things in life coupled with one of the worst. However, it was still the least ridiculous name he had heard thus far. Making fun of their names wouldn’t be a smart move any more anyway. He looked toward the other two horses and the dragon expectantly, wanting to attempt a somewhat dignified introduction despite the earlier occurrences.

“I'm...Rarity. It's a pleasure...Hector.”

The white one cringed, straining her smile. But to Barbossa's surprise she offered her hoof, although he realised it was due to the fact he couldn't offer his in return, rather than out of courtesy. The pink one instead took a more direct approach; gripping the man in a tight, heartfelt hug.

“My name’s Pinkie Pie!”

Her hug was real. Not like the traditional greeting Rarity had offered. Barbossa felt as if Pinkie actually cared. Not that he needed her care, of course, but knowing that at least one was willing to give support out of loyalty rather than circumstance was comforting.

“You...smell...a lot...”

Feeling the hug had been held long enough, and not able to physically respond, he cleared his throat. After another tight squeeze, she let go and moved to reveal the little dragon standing before him.

“And I’m Spike.”

Barbossa looked him over for a few seconds, somewhat eager to test his theory.

"Are ye a dragon?"

The purple reptile stood there, nodding and giving him a slight wave of his hand. If he ever one day saw a dragon, the pirate assumed it’d be…more. His small, stout and chubby stature made it less than threatening, and it’s bright purple scales and green spines did nothing to help. In the end, the pirate felt somewhat disappointed.

“Yer a bit small te’ be a dragon.”

“Well, I am just a baby dragon.”

Maybe he’d get to see a proper dragon at some point then. Spike left him somewhat wanting in the mythical creature department. Sure, he'd seen that manticore in the forest, and he'd been sat talking to winged horses and unicorns, but a dragon was something remarkable; a true beast of legends. Spike was a step up from unicorns though.

To his left, Twilight sat clearing her throat, eyeing her friends before looking up at him, disapproval blatant on her face. Wondering what he done this time, and about to defend his currently noble intentions, she spoke to him. It wasn’t a kind voice. More akin to one a parent gives to a disobedient child.

“And you already know me and Fluttershy.”

She placed special emphasis on the latter name.

Looking past the purple unicorn, Barbossa could see the horse in question standing at the back of the group. Shuffling under his gaze, her eyes found their way to the books at her side, rather than the pirate himself. Turning back to Twilight, Barbossa watched as she motioned her head back and forward to Fluttershy, gazing at him and clenching her teeth.

“Be ye wantin somethin'?”

He cocked a wicked smile, knowing full well what she wanted. He just wanted to hear her say it.

“I want you to apologize to Fluttershy for what you said.”

“What was it I said exactly, Miss Sparkle? Me memory's been a bit fuzzy of late.”

“About her name...”

Looking towards her friends, she walked up to Barbossa and whispered into his ear.

“...and the other thing.”

While he enjoyed toying with Twilight, making further fun of Fluttershy would only result in his loss. Most likely their refusal to assist him. Or execution. Deciding the gracious option to be the best one, he turned to the yellow mare and tipped his head, his face mustering a genuine smile. As genuine as he could manage, anyway.

“My humblest apologies for anythin' that ye deemed hurtful...Fluttershy. The names here are simply more flowery than what I be used to.”

While his apology lapsed into sarcasm, he deemed it the closest thing to one he could give. The others seemed to agree, annoyed with what he said but understanding the truth behind it. Or so he hoped anyway. He was desperate, but not so much as to bow down to some glorified fairy tale animals.

“W-what are names where you’re from like?” Fluttershy said with an almost whispered voice, shuffling on her hooves and facing the pirate through her mane.

“Less flowery. Hector Barbossa, Elizabeth Swann, William Turner, Cutler Becket. Even Jack Sparrow. This world just seems so infantile.”

Realising what he'd said and what it implied, he promptly backed up his statement, not wishing to undo his apology so quickly.

“Compared to me own world, of course.”

“Why do you all have two names?”

The question was surprising, seeing as it came from Twilight, one of the only creatures there who actually had a surname. But judging by the notebook floating by her side, it was one of the many questiones she wanted to ask him.

“There be more than one man in the world named Hector. But there be significantly less named Hector Barbossa.”

“Couldn't you just come up with new names?” He scoffed at her reply.

“Like what? Namin' children usin' random verbs and nouns? Aye, 'cause that sounds very noble.”

“So there are no folk like you with names like ours?”

Now the farmer was getting involved.

“Men can take different names te impose on others. A man named Edward Teach is known to every sailor and pirate alike, but he be known as Blackbeard rather than Edward. But it is not a real name.”

“How do you spell teech?”

Exhaling and closing his eyes, Barbossa blocked out the outside noise. All these questions. Opening his eyes and cracking his neck, he glared back at Twilight, mentally preparing himself for more.

“T-E-A-C-H.”

“Can you have more than two names?”

“Aye...”

“Can you tell me one?”

Groaning at her constant queries, he rolled his eyes and paused to think.

“Mary Anne Rogers.”

It likely wasn't real, but it didn't really matter at this point.

“Can anyone have a nick name?”

“Aye...”

“Do you have a nick name?”

The quick succession in which she asked made the queries more annoying than they actually were. He released a long, irritated sigh.

“No, but can ye please ask about somethin' else!” he whined.

If talking was all the pay that was needed to get him home, he would happily answer. Compared to gold or money, it left him with no loss. But he would throttle her little purple neck if she kept asking so many questions about absolutely nothing.

“What are you?” Her question caught the pirate of guard.

“I be beggin' yer pardon?”

“What are you. Spike's a dragon, and I'm a pony. What are you?”

Ponies? Looking around him, and remembering what he had seen of this world so far, he sighed as he felt the last of his masculinity wash away.

“Not horses then?”

Twilight recoiled at the words, as did a few of the others.

“Of course not. Do we look like horses to you?”

“Aye.”

Not seeing what the problem was, Barbossa stared at the unicorn as she glared back at him, her eyelids half closed and dull.

“Just answer my question, Hector.”

“I'm an Englishman, but we are collectively known te be human.”

Nodding at him, she walked off to the back of the room, heading towards the pile of his effects. In her wake, the others just stared at him. Displeasure. Fear. He marvelled at how much faith they put in their purple friend, seeing as they started worrying the moment she left their presence. Not taking her time, Twilight soon came back, levitating his pistol in air.

“What's this?”

“It's called a flintlock pistol, and I'd be much obliged if ye didn't point it towards me face.”

Glowering at her, Twilight nervously floated it away from him, pointing the barrel to his side. The others had since crowded around, looking somewhat curious with what he had to say. The item called a pistol was very well made, with elegant engraving stretching up from one end to the other. It appeared to be made of silver, but the captain knew differently.

“Oooh, how does it work? What does it do?!”

The pink one seemed too interested. She hopped from one hoof to the other, eyeing the weapon floating in the air.

“If I were untied, I could give ye a short demonstration.”

He hadn't actually expected them to release him so easily, and sadly for him, they didn't.

“Y'all really think we're that stupid?”

They all glared at him with the same blunt expression.

“Fine. Ye load it with powder and a bullet, and pull the trigger.”

Smiling sarcastically, he watched as the book floated in the air, writing itself while his gun swyaed in the air in front of him. Shock filled his system when the pistol suddenly went off. A loud bang was heard, followed by the heat of fire and a flash as the lone bullet left the weapon. The pistol abruptly stopped floating and hit the floor with a heavy thud. He turned to Twilight, more shocked at her stupidity than anything else.

“Ye bloody harlot! What in God's name are ye doin?!”

Trying in vain, he violently shook around in his chair, once again attempting to escape or move out of the way; anything to get away from the idiots playing around with his weapons.

“Are ye tryin' te kill me?!”

The animals just stood there, eyes wide open, staring in disbelief at the smoking hole in the books, before slowly turning their heads towards the iron pistol on the floor. Barbossa was surprised he hadn't been burned with a pistol fired that close to his face. The book on the shelf disagreed, with some of the pages clearly receiving the flame of short range fire.

Taking a deep, heated breath, he exhaled and calmed himself, closing his eyes. While he would have been more than happy dealing with the...ponies, being tied down at least allowed him time to compose himself. And the pistol was no longer loaded, so that was something to be thankful for.

“I-I'm so sorry. I didn't know that would happen.”

Shaking, she looked back and forth between the gun and the small clouds of smoke emanating from the bookshelf.

“It. Be…fine. Just keep yer...magical…things off me weapons.”

It was like giving weapons to children. Young children too. Looking at the others, Barbossa paused at the lack of fear in Rarity's face, not because he was surprised it wasn't there, but because fury was present instead. Her eyes were flared, and she stood forward, leaning in towards him.

“You wanted to do that to Rainbow?! You could have killed her!”

“If I were anythin' like Miss Sparkle, aye, I would have. But I were aimin' fer the tree at her side, not her good self.”

“But you could still have hurt her!”

“Not my problem. If ye ask yer friends, ye'll find she were the one who initiated the attack. I only reacted accordingly.”

Twilight cut in, forcing a hoof in front of her friends muzzle and another in front of the captains face.

“We can heal wounds, Rarity. What he did wasn't right, but according to Applejack and Pinkie, Rainbow did start it.”

Barbossa smirked at the white unicorn, proud that he had won an argument, not only with his own words, but with that of his opponent's friend as well. Glaring, unimpressed with his over confidence, Twilight then turned to him instead.

“But you were the one who deserved it. If you hadn't bullied us, Rainbow wouldn't have got the wrong idea. And if you were even thinking of hurting my friends with that pistol thing, Mr. Barbossa, then we would be better off handing you over to the Royal Guard rather than actually helping you. Reacting to an attack is one thing, but I will not put your needs above the safety of my friends. I don't know how things work in your world, but while you are in ours, you will abide by our rules.”

Standing firm with her speech, the captain strained to breathe as he felt the ropes abruptly tighten around him, the bristles of the cord digging in to his wrists and stomach.

“Do I make myself clear?”

The pirate sat tight in the chair, his mouth slightly ajar at the small pony taking action and actually talking down to him. While she had technically just threatened him, he still chose Twilight's company over that of the Royal Guard. He didn’t even know they had a guard, or if it was even any good. But given his crimes so far, they’d have no trouble getting him executed. Looking back at his captors, and realising for once in his life he had no say or choice in the matter at hand, he gave the only answer he could give.

“Aye. Crystal.”

One Day

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 7
One Day

Rainbow Dash hated being in hospital. Her personality didn’t allow it. She enjoyed the freedom of flying, the thrill of speeding through the clouds, and the feel of the wind billowing against her coat and in between her feathers. Not being laid up in an uneven, uncomfortable bed where she couldn’t do anything.

Her previous stays had been less than enjoyable, but at least this time the problem wasn't her wings. That also meant here stay wouldn't be that long either.

“A whole day’s still a long time…”

Only her leg and nose were broken, and they were apparently pretty clean breaks too. She’d still be in a wheelchair for a few days, but at least she could go home this time. Her wings were fine, and the wheelchair was only recommended to help the fracture heal quicker. As much as it would have been preferred, even she couldn’t fly everywhere without using her legs to land every now and then. Her nose was as good as healed already though; a unicorn doctor could easily heal small breaks, but things like legs, wings and skulls needed more time.

But her injuries weren't what was bothering her, it was the reason she got them.

“Stupid giant. Thinking he’s all that. With his long legs and fancy sword…”

She’d kept her promise, and after the big guy was contained, she went straight to the hospital. But the thing was still there in Twilight’s house. Doing Luna knows what. At the very least, she got to see them carry him away in that big box. Twilight didn’t want to teleport something she didn’t know anything about, so they packed the monster into a large wooden crate and pulled it through town in a cart. Well, Pinkie Pie did anyway. They thought if she did it, ponies wouldn't pay her much notice.

And they had promised to visit her once they were sure the creature was secure. That helped ease her thoughts. But even if this thing did cause any more problems, the plan was to call the royal guard to deal with him instead. It’s the least he deserved after putting her in hospital.

And while she would have liked to see all of them, she knew they had to deal with Barbossa, so only a few would actually visit her. It didn’t matter though; as long as they were okay in the end, that was all that mattered. Getting less injured in the process would have been preferable, but it could have turned out worse.

Sitting back in her bed, she gazed at the room around her. Everything was made from wood, and the room was painted dark, earthly green. The floors were a dark blue, but she knew that anyway; the floors were the same throughout the whole building. She never quite knew why every room was painted a different colour, but guessed it was simply to add variety.

There were also a few woven chairs sat in the corner of the room, each having a small white cushion on top to add some comfort. They weren't really that comfy, but if you were visiting someone for a short while, they were better than nothing. There was also a small bedside cabinet to her left, as well as a glass and bottle of water on top. She wouldn't need to use the cabinet this time though, seeing as she was only there for the night.

Slowly becoming bored with her stay, she perked up at the sudden knocking at the door.

“Rainbow, y’all in there?”

Realising her friends had finally come to see her, she let a smile giggle escape her lips as she hurriedly combed her mane over. She knew they wouldn't mind her having a messy mane, but she still thought it was nice to look cool for her friends.

“Yeah, it’s open.”

Watching the door open, Rainbow smiled as Applejack cantered through the large doorway, followed closely by Rarity and Pinkie Pie, the latter of which waved and beamed at the cyan mare the moment she came into view.

“Hiya Dashie!” she said, pulling her injured friend into a hug.

It wasn't surprising, given that it was Pinkie, but it was a nice gesture all the same. It was good to see her friends were okay too; Applejack and Pinkie were jut smiling.

“Rainbow dear! How’s your leg doing?”

Rarity, on the other hand, seemed more distressed than happy. Her brow was furrowed, and she didn't hold a smile like the other two. She almost looked scared.

“Nah, it’s fine. I’m only here for the night anyway.”

Rainbow didn't consider herself the smartest pony, but she knew what was worrying her friend. It would be hard not to know, but she still wanted to enjoy her friends company for a little while longer.

“We brought some grapes. And they're seedless too.” Pinkie said jovially, holding out a small paper bag.

“I’m only here for one night, Pinkie.”

“But you always bring grapes when someone goes to hospital, silly.”

Not willing to dispute her friend's logic, Rainbow simply accepted it as a Pinkie Pie fact and tossed a few of the small, green pieces of fruit into her mouth. Grapes weren't her favourite food, but she wasn't one to turn down free food. But as much as she wanted to continue enjoying the company of her friends, the few of them that weren't actually there eventually wandered into her mind.

“So…” she said, tapping her good hoof on the bedsheets, “how are the others?”

“Everypony’s fine. Twilight an’ Fluttershy are stayin’ with Hector. We got him all tied up in a magic chair, so he ain’t goin’ nowhere.”

“Is that even safe? I mean, doesn’t he eat ponies and stuff?”

Rarity huffed in response, clicking her teeth and rolling her eyes. Applejack did the same, responding to Rarity rather than the comment.

“That’s what I said, but Twilight insisted she had the situation covered. I mean, sure, we have him tied up now, but what do we do once he gets out? He didn't seem too happy to see us, and we can't keep him in the library forever.”

“Rarity, Twilight's the smart one. I doubt she'd go releasin' him while we weren't there. Besides, he needs our help to get back home.”

The farmer shuffled on her hooves, looking back towards Rainbow.

“And I don't like 'im or nothin' but he didn't seem all that bad. He said he were sorry for makin' fun o' Fluttershy, and he gave me the money for the apples he took.”

Pinkie was quick to agree, nodding her head at her orange friend.

“Yeah, he doesn’t seem like a total meanie pants. I mean, he is definitely a meanie pants, but not a total one.”

“Why does he need our help to get home? Surely if he can get here, he can get back just fine,” Rainbow added, not quite following their line of conversation.

The three visitors stared at Rainbow, suddenly remembering that she wasn't there when they had questioned the pirate. Ceasing the opportunity, Pinkie jumped up onto the bed, standing over Rainbow with a beaming smile on her face.

“He’s from a totally different world, with pirates and epic adventures on the high seas and swords and swashbuckling and stuff! Isn’t that cool?!”

Watching as Rainbow's face contorted and her eyebrows rose, Pinkie ignored it and continued to talk.

“And he was on his way to the land of the dead with his cool pirate crew when he fell into Everfree and now he's lost and can't get home.”

Vacantly staring at her pink friend, Rainbow then chose to look at the ponies behind her. Watching as the two nodded with differing degrees of enthusiasm, Rainbow let the information she'd just heard sink into her mind, seeing as it was apparently true.

“That does sound…kinda cool, I guess.”

Pirates are pretty awesome, after all. Well, real pirates were, anyway.

“But that doesn’t change what he did, Rainbow Dash. It put you in hospital. And we’re lucky Twilight isn’t sat in the bed next to you,” argued Rarity.

Applejack begged to differ, rolling her head to one side and once again clicking her teeth with her tongue.

“But he said he were sorry. I don’t like him any more than you do, but every...thing deserves a second chance.”

Rainbow and Pinkie inwardly giggled at the argument going on around them. The topic at hand was hardly something to be laughed at, but given how often the two in question argued, it still proved to be somewhat funny. Wanting to stay out of the way, Pinkie and Rainbow sat back, waiting for the feud to eventually subside.

“Well, if you want to give a monster that goes around beating up ponies another chance, then be my guest.”

“But it isn’t like he didn’t have a reason. Dash started it.”

“But how were we meant to know it wasn’t about to eat you? He had his front legs in the air, and the two of you looked scared half to death!”

“And how was Hector meant to know that you and Rainbow thought that? And we weren't scared or nothin'. We was just nervous with the big creature talkin' to us and stuff.”

The two equines were face to face now, practically pushing their muzzles towards each other, ears flared and eyes wider than they needed to be.

“But he attacked Sweetie Belle and the others. How can you be so…so courteous to something that attacked your sister?

“If he did go an' hurt Applebloom, I'll knock him ten ways ta next Sunday. But Applebloom never said she were attacked, and she weren’t hurt nothin’ neither. I were gonna ask him…but then that boomy stick went of an’ he got all mad at Twilight…”

“And even if he didn’t attack the girls, he was going to blow Dash’s wings off with that thing.”

Rainbow’s eyes widened.

“Excuse me?! He was going to do what with my wings?!”

“Oh, darling, it was terrible. He has this thing called a pistol, and it shoots these fiery steel balls, and he was going to blow your wings to pieces. It shot a smoking hole clean through one of Twilights books too.”

Applejack frowned. She knew Rarity had a point, a few of them actually. But if he was really bad, he wouldn’t have given her the money for the apples, and he wouldn’t have said sorry to Fluttershy. The last time she didn’t think over the situation, she ended up criticizing Zecora for it, and she turned out to be nice in the end. She couldn't say she felt the same way about Hector, but what if a similar situation happened again? What if they were wrong?

“The next time I see ‘im, I’ll be askin’ Hector about eatin’ ponies and all that other stuff. If you were right, and he is a monster, I’ll take back what ah said and treat him the way he deserves. I just don’t wanna do the same thing we did to Zecora. And I know it ain’t the same, but I’d rather be dislikin’ him for the right reasons than the wrong ones.”

Patiently sitting on one of the pillowed chairs, Rarity thought over what her friend had said, leaning her head into one of her fore hooves. Despite what had happened, and how it had hurt some of her friends, she knew there was some truth in what Applejack said. She didn’t like Hector, and she was sure he didn’t like them, but when she thought about it, she didn’t know the whole truth. She didn’t want to admit it, but maybe the creature deserved to be heard out.

“Fine, but that is all that...Hector will get from me. One chance, nothing more. After that, I’m through with him,” she huffed, crossing her forelegs and turning her head to the side.

Sitting in silence for a few moments, Rainbow and Pinkie let out a sigh of relief as their two friends began speaking again, this time on friendly terms. Still hearing the two bicker, however, Pinkie and Rainbow decided to start their own conversion. Like the many other times they needed something to talk about, Pinkie started them off.

“I think we should help him. Then we can say we were friends with a real live pirate! Maybe he could teach us to talk piratey and swashbuckle. I've always wanted to swashbuckle.”

“Pinkie, he’s not a pony. We can't just go trusting him off the bat like that. Look what he did to me and Twilight.”

“Spike isn't a a pony, and he’s friendly. Hector isn’t nice, but maybe he just doesn’t know how to act like a pony.”

“What are you talking about? He isn't a pony, how is he meant to start acting like one?”

“Exactly! His world might be really, really, really different from ours. The ponies might not be very nice where he comes from.”

Cocking her head at her pink friend, Rainbow swirled what Pinkie had just said around in her mind. Maybe she did have some sort of point, in a Pinkie Pie kind of way.

“So...you think he’s mean to us because ponies in his world were mean to him? Or something like that?”

“Yeah. You know it makes perfect sense. I mean, why else would he try and hurt Twilight?”

“What about me? He hurt me too!” Rainbow said, motioning towards her broken leg for emphasis.

“Yes, but you started it Dashie. He shouldn’t have hit you back, but you shouldn’t have hit him in the first place.”

Poking her friend on the forehead with her hoof, Pinkie them smiled and pulled Rainbow into a tight hug.

“But I’m still glad you’re oki doki.”

“Thanks Pinkie.”

Dash returned the hug as best she could, shifting and moving around under her friends weight. Her leg was broken after all, so a full on hug was slightly awkward to do, but Pinkie didn't seem to mind.

“What else can this thing do then? Does he have his own pirate ship with cannons and stuff??”

Maybe the pirate wasn’t as bad as she thought he was. That didn't matter though; once she was out of hospital, she wouldn't let him out of her sight. Releasing Rainbow from the hug, Pinkie shrugged her shoulders.

“I don’t know. He said he was sailing with his crew to someone’s locker, so he must have had one, right?”

“So, is he like Rötenbeard? Or Captain Mortelmane and TrésorTail the Terrible?”

“He didn’t say much about himself, but there’s a really mean pirate called Blackbeard where he comes from, so I guess that kinda counts. But everyone else had weird names in his world. If you wanted a normal one, you had to make it up yourself.”

“Weird how? Like boring weird, or different weird?”

“Well, he said Blackbeard was really called Edward, and he’s only called Blackbeard to scare everyone. He talked about someone called Cutlass though, so maybe they haven’t all got boring names.”

“Well, I don’t care what he’s called or how boring his name is. He isn’t getting off the hook for busting my nose and leg.””

It wasn’t fair. She had been the one to help her friends, yet she was the one not learning anything about the monster. Not anything cool anyway.

“Maybe he’ll say he’s sorry once you get out.”

“Yeah, he’d better. Putting me in hospital and hurting Twilight. He’ll be lucky if I do anything for him.”

“Aww, don’t be like that Dashie. He’s a pirate. And he said the sooner we help him, the sooner he gets to go home.”

Rainbow gave her friend a sceptical glare, half closing her eyes.

“So he basically told you we should help him, or we’re stuck with him?” she said curiously, trying to add emphasis to the latter point

"Yup. And if he can’t get home, he can’t help Jack.”

So he was blackmailing them into helping him? That's what it sounded like. Help me, or I'll stay here and annoy you until you do, or that's how Rainbow imagined it anyway. But seeing as Pinkie had completely missed the point she was trying to make, Rainbow decided to move the conversation along.

“Who’s Jack?”

“The pirate he was trying to save from the land of the dead. They must be great friends if Hector went all the way there to see him again. That proves he’s a nice human.”

Readying to open her mouth and ask what she meant, Pinkie somehow knew what the question would and answered anyway.

“Oh yeah, his things are called humans. Or humanies. Or humani. I don’t know what the plural is. It rolls of the your tongue though, don't you think?”

“It doesn’t matter. I still don’t like him.”

Scrunching up her nose, and attempting to cross her forelegs, she looked at Rarity. The white unicorn and the orange earth pony were just listening to Pinkie talk anyway.

“I’m surprised Fluttershy didn’t want to come with you. You know, seeing as there’s a monster in Twilight’s house.”

“She volunteered to stay. Apparently she wanted to know more about him,” she said, before suddenly blinking, “Oh, and she says hi. So does Twilight.”

“Y’all need to give her more credit where it’s due, Rainbow. I thought she’d be scared of Hector too, especially after he ransacked her house. Maybe she's just curious about 'im?”

“Yeah. I mean, he technically is an animal.”

Fluttershy was a lot smarter than she let on, so maybe she just wanted to learn more about the new animal they'd discovered. Rainbow wouldn't put it past her. Or maybe she wanted to know about other stuff; she could be as curious as Twilight when she found something she liked.

“As nice as it is that Fluttershy isn’t scared of Hector, we need to get going. We only came to make sure you were okay. We love you dear, but it’s just Twilight, Spike and Fluttershy in the library with Hector, and we’d rather not take any chances.”

Rainbow sighed, frowning as the words left Rarity's lips. She would have preferred them to stay, but knew that if the situation was reversed, she would want to check on the others too. She was fine in the hospital, but they didn’t know how they were back at the library. Keeping her friends safe was more important.

“That’s fine guys, really. I’ll be out tomorrow anyway.”

Applejack nodded.

“And Fluttershy said she and Twilight would see ya tomorrow too. It’s getting late, and they’re probably talkin’ with Hector anyways.”

Giving Rainbow a hug, she moved towards the door, followed closely by Rarity.

“Goodnight sugercube.”

“Yes, goodnight Rainbow.”

“See ya tomorrow. Enjoy the grapes Dashie!”

Watching Pinkie bounce through the door behind the others, Rainbow sat back against her soft, feathery pillow. It was getting late, and the issue with Hector had cost her many a nap she’d had planned for the day. He’d cost her a lot of things she’d had planned for the day, like not being in hospital. But being there meant she had free time, and that meant she could sleep all she wanted.

Reaching over to her bedside table, she rummaged through the bag of grapes, only to find a dingy stalk with two pieces of fruit left. Looking over at the bag, there was a small note placed to the side. The paper was hot pink, and a small smiley face in a love heart sat below the text.

'It’s customary to eat most of the grapes before you leave too.'
- Pinkie Pie

Rolling her eyes, she shoved the last two grapes in her mouth and let her head fall onto her soft pillow. The sooner she went to sleep, the sooner it would be tomorrow, and the sooner it was tomorrow, the sooner she could leave. Lying down face first, she closed her eyes and felt the comfort of finally being able to get some rest. Her leg hurt, and getting comfortable was a little difficult, but she'd had worse nights sleep. Shuffling around under the covers, and shifting over and under the sheets multiple times, she finally found a position comfortable enough.

With nothing but the sounds of crickets outside and staff working their shifts down the hall, she closed her eyes to block out the remaining light of the day. The sun was setting, and the reds and yellows flooding in through the window were all that were keeping her from sleep, but being too lazy to close the curtains, she made do with what she had. Releasing a final yawn, she buried her head deep within the pillow below her, and soon after found herself dreaming of swashbuckling adventures on the high seas.

I've Got My Eye On You

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 8
I've Got My Eye On You

“Can ye untie me now?”

Captain Barbossa sat patiently in his chair. He’d answered all of the unicorn's questions, and most of them more truthfully than he wanted to. The least she could do was free him from the stupid, bloody chair. It had been hours, and not only had the others left to visit his assailant in hospital, but Twilight's questioning was getting beyond tolerable.

“I don’t think so, Hector.”

Hurriedly writing and scratching into her second notebook, Twilight ignored his pleading. Not that he blamed her; he’d asked at least two dozen times in the last ten minutes. What annoyed him was that she wasn’t losing her patience. The day was nearing it's end, and the sun was setting beyond the windows around him. The oranges and reds bled through the glass, making him all the more wistful of his predicament. This world was acceptable, but his own world was where he belonged.

Tiredly looking at his guard and interrogator, he realised in all the effort to answer Twilight and gain her trust, he’d never thought to ask something himself. Feeling he was long overdue a question of his own, he cleared his throat to gain her attention.

“How de ye do that?”

“Do what?” Twilight asked as she stared at him, blankly looking into his eyes.

“That,” he said motioning towards the notebook, “Float things. Like ye did with me pistol and that book.”

“It’s magic. All unicorns can do it.”

The way she spoke implied he was stupid, as if she were telling him something that he was expected to know. He rolled his eyes in response before trying again.

“Aye, I can see that. But how do ye do it?”

“We just can. We focus our energy into a spell, and we cast it,” Twilight replied before she widened her eyes, “Oh, do you not have magical unicorns in your world?”

“We don’t have any unicorns, nor do we have any flyin’ horses.”

“I keep telling you, we’re ponies, not horses, and they’re called pegasi.”

Realisation hit the pirate. Pegasus. That’s what it was called. It had been years since he'd read anything on Greek mythology.

“So I was the first unicorn you ever saw?”

“I’ve seen pictures. The same with yer friend there,” he said, nudging his head towards Fluttershy.

“You said you didn’t have unicorns.”

“There be a great, many manner o’ creatures in my world, but unicorns and pegasuses are a thing of legend. A myth lost te the sands of time. Then again, so are many of the other creatures I've seen, so maybe ye do exist somewhere.”

“It’s pegasi. Do you have earth ponies?”

He groaned, realising he’d inadvertently caused her to start a whole new line of questioning. And he didn't get why they had to be earth ponies. Surely pony worked just fine if the other two already had names for their species.

“Aye, we do. But they don’t talk.”

Before Twilight could open her mouth again, he made sure to shush her with a icy glare, moving his head as far forward as he could manage.

“And if ye’ll be so kind as to not ask any more questions, ye can be sure I'll more willin' te talk when you undoubtedly start asking me more tomorrow. Do I make meself clear?”

He had a nerve to talk back at her, but Twilight realised he did indeed have a point. She’d got more information on him and his world than she would have gotten in a lifetime on her own, and as it stood, she had yet to keep up her end of the bargain.

“I..is it okay if I ask one question?”

Looking over at Fluttershy, Barbossa had all but forgotten she was even there. The most she’d done was look at Twilight's book as she wrote down what he said. Letting out a frustrated breath, he nodded and answered.

“Fine. Ye can ask one.”

The small dragon walked into view, seemingly wanting the same treatment. The pirate grated his teeth and rolled his eyes. Maybe he should have just kept quiet?

“Aye, you too.”

Clearing her throat and walking up to him, Fluttershy stopped at his feet, sitting on her haunches.

“Do you like animals?”

Giving the yellow pegasus a strange look, he wondered about the childlike innocence of the question before eventually coming to a suitably childlike answer.

“I have a pet, if that’s what yer gettin’ at.”

Readying to focus on the dragon, Fluttershy spoke up again, a small smile seeping onto her features.

“What kind of animal is it? Does it have a name? Is he fluffy?”

“He be a monkey named Jack,” he grumbled at her, wanting to avoid making the weak one cry again.

But he thought it best to leave the immortal part out of the equation, lest Twilight pick up interest on the subject.

“Thank you for answering my question.”

He threw the yellow mare another curious look. He was at least glad Fluttershy was less inclined to follow her curiosity than Twilight was, but she seemed...overly friendly with him, considering he had brought her to a snivelling wreck the day before. Deciding to ignore the issue, Barbossa then turned to the dragon at his feet.

“Do you have dragons where you come from? Oh no, wait, what do you have where you come from?”

“That be two questions. One more than I offered, and two more than I be wantin' te answer.”

“Fluttershy got three,” the small dragon whined, pointing like a bratty child towards the pony in question.

“If dragons be any more than a legend, I’ve yet to see one. And there be many creatures; krakens, the undead; too many to be mentionin’ here,” he said, putting special emphasis on the latter part, if only just to suggest he couldn’t really be bothered talking about them.

“Cool! Twilight, you hear that? They have zombies where he’s from.”

“Yes Spike, I heard.”

She couldn’t help but think his world sounded more and more terrible the more she heard about it; stormy seas, un-dead creatures roaming the land, pirates at every corner waiting to attack and harm. But he called it home, and despite it's many short comings, he wanted to get back.

“And I promise, starting tomorrow, I’ll start looking for a way to get you home.”

Floating her notebook elegantly onto a desk at the other end of the room, Twilight levitated some paper towards herself and handed it to the small dragon.

“Spike, can you take a letter?”

“Sure thing…”

Fetching a quill, he sat on the floor and wrote as his friend spoke.

“Dear Princess Celestia,

I have some very exciting news; we have a visitor from another world staying in the library. His name his Captain Hector Barbossa, and he comes to our world from his own, lost, stranded and unable to get home. I know this is most difficult to believe, and it all sounds like a little foal's story, but every word I've said thus far is true. I hope to hear your response soon, as well any information or assistance you have to offer that may help our guest.

Your faithful student, Twilight Sparkle.”

Finishing his job of writing the letter, the dragon then threw it in the air, burning it with a bright green flame, and before his eyes, the captain saw the scroll burn to a cinder and vanish as the fire flowed through the air and out the window.

“What was that?!”

Something wasn’t right.

“We sent a letter to the Princess asking for help. Hopefully we’ll get a repl-“

“Ye said ye wouldn’t hand me to the royal guard!” the captain's voice suddenly echoed through the room, alarm evident in his voice.

“We’re not handing you over to the guard. You heard what I said, we just told her about you,” she calmly replied in a soft, soothing voice.

“They amount te the same bloody thing! She’ll have me hanged!” he fiercely yelled, once again shaking around in his chair, struggling against the enchanted rope.

Fluttershy and Spike looked at each other, not quite sure what was scaring him, nor how to actually calm him down. Twilight just shook her head at the other two, equally unsure of what he was talking about.

“Hung from what?” Spike asked, seeing as no one else wanted to.

Barbossa looked back at them with the same confused look they’d had moments before. Breathing slowly and calmly, he searched his mind, trying to work out what was going on.

“Hung from the neck until death…”

Still feeling somewhat confused, Barbossa sat as he saw the others' expressions change from confusion to fear. The kind of fear he’d seen in the crew when the ship went down. But it wasn’t a fear for their own well-being. It was something else entirely.

“U-u-until death? They let your neck…snap?” Fluttershy said, shaking.

“Why would the princess do that to you?!” Twilight shouted back at the pirate, angry he thought Celestia would do such a thing.

But after a few seconds, realisation hit her and she looked up at him.

“Is…is that what your world does…to pirates?”

She knew pirates weren’t necessarily to be trusted, but that seemed…brutal.

“I be takin’ it yours doesn’t?”

While this was something Captain Barbossa could celebrate, curiosity still urged him to wonder and ask about the issue. What was the guard for if not for criminals? What did happen to the ne'er do wells when they were caught?

“Of course not! That’s horrible. We wouldn’t kill anypony by…by breaking their necks!”

“What does yer world do then? Let ‘em roam free? If so, that sounds plenty appealin' compared te me own situation.”

“No, of course not. We don’t have pirates anymore…”

Barbossa had thought as much, but the topic still interested him. What need would a world have for a guard force if there was no one to guard against?

“Aye, but what of the other criminals. What’s their fate?”

“They don’t get one. We don’t have executions; ours is an age of peace and prosperity, they’re not needed.”

“But they used to be.”

Twilight froze, focusing her eyes on the floor instead of her addresser.

“Am I right, Miss Sparkle?”

As much as he hated to admit it, he wouldn’t have them thinking his world was purely a hell hole full of pillagers and plunderers while theirs was an Equestrian heaven of peace and pure joy. Besides, learning how the animals dealt with punishment could somehow prove useful.

“I don’t know why you want to go back to your world. It sounds awful,” she said, hoping to drop the subject.

Twilight didn’t look at directly him, but Barbossa could tell she was uncomfortable. Her voice was wavering and what was said came out as raspy and dry. The other two were still silent, shuffling their feet and hooves, looking towards their purple friend.

“It is, but that’ll be changin’ soon enough.”

Curious about what he’d said, Twilight was about to ask when Spike coughed up a scroll. Barbossa couldn’t get over how strange and useful an ability it was, but doubted now was the time to ask about it. He doubted it was a skill he wanted to learn either.

Carefully levitating the message, Twilight spent a few seconds reading and rereading it, following each word with her eyes. She eventually turned to Barbossa, moving the letter in front of his face.

“To my faithful student, Twilight Sparkle,

As marvellous as this state of affairs is, I cannot stress enough that you should be careful; we know nothing about your guest, but if anypony can handle a situation such as this, I am sure it is you and your friends.
However, I would like to see this Captain Hector Barbossa for myself, to see if he or she truly is from beyond our own world. Duty calls tonight, but I will arrive at noon tomorrow to meet your guest. I would come sooner, but given the casual nature of your last letter, I assume you have the situation under control for now.
Please be careful, but do not forget what you have learned and, that while he or she is unfamiliar, this creature is still a guest in your home.

Princess Celestia”

Finishing the scroll, Barbossa looked over at Twilight, wondering if she would actually follow her mentor’s recommendation. He was unsettled the ruler didn't know his gender, but that was the least of his problems.

“Well, ye heard yer princess, Miss Sparkle. I’m a guest.”

Twilight struggled with the idea; she respected her mentor, and the princess was usually right, but Celestia didn’t know what he had done. If she had known Hector had attacked her, there was no way she would ask him to be treated so politely. Surely if Celestia knew the situation, she wouldn’t object to keeping him tied up, but then again, she couldn’t expect him to stay there all night.

“Hiya Twilight!”

Her thought process was broken as Pinkie eagerly bounced through the front door of the library, while Applejack and Rarity cantered in slowly behind her.

“Hiya Mr Pirate!”

Barbossa sarcastically smiled back at the pink mare as she strolled in, showing his teeth and tilting his head forward in a faux bow.

“Hey, Twi. How goes guard duty?” Applejack said as she narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing the pirate with a frown on her face.

Barbossa just snarled back at her, once again showing his teeth.

Unsure of how to approach the subject, Twilight eagerly levitated the scroll towards her friends. The three new comers and Fluttershy looked over the letter, varying degrees of displeasure written across their faces. Rarity narrowed her eyes, looking up towards Barbossa and then to Twilight.

“So you’re just going to let him go?!”

“I don’t know. I mean, he hasn’t done anything since you girls left, and he answered the questions we asked him…”

Rarity furrowed her brow again. She’d promised Applejack she’d give him a chance, but she didn’t think they’d be letting him go this soon. Looking over to Applejack, she motioned her head towards the pirate, but after multiple times of her not getting the hint, she whispered instead.

“Ask him.”

“Hmm? Oh. Oh, right. Sure” Applejack whispered back before trotting up to Barbossa, her head held down towards the floor.

“Um…Mr Hector?”

She glanced back a Rarity, who nodded her head and motioned her hoof forward in reply. Looking back up, the human just stared at her with a curious gaze, one eyebrow raised higher than the other.

“…Aye?”

“Do..do y’all eat ponies?”

She really didn’t want to ask the question. Nopony did, mainly because they were scared of the answer he would give. Fluttershy and Twilight stood there motionless, the latter holding her breath. She didn’t know the answer he’d give, but she’d wished she’d asked him while the other weren’t here. His pointed teeth meant he ate meat; she just didn’t really want to know what kind.

But while they were worried about what he would say, Barbossa was deciding the best way to actually respond. He didn't want to make any more mistakes, and coming across as something that would happily eat them wasn't what he deemed as the correct course of action. Of course, he wasn't naïve about the situation; they obviously knew, to some extent, that he ate meat.

“No. I've ate a many manner o' creatures, but never a pony.”

That was technically true; while he hadn't ate pony meat in particular, he had ate horse. But even if he had ate pony, he couldn't imagine wanting it if it was anything like horse meat. It was somewhat tough, and not something he would choose over what was more commonly consumed.

“B-but y'all could if...if it w-were what ya wanted?”

“Aye, but I can't imagine I'll want te do that while I'm here. Wouldn't be very cost effective, eatin' the creatures helpin' me return home.”

As good as he thought his joke was, the rest apparently didn't agree. The multicoloured ponies back away from his presence. Spike did the same, scurrying from his post near the pirate to Twilight's side.

“Fer the love of God. Look, I'm not goin' te eat ye. And even if I did eat horses and ponies, ye really think I'd go eatin' ye before anythin' else I could find?”

Twilight let her ears perk up. His argument was somewhat...understandable. They'd met other meat eating animals, and even though they could eat ponies, they didn’t actually do it. Griffins were well known for being omnivores, yet it was all but unheard of for one to actually eat a pony. And even then, there were some other animals that they chose not to eat anyway.

“So...if we released you...you wouldn't try and eat us?” Twilight asked, sheepishly looking down from where she stood.

“Ye have me word.”

He began moving around in the chair, shifting against the ropes. His wrists were pained, and his back was aching under the long hours tied to his prison; getting out was a blessing in any form.

“You have to Pinkie Pie promise.” Twilight said.

“What now?” Barbossa asked, looking towards the pink pony in question.

“Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye,” Pinkie Pie responded as she hopped up from her position on the floor, animatedly explaining her promise as she danced and skipped around in front of the pirate.

Finishing with her explanation, Barbossa just stared at her, not quite sure if she was being serious or not.

“Aye, I shan’t be sayin’ that.”

“Why not?” Pinkie whined, seemingly more upset at him not saying her promise than the actual act of not promising.

“Because it sounds stupid.”

“You will say it, or you’ll be tied to this chair until the princess arrives tomorrow.”

Twilight stood her ground, stamping her hoof with a heavy thud onto the wooden floor. Barbossa just snarled back at her.

“Fine…”

Staring at the rest of the assorted ponies, they looked back at him with the same look Twilight had. The immature saying must be accepted here. Sadly.

“Cross me ‘eart and ‘ope te die, stick a...a cupcake in me eye…”

He felt ridiculous. He didn't even know what a cupcake was.

Pinkie smiled at him, as did Twilight. The others didn’t, but Spike seemed to get a mild laugh out of hearing him say something so humiliating.

Twilight simply nodded, but instead of freeing him, she walked over to the pile of his possessions. From the assortment of objects, she levitated two pouches, as well as his sword and pistol into the air. She then marched over to Spike, the troupe of piratey objects effortlessly dancing around in the air behind her.

“Go and get the book Spike.”

Understanding the order, the small dragon bounded up the small ladder at the pirate’s side, and after seconds of rummaging came back down, holding an average sized, sky blue book. It had patterns going around the spine, as well as a purple jewel on the front.

Spike opened it up and placed it on the floor at the unicorn’s hooves. The others, much like the pirate, had attempted to get a better look at what was going on. Somewhat worried at what was about to happen, Barbossa spoke up.

“What are ye doin?...”

“This is a spell I designed. With this book, and properly enchanted items, I can store things within the pages. It keeps the items safe, and, more importantly, out of your way.”

“So…you turn them into pictures?” Fluttershy asked, somewhat confused.

“More or less, but the objects still stay the same. If it were possible to enter the book yourself, you could use the sword and…still load and shoot the pistol.”

Barbossa sat there, somewhat impressed, with a look of intrigue on his face.

“And can ye enter the book?”

“No. Or at least, if you can, I don’t know how to do it.”

As a silence came over the room, everyone marvelled at the book as it began to glow a deep, dark purple. It began to float in the air, and as the pirate’s artefacts danced around it, the pages from the book flew out in to the library. Dozens of them flew around the room, ducking and diving over and around the ponies and the pirate as the all sat there.

After watching the papers soar and glide throughout the library, the sheets began encircling the floating items in a whirlwind of white and purple. As the maelstrom of papers tightened and reduced in size, they cleared to show the items had gone, and soon after all the papers had become static pages once again the book fell lifelessly to the floor.

Sitting on her haunches, and trying catch her breath, Twilight floated the tome back into the air and opened it to the only filled pages within the book. Inside were four images; a sword, a pistol and two small pouches, all etched with ink into the book. After rather proudly showing her friends, Twilight presented the book to Hector.

“And they’ll stay in there until you are ready to go home. No one can touch them, and you’ll get them in the same condition in which you left them.”

“How de ye know they still work?”

Twilight had expected him to be angry, but chose not to tempt fate by asking. Using a quill, she drew three simple lines. Casting yet another spell on the book, the sword began to move, and in a quick, effortless set of motions, it cut through each of the lines, leaving six smaller ones in their place.

“Would have been more impressive te see ye fire the pistol,” he said, looking down at her whilst smiling.

Frowning at him, the pirate suddenly felt the ropes around his wrists loosen, and the chair budge beneath his weight. Pushing his wrists apart, he smiled as the rope effortlessly fell from around him and onto the floor. Shakily standing up, the chair toppled to the floor behind him, and after finally getting to his feet, he cracked his neck and shoulders. The ponies cringed, the crunch and crack of his bones echoing around the room as he twisted his body.

Finishing his stretching, he saw that all except Twilight had frozen in place. Not that he had to wonder why; he stood a good few feet above the ponies, and even more so over the tiny dragon. Quickly grabbing the book floating in the air, causing Twilight to flinch in the process, he moved his fingers over his formerly real items. They really were pictures. Not even the indents of a pen could be felt on the page.

“We’ll make a bed of sorts for you in the basement. You can have the rest of your things back, as well as the apples you bought from Applejack. If you as much as think about causing trouble, I’ll put you straight back in the chair.”

“Are ye sure ye could manage that, Miss Sparkle?” he sarcastically laughed as he walked towards his things.

“I’ve levitated an ursa minor. You’re like a mouse in comparison.”

Catching the warning in her voice rather than the reference, he decided to stop begging for trouble, and instead chose to put on his jacket and return his hat to its rightful place.

“Why are you putting your jacket and hat back on?”

“Te replace me effects back into their rightful pockets, seein’ as I don’t have no magic te help me.” he said, giving her a quick, cynical smile before turning back around.

Watching him pick up his things, replacing each item back into the pocket she assumed it came from, Twilight walked back to her friends, who had all decided to move to anywhere the pirate wasn't.

“Spike, could you please get the old mattress in the basement and put it on the floor. There should be some sheets down there as well.”

Setting off to the basement, Spike gave Twilight a mocking salute and started whistling, making his way towards the area under his home.

“Y’all are givin’ ‘im his own bed?”

“It’s an old mattress; the springs are loose and it’s a bit dusty. I never use it, so I don’t see why he can’t.”

Applejack looked towards the pirate before whispering, “What about…y’know…food…”

“He still has some of the apples he got from the farm. I think he’ll be fine for tonight. We can sort out the food problem when it comes up tomorrow.”

“Do you want us to stay the night, Twilight?” Rarity asked, evidently more worried than Applejack.

“If you feel you have to, but I’m sure me and Spike will be fine. Hector knows where he stands.”

“Aye, and it be a good few feet taller then you, Miss Sparkle!”

Twilight narrowed her eyes, turning around as she heard Pinkie giggling to herself.

“What? I thought it was pretty funny.”

Shaking her head at the party pony, Twilight ignored her and continued talking.

“Anyway, you can come back tomorrow. I kind of want you all there when the princess arrives. Do you think Rainbow will come?”

While Twilight spoke eagerly, Rarity took her time before responding.

“I’m not sure. I doubt she’d say no to you Twilight, but I can’t promise she’ll be happy about seeing Hector again.”

“Well, tell her I'd be grateful if she did come.”

The others didn’t want to leave Twilight and Spike on their own, but if she said she’d be fine, then in the end they had to trust her. Saying their goodbyes, Rarity walked up to Hector, lightly kicking his heel to get his attention. Barbossa simply looked down at her, fiddling with a broken pocket watch before hiding it within his coat.

“You lay one…thing on Twilight or Spike, and we’ll make sure you regret it.”

Her ears were on edge, and he could see the anger in her eyes. But while she was certainly putting on the pressure, her back-up was decidedly less intimidating; Applejack and Fluttershy attempted a less than fierce glare, while Pinkie merely stuck out her tongue and scrunched up her eyes.

“Of course; it be in me best interests not to. But get under me skin once too often, and ye may see me not take the same liberty wi' ye, Miss Rarity.”

Glowering back at him, she turned to her friends before huffing and walking out of the door. Barbossa knew he was treading on thin ice, but he couldn’t resist attempting a jab at them every now and then, especially the white one. In the end, he saw no problem with some mild banter; if he could do it with his enemies, he could do it with the horses. He just had to be careful.

Finished with restoring his pockets to their former state, he turned around to face his new purple landlord. The dragon soon returned from his venture downstairs, and after smiling at him, Twilight presented Spike with...a dark red jewels.

Noticing the pirate, her smiled wavered, eventually being replaced by a frown. However, Barbossa was more fascinated with the baby dragon that had, in a small manner of bites, chewed his way through and swallowed the jewel he had been given.

“He eats jewels?”

“Gemstones. And what else is he going to eat?”

The captain assumed it would be small animals, but apparently his knowledge of dragons was lacking. Besides, if their friend ate meat, he doubted they would have made such a big deal about him doing the same.

“Anyway, your bed's down here.”

Guiding him towards the door Spike had ventured through, Twilight opened it and made her way down the stairs.

“Spike cleared aside most of my things, but I expect you not to touch anything.”

The pirate took wind of the fact that it was more a command than a suggestion. But once he was down there, he wasn’t completely sure he wanted to touch anything in the first place.

Among the many small relics and tree roots strewn about the floor and walls, there were also…things. They were made of sleek, shining metal, and they were making loud, rattling noises. One had lighting rods cascading from the top, creating their own crackles and sparks rather than absorbing ones from the sky. They were so bright.

There were more things down there too; some held liquids, while others vanished into the walls around him, connecting to the other boxes with coloured strings and rope. Moving away out of pure instinct, the captain pushed his back up against the wall of the stairwell.

They were so loud. Louder than any mining engine. Louder than anything metal he wanted to be close to. How hadn''t he heard it upstairs?

“What’s wrong?”

He didn’t respond, instead choosing to reach for his sword that wasn’t actually there any more. Trying to pinpoint what he was looking at, she blinked at her machines, wondering what one had him so scared. Moving down the steps, it was only when she reached the bottom she noted the captain had slowed to a stop.

“What are they?” He asked, pointing at the metal casing, beakers, pipes and wires, staring at them from over his nose and cracking the bones of his knuckles.

“It’s just my analysis machine. I can turn it off if you want.”

She’d left it on for an experiment involving tree sap, but reasoned Barbossa would offer much more in terms of knowledge. He didn’t reply, instead just choosing to stare at the device. The rest weren’t switched on, but the analysis machine did take up a large amount of space against the wall.

Regretting she’d lose parts of the data gathered, she walked towards the generator and, casting her horn towards it, turned off the machine. It slowed from the hectic spinning to a soothing whir, before finally ceasing activity all together. Looking back towards Hector, she saw he still hadn’t moved much from his previous position on the stairs, keeping his stance against the wall.

“Here’s your bed.”

Kicking the mattress lying in the middle of the floor, she motioned with her hooves for the human to come downstairs. There was an old, brown sheet covering it, with an equally old quilt to go along with it. It was deep, dark blue, with ruffles at the side and yellow stars decorating the front, or at least what was left of them.

Moving down the steps, Barbossa still refused to take his eyes of the machine. He couldn’t do anything to it, seeing as he had no access to magic and it had a spell on it, so there wasn't any reason he couldn't be around it. But it still confused her how wary of it he was.

Moving out of the way of the bed she’d set up, she was surprised when he walked straight past it, instead heading for the machine. Walking right up to it, he hesitantly brushed his finger across the metal, before doing the same with his other hand and giving it a knock with his knuckles.

“What does it do?”

“A lot of things.”

“How does it work?”

“It’s kind of like a magical science.”

Taking one last look before moving for the bed, he stared at the beakers filled with tree sap, and the wires leading from the machine to the different parts around it, before tapping one of the beakers.

“It be like no magic I’ve ever seen.”

He turned to the bed, sitting down on it before scratching his knee.

“Any science for that matter either.”

“Well, I’m not talking about it tonight. You can ask tomorrow if you really have to. But as long as you don’t touch anything, the machine won’t do anything either.”

It was a relief, actually. If he was wary of her machines, then he’d be less likely to touch them. She could have just let him sleep in the library, but there was always the danger of him escaping. Putting a spell on the windows was doable, but it was easier just doing it to one door and a few possessions.

“Aye, fine. Ye done now, or are ye gonna keep pesterin’ me?”

Taking of his boots, hat and coat, he lay down on top of the quilt, yawning and scratching his scalp with his hand.

“It wouldn’t hurt to be nicer, you know.”

“I’d rather not take the chance.”

Clicking her teeth at the large house guest, she turned around and walked up the stairs towards the library. Looking back down, making sure anything of particular importance was out of the room, she offered him one last chance to be cordial.

“Good night.”

Hearing nothing in reply, she sighed before walking towards the door, but heard a voice just before closing it.

“Aye. Night,” he replied, irritated and angry, but Twilight surmised it was the best she was going to receive.

Climbing to her own bed, she wriggled under the covers and rested her head on the pillow. Spike was already asleep, or a least he appeared to be. His breathing was calm and slow, and deciding he had the right idea, Twilight followed his lead.

Author's Note: Barbossa is back, huzzah! And thanks to Pata-K and DannyJ for proofreading this chapter. And a nice long chapter to make up for the last one.

He's a Pirate

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 9
He's a Pirate

“Get up!”

Having grown tired of banging on the basement door, Twilight had finally forced herself to move downstairs to wake the pirate herself. It didn’t help; even shouting from a few inches away failed to wake him. Although Twilight had more than a hunch that he was simply ignoring her.

“I said up! The princess will be here soon.”

It was already past eleven, and while the purple mare and her scaly friend had been up since eight preparing for the royal visit, she had put off fetching Barbossa. It was unlikely he would have made himself useful anyway. Pulling the quilt over his head, and proving Twilight’s suspicions correct, the unicorn lost her patience.

“Fine. Be that way.”

Turning around, Twilight bucked the mattress hard with her hind legs, flipping it over. Catapulting the captain onto the hard, oak floor, he had no time to react before his former bed landed on top of him, sheets and all.

“Bloody, stupid horses...”

Fighting his way out of the sheets and covers, Barbossa got to his knees and rubbed his eyes with the palm. Blinking and letting out a loud, gruff yawn, he climbed to his feet and stretched his back. Twilight grimaced at the sound of his popping bones. He did it far more often than he needed to.

“As I was saying, the princess will be here soon. You need to get ready.”

Letting loose another yawn, the captain tediously sighed and looked down at the unicorn. He grated his teeth together, and looked down from over his nose.

“And what would ye have me do? Put on me best clothes?”

“I don’t know. You've left it too late to wash yourself....you could comb your mane or something?”

Barbossa’s eye twitched. Trust a woman to give that kind of answer...

“For humans, it be called hair, and I don’t comb mine.”

“Yeah, I can tell,” she said as she shook her head, “Fine. Just get your flank upstairs.”

Grumbling under his breath, he kicked aside the old mattress and walked towards the stairs. He would have to explain what his body parts were called eventually; it annoyed him to no end when they kept saying he had claws or talons. It was somewhat funny at first, but manes and flippers? Surely there were some animals that had hands and feet?

“Aye, fine. But buck the bed while I'm in it again, and I swear to God I'll be shovin' those rusty springs somewhere your muzzle can't reach!” he said, clenching his fist together and slamming the wall in front of the purple mare's face.

Stammering and unable to properly respond, Twilight nervously nodded her head and hurriedly made her way upstairs, followed moments later by Barbossa himself.

Coming into the library, he arrived to see not just Twilight and the dragon, but also Fluttershy and Applejack as well. Ducking under the small door, he raised a hand to the pegasus, somewhat confused as to what to do. She was stood on her own, apparently reading a book, while the others were huddled in a small group doing something else.

Fluttershy just looked at him for a few second before nervously smiling and going off to stand with her friends.

“Are the others not comin’?”

He didn’t really care, but seeing as no one liked him, asking how their friends were keeping would surely help raise his standing. The farmer just eyed him before answering.

“They’re off pickin’ up Rainbow from hospital.”

Or maybe it would just remind them of what he did. Staring back at Applejack, Barbossa turned away from the small group and took a gander over the bookshelves. If they weren’t willing to talk, he couldn’t be bothered trying.

Looking over the colourful selection of books present, there weren’t many that caught his attention. He’d never been one for literature, but like any proper man, he had learned to read from a young age.

Anyone could be part of a crew, but only those intelligent enough could lead one. Then again, he didn’t learn to read for the sole reason of becoming a captain; back in the early days, it was more a way of opening connections. If a captain was stupid enough to not have an ability to read, he would want a first mate that could.

Either way, he had the capacity to choose something to read, and as he had nothing better to do, he might as well find something to humour himself, at least until the pony princess got here. Pulling out a book with water droplets emblazoned on the spine, he held it in his hand and looked down at the cover.

“‘Darin’ Doo and the Trident of the Seaponies’?”

Flipping it over to the description, he surmised that seaponies were likely this world’s equivalent of mermaids. None to bothered about the adventures of the eponymous Daring Doo, he put the book back and searched for something less fictional to read. Although depending on the subject, anything he read here could be considered fictional. The beings stood not five feet from him were considered fictional.

Moving across the room, he found a whole selection of books covering a vast amount of subjects, from gardening to topics surrounding science. Barbossa couldn’t understand much about the latter topics, but there were also many books on the creatures that roamed this world. Picking a dark green one out from the shelf, he turned it over and read the cover.

“‘Tooth and Claw’.”

It was an educational book, filled with information on beasts and creatures that were known for their attacking power and instincts. It was basically the same book he had stolen from the cottage, albeit one with less fluffy creatures and more ferocious ones.

Taking an interest, the pirate sat down on a large, green couch and began reading. While he recognized the names of some creatures, they were few and far between. It appeared that most of the creatures he feared either didn’t exist here, or, if they did exist, he guessed they weren’t considered a threat. The horses could talk, so it was no stretch of the imagination to think that other animals could do the same.

“Miss Sparkle!” he yelled over to the purple pony, “Do ye have talkin’ lions here?”

“Erm…” she sighed nervously, “Yes, we do, but only in certain parts of Zebrica.”

Her friends readied to ask their questions, but the captain spoke up first. He held the book the in the air.

“And talkin’ tigers too?”

“Y-yes.”

Scratching his beard, Barbossa dropped the book he was reading on the chair before restarting his search of the bookshelves.

“Would…would you like a book about them. Tigers and lions, I mean? The book you had was more suited for wild animals, and there isn't really anything you'd want in that section.”

Barbossa nodding in response, Twilight went over to the appropriate shelves and fetched one book on Tigraniese culture, and another on Zebrican Leeu tribes. Levitating them into his hands, Twilight gave him a quick smile and watched as he sat down on the same chair he had got up from, before moving back to her friends.

“How does he know about tigers and lions?” Spike asked with an eyebrow raised.

“Maybe he has them where he comes from too? There’s still a lot I wanted to ask him, but I think he got bored with my questions.”

“His world sounds pretty dangerous,” he noted, “He said it was full of zombies and other scary stuff.”

“Zombies?” Applejack scoffed,”Like the brain eatin’ kind? They don't really exist Spike.”

“Not in our world, but they apparently do in his. He also said that unicorns and pegasi were only legends and stories where he comes from.”

“Any earth ponies?”

Good to know Applejack had her priorities straight.

“Yes, but they don’t talk. Or do anything apparently. I’m going to ask him more after the princess has gone; his world just sounds so different to ours.”

“Well, Ah’d rather not go there any time soon, what with all the zombies and lions running around and whatnot. It's startin' ta sound kinda evil in m-”

Hearing the clearing of a throat, Applejack turned around to see the pirate standing over her with his forelegs crossed and his leaning down towards her. Looking him in the eye, she turned her head towards Twilight, before nervously laughing back at Barbossa.

“But it...uh, sure sounds mighty fine for a pirate,” she managed to stammer before retreating back behind her friends.

“Ye seem te think that I like havin’ dangerous creatures roamin' around.”

“Well...don't ya? Ye'd be used to it and all.”

“Oh, sure. Reanimated corpses under the servitude of yer enemies and creatures that hunt ye down and eat ye down te the bones.”

He smiled and widened his eyes.

“Aye, it’s a blast.”

“Your world doesn’t sound very nice,” Fluttershy squeaked from next to Applejack.

“Aye, but what of yours?”

“O-ours?”

“Yer hydras, dragons and manticores. How are they any better than the krakens and creatures I have te fear?”

Fluttershy looked to her friends for assistance, shaking and hiding behind her mane. Twilight had no real idea in how to respond, but could see he had some form of point.

“But our world sounds more peaceful than yours, so surely we deal with our threats better than your world does?”

The pirate laughed at her, grasping a part of his forehead with his fingers, but instead of continuing their argument, he walked back to the couch.

“Or maybe, yer petty little world ignores yer own problems better than mine does. That'd surely explain ye livin' not a mile from an infested forest.”

Sitting down, he picked up the book on lions and continued reading, rendering the conversation finished. Applejack turned back Twilight after she was sure he wasn't coming back.

“He ain’t very nice to talk to, is he?”

“I know, but I think he’ll open up once he gets some evidence we can actually get him home.”

“And can we?” Applejack whispered, pushing herself close to Twilight's ear.

“I think so. There must be a spell for it somewhere.”

The sudden sound of hooves clattering to the ground and thudding on the dirt brought Twilight away from her friends, and after a brief spell of leering out the window, she hurried outside. Seeing she had left the building, Spike followed in earnest, pushing the door to the side and leaving it ajar as he left.

Realising both his land lords had left the library, Barbossa closed the book and tossed it on top of the other one he had been reading, along with the book on tigers. Whistling to the two mares left in the room, he looked to Fluttershy, gesturing with a hand towards the door.

“I-it’s the princess.”

Nodding with a sigh, the captain got to his feet, pushing his way away from the couch. It would be best to get this over with sooner rather than later.

After waiting for a few minutes with no arrival from the royal visitor, Barbossa rubbed his face before making his way over the window. He peered outside only to hear the creak of the library's front door.

Rather than seeing Twilight or Spike walk in, he instead saw who he assumed was their princess. Unlike the stockier build all the other ponies he had seen thus far had, she was far more slender, and taller to match. She was almost as tall as the captain himself, and if anything, she looked much more like what he imagined a unicorn or pegasus would.

Once she had come inside, it became obvious that the princess sported both a horn and a set of wings, but something else caught his eye. Her mane, unlike any of the others he'd seen, flowed effortlessly in the air and seemed more like a light show than any sort of hair. Her coat was impressive too; a regal and unblemished white, but coupled with the rest of her features, it just seemed more grand than Rarity's white coat did.

Seeing an easy chance at redemption, Barbossa swiftly removed his hat before kneeling on to his right knee. Holding his hat to his chest, he also bowed his head to the visitor, hoping the act would seem more respectful than it actually was.

"It be an absolute honour, yer royal majesty," he said as he closed his eyes, "Captain Hector Barbossa, at yer service."

The princess didn't reply, instead opting to silently look over him, moving around him in a slow, steady circle. As he continued to kneel there, Celestia continued to watch over him, rotating her head and focusing her gaze as she scrutinised every aspect of him. Curiously opening his eyes and twisting his head to his side, he watched as the white mare stared back at him, still not speaking a word.

As she moved back to his front, now towering over him thanks to his kneeling stance, she cleared her throat before finally addressing him.

“I have been told about you, Captain Barbossa. Is what my student told me true?”

Rather proud that she’d addressed him by title rather than name, he smiled before he replied, raising his head to face the white coated pony.

“That be dependin' on what she's been tellin' ye.”

“That you are from another world. That you landed in our kingdom and are unable to make your way back to your own. Is that true, captain?”

“Aye, every word, I can assure ye.”

“And what about me hearing that you not only assaulted Twilight, and bullied one of her closest friends, but sent another of them to hospital? Is that true too, or has my faithful student been feeding me lies?”

Smile fading, he looked back down towards the floor before replying. She spoke in a calm voice, but unlike her pure appearance, her tone depicted anger and frustration more than anything else. But he could hardly deny her; she'd likely already chose who she was more willing to believe, and he was sure as hell it wasn't him.

“...there may be...some truth te the matter, aye.”

“And are you sorry for what you did?”

He took no hesitation before responding to her. He hardly the choice to say anything else, given his current situation.

“Gravely.”

Twilight and the others stood and stared. They were surprised; they didn’t know if it was through fear or respect, but the princess certainly had some form of sway over him. Celestia continued to look down at him from where she stood, showing little or no emotion on her face.

“And do you intend to repent for what you did?”

He let the wind escape his lungs and his eyes widen. Surely Twilight wasn't lying when she said the death penalty didn't exist?

“In…in what manner of speakin’ are we talkin'?”

“Can the rest of you leave me with him? Please, we won’t be long,” she spoke politely, and calmly; differently to how she was addressing him.

Turning his head to the side, he could see the other ponies nodding and silently walking out of the library. Twilight hesitated, staring at her princess before briefly looking towards the pirate.

“It’s okay. I’ll be fine, Twilight. And so will he.”

Less worried about his fate, the pirate let out a sigh of relief. He didn’t know what to expect from the monarch, but royal pony didn’t seem like the kind to go back on her word. Hearing the front door close for the final time, and realising he was the only being apart from the princess present, he once again dared to look up at her. She was smiling this time.

“I know you’re not sorry for what you did. I’m old, captain; I’ve seen many liars in my time, and you are not as good at it as you think you are.”

Bugger. Perhaps she wasn't as naïve as the rest of the ponies were.

“But I’m surely regretful of me actions at least, princess.”

He may not have been sorry for sending Rainbow to hospital, seeing as the harlot deserved it, but he regretted doing it. The same could be said for Twilight; he wouldn't have had to go through many of the hardships he'd went through if he'd acted cordially towards them.

“Be that as it may, I want you to at least make amends for your actions. If you agree, I will have no problem with helping you. And you can stand now; I'm sure you don't enjoy bowing to a alien dignitary.”

Nodding, he sighed as pushed his way from the floor, cracking as his knees before he finally stood at full height. Kneeling on a wooden floor wasn't the most comfortable way to feign your allegiance, but she'd apparently seen through that as well. Dusting his jacket off, and replacing his hat to his head, he continued with their previous line of conversation.

“And if I don't, I suppose ye'll be keepin' me here fer the rest o' me days? Seems awful black hearted.”

“The way I see it, you want a way home. I’m willing to help find that if you repay for the crimes you committed. It’s a perfectly reasonable offer, Captain Barbossa.”

“And if I did decide te take yer offer, what would ye have me doin'? Labour?”

He couldn't honestly think of much else. If you were caught for any crime, you were executed or thrown in a prison. If you were on of the lucky one, you were put to work.

“If that is what you deem fit; I want you to decide, and if Twilight and her friends deem your acts of kindness suitable, I will have no choice but to agree with them.”

The captain rubbed his temples, rather unsure of how to take his punishment, or lack thereof. The lack of death, torture or even an actual punishment was not something that bothered him, but rather, it was the way she talked so casually. She didn’t sound demanding, nor did she attempt to raise her voice. By all accounts she should be seething at him.

“So…I’m te decide how to recover me reputation, and if Miss Sparkle deems it suitable, ye’ll send me back? And nothin’ else besides that?”

“Basically, yes. On the other hoof, if you cause me or my subjects any more grief, I will be forced to keep you under lock and key until a way home for you is found. The first choice gives you freedom, while the other imprisonment. I’m sure I know which option you prefer.”

She definitely wasn’t as naïve as he’d thought. Her demeanour still troubled him though. She was being too...nice. Too approachable.

“Yer bein' too tolerant. Why? Under normal circumstances I'm guessin' ye'd have me punished and be done wi' me.”

The princess kept herself silent. After Barbossa readied to further voice his opinion, she smiled back at him.

“I sense good in you, Captain Barbossa. You bury it deep, and hesitate to acknowledge it, but it’s there.”

The pirate begged to differ, but if this was his chance at freedom, he was more than willing to humour her. But he did like to think of himself as a fair man. Not the fairest, not by any means, but fair none the less.

“And my full title is Princess Celestia, in case Twilight hadn't told you.”

Still caught up on her calling him a good man, he blinked before nodding his head, hoping he had caught everything she had said.

“If ye say so, Princess Celestia. Maybe I'll decide te tell ye mine before I leave.”

“Twilight also told me of your dietary requirement. I am sorry, but you will struggle to find edible meat here. Our society is herbivorous one.”

“I'm sure I saw chickens durin' me vi-“

“And I’m sure anypony you come across will object to you stealing their pets and eating them. You’ll have to find some other source of food for the time being.”

Realising he had little to say in the matter, he scratched his beard and let out a tired sigh. As much as he loved meat, there were thankfully other foods he enjoyed. At least he knew he wouldn’t be thrown in jail, and if all he had to do was get the ponies’ approval, there was little he had to complain about.

“However, if you are willing to wait an extra day or even two, and providing that you act within my guidelines, I am sure I could acquire some meat for you.”

Somewhat excited at the thought of getting some meat, and for free too, he casually nodded to the princess before pulling his fingers through his beard.

“Yes, fine. I’ll make do. For now.”

“I do believe we have a deal then, captain.”

“Would ye be willin' te shake on it?”

He held out his hand towards the pony. He liked to think shaking on a deal made it more of a mutual agreement than a one sided one, or at least to the point where he could legitimately chastise and...dispose of the opposing party if they failed to keep it. He doubted the princess would break the deal, nor did he have any doubts that he'd likely lose in a battle without a weapon, but he liked the ritual all the same.

Staring at his hand for a few moments, Celestia smiled before placing her hoof in his grasp. He shook it three times before releasing her from his grasp.

“You are a strange creature, Captain Barbossa.”

“Yer point, princess?”

As much as he wanted to talk back or call her out on her own traits, he'd made a decent deal, and he wasn't going to go ruining it after barely a minute by insulting the stronger party.
“No point. I simply meant you're very interesting, despite your drawbacks, and I do hope you will come to think the same about us in due time. But I do believe our little talk is over.”

Walking back over to the front door, the royal equine opened it with her hoof before ushering the others inside. The ponies quickly complied, with Twilight being the first to eagerly jump back into the library.

“Are you okay princess?”

“Yes Twilight, I’m fine. Captain Barbossa and I have an understanding.”

“R-really?”

The pirate gruffly nodded to Twilight while shrugging his shoulders.

“Aye. It appears so.”

“So you’re not gonna send anypony else to hospital?”

Looking towards the new voice, Barbossa saw Rainbow, now wheelchair bound, being wheeled in to the library by a hovering Fluttershy. Her right foreleg was wrapped in a large, white cast, which was itself resting on an armrest.

The princess looked down towards her before glaring back at the pirate, seemingly angry despite not losing her calm composure. After continuing to stare at him, she walked to the door and addressed all present.

“If he wants to keep his freedom until we find him a route home, then I highly doubt he will be causing any more trouble. Although, he does know what will happen should he displease anypony, isn't that right?”

She gave the pirate a knowing smile. Replying with a mocking salute and a a growl, he jumped down onto the chair he had occupied earlier. Cracking his fingers, he picked up the book on lions and returned to reading it, flipping a page soon after sitting down.

The princess took one last look at him before pulling herself away long enough to walk up to Twilight, who was rolling her eyes at the pirate.

“Twilight, as per your request, he will stay here. I’d rather he didn’t, but seeing as he seems more willing than I first thought to follow my instructions, I will leave him in your care. I would like to talk with you alone for a moment though.”

“O-oh, okay...”

In what the pirate suspected was deliberate action, Princess Celestia left with her student, leaving him alone with everybody else. Feeling that he was supposed to talk to them, he forcefully tossed the book he wanted to read back on to the spot he had picked it up from.

“So,” he said as he clapped his hands and rubbed them together, “it be good te see ye again Rainbow. I’m dreadfully sorry for our little brawl in the forest. I’m hopin’ ye can see it yer ‘eart te forgive a poor, lost pirate?”

Rainbow jumped and hopped around in her chair, shifting and nudging it until it finally faced Barbossa.

“You really think I’m gonna believe that?”

Barbossa shrugged.

“Not really, but it were well worth a shot. I will at least be on pleasant grounds durin’ me stay, and I’m hopin’ fer yer own sake ye do the same.”

“But if you do anything else, the princess will lock you up! She even said so herself. We all heard her.”

“Aye, but she’s anythin’ but stupid, I’ll give her that much. If ye push me te wringin' in yer little blue neck, I‘m certain ye’ll be just as guilty of the results as I will.”

Slowly and awkwardly wheeling her chair back, Rainbow waited until she was far enough away from the captain before grumbling and turning to the rest of her friends, but not before Rarity moved forward to approach Barbossa herself.

“And why are you going to be on pleasant grounds? Are you acting all nice to get on the princess' good side?”

“It appals me te think ye look upon me so lowly, Miss Rarity. If I stay within’ her laws, she’ll repay me with the right te not be imprisoned. Where I come from, that be a rather fine state of affairs.”

Celestia had saw through his act from the start anyway; there was no point in even trying to lie to her. Pity too; it would have made everything easier, although he didn't know exactly what he could have lied about, given all the witnesses were apparently well known to her.

“And what are her rules?”

“Acts of charity under me own choosin’. If I repay for what I did, and ye deem the acts acceptable, I stay free. If I decide te wound ye, I'll be thrown in the pony prison.”

Pulling an apple out of his pocket, he took a large, hearty bite out if it with an audible crunch. Lifting it away to reveal a large missing chunk, he licked his lips as the juice ran from his chin down to the tip of his beard.

“In essence, me little ponies, I’ll be stayin’ on your good side.”

- - - -

Celestia wandered through the gardens of her castle. It had been hours since she had left Ponyville, but her mind still pondered and worried over the recent events of the day. Luna walked along at her side, equally as unsure as to whether they were right to think what they did. It wasn't long before they reached their destination. The sun princess had been there often enough to know where it was.

“Is this another one of your games?”

The creature didn't answer back, keeping the same frozen expression carved across its face that it always had. Regardless, the two sisters continued to glare at it, as if it would somehow cause the statue to answer their question.

“You really think it is him, Tia? He is encased in stone, frozen; beyond our reach.”

“Yes, but are we beyond his? Discord has powers beyond comprehension, and something from beyond our way of thinking has once again arrived in our land. What is to say they are unrelated?”

“What is to say they are? Even Discord himself maintained that the creature from all those years ago was not of his choosing.”

“But that doesn't mean he didn't summon him in the first place; it simply means he had no choice in what arrived.”

“And what of this new visitor? Is it kind?”

“I believe him to be corrupted and fuelled by desire. He is a liar, a thief, and prone to acts of violence. However, he is not a completely evil soul. He is fair in his judgements and even agreed to compromise his diet to suit our vegetarian customs. He accepted my offer too.”

“Then what is to say he will act on his desires? Is he like the Moonlight's Torment?”

“No. Captain Hector Barbossa seems more like a tainted soul than a blackened one. And he does indeed want a way home, just as Twilight said. The last one never wanted to leave. I often wish it had.”

“We shall send the new alien home then. Doesn't that solve our problem?”

“We will first need to find him a way home. Spells may well exist, but they will need to be found, and that will take time. I set Hector Barbossa his task to keep him occupied while he waits for that time to end; I don't want him indulging in his darker tendencies”

“You are lucky he is staying with Twilight Sparkle then.”

“I am also lucky she was so insistent that he’d stay. I had intended to ask, but after seeing how eager she was, I didn't even need to in the end.”

“Then all we need to do now is search for a spell and let time tell it's tale.”

“Sadly. Hopefully this time the bell will chime with a less chaotic toll.”

Wheel of Fortune

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 10
Wheel of Fortune

The honourable captain stood in front of the door, blankly staring back and forth between it and the purple pony standing at his side. It had been little over a couple of hours since the princess had left, and Twilight had finally decided to ask something of Hector.

“Ye can't be serious?”

“Hector, you stink; you're taking a bath. When was the last time you even had one?”

It had bothered her since his arrival, but until the princess pointed it out during their discussion, nopony saw fit to bring it up. In hindsight, it was one of the things he could have done before meeting Celestia in the first place.

“A month. Maybe two.”

Twilight moved back, scrunching up her muzzle for good measure. Spike did the same, holding his nose and waving a claw in the air for added emphasis.

“T...two months?!”

“Aye. And?”

“And?! That's disgusting!”

How could someone go a whole two months without bathing?! Twilight felt uncomfortable going even two days without taking a bath. Rarity would have had him hosed down there and then if she'd been present.

“I'm not made o' money. Besides, a quick plunge in te the sea be just as good as what any bath can offer.”

“N...no it isn't! You get salt in your mane and everything!”

Grumbling and pulling a strained face, the captain turned towards his purple landlord. Spike just stood back out off the way, raising his arms in the air to avoid getting sucked in to the argument.

“It's called hair. And ye really think I care about it getting' salty? I'm a pirate, Miss Sparkle, not a nobleman. Yer lucky I were the one that landed on yer doorstep; some men seldom wash at all.”

“I don't care. You're taking a bath if it kills me. Now take off your clothes.”

The pirate widened his eyes, before looking to Spike to assure he had heard her right. Shrugging his shoulders, the small purple dragon walked down the hall and back to the main room of the library. Rainbow was still there, seeing as she wished to watch over the pirate, although despite this, she refused to follow him to the bathroom.

Barbossa watched the small dragon walk away before turning back to Twilight.

“Excuse me?”

“Take off your clothes. You can't wear them in the bath, and they need to be washed too. I can have them done before you're even finished bathing.”

He wasn't one to shy away from being unclothed, but something about doing it in front of a purple unicorn didn't strike him as something he wanted to do. Or something he would ever do. Or something he would have deemed liable to actually happen.

“I'll pass 'em out te ye after I've emptied me pockets. I'm not trustin' ye wi' me things after what ye did last time.”

He wouldn't have given her any of his belongings anyway, but knowing how questionable she was, she would have likely wanted a reason. He also didn't want to lose the small knife he kept in his boot. He was doubtful it would even be used, or actually needed in this world, but he was thankful they hadn't found it while he was unconscious. He felt horribly unsafe without a proper weapon on his person.

Trudging into the bathroom, he took notice of how unbearably clean it was. All that was present were the basics; a sink, a bath and what appeared to be some sort of toilet. There wasn't a crate, hole or bucket under it, but it was the only thing he could compare it too. It was also too low for even a young human to use without difficulty.

There was also a small mirror above the sink, and a colourful selection of toiletries on the side. Some he recognised as perfume, but the others were labelled with things he'd never heard of. He certainly didn't want his hair bleached red and smelling of strawberries, and seeing as most of them were bright, garish colours, he chose to avoid using any of them.

“I'll just steer clear...”

He'd been to bath houses before, but he'd never been rich enough to own his own. Then again, Twilight was a student of the princess; she was either high enough in society already, or using her connections to her advantage. If he were of some relation to a lord or royal, he'd certainly make use of the power.

“Can you hurry up and give me your clothes. Why do you even wear them anyway?” Twilight yelled from beyond the door.

“Because it gets very cold when yer not.”

“So it's always cold where you're from?”

“No.”

“Then why?”

Great. She was still pestering him, even when he was readying for the bath she wanted him to have. Although, a free bath wasn't something he got everyday. Well, not in an actual bath, anyway.

“Your kind has fur, and mine does not. I can't see it bein' anythin' but simple logic, Miss Sparkle. Maybe yer not as smart as yer princess believes ye to be.”

Stamping her hoof against the floor, and once again on the bathroom door, she furrowed her eyes as she addressed him, despite knowing he wouldn't actually see her face.

“But I didn't know for definite if you had fur or not! And we have coats, not fur!”

Waiting for his reply, she was surprised when he simply threw his clothes out of the slightly opened door. Looking at the hefty pile of cloth now lying in her hallway, she noted the slightly sour smell it had with it. She was about to comment when she heard the door click shut. The running of water could also be heard from inside the bathroom.

“Is there any particular way I have to wash your clothes? Do they need to be dry cleaned?”

“Don't be bloody stupid. Ye have te wash 'em with water!”

Sighing at his answer, she guessed he simply didn't care and levitated his clothes down the hall and into a large bucket. Filling it with water, she cast her spell, hoping the self washing water wouldn't do anything to the otherworldly fabrics. Stepping over to his boots, she readied to do a similar spell to them when her eyes began to water.

“Oh dear Luna...”

They stank. More so than she thought they would. Somewhat envious that Spike and Rainbow were in a different room, she gagged before giving the shoes a similar treatment to his clothes. She didn't know how to wash his boots, seeing as she had never had to wash a similar style of shoe before, but Twilight guessed it couldn't be too different to washing clothes. And if he did indeed spend a good deal of his time at sea, adding some more water to them could hardly make much of a difference.

Moving back to the clothes, and pleased they weren't as dirty as they smelled, she removed them from the basin before drying the soggy pile of fabrics in the air. Waiting until everything was dry, she used another spell to flatten any creases. Rarity had taught her it a while ago, and while she rarely wore clothes, it did help when pulling out an outfit at the last minute. Or washing clothes for alien pirates, apparently.

“He better be happy with them.”

Not that she cared. She wasn't being mean, but as long as he no longer smelled, it was fine by her. After she was sure everything was adequately cleaned and steamed, she folded them into a neat pile at her side. Drying the boots and steaming them for good measure, just in case, she placed them on top of the neat stack of clothes before levitating the whole ensemble down the corridor back to the bathroom.

Once again finding herself at the bathroom door, she knocked before waiting for his response. Seeing his arm reach out of the door, she instead floated everything through into the bathroom herself. Waiting for him to dress and savour having actual clean pieces of clothing, Twilight put a frown on her face when he finally opened the door.

“Your clothes were putrid. They practically left marks on my wash basin.”

“Aye well, so did I.”

As she watched Barbossa walk merrily down the hall, Twilight curiously poked her head into the bathroom. Along with most of the towels being strewn across the floor, there was also a dark mark of grime lining the edge of the bathtub. She could also see the odd grain of dirt and sand sitting at the bottom of the tub.

“Ugh...”

She would make him clean it if she could, but at the very least he had washed himself. Or so she hoped anyway. Reluctantly deciding to leave the bathtub for the time being, she put the towels into the wash basket and resolved to join the rest of the creatures in the main part of the library. Hoping to talk to Barbossa some more, Twilight went straight for the captain.

“Hector, can I ask you something?”

Looking up from the book he had already took hold of, Barbossa groaned and nodded, holding up one of his digits to signify that he would indeed only answer one.

“You remember the machine from the basement, right?”

“Aye. Bloody miserable thing too. Don't see how ye could analyse anythin' wi' that noise goin' on around ye.”

“Well, do you not have anything like that where you're from?”

“That be two questions ye've asked now,” he said, smiling cockily “but no.”

“What's the most advanced thing you have in your world?”

Rubbing his forehead and once again groaning, he clenched his fingers before remembering he couldn't exactly do anything to upset her. Her line of questioning did pique his interest though.

“Advanced...advanced? Like ships or telescopes?”

“I mean like machines.”

“We have cannons; they're made of metal like yer contraption downstairs. Or pistols.”

Unsure how to explain to him what she meant, Twilight decided that his response in itself answered her question. If he didn't know what she rightly meant by machines, then he didn't have a concept of them.

“So you've never seen anything like my analysis machine? How about Trains?”

The captain gave a slight shake of his head before lowering his brow.

“Trains?”

“Locomotive forms of transport. On rails.”

The man merely shook his head again, rather curious as to what she was talking about. Maybe the ponies weren't a complete waste of time to be spending time with.

Jumping off to the shelves around the library, Twilight soon came back with a book floating beside her. It was lime green, and she opened it to a page with a rather large machination pictured in colour.

“This is a train.”

The captain pulled the book from the air and brought it towards his face. He still couldn't get over how crisp the pictures in this worlds books were. Even mappers couldn't afford to have images printed this clearly. He didn't even know if they possibly could. The machine was somewhat less impressive, with it basically being a large metal barrel fused onto a set of wheels

“And what's it do again?”

“It moves along a rail. If you use the correct engine and coal, it can even move on it's own.”

“Engines? They're for minin' Miss Sparkle. Not travel.”

Deciding it was clear he hadn't heard of trains, she instead found a book on early steam engines, seeing as he apparently had some knowledge of them. It confused her as to how he knew about engines, but didn't know about machines, but in the end chose to take paradoxical answer as an answer in itself; he either genuinely didn't know, or didn't really care.

Focusing her attention back on the pirate, she watched as he looked at the pictures with the same look of intrigue as he had done with the previous one.

“How do you get the pictures so clear?”

“The picture? Don't you care about the engines?”

“Not really. Being a blacksmith was never me forte. And they're useless things. Noisy too.”

“Well...we just take a photo and print it in the book. Oh, do you have cameras?”

Seeing him once again shake his head, this time with a audible grumble and wave of his hand, she chose to drop her line of questioning. He'd answered her questions without knowing anyway. Moving to leave, she suddenly raised her head before turning back to face him, much to his displeasure.

“If you have engines, why were you scared of my machine?”

“There was bloody lightin' comin' from it! Ye think that's normal?! Have ye any idea what that can do te a man?!”

Slowly backing away, and somewhat regretting she had asked, Twilight left the pirate to his lion book and joined her friends on the other side of the room. She could still hear him talking and complaining as she wandered away.

“What was he saying? Did he insult you again?”

“No he didn't. Actually, I think I've learned more about where he came from.”

Rainbow pursed her lips and rested her head against her cast.

“I thought he came from another world full of pirates and stuff.”

“But I think it's more than that; his world is basically ours, but a good few hundred years behind. I mean, I know his species rules the world instead of ours, and he doesn't use magic, but it's kind of the same.”

“So...like an alien time traveller?” Rainbow asked.

“Kind of. Picture 'The Hay Day of Pony Piracy', and then picture Hector as a pony; he would fit right in. More or less.”

Rainbow and Spike looked at the pirate from across the room before squinting their eyes. The rainbow maned mare tilted her head slightly to the side before quietly giggling to herself. Letting them finish their little moment of picturing Hector as a pony, Twilight continued.

“He couldn't even grasp why the pictures in the books were so clear, let alone anything in them, and he thought cannons and old mining engines were the most advanced thing in terms of technology his world had to offer. He also said pistols, but they're basically smaller cannons anyway.”

“Then why don't we have them?” Rainbow asked, “If we're ahead of him, shouldn't we have anything he has?”

Twilight shook her head.

“Not necessarily. From what he said, they use their cla...hands to operate them. We haven't got any, so they never got invented. And even if they did, only unicorns could use them, and because we have magic anyway, they're not very useful. Anything that involves the need for his extra appendages won't exist in our society.”

Spike and Rainbow looked at each other before looking towards the pirate. He was still reading the book, and if he could hear them, made no indication of it.

“At the very least, we know his world is less advanced than ours. I don't know if it will help or anything, but if we want to understand more about his world, we could try and compare it to our past. The princess did ask me to find out more about him while she researched for ways to get him home, so I may as well start there.”

Grabbing yet another book from the shelves, Twilight wandered off to begin her research, leaving Spike and Rainbow to watch over the pirate captain. Barbossa had since taken up writing, pilfering a piece of parchment left on the floor and a quill from a nearby desk. As time passed on, and as nothing of any particular interest happened, Spike and Rainbow took to talking to occupy themselves.

Barbossa, on the other hand, still continued to look into the piece of paper he had within his grasp. The day was getting on, and while it was still early in the afternoon, the pirate at least wanted to get some of his sentence over and done with. He would have preferred an actual punishment, however. At least then he wouldn’t have to think of something charitable to do.

The most he’d done over the last half hour minutes was note down the ponies he believed needed repayment. Or at least the ones he believed the others thought needed repayment. He was also bored. There was a distinct lack of excitement in the library, especially since books weren’t his first choice for entertainment. He certainly took to a few during the longer voyages, but he was more partial to the adventure and the fight. But here he was stuck under the metaphorical thumb of multi-coloured ponies and fairy tale creatures.

Cracking his fingers, the pirate got to his feet and started making his way towards the front door. Widening her eyes, Rainbow quickly nudged Twilight on the shoulder before rapidly motioning towards the human.

“And where do you think you’re going?” Twilight questioned, tapping her hoof rapidly against the floor.

“I’m goin’ outside.”

“Hector, you can’t just go wandering around outside.”

“On the contrary, Miss Sparkle, I believe I can. There were no orders from yer royal mistress confining me te yer home, nor were there any sayin’ I couldn’t venture outside. Furthermore, she said herself I would be hard laboured to find meat in yer land, and as such would need te find somethin’ else to fend of starvation. Both lines o’ thought lead me te leavin’ yer library.”

Twilight stood there, stunned. Her hoof was half raised in the air, attempting to object to his reasoning. But she couldn’t. Rather annoyingly, his reasoning was rather sound. Finding it hard to launch a complaint, Rainbow interjected with her own line of logical thinking.

“But you might hurt somepony else. That’s reason enough.”

“And how do you suppose I’ll go about maimin’ a horse without a sword or pistol? If there were more than one of ye surroundin’ me, I’d stand little te no chance at comin’ out unscathed. There’d be no point in attackin’ anyone in the middle o’ a busy town either.”

He chose to leave out the fact he had a knife, seeing as it would do nothing to further his argument. He was still being truthful though, seeing as a small knife wouldn't do him any favours against three or four horses.

Clenching her teeth and looking towards the purple mare for backup, Rainbow watched as she continued to stare unblinkingly at the pirate. Looking towards the floor and pursing her lips, Twilight finally widened her eyes and addressed him.

“That may be, but I doubt letting you wander around Ponyville would be deemed a good idea by the princess. If you must leave, we're coming with you.”

If she couldn’t keep him inside, she would at the very least keep him within her sights. She didn’t think he’d try and pull something in public anyway, but she wasn't willing to take that risk. Shrugging his shoulders and closing his eyes, he continued his walk towards the door.

“If ye feel ye must, then by all means, Miss Sparkle. I’ll be needin’ acceptable currency for food anyway.”

Realising he’d actually now left the building, Twilight quickly grabbed Rainbow’s wheelchair and ushered Spike to follow her outside, grabbing her saddlebag on the way out. Exiting the door, they came out to see the pirate looking around himself, spinning on the spot in a slow circle.

Finally looking back at his temporary home, he raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth, as if to speak, although nothing ever left his mouth. But after a moment of composure, he did eventually ask his question.

“Ye live in a tree? A livin’ tree? With leaves?”

“Yes. Your point being?”

Twilight turned around to look at her home, rather perturbed at what had him so confused. The pirate eventually sighed and rubbed his eyes.

“Nothin’. Nothin’ worth tryin’ te argue with ye about.”

Walking off in a random direction, hands buried deep inside his pockets, Twilight and Rainbow exchanged worried looks as they followed. He soon stopped to look around before once again talking to his escorts.

“Which way is the market?”

Rather annoyed that she did indeed have to take him to a very public area, she motioned to her right and he began to follow.

“Couldn't I just fetch you some food myself?”

“Now how ye goin' te go about doin' that when ye don't know what I like?” he said mockingly, “I might even feel the urge te try somethin' new, and seein' as yer world may have different foods altogether, not takin' me with ye seems altogether illogical.”

Grumbling at the pirate, Twilight nodded and continued to walk through town. There weren't very many ponies around the library, but as they got closer to the market, she could see and hear others reacting to the strange creature wandering the streets.

Some were just staring at him, trying to assure if he was actually real, while some of the shyer residence cowered as he walked passed. Many of the ponies wandering around town were whispering too, while other didn't bother to lower their voice.

“What is that?”

“Does Twilight even know it's there?”

“It looks so freaky...”

Twilight looked at Rainbow and Spike before comparing worried glances back at the human following them. Maybe they should have tried to disguise him. Or make him shorter.

“You see what you've started? Now everypony's going to want to ask questions.”

“Now ye know how I feel. And ye didn't really think I'd stay inside durin' the whole duration o' me stay, did ye? I'd be leavin' yer home eventually.”

About to reply, Twilight stopped when she saw somepony walk towards them. It took the purple pony a few seconds to realised the mint green pony coming towards her was Lyra.

“Hey guys,” she said, looking towards the group, “Who's...your...er...”

Lyra looked behind her back towards a purple and pink maned mare before motioning towards the captain with her forehoof. Seeing that somepony had actually started talking to the group, more ponies stepped forward. Not all of them wandered right up to them, but those who did moved closer to Barbossa than anypony else.

The pirate was no stranger to large crowds, but he still found it unnerving to see pretty much all the creatures in the nearby vicinity simply staring at him. It was more disturbing still that everyone was a unrealistic, brightly coloured, talking horse.

Twilight just stood there, rather unsure of what to say. Should she tell them? Looking to Rainbow and Spike for assistance, both returned an equally unsure expression. Her call for help was answered when Barbossa himself suddenly started talking.

“What's yer name?”

“L-Lyra,” she managed to stutter.

“Well, ain't that a fine name. Lyra. It be a pleasure te meet another of Miss Sparkle’s gracious friends.”

Lyra flinched back as he spoke, lowering her head and looking towards the crowd for reassurance. The cream coloured mare she was looking towards before nudged her hooves forward, before moving her head in the direction of the pirate. The mint green pony smiled in response, and with nothing better to do, did the same to Barbossa.

“I guess. I like it anyway.”

Grinning towards Twilight, Barbossa let his teeth show before elegantly removing his hat from his head with his left hand.

“Captain Hector Barbossa, at yer service.”

He grandly bowed before his audience, one hand behind his back and the other at his front. The closer ponies, Lyra included, moved back as his body moved in a downward motion. Standing back up to full height, and replacing his hat, he watched as the crowd slowly but surely moved back into their previous position.

“And it be such a privilege to be amidst such fine company. In such a splendid town too!” he yelled, raising his hands into the air and holding them out at his sides.

Shaking her head at the captain, Rainbow readied to speak up when Twilight hushed her. She didn't mind Rainbow speaking her piece to everypony, just as long as they got past his awkward introduction first. Besides, she'd much rather he hammed up the situation than cause the town to revolt against him. Everypony seemed to be pleased with him so far, at least.

As Barbossa stood there, in the midst of the few dozen ponies forming his audience, he waited for something to happen. He hardly knew what he was going to say, but given the crowd and his presence in a town solely populated by ponies, he knew one of them would speak up eventually.

“Um...”

And he was right. A mare moved forward. It was a white mare with a light pink mane. At least she wasn't as garish as Pinkie or Rainbow.

“Wha-”

She stopped to turn around and face another pony. She was shaking her head and mouthing something to the white mare. From what Barbossa could gather, the pink maned pony was about to speak to him with the wrong terminology.

“Who are you?”

The pirate once again raised his arms in the air. The ponies didn't flinch this time, and he saw it as the perfect opportunity to raise his standing in society. Twilight and her friends may not be too trusting towards him, but that didn't mean he couldn't build bridges with the beings who hadn't had the pleasure to meet him yet.

“I'm a seafarin' pioneer from a far off land, and I'm stayin' with the kind Miss Sparkle until I'm fit and ready te leave.”

Most of the ponies whispered among themselves, glaring at him with varying degrees of disbelief. The pirate, on the other hand, failed to let his smile drop. Twilight moved to speak her part, now that ponies knew he was peaceful, but another pony got in there first.

“I've never seen or heard of anything like you, Mr Barbarossa, and I'm a school teacher. Where is it you came from? And what are you?”

Annoyed his name had been mispronounced, he continued to hold his smile. He couldn't ruin this chance. He couldn't ruin this at all, for that matter. He took in a long, deep breath before addressing the dark pink pony.

“Me name is Captain Hector Barbossa, and I assure ye, me story is the honest truth, little pony. I'm an acquaintance of yer noble Princess Celestia, an' I'm more than sure she'd be able to wither away any doubt ye'd be havin' about me authenticity.”

The teacher didn't seem to pleased with the answer she had received, but before she could talk about it, another pony cropped up from the crowd instead. This one didn't even bother to moved forward from the crowd, instead choosing to jump and shout from the crowd.

“Are...you! Hey! Over here!”

The, apparently, small pony kept jumping up and down, failing to actually get out what he wanted to say. The crowd eventually let him walk forward by standing to the side, creating a path of sorts for him to walk through. The little colt then awkwardly meandered forward, seemingly very happy.

“Are...are you a pirate?”

He was mostly white in colour, with darker brown blotches covering him and various pointS on his body. Barbossa thought he looked more like a dog than a pony.

“What's makes ye say that?”

The little colt continued to breath heavily, obviously tired from jumping around.

“Because you have a cool coat and a bandanna! An-and a cool pirate hat!”

Barbossa wasn't too sure if cool was an insult or a compliment, but given the invigorated way the little horse had addressed him, he assumed it was more likely to be the latter.

“And you talk piratey too! And if you came here in ship, that means you have to be a pirate!”

Barbossa furrowed his brow and looked towards the crowd for any sort of guide on how to respond. None of the ponies looked angry, nor did any of them seem aggravated at the child’s talk of pirates. He also realised that, while Twilight's friends hardly liked him, none of them disliked him for being a pirate. Pinkie even seemed quite pleased with the idea. She had also said Rainbow thought the same.

And Twilight had also told him pirates no longer existed in this world. Remembering she had mentioned it yesterday, he had asked the purple mare about pirates after Celestia left their presence.

“So...are you a pirate or not?”

Pirates were apparently, for the most part, fondly remembered within this world. He had been shown a book, and while the pony pirates were nowhere near as ruthless as anyone he knew, they were hardly decent members of society. However, Twilight said they were mostly known for their adventures and stories rather than their misgivings and crimes.

Deciding he would test the waters, he looked down at the little colt before finally answering his question.

“Aye...if ye think I am.”

He watched as the little pony began to smile, once again mouthing the word 'cool'. Not quite sure what to say next, he looked around to the other ponies. He wasn't too sure if what he said had been well received, but he was sure more than one gleeful sound came from within the group of equines surrounding him.

“Really? A real pirate?” a blue pony asked, raising their voice towards the end of the question.

“Aye, one o' the nice ones.”

He thought it best to clarify just in case. But the blue pony with the pink mane nodded and started smiling towards some of the others. She appeared quite young as well.

“And do you have a ship?”

Barbossa turned his head to look behind him, trying to focus on who was talking. He was pleasantly surprised how happy they seemed to be, even if it did mean everyone was trying to talk to him. He would have been better of saying he was a pirate from the start! At least they had wandered away from asking what he was and where he came from.

But hoping to gather his food and have a gander around the town instead of answering to his adoring public, he stood there, actively trying to work out how to get away from the crowd without being suspicious, before Twilight began shouting out towards everyone.

“I know you all have a lot of questions, but we're very busy! You can ask me anything you want to know later, but just give him some space for now! He's finding it a little hard to get settled,” she said, addressing the crowd and eyeing Barbossa, hoping he'd get the message.

Nodding towards Twilight, smiling sarcastically at her, he gave a glance towards the crowd, as if to say sorry. Not that he meant it. For once he was actually glad Twilight got involved with his life.

After moments more of chatter, most of the ponies left the captain, going back to their mundane duties. A few gave him glares as they left, but overall, most seemed pleased with themselves. It didn't stop a few pestering him, but in the light of his punishment, he sadly saw it fit to humour them, telling them equally kind and distorted truths he had told everyone else. After the rest of the rabble had left, Rainbow turned in her chair to face him.

“Now you're lying to the rest of town? Yeah, I can see why the princess trusts you,” Rainbow said sarcastically.

“What part of what I said were a lie exactly? I see it more as a kinder reflection of the truth. It keeps the town folk off me back, and gives Miss Sparkle and yer solemnly, cyan self less of a dilemma. I wouldn't go lookin' gift horse in the mouth when he goes givin' me somethin' like that.”

“But...but that doesn't really...You can't lie to everypony when you’re what you are.”

“Fair enough, Rainbow. Ye have yer good morals. I'll just go and gather them up, tell them I'm a plundering, pillagin' pirate bent on maimin' me fellow man and anythin' in the pursuit of what gains me, and then we'll see what they think of me.”

Eerily smiling, knowing full well he'd won the argument, he and the others silently continued their walk towards the market. While the rest of town still seemed unsure of him, apart from the odd wanderer, everyone left them well alone. He even found his new-found sense of being a celebrity quite good, to an extent, seeing as he was famous for something good rather than bad for a change.

Eventually arriving at their destination, Barbossa paused to look around at the stalls surrounding him. They were all fairly small, but most were painted with bright, vibrant colours. Buyers and sellers were all shouting and haggling amongst themselves, much like he had heard the day before. It really was like any market he had been to before.

The number of colours on the ponies themselves was what he found most striking, however. Some were the most strange combinations of colour, vibrant yellows and eerie greens, a few rare ones even had spots and stripes in their manes and wings. He couldn't help but think whether this was a conscious decision; having the most colourful pony selling wares to attract attention.

“So, what do you eat?”

Looking down at Twilight, he struggled to find an answer. He wasn't quite sure if any, or all the food, was actually edible; some of it was so unnaturally bright.

“Fruits I guess. Breads, dairy foods. Vegetables if ye had a way of cookin' 'em. Caviar! Do ye have caviar?”

“Not here. This is just a small market. You'd need to head to Canterlot or another big city if you wanted to buy it. I can't see why you'd want fish eggs though.”

Sighing at the lack of one of his favourite foods, he trotted along with the others and requested a few of anything that he deemed pleasing. A few of the stall holders gave him curious, even fearful looks as he approached, but most seemed to forget he was there once Twilight approached. He didn't know if it was for safety, or because they were getting money, but he was somewhat glad she was there. He'd have nothing to eat otherwise.

After he had been around the market stalls, choosing various fruits, cheeses and breads from the various sellers and merchants, he asked Twilight for one last thing. There was one piece of food he demanded to have, and soon the quartet of animals found themselves heading over to the Apple's cart and stall.

“Howdy there Twilight, Rainbow! Hey Spike!” greeted Applejack.

Looking to the pirate, she scrunched her nose and looked behind her back. Turning back a moment later, she addressed Barbossa with a less than pleasing tone.

“Hector. What can I do ya for?”

Curious as to what she was looking at, Barbossa stood as high as he could and peered over her shoulder. Sitting on the ground behind the cart full of apples was the little yellow filly from the forest and the farm. Her head was down, and she looked up at him with wide eyes as she nudged herself along the ground to hide behind the older mare. She looked scared, but there was no crying, nor was their any sniffling, so he thought that it was as good a start than any.

“I'll be wantin' granny smiths. As many as Miss Sparkle will afford me.”

“You...you want to spend the rest of your food money on apples? The same kind? There are lots of different ones.”

“Aye, I can see that, though they ain't me favourite.”

Silently agreeing with the difficult alien, Twilight nodded and paid her bits. Applejack took them and tossed them into a pouch around her neck, but started talking while she filled the barrel.

“Are ya sure I can't interest y'all in some zap apple jam?” she said, tapping her hoof against a small wooden sign on the side of her apple cart.

Barbossa rolled his eyes, knowing full well she was trying to haggle him into buying more of her wares, before realising he had no idea what she was actually talking about.

“Zap apples?”

Applejack then moved around to a small crate at the back of the cart before prying of the lid, revealing three little jars, all of which had a rainbow coloured jelly resting inside them.

“And...” Barbossa struggled to say anything, picking one of the jars out of the large wooden box, “ye can actually eat this?”

“Yes. Tastes mighty fine too. Don't get apple jam like that anywhere else.”

She was right. He didn't know what was more bizarre; that the striped, rainbow jam was actually from an apple, or that it was actually still striped, rather than a multicoloured mess. Though, he did like apples, and it was certainly something he wouldn't get to eat anywhere else. And it was technically free; he wasn't the one paying for it.

“How much?” he asked out of habit more than anything else.

Applejack looked towards Twilight before containing her smile, putting on a serious face before looking up at the pirate.

“Three bits a jar.”

Bits?

“I gave ye me bits before. Ye said they weren't proper.”

“They ain't, not 'round here.”

Assuming his bits and their bits simply shared the same name, Barbossa groaned before deciding what to do about the jam.

“And how many smiths would I be gettin' with the jam?”

“Ye'd still get thirteen apples.”

Seeing Twilight’s eyes widen at the number, Barbossa nodded and motioned for her to add the jam to his stock pile. If he didn't like it, he still had the princess' order of meat to come in. And everything was free.

“You're carrying the barrel home.” Twilight sighed, looking at the container and then to Barbossa.

Looking at the size, he wondered what the hassle was before realising it would be easier for him than it would be for a mammal with no hands. Then again, as long as he got some food, he would have carried it all back to the tree house on his own. No need to tell them that though.

“And what of ye, Applejack? Didn't fancy stayin' near the scary pirate? Ye were pretty fast te leave after the princess did.”

Frowning her brow and tipping her head forward, the farmer with the nice hat looked back at the small foal behind her before replying.

“I had to prepare for the market and buck some trees, seein' as somepony decided ta bruise a barrel worth a' apples we were plannin' on sellin'.”

“I'm not a pony.”

“And then I had ta help ma sister cause y'all made her too frazzled ta stay home alone or come outside.”

Once again looking down at the small pony, he nodded to himself before speaking back. The princess wanted him to repay those he harmed, and where better a place to start rebuilding his reputation than helping little children.

“Well how about we make an agreement of sorts. I need te keep me head clear for yer royal majesty, and yer surely wantin' payment fer me ruinin' yer stock and scarin' the child?”

“...I guess.”

“Well, I'll be more than pleased te begin me recuperation by helpin' yer sister and the children from the forest.”

“Y...y'all are gonna make it up to 'em? How exactly?”

“Does it matter? There must be somethin' of worth for me te offer them.”

Looking towards Twilight with a worried look on her face, the purple unicorn simply shrugged, unsure of how to take what he just said. Rainbow did the same, somewhat unsure if he could help anypony at all. He just seemed to be acting...unnaturally kind.

“Well...the princess did tell him to help ponies,” Twilight said, “And it is kind of nice that he wants to help the Crusaders first.”

“There ye have it. It's nice of me te offer me services te them first.”

Waving his hands towards the small filly, putting a faux smile on his face, Applejack looked back with uncertainty. Applebloom was now standing, looking towards the pirate rather than hiding under his shadow.

“What do ya say, Applebloom? You wanna let him apologise?”

Warily stepping out of her sisters protection, the small filly looked up towards her Applejack before directing her gaze at the pirate.

“If...if the others come...a-ah don't mind nothin'.”

Twilight smiled.

“Don't worry. We wouldn't leave you alone with him. But the princess wants him to apologise to some ponies, so he'll be more than friendly, right Hector?”

“Aye, on me best behaviour. Cross me heart and hope te die.”

Crossing his fingers over his heart, he then raised a hand in the air. He didn't know if they'd get the gesture, but it seemed simple enough all the same. All he had to do was please the children. Then the others would think he was kind hearted, and it would be easier to help the rest of them. Especially Rarity. He'd need to seriously impress her somehow if he wanted anything from her.

However, upon arriving at her store, which was, very aptly, a dress makers, Rarity was just as displeased as Barbossa thought she would be.

“You want to leave Sweetie Belle alone with him?!”

Both sighing at her remark, the captain pinching his nose and Twilight releasing a held breath, the purple pony attempted to smooth out the ordeal.

“No, she wouldn't be alone with him. You can come too. It's only so he can make peace with them and start making it up to everypony else.”

“You mean the ponies he has to help to avoid being thrown in a cell?” she dead panned back.

“Think what ye will, but yer surely not pleased wi' me actions. I'm simply tryin' te make amends for them.”

Looking over her back towards a small door, and what Barbossa assumed was the little fillies present location, Rarity reluctantly nodded her head.

“All right, Fine. I said I'd give you one chance, and that's what you'll get. But ruin this, Mr Barbossa, and you can expect nothing more from me.”

“If ye say so. But for now, we have an accord?”

“Yes. Twilight can arrange a time for everypony to meet. Until then, I hope every one of my friends has a very pleasant day. Maybe if you're lucky, somepony will wish you the same, Mr Barbossa?”

Not all that bothered by the mare’s comment, the pirate raised an eyebrow as she wandered around to the back of the shop.

After Rarity had left the pony and human alone in the main room of the shop, Twilight and Barbossa left to rejoin the dragon and wheelchair-bound Rainbow outside. Today hadn’t been a complete waste of time, but at least tomorrow he could get something done.

“Did you upset Rarity yet?”

Staring down at the pony in the wheelchair, Barbossa raised his hand casually in the air and mouthed with his fingers.

“Aye, as a matter o' fact," he announced rather proudly, "She seems te talk too much too”

Rainbow smiled and snorted in response.

“Yeah, tell me about it.”

Briefly staring at each other for a time, Rainbow held herself back before letting a small, fleeting laugh escape her lips. Barbossa cracked a slight smile too, before he took hold of the apple barrel and gruffly hauled it along the road, trudging it back along side Twilight towards his temporary home.

- - - -

“Tia Dalma!”

William wandered back across to the mystic’s position on the beach, growing bored of their time spent on the shores of the damned.

“We've been here for an hour, and there's still no sign of Jack or Barbossa.”

“And? You have a point to make?”

“Well...I thought we had to be gone by the setting of the sun. It's reaching mid-day.”

“Time can go as fast as it pleases. Witty Jack will be here soon enough.”

“And Barbossa? You still haven't told us where he is.”

Will was growing impatient, as were most of the men around him. Tia Dalma had merely sat on a rock for the entirety of their stay, throwing her stones onto the ground and chanting to herself. Placing the ones she held into her dress, she turned her head to address the man complaining to her.

“He has been taken, if you really want to know.”

Some of the other men began to crowd around, yearning for anything new to guide them. Or even entertain them.

“Taken by who? And to where? You said we would all reach the Locker one way or another.”

She smiled, standing from her rock and walking out towards the young Englishmen. He promptly stepped back.

“That I did. And we do. Fate just doesn't account for worlds beyond our borders. Not even this one.”

More of the men gathered around where Tia Dalma sat, and those who were already there listened with greater interest. Most of the Chinese sauntered off to the side, letting those who actually knew English listen instead.

“You mean another world besides our own and this one?”

“There be more to the living than us, William Turner. And there be more worlds than can be counted on any hand. Barbossa has merely taken a longer path to reach the Locker than the rest of us.”

Pintel crawled forward, moving from his lying position on the sandy beach.

“Why?”

“I do not know. Fate has many things in store for many men. Perhaps Barbossa has a hand to give in a world beyond our own.”

“Can we get him back?”

Will honestly felt bad for the man. Not that Barbossa hadn't caused him pain, but at the very least he had saved his life back at Singapore. Not only that, but he had been perfectly cordial during their voyage to the Locker, despite their past, although Will still found it hard to bear his personality.

Tia shook her head.

“I cannot say. But that is not my concern.”

“Then what is?” he asked, growing tired of her riddles and poetic explanations.

Walking over to a piece of wood lying on the beach, she bent down and picked up a small stone that was laying on top, stroking it gently with her finger.

“If there is a way for Barbossa to traverse the worlds beyond what we know...”

Putting the stone down, she picked up a larger, dark rock and threw it with ease onto the piece of driftwood, Hitting it with a force, the wood splintered when the rock made contact, almost snapping in two.

“...what is stopping another creature from doing the same?”

A Pirate's Life for Me

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 11
A Pirate's Life For Me

“Are you sure it's safe? I mean, he tried to eat Sweetie Belle.”

“I'm telling you the same thing I told your mother, Scootaloo; he didn't try and eat anypony. He's been staying at my house for two whole days now, and he hasn't once tried to eat me. He wants to apologise for what he did too.”

Taking the third member of the Cutie Mark Crusaders to her library, Twilight smiled as she saw the other two already outside, waiting, along with their sisters.

Scootaloo had come alone. Not having any siblings or a father around made it difficult for her mother to get away from obligations. But in Rufflefeather's defence, she did seem to care an awful lot for her only daughter. In any case, Twilight had assured her that nothing would befall the little orange filly.

“Are you guys ready?”

Twilight had made sure prior to bringing them that the foals still wanted to go through with the ordeal. She'd also made sure to have Applejack and Rarity present, as well as Spike and herself, should anything go wrong. She doubted anything important or dangerous would happen, but it was better to reassure the Crusaders.

“Are y'all sure ya took away his sword?”

“Yes, we are. He can't get it where I've put it,” Twilight insisted with a smile, “and he isn't going to hurt you either. I can promise you that much.”

Looking up at the adults and nodding their heads, the three fillies waited, standing back as Twilight opened the front door. Slowly peering inside, they looked around, nervously shifting their heads from side to side until they saw the beast of Everfree at the back of the library, sat hunched over a book with his elbows resting against his knees.

He was reading a large, red book, barely looking up as everypony wandered inside. Nudging Applebloom forward with a friendly hoof, Applejack gently moved her sister towards the captain, having somewhat higher hopes in him since he'd decided to try the jam.

“Um...uh, hello?” the little yellow pony squeaked, still staying close to her sister.

Snapping his neck up from the book, Barbossa slammed it shut with one hand and tossed it to the side, leaving it amongst several others he had stored in a small pile next to where he sat. He got to his feet, and stood on the spot with his hands buried within in his pockets.

“Hello,” he said, scrunching his eyes and tilting his head back.

“Um...” Applebloom uttered before looking back at her sister for support, “Hello. What's...your name?”

“Captain Hector Barbossa.”

It was getting tiresome introducing himself to so every new creature that he happened to meet, which at this point amounted to a whole town. He was likely more well known in this world than he was in his own. But he always made sure to add captain. He liked being properly titled.

“And what about the lot of ye? What're yer names?”

Trying once again to sound child friendly, this time under better circumstances, he smiled at the children and waved towards them. They retreated, almost as if forced back by the power of his hand alone. Stepping in, Twilight introduced them herself.

“This is Applebloom, and this is Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle,” she said smiling, ushering to each of the foals in turn.

While he had slowly gotten used to the ridiculous names the ponies always seemed to have, the orange one's still sounded rather bizarre.

“Right...” the pirate said, clapping his hands together, “What shall we be doin' then?”

Twilight happily clopped forward, levitating an unrolled parchment towards the pirate from a wooden table.

“Well, I looked in to the Hay Day of Pony Piracy, and found some things you could do with the foals that we think they might enjoy.”

“The Hay Day...of Pony Piracy?” the captain asked back, dubious as to whether she was actually being serious.

Twilight narrowed her eyes at Barbossa; he had a way of pulling their conversations off-topic. Then again, these moments were when she learned the most about him.

“It's a time in history when we still had pirates. Oh, what do you call your time in history?”

“The fourteenth day of August, 1742. Last time I was there.”

“No name?” Twilight questioned, curiously blinking her eyes.

He scratched his beard.

“The Modern Age, though I prefer the Golden Age of Piracy. Leaves a lot less te the imagination.”

Twilight let a small grin form on her face as she hurriedly scratched away at another piece of paper with a quill. It was almost like his world copied hers. Everything more or less had an equivalent where he came from; it was as if his world was based on her own. It was remarkable; so many similarities, yet so many differences. Perhaps even ponies had equivalents too.

Mentally locking the thoughts away for another time, Twilight smiled back up at the pirate before floating the sheet of paper into one of his hands. He grasped it within his fingers and swayed his eyes back and forth across its contents.

“All o' this?”

“No, just anything that works; I don't really know what you've done with your life, so I just suggested anything that sounded interesting.”

The list was a little sparse, but Twilight had suggested things she would liked to have known about pirates as a child; adventures on the seas, hearing how they lived, what his crew was like, and even any legends he had heard. The list would likely benefit her more than the Crusaders, but they still liked to hear stories. And if Hector was anything like the pirates from her world, he would have at least one thing going for him that they thought was interesting.

“And yer sure this'll give me redemption fer scarin' em?” he asked, “They don't seem too pleased te be here in the first place.”

“But once you tell them stories and stuff, I'm sure they'll come around.”

“Ye say that when ye and yer own friends have yet to be brought 'round yerselves; it's a none too compellin' argument, Miss Sparkle.”

“All I'm saying is give it a try,” she sighed, “I know it's been hard. It has been for all of us, but you have to start your reconciliation somewhere.”

That was precisely his thinking on the matter, but that didn't stop him having a lack of experience with children. He could handle them well enough, feed them, give them something to do, but that was about it.

“I suppose.”

He wasn't going to get anywhere acting all high and mighty either; he may as well be nice and get the event over with. They were just children, and small ones at that. If all he had to do was make them happy, then he may as well make a good attempt at it. He couldn't see himself being thrown in prison should he fail to make them smile either, so if worst came to worst, he'd try and reconcile with someone else instead.

It also meant he had some leeway in how he dealt with them.

Rubbing the back of his head under his hat, he turned to face the three fillies, all of which flinched a little when he did. Feeling somewhat unsure of how to begin his approach, he chose the first thing written on Twilight's list. It wasn't too hard a task, seeing as it wasn't really a task at all.

“How about a story fer the little ones?”

He wasn't adverse to telling stories; he had enough to his name, some of which could be considered legendary. But telling them to an audience that was actually judging him was none to comforting. That didn't mean he couldn't give it his all.

“What kind of story?” Scootaloo wearily asked.

“Stories of the high seas, little orange pony. Tales of monsters roamin' the waters uncharted, and men losin' their lives beneath the power o' those monsters.”

Whilst Twilight and Applebloom stood there with smiles creeping onto their faces, Scootaloo and Rarity scoffed and clicked their teeth.

“I just bet you were one of the monsters,” Scootaloo said sitting on the floor, resting her head against a free hoof.

“No,” he said, letting a dark smile scratch its way on to his face as he loomed closer to the ponies, “I were the one that died.”

The foals slowly nudged themselves back at his words, but they didn't look actively scared. Barbossa knew how to make a story exciting, or at least he liked to think he did. And telling a story to the ponies about the man in front of them seemed far better than telling one of the others he happened to know. It'd seem more interesting, more impressive, and if all worked out, they'd find him as 'cool' as the little colt in town found him.

Crookedly smiling, he clicked his knuckles and shoulders before pulling a small wooden stool from his side. He'd seen teachers sitting on chairs when teaching children, and as all present were well below his height, it seemed like an appropriate way to tell his story. So he sat down, moving himself around until he was comfortable in the undersized chair.

“The tale begins, little ponies, with a stone chest. A stone chest left on an island of the dead, which couldn't be found, 'cept by those who had a way of knowin' where it was; Isla de Muerta.”

Looking around to judge interest, apart from the unimpressed glances of Rarity and Scootaloo, he had the attention of every being present. The farmer with the nice hat and the dragon had even joined the foals on the floor in front of him.

“And within' the stone chest, on the island that couldn't be found, were eight hundred and eighty two identical gold pieces, delivered to the blackened hands of Cortés himself. Blood money paid te stem the slaughter he reaped upon the land with his armies.”

“Who's Cortés?”

The pirate looked down at Sweetie Belle, who, despite asking the question, still shook under his glare. He'd almost forgot the beings listening had no knowledge of basic history. His basic history, anyway.

“The feared ruler of Spain.”

“Spain?”

Sighing at Applebloom's question, he shook his right hand towards Twilight before pointing towards the children. It had also escaped him they didn't know where he was from. Allowing her a few moments to catch on, the purple unicorn finally nodded at him. She'd have a better chance convincing them than he would.

“I know this is hard to believe, but Hector's from another world. He fell into Everfree from the sky the day you met him for the first time. Which he is very sorry for, right?” she asked as she glared at him.

“Aye, of course,” he cockily answered, bowing to those in front of him.

“And he's stuck here until the princess can find him a way home. She asked him to be nice and apologise to anypony he hurt, and he chose to start with you three.”

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked to their sisters, none too sure if they were right to believe Twilight. Scootaloo just sat there, still none too excited to be where she was, and seemingly not bothered by what she had just been told.

“He should be sorry after what he did to Sweetie,” Scootaloo said.

“And if ye'll let me finish me story, I'll be on me way te gettin' there!”

Scowling at the small pony for, what he hoped, would be the last time, he continued with his story. He surmised there would be the odd the question about what he said, as it was, sadly, natural. But if he kept the story as simple as possible, then hopefully none would actually arise.

“But his greed were insatiable, neverendin'. And the heathen gods of our land, angered by his lust for gold, placed upon the treasure a terrible curse; any mortal who took but a single piece from the stone chest, would be punished. For eternity.”

Nonchalantly waving his hand in the air, he closed his eyes and leaned an elbow against his knee, bending down towards the ponies below him.

“But I didn't believe in childish ghost stories, and neither did the rest o' me crew. So we sought them out. We found the island that couldn't be found, and we found the gold. And we took it all!” he exclaimed, angrily gasping out with his free hand.

Applebloom and Spike flinched back, nudging back forward with smiles spreading across their faces.

“Every last one; all eight hundred and eighty two pieces. And squander 'em away we did, spendin' 'em on food, drink, and the most pleasurable of company.”

He paused, seeing Twilight jerking her head from side to side with her eyes wide and her mouth tightly shut. Realising what she was getting at, he looked towards the children, all three of which seemed nary the wiser about the explicit comment he had made. Applejack and Rarity did seem aware, glaring at him with their brows furrowed. Spike seemed to notice too, though he scrunched his eyes and shook his head.

At least Barbossa knew they still had sex in this world, though he wouldn't have been surprised to find out that they didn't. Nothing else seemed to comply to his sense of reality.

“Compelled by greed we were, and before we realised, the curse we had so carelessly cast aside had already took it's terrible toll; food turned te ash in our mouths, and the drink did never satisfy. And we could not feel the wind against our faces, nor the touch of another's skin against our own.”

He reached into his pocket, pulling out a pouch holding something he'd kept that no other man could. Opening it, he pulled out a single golden coin. One side was engraved with the image of a smiling skull, jagged patterns surrounding it on all side, while the other had an ancient, archaic symbol, one which Barbossa still didn't know the meaning off.

Flipping it into the air with his thumb, he caught it and tossed it into the crowd of ponies at his feet. The children and older sisters dodged it, treating it like a disease as it twirled and spun on the floor. Once the doubloon had ceased it's movements, landing with the skull face up, Twilight peered over from where where she sat, gingerly moving her hooves towards it.

“Can I touch it?”

“D' ye dare?” Barbossa answered, still smiling to himself.

Twilight pulled her hoof back slightly before quickly reaching in and snatching it from the floor. She scrunched up her eyes before quickly touching Applejack in the stomach. Opening her eyes and before doing so again, she stared at the coin before dejectedly looking back up to Barbossa.

“It doesn't work.”

“We were cursed men, Miss Sparkle. And te remove the curse, each coin had te be returned te it's rightful place in the chest, all eight hundred and eighty two of 'em, with the blood of each man repaid, in earnest, te account for the sin o' stealin' the gold in the first place.”

He sat there holding his hand in front of his face, slowly spinning it around from his wrist. He simply stared at it, a frown and tired expression unconsciously present on his face.

“We were immortal men, and with the immortality came the great cost. We'd starve to death, but never die, we'd be parched of thirst and unable to quench it, and we were unable to feel even the spray of the sea against our skin.”

“You were...immortal? Wouldn't everypony have liked you for that?” she said, before realising her faux pa, “I mean...everyhuman?”

The question came once again from Twilight, who still had the coin resting on her hoof. Looking at the gold, she flipped around between her forehooves and passed it to the little fillies on the floor, all three of which didn't bother touching it. Spike chose to take it in both his claws instead, holding it between four of his fingers as he stared at the skull on the front.

“Adore us?”

Barbossa bitterly laughed, getting to his feet before walking towards the purple mare.

“Why would they adore us? We were men, sure, and we could walk amongst the livin', but in the moonlight, we were revealed for what we truly were. Our skin would rot away, and our bones became bare for the world te see. We became legends; ghost stories of our own. Our ship was feared, and our presence even more so, and the feelings we lacked became our only idea of heaven.”

Twilight readied to rebut his response, but he continued regardless. She really wanted to ask him about his immortality.

“We searched for each o' the coins. Every last one, but by then it were already too late. We'd become greedy and tired, somethin' men on a ship should be wary enough to avoid becomin'. We fought. We tried te end it ourselves, but while the pain was never felt, our wounds always healed. Heads would live beyond their necks, and limbs would move beyond their bodies. Not even bruises or cuts could lay upon our skin.”

Letting a frown once again linger on his face, he shook his head, letting the dark grin he had previously worn squirm it's way back on to his lips.

“We'd even sent a man overboard. But that was our biggest mistake, and we surely repented for it. His blood could not be repaid, nor could his coin be returned te the chest. We were at a loss, and forced te sail the seas forever, undying, but long dead on the inside.”

The coin had since been taken up by Applejack, who flipped it around on the floor, never actually picking it up. Applebloom stared on from the side, following it around with her eyes.

“Then how come ye ain't all undeadly now?” Applejack asked, still playing with the gold.

The ponies had more questions, but most didn't care to ask. The younger ones never realised the serious nature of his more unfriendly comments, and the older mares found it somewhat interesting to listen too. Twilight even more so, who had once again took up writing down what Barbossa said on scraps of paper.

“He had a son, William, and not only did he have his fathers blood flowin' through his veins, but he also had the coin we so desperately needed. But we knew not where he was, or even that he were a boy te begin with.”

Barbossa stopped the pain from the past coming back this time, holding his smile and staring into his hand as he curled and uncurled his fingers.

“But through trial, and through fate, and through consequence, we found his coin. And we repaid his blood...”

“That's horrible. You killed a pirate's son for what his father did?!”

Another negative response from Rarity wasn't something he had wanted, but it was surprising she'd accepted everything else he'd said thus far. He hardly thought killing Will was any worse a crime than killing his father. Though Barbossa had the knowledge and hindsight to know what Bootstrap had actually been through, and the man deserved at least a small ounce of respect.

“He were a boy when Bill went over, but he weren't a boy when we found 'im. We had to wait ten, whole, bloody years until the day we found William, and ye can't disagree our reasonin's weren't reasonable ones.”

“But that stil-”

“And he were kind enough to forgive me too. He were even on me crew before I arrived here, so if ye think I've got nary a kind bone in me body, I'll kindly ask ye te keep yer opinions te yersel'. There are many worse men than I, Miss Rarity, and I assure ye, I'm actin' nicer than any other I know would, given what I've had te got through over the last four days.”

Clearing his throat, and sitting back in the undersized chair, he hoped that would be the last interruption, seeing as he had barely anything left of his story to tell.

“But we had picked up enemies, as I'm sure ye'll happily decide we deserved. We went te lengths beyond comfort te retrieve those coins, and there were men that sought revenge for those lengths, young William included.”

He once again curtly laughed, clenching his fists against the ends of his jacket.

“And I were confident. Something ye can afford te be if yer undying in a world full of killers. But I fell te that confidence. I fought those who wanted my hide, and did so livin' up te me good name. But I were immortal, and I were none to bothered by the wounds I had received.”

He sat back, clenching his heart and scrunching his shirt with his right hand, contorting his face into a expression of pain.

“Then William returned his blood, on his own accord, and in doing so, lifted the curse. But a hole lay in my heart, and rather than the warmth of my body, or taste of the sea, I felt my blood run cold. My body drained, and my view dimmed black as I died. Feelin' only the chill of death as the feelin' I spent so many years desperately seekin'”

Barbossa sat back in his chair, this time crossing his arms over his chest, rather proud of the story he had just told.

The ponies on the floor didn't seem to completely agree. While Spike, Applejack and Applebloom smiled and widened their eyes at his ending, the others sat there, letting their brows raise and faces contort. Twilight had even stopped writing.

“You died? As in, going to the great pasture in the skies, died?” she said.

“Aye.”

Twilight just looked to her friends.

“Then how are you here? Did someone save you from,” she said as she checked her notes, “Davy Jones' Locker?”

Rather infuriated they didn't believe one of the single most tale worthy things that had befell him, Barbossa stood up, waving his hands in the air as he spoke.

“What? No! I died! I were brought back by a goddess, Calypso, te sail the waters of the damned te find Jack in the Locker. Ye don't just go te the Locker; there be rules.”

“There are rules to get to the land of the dead?”

Ponies didn't have rules, Twilight thought. She assumed you just sort of...went there.

“Of course there are rules. Only those who die at sea and refuse the pardon of Davy Jones' are deemed sinful enough te be sent te Jones' Locker, and I didn't die at sea.”

“So theoretically, you could bring anyone back from the dead, as long as they die on land?”

“I...I don't know! I were the one that was brought back, not the one chantin' the incantation. And I'm not one te look a gift horse in the mouth, 'specially when it involves me not bein' dead!”

“I suppose,” Twilight murmured, “but why couldn't Calypso just bring Jack back the same way she brought you back?”

She was starting to sound like Pintel. God forbid he had to think of him while he was here; he had enough problems without him or Ragetti getting in the way. Ragetti and his eye was the only reason Barbossa put up with the overweight oaf in the first place. Though, he did prove one of the most loyal during those ten, long years, so he had something good going for him.

“Jack's body and soul were taken te the Locker, I were simply dead. Ye can't bring somethin' back when there ain't nothin' left begin wi'.”

The elder sisters and the fillies just sat there while Twilight and the pirate captain bickered about details. Sweetie and Scootaloo looked at the two arguing, slightly confused. Was that the end of the story? Had he finished?

“Is that your story finished?” Sweetie Belle ask, “It just...sort of ended.”

Barbossa turned to the little fillies sitting on the floor, ignoring the curious Twilight Sparkle as she continued to identify holes in his story.

“Of course it bloody well ended; I died! There ain't nothin' te tell when nothin' were goin' on from me own point o' view!”

He couldn't believe this. Not only didn't they rightly believe him, they were mocking him! How was he supposed to make his death more exciting? He certainly didn't know what happened afterwards, but whatever it was couldn't have been that fascinating.

“And if you couldn't take coins from the chest, then how come you have one? Shouldn’t you still be all undead and stuff,” mocked Scootaloo.

“I didn't take it; me monkey did.”

Scootaloo just rolled her eyes.

“You're just adding in characters now. I bet you carry it around just to tell this story.”

Flexing his fingers and tightly clenching his fists, he desperately repressed every natural urge his body was creating. As much as he wanted to wring out her little, orange neck, he knew full well that would be the stupidest thing he could do.

“I can check.”

Surprised at Twilight's sudden suggestion, Barbossa unclenched he fists before smiling and turning towards her.

“Ye can do that?”

“Well, yes. If there is actually a spell on the coin, I could vouch for you.”

Rather pleased such a thing could be done, he smiled and waved his hand towards the purple mare, rather pleased to have her around for once.

“Be me guest.”

Curious about the answer Twilight would bring, not just Scootaloo, but the rest of the room crowded around her. Needless to say, his story didn't sound completely true, as interesting as the majority of it was.

Slightly taken back at everyone crowding around her, Twilight nodded at the group and levitated the coin into the air, and like everything else she interacted with, it glowed with a vibrant purple hue. Closing her eyes to concentrate, Twilight focused solely on the coin, not even allowing it to move an inch from where it floated.

She began to squirm, shuffling her hooves as the doubloon continued to float there. Then her breathing wavered. The coin began to spin on its axis, starting in a slow rotation before progressing to a rapid blur, creating an orb of dulled gold between the aura of violet Twilight had summoned. It was hard. Harder than she thought it'd be; it was just a coin, after all.

But Twilight didn't want to stop. She could do this; she'd worked her magic on things a thousand, perhaps even a million times its size, and she wasn't going to give up so easily.

And she couldn't.

The coin still spun there, creating a whistle as it continued to rotate faster and faster. She couldn't stop. It was floating on it's own, spinning in quick succession. And it wouldn't let go.

“I can't stop,” she cried, shaking on her hooves and wavering her step, “It won't stop.”

Her eyes wouldn't open either. She didn't even want to open them.

Barbossa stood there, surprised himself that he was actually worried about what going on. But despite his thoughts, he merely stood there, awkwardly opening and closing his mouth while shrugging his shoulders. The others didn't look as calm; the fillies were nervously jumping around and the adults were unsure of what to do.

“Can somepony do something?!” she squealed, sounding more irritated than worried, despite her situation.

Looking between the frantic purple mare and her friends, the captain sighed before flexing his wrist. Reaching out to grab the coin, he painfully recoiled his hand as the golden item crashed into his fingers. He fell back, clutching his pained hand with the other.

“Ye bastard bloody coin!”

Watching the older creatures present attempt the same act of valour, he inwardly seethed at how stupid an idea it was. He also wondered why the horses chose to copy him when he had obviously hurt himself in the process.

Looking back at the purple mare, Barbossa's eyes widened as she flinched back. Her coat was rotten and greyed, worn by the passing of time. Her stomach was torn, and inside he could see her ribcage rearing it's way from her body, and the stillness of her organs as they dangled in place. Her skull was showing, as were parts of her eyes, despite the lids being tightly shut. Her teeth could be seen too, cracked and connected with her skull at the base of her mouth as her tongue spasmed and moved inside.

Watching as the foals began inching themselves away from Twilight, and the white unicorn fruitlessly attempted to help her purple friend, the captain panicked at what was happening; he was sure they would declare this his fault. Looking around for anything to help the situation, he briefly widened his eyes as he grabbed the stool he had been previously sitting on, backing up before slamming it into the air where the coin spun.

Falling forward as the stool made contact, Barbossa shut his eyes as the spinning coin shattered the edge of the seat, splintering the wood and getting dragged down with what was left. Opening his eyes, the pirate blinked at the mess on the floor, as well as the now normal Twilight.

Releasing his breath, he pushed aside the stool and went for the coin, moving his hand back as he felt the heat emanating from it. Pulling his jacket forward, the used his cuff to pick up the doubloon and feebly toss it from hand to hand, childishly blowing at it and eventually putting it into one of his many pockets.

Twilight was now dizzily standing on all four hooves, leaning against her unicorn friend for balance. Shaking her head from side to side, she opened her eyes to see everyone nervously looking towards her.

“W-what's wrong...you guys?”

They all looked at her with troubled eyes, the pirate included, albeit with a less sentimental reason for doing so.

“Are y'all okay Twilight?!”

She took a few moments to steady herself before answering Applejack's question.

“I...I think so. That was...new. And weird; the coin just wouldn't let go.”

“Didn't it hurt?” Scootaloo asked.

“I don't think so; it just kind of kept pulling. I think that's the word for it. There's definitely something on that coin anyway. I don't think I'll be doing anything else to it though.”

“What about your coat Twilight? Did that hurt? It looked simply awful!” Rarity dramatically asked, waving a hoof in the air.

Twilight just looked back, raising an eyebrow at Rarity. Wobbling on her hooves, she sat herself on the floor before letting out a comfortable sigh.

“What do you mean?” she said before gasping, “Did I knock something over?”

Looking over herself, Twilight titled her head to her right and left, giving her coat and mane a once over. Rarity then looked at the pirate, angrily unsure of how to respond. He once again shrugged his shoulders.

“She means yer coat, Twi! We could see your insides and everythin',” Applejack worriedly yelled.

Widening her eyes, she once again looked over coat, standing this time, putting her head in line with her belly and tail as well. She looked back towards her friends and the foals standing in front of her.

“My insides? Like bones and organs?”

Nodding rapidly, everyone in the room, bar the pirate, had a panicked look on their faces. Wandering off to the back of the room, Barbossa ushered Spike to follow him before disappearing through a door with the baby dragon in tow. Applebloom wandered up to the purple unicorn before hugging her leg.

“It were terrible, Twilight. You were all boney and skeleton-y and we could see yer skull and yer eyeball and yer insidey bits!”

“Like a zombie!” Sweetie Belle yelled.

“...or Hector in his story, ” whispered Twilight.

Looking around the room, she nervously searched for the pirate in question, only to hear him clanking and clinking things around in the kitchen. With the rest of her friends also looking towards the sounds, everypony bar Twilight furrowed their brows as he wandered out with an apple and a glass filled with a bright, orange liquid in his hands. Spike came out soon after, walking up to Twilight before doing anything else.

“What have you done to Twilight!”

That was what Barbossa assumed they were all yelling at him. He couldn't exactly tell. Each was yelling something different. The orange pegasus even waltzed up to him, attempting a growl and an intimidating glare, going as far as to bare her teeth at him.

Rather than answer their queries and complaints, he simply motioned in the air for the to shut up, apple still in hand. Twilight just sat there, looking over her hooves and forelegs, while the others were still yelling despite his request.

The younger ones and Applejack looked more upset and worried than angry, but he saw that Rarity and Scootaloo, at least, had malice in their eyes. Although, for once, he actually sympathised with them. Not very much though.

Walking up to Twilight, Barbossa knelt on one knee and forced the apple into her mouth, before pouring a small portion of the glass over Twilights snout. Standing up and drinking the rest of the liquid, contently sighing at it's flavour, he put the glass on a nearby table and crossed his arms.

Letting their mouths hang open, looking at the now less than dignified Twilight, the ponies once again started to argue, before the purple mare bit a chunk out of the apple, letting the rest fall to the floor.

“What was that for!”

“What were what for?” he calmly said, not changing his expression.

“Pouring pineapple juice on me! And putting an apple in my mouth!”

“Believe it or not, that were an act of kindness on me own part. How did ye know it were pineapple juice?”

Twilight angrily moved towards him before realising what he was getting at. She looked toward her friends, but apart from Applebloom and Spike, no one seemed to let the words click into place.

“I could taste it.”

“Aye, ye could taste it. And by that logic, ye could swallow the apple and feel the juice on yer muzzle too.”

“...Yes.”

“Therefore, yer not a cursed unicorn. Now ye can call off yer angry friends and tell yer princess I solved me own problem, even though I weren't technically the one who initiated the procedure in the first place.”

He spoke with an air of sarcasm, and walking back to where his stool used to be, he picked up the list Twilight had gave him up from the floor.

Still looking at the pirate, Twilight repeated what she had done before and poked Applejack in the side, rubbing her belly slightly. Smiling and tapping her hooves on the floor, she let her horn shine as she removed the rest of the juice from her face.

“Are you okay then?” asked Sweetie Belle.

“Oh yes, I'm fine,” Twilight said as she once again smiled, “but I think I'll refrain from casting spells on that coin. At least we know Hector's story is more than likely true now.”

“But didn't you see what he did to you?”

“I was the one that offered to do that, and we can't really blame him for what happened. It's his coin, but I doubt he knew that would happen to me. And besides, I think I'm fine.” she beamed, shaking her flank for emphasis.

“Can I get on wi' doin' me things now? I'd rather not be ruinin' anythin' else.”

He asked mockingly, but he was somewhat curious if he actually could. All in all, almost cursing the creature taking care of him wasn't a high point of the day, seeing as he was meant to be apologising to the foals. He'd almost made them burst into tears too, which would have done less than nothing to help his situation.

Twilight looked at the fillies once again. They weren't really getting the best impression of the pirate. He didn't really have a good one going for him, but at the very least he was decent minded. Decent minded as far as pirates went anyway.

“It's up to you three. I know he seems scary, and I know the things you've seen haven't been up to scratch, but they weren't his fault. Mostly. He's just a little different.”

Applebloom and Sweetie Belle looked at their sisters for guidance, but Scootaloo just grumbled and sat on her haunches, crossing her forehooves against her chest.

“If y'all are wantin' ta go, we'll understand, Applebloom. But I do have ta agree with Twilight; he ain't completely a bad pony. Thing. And it were an accident.”

With Applebloom somewhat unsure of how to act, Sweetie Belle waited for her sister’s response too. But Rarity didn't seem as forgiving as her farming friend.

“I said one chance, Twilight.”

“But he hasn't wasted it yet. Come on, Rarity; you know what just happened wasn't completely his fault. We didn't believe his story, and I was the one who offered to test his coin after all.”

Looking around he room, judging everypony else’s responses to form her own, Rarity noticed that most seemed to agree with Twilight. Spike and Barbossa merely looked back at her and shook their heads, trying their best not to get involved.

“I'm only looking out for Sweetie Belle.”

“I know you are, and he wants to make it up to her for what he did. I know what just happened must have been...less than nice to look at, but it was still an accident.”

Mulling over Twilight's words, the white unicorn turned to face her sister.

“It's up to you, Sweetie. What would you rather do?”

The filly in question just looked from her sister towards her two friends. While Scootaloo seemed less than excited, Sweetie knew she'd likely stay, even if just to prove that she was brave enough to do so. Applebloom didn't seem so sure though.

“I'll stay if Scootaloo and Applebloom stay,” was her response.

“And I'll stay if Sweetie and Scootaloo stay.”

Nodding at each other and smiling, everyone present turned back to the pirate. Knowing he had a lot to make up for, Barbossa looked over the list for something easy. Apparently trying to look adventurous and 'cool' wasn't going to work, and there was only one other thing on the list he knew he'd be able to do. He would have preferred a drink or five before doing it though.

Letting out a sigh, hoping this activity would go better than the last, he took a deep breath before calmly talking to the others.

“How about a shanty?”

He knew plenty, and children from his world sang them all the time. Elizabeth had told him on one occasion she sang a few of them as a child, so if children from noble families sang them, he couldn't really mess this up.

“A shanty?” Applebloom asked.

“They're songs sailors and pirates used to sing at sea.”

Listening to Twilight’s definition, Sweetie let a smile creep on to her face. Scootaloo hung her head, letting a grumbled sigh escape her lips before once again resting her head on her front right hoof.

“Singing songs?” Sweetie Belle beamed happily.

This was looking good, the pirate thought. The orange one didn't seem interested, but the other two looked quite pleased, Sweetie Belle even more so.

“Aye, songs. Is that acceptable enough?” he asked Twilight, although someone else answered instead.

“Yes, that's fine. What are you going to sing?”

He guessed Sweetie enjoyed singing, so he had at least one happy pony within his grasp. Still wishing he was less than sober, Barbossa nodded and paused to think. He needed one he knew all the words to. Or enough to get by, at least. Believing he was sorted, the captain cleared his throat and readied himself, sitting himself down on the wooden floor in front of the ponies.

He was going to regret this one way or another, but he wanted to stay free. While it wasn't a one way trip to a cell if he failed, the choice between work, prison, or singing wasn't a hard one.

“Fifteen men on a dead man's chest. Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.”

He tapped on the floor with his hands to get some form of beat going, although he was hardly the most musically minded person. He could play the violin, but it had been a good twenty years since he last properly picked one up. He was low ranking when he had learned, and any skill you had made you one skill more valuable than the next man. He doubted the ponies even had many instruments though.

“Drink and the devil had done for the rest. Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum.”

As interested as Sweetie seemed, no one else looked that into his charming rendition of the song. Twilight was beginning to make faces too.

“The mate was fixed by the bosun's pike. The bosun brained with a marlinspike. And cookey's throat was marked belike. It had been gripped by...fingers...ten?”

Twilight had began shaking her head, with the same expression she had during the story present on her face. Rarity was also gasping at him as well, scrunching her nose in clear displeasure. Twilight then walked up to him before whispering into his ear, an act which he obliged by lowering his head.

“Could you perhaps choose a song not about killing things? Something more foal friendly, perhaps?”

“Children sing this song. I've heard 'em.”

“Well, we don't teach little colts and fillies to harm chefs and wield weapons. Could you please sing something else?”

Nodding his head, Twilight went back to her position next to Rarity as he thought of something else to sing. Sadly thinking of Jack and his drunken escapades on the Pearl, he cleared is throat and started again.

“Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me. We pillage and plunder, we rifle and loot. Drink up me 'earties, yo ho. We kidnap and ravage and don't give a hoot. Drink up me 'earties, yo-”

Twilight was once again shaking her head. This just wasn't fair.

“Oh come on now! Children from well off families even sing this. Nobles sing this song at parties!”

Twilight walked back up to him to whisper his ear again. He didn't bother lowering himself to hear this time, however.

“Normally I wouldn't mind, but you've annoyed Rarity enough as it is. Don't you have anything that isn't about hurting and stealing?”

“Listen, that song is child friendly. How child friendly de ye want te be!”

“Does it get any better?” she asked.

“There's a line about still being loved by our mummies and daddies, how's that for ye?”

“And how many lines don't have something that nice in it?”

“The rest o' them.”

Twilight clicked her teeth before looking at a wide eyed Sweetie Belle. Despite the cute nature of her glare, Twilight still knew it meant the filly wanted her to stop bothering the thing teaching her a song.

“Look, just think of one more, and if that doesn't work, you can sing this one.”

Moving to walk away, she suddenly turned back around to face the pirate, this time not bothering to whisper.

“Oh, but later on, could you write some of the ones you didn't sing down on paper? I mean, being able to get songs from another world doesn't happen to me every day.”

Guessing he would be forced to do so anyway, he reluctantly nodded before letting her sit down. This was getting tedious now. Already having chose the next song, he once again began a beat on the floor. It was a simple, quick four beat rhythm, but it worked on ships, so he couldn't see why it wouldn't on the wooden floor of the library. He was also lucky this song's verses could be switched out to suit the occasion.

“What'll we do with a drunken sailor, what'll we do with a drunken sailor, what'll we do with a drunken sailor, earl-aye in the mornin'?”

The ponies stared back at him, Applejack even looking as if she were attempting to answer. Rolling his eyes, he clapped his hands to get their attention once again. Twilight hadn't raised an objection, so he mused this was likely the song he'd be finishing with.

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, earl-aye in the morning. Sling him in the long boat till he's sober, sling him in the long boat till he's sober, sling him in the long boat till he's sober, earl-aye in the mornin'”

Pointing at the children, hoping that getting them to sing instead would not only get them involved, but also allow him to be less so, he motioned his other hand in circles, mouthing the first two words he wanted them to sing.

Catching motion of him, Applebloom and Sweetie began to sing the first lines he had, or Sweetie Belle did anyway; Applebloom broke momentum by missing certain words and giving them her own awkward accent.

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning!”

Rather proud of himself, and apparently out of the heat with the older mares, he continued going through some of the more 'foal friendly' verses he remembered. He could easily make it up if he wanted to though. His rhythm had since gone though, with the beat now matching the words of the song as he unconsciously lost track of the beat he had actually attempted.

“Give 'im a dose of salt and water, give 'im a dose of salt and water, give 'im a dose of salt and water, earl-aye in the mornin'.”

The children once again sang the chorus, with Scootaloo, Spike and Twilight joining in with the other two. He enjoyed singing while he was drunk, but he had to admit a song or two always kept morale high, and besides the rainbow jam, it was one of the better things he'd had the pleasure to enjoy since arriving.

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning!”

“Shave his belly with a rusty razor, shave his belly with a rusty razor, shave his belly with a rusty razor, earl-aye in the mornin'.”

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning,” his audience sang, with Applejack joining her sister and the others.

Beginning to become somewhat bored of the song, despite the brief mode of entertainment it had offered, he pointed to Sweetie Belle, wanting her to continue, seeing as she was the most eager. She looked at him before shaking her head and shrugging her shoulders.

“Just make a verse up,” he advised.

It wasn't like they'd want to hear much more of the ones he knew anyway. If they didn't like him implying he slept around, they wouldn't want the foals singing about it.

As he awkwardly kept hitting has palms on the floor, it was a few seconds more before the small unicorn started her own verse.

“Make him...take...down all of winter...make him take down all of winter, make him take down all of winter, early in the morning!” she happily sang, hopping from one hoof to another.

The others once again sang the chorus, the captain rather sneakily joining in. He may as well let her sing the other lines anyway, seeing as she was having more fun with it than he was. He was meant to make them happy for the princess, so surely this was more in line with what she wanted.

She also sang the song more up beat and up tempo than he had, making it seem less piratey and more...he didn't know what to call it. Her voice echoed and went from deep to high, despite keeping a definitely female ring to it. He merely saw it best to watch his free performance.

“Make him stand still in the gardens, make him stand still in the gardens, make him stand still in the gardens, early in the morning!”

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning.”

Once again, everyone sang the chorus, with Rarity also finally joining in. Barbossa didn't get what the verses were about, but the ponies and dragon seemed to get them just fine. Maybe if he remembered, he'd ask Twilight later on, but he guessed they were more symbolic than his punishments were.

The others had also taken over his duty of tapping a rhythm, with the other two children, Twilight and Spike tapping beats on the floor. Of course, you could only really hear the ponies; Spike's clapping and foot steps were more or less drowned out by the stomping of hooves on the hard, wooden floor.

Watching Sweetie, who was now jumping around and swaying from side to side with the beat, he confidently sat back as everyone seemed to take over his song. He didn't mind tough, although he opted to jump in after a few more verses to actually finish.

“Make him swim in an icy river, let him stay until he shivers, leave him there until his dinner, early in the morning!”

Needless to say, Barbossa was somewhat impressed. Sure, all the rhymes were mostly halves, but to make the rhythm still work was quite a nice thing to hear. Usually, the men from his ship would stop and start during the song; something which irritated the more intellectual men. Well, him and Joshamee. He didn't know any other men on the crew who could be called intelligent.

He found it somewhat insulting that most of his crew could be outdone, in many respects, by a little talking horse.

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning.”

“Perm his tail and curl his mane, leave him out there in the rain, make him have it done again, early in the morning!”

Listening for her to finish, the pirate jumped up to his feet, pushing his hands out to his side, trying to urge the others not to start the chorus. The song was already over what was normally sang, and he could tell Sweetie would simply keep on going. Given a different set of circumstances, Barbossa would have continued on too, but a long voyage while drunk was a more appealing prospect than singing in a library while sober.

“That's what we do with a drunken sailor, that's what we do with a drunken sailor, that's what we do with a drunken sailor, earl-aye in the mornin'!” he sang before raising his hands in the air towards everyone else.

“Way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, way hay and up she rises, early in the morning!”

Keeping his hands in the air, hoping to signify the song was, in fact, over, he flinched back as everyone began banging their hooves on the floor. Taking a few steps backwards, and letting his breath run slightly ragged, he looked around and saw Spike clapping amidst the ponies as they stomped hard against the wood. Letting his guard down, he nervously laughed before replacing his cocky smile; they were clapping for him.

Not everyone seemed so happy though.

“Couldn't we have kept on going?” Sweetie said, pouting.

“Aye, but I got the sense ye'd soon grow bored.”

“But I wasn't getting bored. I liked that song. I could have went on forever.”

“Aye, and that were me main concern. Songs generally have an end te them. Elseways they get rather laborious.”

Scrunching her nose at his long word, Barbossa saw Rarity whisper into her ear before Sweetie approached him once again.

“But if I sang it, nopony would think it was boring; I'd make it fun to listen too.”

“If ye could do such a thing forever, ye'd have me in yer debt, but until then, I dare say our little sing song is over.”

“Hector...” Twilight whispered to him, but it fell on deaf ears.

“Could you teach me another song? You said you knew more.”

“Another day; ye've worn me out.”

He wasn't tired physically, but mentally, he felt drained. Not just the singing, but attempting to keep up appearances for most of the day just made him want to sleep. Then again, it was nothing he couldn't handle. It wasn't like he had a choice though, and singing to children wasn't the most demanding task he'd had to do in his life.

“Hector,” Twilight said again, this time catching the pirate's attention.

Facing her, he focused his eyes on Twilight, waiting for her to speak, but instead he saw everyone smiling at the little unicorn to his side. Confused, he looked down at her, seeing nothing but Sweetie looking back up at him.

She then turned to face the ponies opposite the pirate, her friends of which were smiling much harder than the others.

Applebloom skipped from hoof to hoof, pointing her forehooves at her friend. Scootaloo was dancing in a similar fashion, but rather than point, she slowly shook from side to side.

“Sweetie Belle! Y'all got your cutie mark.”

Moving his attention to where the red maned pony was pointing, he saw Sweetie stare at her own backside before taking notice of what they were pointing at. There was a small, pink bell tattooed on her hind quarters, with a smaller purple musical note pictured slightly off centre. The rounded end of the note had a white, smiling face inside it.

“Ye talkin' about the tattoo?” the pirate asked, confusedly raising both his eyebrows.

Sweetie Belle began spinning around herself, almost as if she were chasing her tail. The other two then started dancing around beside her, hugging her once they had finally stopped. The older mares just looked on at them, with Rarity walking up to her sister before Hector approached Twilight.

“Seein' as I'm bein' ignored, I'll ask again; what were ye talkin' about?”

Twilight pulled herself out of the daze she was in and finally looked up at the pirate. She just smiled at him.

“She got her cutie mark.”

Barbossa simply stared back at her, sure that the answer Twilight gave hardly counted as one.

“Didn't you ever wonder why we called them the Crusaders?”

“Not really; didn't seem that relevant te me situation,” he mockingly replied.

“Cutie marks are something ponies get when they discover the one thing they're best at, the one talent that separates them from everypony else. Those three were the only ones in their class who hadn’t got them yet, so they called themselves ‘The Cutie Mark Crusaders’.”

Noting he had been doing so a lot lately, the pirate raised an eyebrow and scratched his beard. He looked toward the rest of the beings present, watching as they all crowded around Sweetie Belle. This wasn't something he particularly cared about, but he had wondered once or twice about their tattoos.

“And they just...appear? Like magic?”

“Yes. If a pony realises what they enjoy doing, or what they are best at, they just appear. Their cutie mark is a visual representation of that thing.”

Barbossa once again looked over at Sweetie Belle, glazing over the picture now printed on her flank. This was rather bizarre. Impossibly so.

“And yers represents...jewels?”

Looking down at her own cutie mark, Twilight smiled before shaking her head.

“No, mine represents my association with magic. Some ponies are good at one kind of magic, whereas I'm good at all kinds. The meaning isn't always literal.”

Rubbing the bridge of his nose, he pulled is hand over his face in an attempt to let the information sink in. All in all, he thought the situation rather stupid, idiotic, and overly childish, but if it just happened, he guessed even they couldn't do much about it.

“Where I come from, animals are branded wi' hot pokers in that spot. Lets ye know who they belongs to.”

Dipping her head, she shook the idea out of her mind before walking up the rest of her friends, leaving Barbossa on his own. He stood there, attempting to decipher what the other two had for their talents in life. Applejack was obvious, given he'd seen her working in the fields, and he had a good idea about Rarity's.

“Greedy bitch.”

Coming out of his day dream, he watched as a good deal of the animals present walked over to him, with the foals stood at the front.

Waiting for whatever they wanted to say, he raised his arms in the air as Sweetie Belle instead hugged him, leaning her head on his shins.

“Thank you.”

Barbossa stood there, not quite sure how to react to being hugged. He wasn't naïve, nor was he a stranger to affection. He could show compassion and be kind, if anything he'd proven that the last few days. Children were still foreign territory, however.

“Yer most...welcome?” he managed to utter out before attempting returning the gesture, awkwardly bending down and cupping his hands in the air around the little filly.

Realising the act wasn't going to work, and that he'd rather not actually do it, he gave up the idea and continued to awkwardly stand there with the small filly clutching at his leg.

“I'm guessin' this means I'm fergiven' then?”

Nodding her head, still hugging tight around his leg, he stood back when she finally let go, glad to have his personal space back. The other two foals walked out to stand next to her.

“Well, I forgive you,” Sweetie murmured.

“And ah guess if y'all helped get Sweetie her cutie mark, ya can't be all bad and stuff.”

That just left the small orange horse.

“I don't like you very much. Not even a little bit, but I know when someone does something nice for somepony else. And your story did sound pretty cool, I guess...”

Taking that as his pardon, he mentally congratulated himself; he had dealt with the children. More or less successfully. And they had proclaimed him 'cool' too.

“But I think it's time you went home,” Twilight said, “You've had enough...excitement today.”

Nodding at the studious unicorn, two of the Crusaders walked away with Applejack and Twilight, while Scootaloo held back before going outside.

“Since we're best friends and all now, I don't suppose you could teach me some piratey stuff? You know, to see if you can get me my cutie mark too? That way the princess is sure to be twice as happy with you!”

The clearing of Twilight’s throat was enough to pull her away, and grumbling as she left, Scootaloo waved to Spike before leaving.

“You can cross me off your list too.”

Picking up on the new speaker, Barbossa looked over to see Rarity standing at the door. He couldn't tell if she was happy or not, but at least there wasn't anything negative on her face.

“Anypony who helps get my sister get her cutie can't be completely bad. I don't trust you any more than I did when I arrived, but just know you there isn't much else you can do that would please me.”

With Rarity walking through the door, and closing it behind her, Barbossa was left in the sole company of Spike the baby dragon. Sitting down on the couch, he picked up a book he had been reading and continued from where he left off, licking his finger as he readied to turn the next page.

He'd done pretty well today. He'd pleased the foals, and he'd got the prissy pony off his back without even trying. Maybe the whole act of pleasing the ponies would be easier than he'd thought.

“So...” Spike murmured, leaning back and forth on his feet.

Barbossa looked down towards him. Feeling somewhat good about himself, and realising Spike obviously wanted something, the pirate decided to humour the dragon for a change. He closed the book with an audible clap.

“So?” Barbossa said, trying not to sound too enthusiastic whilst talking to the little reptile.

“So...you were really immortal? Like the princess?”

Oh. This line of questioning was actually going somewhere. And without any needless chatter too.

“Yer majesty's immortal?

“Well, yeah. Celestia and Luna are both immortal. They're like....old.”

Barbossa looked toward the ceiling, letting a small smile escape his lips. Immortality. Never ending life. Or, at least, another way of achieving it. He looked forward to seeing the princess again.

“But I asked about you. What was it like. How old are you?”

The pirate wondered himself. He knew how old he was, but he often contemplated how much he'd actually aged at the hands of the curse, or if he had aged those ten years at all.

“Fifty four. And ye remember what yer purple friend looked like?”

“Yeah, it looked horrible.”

“Aye, but that's how it was all the time. And I had to suffer that for ten years. A whole, bloody decade. A decade, with no food, no drink, and no feelin'.”

But now he was getting to what interested him.

“Do yer princesses feel that burden?”

The small dragon looked a little less than comfortable, shuffling on his feet and looking around the captain rather than directly at him. He did eventually answer.

“I don't think so. I've seen them both eat and drink before. Celestia likes carrot cake quite a bit too. And I've seen them both drinking wine.”

Sitting back in the chair, the pirate captain rubbed his mouth and beard, holding back a smile at this new revelation. Maybe he could discover their secret while he was here. Maybe there was some fantastical pony spell or incantation to gaining it. It certainly seemed likely.

Wait.

“Are there any more immortals?”

“Not really. There are some spirits, and dragons can live pretty long lives, but there aren’t any other ponies as immortal as the princesses.”

“Bugger.”

It was likely hereditary. That, or it was something very few were privy too, and if that was indeed the case, Barbossa doubted he would get a sneak peak at the source. Though he'd still make sure to raise the topic when he next saw the princess.

“How big de dragons get?”

Spike smiled, somewhat gleefully proud that their visitor was interested in something about him for a change.

“We can grow as big as a castle, maybe even two or three of them. Pretty cool, eh? If I were older, I could burn you to a crisp and eat you in one bite. How do you like them apples?”

The pirate deliberately waited for a few seconds before answering.

“And how long would it be till ye were of human gobblin' size?” he asked with a cocky grin present on his face.

“Well...around one hundred and fifty years or so, give or take.”

“Ah, well ain't that a shame? Guess ye'll have te settle for being small enough for me to stand on.”

Getting the rather unfunny message, Spike grumbled before wandering off to do his chores. He had the mess in the main room to clear up, as well as his usual task of sorting the books. Before he left, however, Barbossa shouted to the small dragon.

“Spike, be a dear and fetch me a book on yer royal majesties, if ye please. I'm feelin' curious.”

Once again grumbling at the pirate, Spike reluctantly did as he was asked. However, if Barbossa wanted information on the princesses, perhaps he could make the pirate see how good Twilight and others really were. Picking out one on each of the sisters, the little dragon searched out a final book with a familiar stained glass window on the front.

“Mister Barbossa,” Spike said, as he mentally twiddled a moustache, “have you heard the story of Nightmare Moon?”

Walk the Plank

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 12
Walk the Plank

Wandering through the middle of Ponyville still made the captain less than comfortable, but given his recent circumstances, he had long since gotten used to the sight of multicoloured horses. They had apparently yet to get used to him though, with a good deal of the little things still trying to wander away as he approached.

But not everyone seemed seemed desperate to escape him, given that more than a few often walked along at his side, trying to sneakily get a closer look or hear what he was talking about. Then again, he didn't know whether that was because they thought he was 'cool', or because the pony walking alongside him was actually a living legend.

Barbossa was heading back to see Fluttershy today. And seeing as he’d done such a good job the day before, he thought he may as well get some more of his task over and done with. His main obstacle now was pleasing Rainbow Dash, so he chose to try and please the shyer one instead.

Fluttershy would surely be a lot easier to help out, and seeing as he'd pleased more than one party the day before, he didn't really feel like putting the effort in with the cyan mare, nor did he think he really needed to; he was doing better than he assumed he would.

But regardless of how great an impression he'd made helping the little filly receive her mark of honour, Twilight still wouldn't let him leave the house on his own, something which caused him more than a small ounce of irritation. He was a grown man, slightly past his prime, yet a woman, likely just out of her teens, insisted on being his escort.

But knowing what he now knew, assuming it was true, he'd do better to avoid the purple pony altogether. According to the book the dragon had got for him, Twilight, as well as her five friends, had defeated an immortal enchantress, a nightmare, who even their revered and all-powerful princess couldn't handle. And she was the one who chose to raise the sun each morning and set it at night!

Looking back down to the pony walking alongside him, he felt...beneath her. She held a power told of in legends, as did the other five, and they were famous for it. But while he could certainly see Twilight, and perhaps even Rainbow being almighty mistresses of immense power, how could Fluttershy be one? Or the farmer? Or even the pompous bitch?

And how she represented generosity, he had no idea; she'd done nothing but harass him since the moment she'd met him. The only thing she'd been generous enough to give him was a sturdy hit to the back of the head, and when he thought of generosity, he certainly didn't think of being knocked senseless to the point of unconsciousness.

And the pink one didn't even that seem useful to have in a battle. He could more or less guess why she was the being of laughter, but what use would that be in a battle? How would she even be able to aid her allies? Did she divert the enemy or distract them? Then again, maybe it was metaphorical, and she used her wit to talk herself out of situations, like Jack?

But in the end, it didn't really matter. As powerful as they supposedly were, he'd be gone soon, and then he could rely on his own fists to do the fighting for him. As well as his crew, cannons, swords, pistol, and anything else his he happened to have at hand.

But there was something else that bothered him about this world; it was idiotic. They let a defiled goddess back onto the throne. Why in God’s name would they do that? Surely if they simply killed her, they would not only resolve the problem, but stop it from happening again?

And everyone was apparently privy to the story of the lunar maiden's rise and fall, so why would any of the common beggars trust such a thing? It had tried to destroy their world. And the legend had been told for hundreds of years, yet everybody was supposedly happy to welcome the evil enchantress back with open arms.

But once again, it didn't matter. Once he was gone, they could sit in ignorance all they wanted. It was their world, and if they wanted to let it fall into the realms of hell and darkness, that was up to them.

But it gave him a new appreciation for the creatures that had been so lenient with him. He had been living with legends, and he'd even sparked a confrontation with them, yet they hadn't sent him to the moon or bludgeoned him to death with rainbows.

Then again, if they were so powerful, so respected and feared that they could take down a goddess of the moon and sky, then why did they struggle against him?

He was hardly a god among men, and even when he took into account his practically unmatched skills with a sword, it didn't add up, not in his mind at least. He barely attempted to use his sword, and they still had to resort to hitting him in the head with a branch to make any sort of progress. There was only one attacking him at the time, but the point still held water.

Or maybe they were like Blackbeard; perhaps they needed some form of weapon to make use of their powers? Or maybe it was something else entirely, like wishing or through some other magical feat of pony thinking he hadn't yet heard of?

It was all rather complicated. The books would have done well to explain how they actually used their powers to defeat the nightmare. All it told of was their valiant teamwork and trust towards each other. As useful as that was in any situation, it didn't really explain what the power they used actually was.

Looking back down the the purple pony at his side, he let out a disgruntled sigh and cracked his knuckles. As of late, the ponies had shown no sign of wanting to cause him harm, nor did it seem like they actually could. Of course, Twilight's magic was something in itself. It was something he would actually fear if used against him.

Spike had even told him about her feat of levitating a creature a thousand times the pirate's size into the air, and how she could bring anything she desired to life through will power alone. Barbossa didn't know if the small dragon exaggerated the stories, but even if they were only partially true, she sounded like something he wouldn't hope to win against.

He'd have a hell of time trying though, given the opportunity.

And then there was the incident with the Aztec coin. He honestly didn't know what to make of that. The curse was powerful, placed upon the gold by the heathen gods themselves; some of the most powerful beings his world could imagine. Yet Twilight had tampered with the coin so easily. The curse had overcame her own powers, sure, but she had accomplished something no man or witch doctor had ever done before her.

And if Twilight was capable of that, what were the princesses of the ponies capable of? They were supposedly even more powerful than most other beings alive. He had some doubts about that, due to the nightmare’s defeat at the hands of the purple unicorn and the other Elements, but it all still seemed somewhat...overwhelming.

Taking a second glance at the alien world, looking behind all the colours, looking past all the creatures with wide eyes and smiling faces, he could see that it was something he didn't want to begin trifling with. Not on his own, at least.

There were gods living in their royal palace, spreading word of friendship and unity, whereas he had a fat, delusional man ruling for the sake of greed. This world had common folk being able to move the very clouds themselves. They could command the rain, sleet, hail and snow to whatever schedule they deemed proper, yet humanity was left to die in the cold and fend for themselves against the stormy horizon.

This world didn't even have a death penalty for the dark and villainous to fear, yet those that crossed the line were given a fate worse than death to deal with. Behind everything he had laughed at, behind everything he had looked down upon, there were things far greater than he thought possible staring back down at him, laughing right back.

A quick hoof to his right shin brought him out of his reverie. It didn't hurt, but it was enough to focus his attention on the creature that had initiated the attack. Looking down at Twilight, he waited for her to speak.

“I said, do you know what you're going to do once you get there?”

“Be there a need to?” he answered, “Surely she must have somethin' that needs doin'.”

Twilight focused her eyes on the pirate before looking back to the route they were taking. They were close to Fluttershy's cottage, but it would take at least another five or ten minutes to get there.

“You know, I get the feeling you're not learning anything from doing good deeds.”

“And what de ye expect me te learn, Miss Sparkle? I've learned what needs te be learnt, and I make do with it. Can't be askin' for more than that.”

“You could learn to be kinder, or more considerate of your actions.”

“Aye, and a great advantage that'll give me when I get back te me own world. When the world's against ye, sayin' please and thank ye isn't goin' te go changin' their perception of what ye are.”

“And what is their perception of you, exactly?”

“Not the same one I have,” he said, tapping his forehead with a finger, “Every man has their own eyes, and each sees the world as a different world entirely. The beings inside it included.”

Twilight looked back at him with her eyelids lowered, not overly pleased that he had side stepped her question. But then, she did enjoy it when she could talk to him on a more intellectual level. He seemed to enjoy it too, when he felt like it.

“That's very philosophical, coming from you.”

The pirate curtly laughed, not stopping his walk as Twilight continued to trot alongside him.

“Yer lucky I'm takin' that as a compliment,” he said, not attempting to hide the malice in his voice, “I'm more than just a humble pirate, I think ye'll find.”

“Really? I haven't seen much of your cultural side,” Twilight shot back, jokingly.

The captain didn't take it lightly as she had though. Even if he was leaving this world forever, he didn't want his lasting impression to be completely controlled by power and fear. As good as they were, he wasn't simple minded monster. He had standards.

“It may surprise ye, with yer world o' pretty colours and talkin' pets, but men in me own world seldom have the ability te read. I, however, do. More still haven't the ability te play an instrument, but I do, and no-”

“You can play a musical instrument?” Twilight interjected,”Really? Which one?”

Slightly taken back by her enthusiasm, Barbossa nodded in response, not sure whether to feel proud or annoyed that the unicorn was so surprised.

“Aye, the violin,” he said, deliberately holding an air of arrogance as he smiled, before realising the purple mare likely had no knowledge of the instrument he was boasting about.

“You play the violin?”

Or...maybe she did?

“Ain't touched one for nigh on fifteen years, but I'm not too disinclined te assume I can still play,” he said, before realising the contradiction in what was being discussed, “How de ye know about violins?”

Twilight kept walking alongside him, giving him a queer look, not quite understanding where his question was leading.

“Why wouldn't I know about violins?”

“Ye have no fingers.”

Widening her eyes in realisation, finally getting the feeling that she knew what he was thinking, she smiled before shaking her head.

“No, we don't, but unicorns use their magic to play them. Some earth ponies can even play larger string instruments with the hooves. It isn't that hard.”

The pirate sighed, clicking his tongue against his teeth.

“Seems more like cheatin' if ye can use yer powers te play 'em,” he shot back.

Barbossa was surprised it was a topic he was now talking so casually about. Unicorn magic sounded both utterly ridiculous, yet logically sound to him at the same time. Though, the second he left the pony lands, anything he quoted or repeated would likely be laughed at. Or, in a dire situation, have him dubbed unfit of the mind.

“They're still hard to play. A unicorn can't just use their magic to do something and be great at it first time. Unless I learned beforehoof, I wouldn't be able to play the violin. I'd probably fail miserably if I tried right now.”

Undecided on whether Twilight mentioned violins again to make him feel better, or to simply continue their conversation, Barbossa shrugged off her comment regardless, once again focusing on the walk to the cottage.

“I should get one for you to try. It would be nice to hear you play,” Twilight chirped, not receiving any response other than a sarcastic smile that vanished from his face as quickly as it had appeared.

Thinking she'd likely not get anything more out of the pirate, Twilight followed in Hector's footsteps and focused on getting to Fluttershy's. She didn't know if he was really improving, or if he even meant anything he said, but as long as he didn't cause any trouble, that was all that she could hope for at this point.

He was cordial, and polite when he wanted to be, and if that was the best they could get out of him, she wasn't going to push the matter any further. He didn't seem overly kind, and he didn't seem very noble in his intentions and beliefs, but he was behaving.

After walking for a few more minutes in the same silence the last leg of the trip had comprised of, the two finally arrived at the cottage. Unlike when Barbossa had last left the residence, the place was once again flourished with the presence of animals and brightly coloured creatures.

One in particular seemed to take special notice as the pirate walked up the path.

The little white rabbit once again stood in Barbossa's way, this time on the path itself, rather than the doorstep. While a good deal of the other animals also seemed to remember the pirate, they all appeared to go limp under his shadow, or simply scamper away before he reached them.

But, much like before, the rabbit stood defiant in his path.

“Hello again. Take it ye remember me?”

The creature responded by crossing his arms and nodding his head. It also appeared to be scrunching it's nose and lowering it's ears. At least, he did until another creature made their way down the path he was guarding.

“Now, now, Angel. Try and be nice.”

Barbossa took a gander up from the bunny to see Fluttershy walking towards them. She paused when the pirate looked her way, but soon after, continued along the path towards them. The small rabbit kept his ground though, simply turning to face the yellow more instead of actually moving from his spot.

“Hello, Twilight. Hello, Hector.”

She smiled at her friend before doing the same to the pirate. But not the same kind of smile. The smile he received seemed more of a forced gesture, but he wasn't complaining.

“Afternoon, Fluttershy. Hector says he wants to help you today.”

“Oh...h-he does?”

Straight to the point. The pirate reasoned it was better than attempting small talk for the next few minutes, and he did want to get his task over and done with. Fluttershy turned to face him, once again smiling.

“Rarity told me what happened yesterday, with Sweetie Belle. I think that was very nice what you did.”

Barbossa didn't reply, not quite sure how to. While he wasn't against doing what he did, it wasn’t like he had actively tried to be so kind. He simply sang the song to amuse the children. He wondered if they even realised he dropped out of the shanty he was meant to be singing only a few verses in.

“So I've been told,” was all he ended up saying, hoping to sound, at least, uplifting rather than miserable.

“They've been trying for so long, you see, and it's nice that at least one of them has finally gotten their cutie mark.”

“Aye...right...”

He honestly wasn't that bothered. He was somewhat pleased, if not outright proud, he had helped with such an important part in a child's life, but in the end, he didn't really care to hear their backstory or past endeavours. They weren't his children, and he'd only met them on common ground once, and even then it got off to a very chaotic start.

Seeing that he was growing bored, Twilight gestured with her forehoof to get to the point. Fluttershy nodded, partially thankful they didn't have to continue the awkward conversation they were having.

“So...what do you want to help me with?”

“Anythin',” he said, moving his hands out to the world around him, trying to emphasise his point. "Except singin'.”

“Anything?”

Fluttershy took a moment to look at her guests, biting the tip of her bottom lip. After a few seconds, she raised her head and flew back into her house. Confused, the captain looked down at Twilight before she simply shrugged her shoulders and shook her head.

Around a minute of waiting later, the yellow pegasus strolled out with a piece of paper between her teeth. Shaking it towards the pirate, he exhaled through his mouth and took it into his hand. It was a poster.

“Please help save the animals. If ye have the time te spare, come help build some new homes for the poor, little creatures. They would be ever so happy to receive yer help...” Barbossa reluctantly recited, reading directly from the poster in his grasp.

“You want him to help build some animal shelters?”

“Well, I didn't know what else he could do for me. And...and only two other ponies were there last time I checked. I only came back because they said I could use a break.”

Twilight frowned. It was true that not many ponies were overly charitable, but with the community living so near a forest, she thought there would be at least more than two willing to help. If she'd known about the event, and didn't have an alien pirate in her home and his problems to deal with, she would likely have helped out for a short while too.

“I'm sure he could manage that, right Hector?”

While he wanted to point out she was basically deciding his fate for him, physical labour was something he could actually do without a hassle. It was a task and goal he could aim to complete, and once it was done, that's what it was; done. Simple.

“It sounds reasonable enough,” he said casually, glancing back over the poster, which also had a rather large image of an overly sad rabbit with its front paws held out, begging, emblazoned below the plead.

If he did this for Fluttershy, his only obstacle left would be Rainbow. He also considered Twilight as part of his list, but given that she'd likely be pleased with a few colourful accounts of his life, as well as some common facts, she'd likely be easy to deal with.

“Oh, then would you mind if we went now? The others are probably still on their own.”

“If we must,” he said nonchalantly, nodding his head.

It honestly didn't matter when they went, seeing as he'd came to do his duty. Maybe it would even be somewhat enjoyable. While he was far from gifted at the craft, woodwork was something he could handle.

“Do you want to come, Twilight?”

As much as she wanted to, she really couldn't. As much work as the princesses were apparently doing with research on their end, Twilight still needed to sort some things out on hers.

The royal sisters had more material at the castle, but Twilight still had some books that her mentor didn't. There was also the issue of getting her regular duties sorted, as well as organising everything she had learned about her new lodger thus far.

“Sorry, I've got some things to do today. I only really came to make sure Hector didn't cause trouble on the way here.”

“Oh, that's okay. I know you have a lot of things to do,” Fluttershy agreed, looking knowingly at the pirate.

Twilight smiled at her friend before turning to the human being in question.

“And if you cause trouble for Fluttershy, you know what will happen to you. I'm trusting you to behave while I'm not around.”

Nodding and waving a hand in the air, he used the other to pat the purple unicorn on the head, making sure to use slightly more force than needed. He inwardly laughed to himself as he looked down at the now slightly deformed look on her face, as she snorted and exhaled air slowly through her clenched teeth.

“Aye, aye. I'll be on me best behaviour, mother,” he mockingly said, still wrinkling Twilight's coat and face as she he continued to pat her head.

Forcefully moving away from his grip, and scrunching her eyes over and over to get rid of the feeling in her face, Twilight turned once again to Fluttershy.

Despite her worries, the yellow mare nodded confidently, striking a stiff pose and a smile. Maybe she did undervalue Fluttershy too much? The pegasus had dealt with worse creatures than Barbossa.

“Are you're sure you'll be okay?”

“We'll be fine, Twilight. I'm sure he won't do anything too reckless.”

It was him doing anything at all that worried her, but in the end, if Fluttershy said she could cope, then Twilight had to have faith in her.

Nodding to her friend once again, and then giving a stern look to the pirate, Twilight said her farewells and trotted off, looking behind her back more than once before disappearing out of sight.

As Fluttershy swiftly flew back into her woodland home, the captain patiently waited for his taskmaster to return. The rabbit once again continued to stare at him, pointing to his caretaker’s house before shaking his head from side to side.

“If ye think yer threatenin' me, ye'd best start rethinkin' yer strategy. I've seen fiercer things than the likes of you on the underside o' me boots.”

Despite his witty retort, Barbossa realised he was still actively trying to threaten a mute rabbit, something that, even in this strange world, seemed utterly ridiculous to him. Not willing to indulge in the one sided conversation any longer, he simply waited for Fluttershy to return, which only took around another few minutes of his time.

The only difference was that, when she did appear, she sported a brown saddle bag at her sides, which had her mark stitched directly into he fabric.

“A-are you ready?”

She sounded nervous, too. Maybe with Twilight around him, she had less to worry about. Or perhaps Barbossa was just as imposing as he liked to think he was.

“May as well be,” he answered, trying to sound less than threatening, if only to help the situation, “Where we doin' this?”

“It's not far. It's near Everfree, actually.”

Releasing a gruff sigh, he simply nodded and walked forward, leaving Fluttershy in his wake. Scurrying after him, she walked at his left hand side, occasionally looking up at him before moving her head away.

After few minutes of walking, and Fluttershy still insisting on looking towards his head every now and then, the pirate rolled his head back before directing his gaze down at the squeamish mare.

“There be somethin' ye want, or does the ground really interest ye as much as me face?”

She jumped, hopping along the ground for a spell before tripping over her own hooves. Getting her balance back and refusing to fall, she looked back towards the ground, shaking her head.

“N-no. I was just wondering about your monkey. He must miss you.”

The captain was surprised. He didn't think any of them had given thought to what he'd left behind in his own world. Fluttershy had just earned herself an ounce of respect, whether Barbossa wanted to admit to it to her or not.

“Jack's fine. He'll find his way back te me shoulder eventually.”

It was true, of course. He always found a way back to his shoulder. He often wondered if it was some sort of symbolic link, or simply the monkey seeking out the cursed coin in his master's pocket. Either way, it proved useful.

It proved disheartening too. He hadn't thought much about what he'd left behind, partially due to his belief he would soon be back amongst his own kind. But he did miss Jack. He liked having a pet by his side, and the little monkey was certainly one of a kind.

Expecting her to ask more of his pet, Barbossa blinked as she suddenly jumped up in the air and glided away. Following her form, he saw her heading towards two other creatures in the distance before landing in between them. There also appeared to be a few tables scattered around the grass, from what he could see.

Continuing his walk towards the construction area, which was up a small incline, he watched as two strangers looked towards him before turning back to Fluttershy. One looked nervous, he had to admit, but the other one didn't seem to care all that much, simply nodding and moving back to his, or her, work station.

Finally arriving a good minute behind the yellow mare, he trundled up to where she stood, somewhat tired. He could easily run further distances, or even up the hill itself, but walking it just seemed to tire him out quicker.

The other two walked up to him, standing next to Fluttershy, seemingly interested in his presence. Why the hell not, everybody bloody else seemed to be.

“Oh, hello! You're the thing staying with Twilight Sparkle? The one from far away?”

The first to approach him was a stallion, the first one he'd properly had the chance to meet since arriving in Ponyville. Compared to most of his peers, he was a rather sensible set of colours, having a light brown coat and a darker shade of brown colouring his mane. He had light blue eyes too, something else that seemed oddly out of place in this absurd world. The mark on his arse was an hourglass, and a rather fine time piece it was too, having what appeared to be a set of gold holds at each end.

“Ye could go about sayin' that. Captain Barbossa,” he said, momentarily raising his eyebrows and tilting his head forward before pushing his hands into his pockets.

The little pony didn't reply, and instead just chose to stare at the captain as he stood there.

“Yeah, that's...that's kind of weird,” he replied, waving a hoof half heartedly in the air, “Anyway, I'm Time Turner.”

Barbossa paused at the stallion's name, trying to hold back the smirk sneaking on to his lips. While the resemblance to young William's name was somewhat amusing, he found it more interesting still that the name sounded reasonably...sane, at least compared to Pinkie Pie or Fluttershy.

Feeling he had greeted the brown horse with a decent amount of respect, he turned to the other one.

This one was a female pegasus, and she had a light grey coat and a blonde mane. In context, she also seemed much less flamboyant compared to the rest of the beings Barbossa had met. Her eyes were slightly out of joint, pointing in different directions, but at least they were both her own. Her mark appeared to be a batch of blue...balls? Marbles?

“I-I'm Ditzy Doo,” was all she said, seemingly attempting to avoid eye contact, even though her right eye was looking right at him.

Rather than awkwardly reintroduce himself, the human instead nodded and turned to face Fluttershy. Whether his company was decent or not, he still had to complete his charity work, and the sooner it was done, the sooner he could leave.

He didn't know what he would do once he actually did finish, but there was surely something, somewhere out there that would amuse him.

“All we need to do is cut the wood into smaller pieces, and use them to construct the habitats.”

The pirate looked towards the pile of timber she was pointing towards. Needless to say, there was quite a bit of it. At least ten or so individual pieces, and each of them were around two metres long, piled up in stacks.

“And...I have te do...all of it?”

“I know it seems like a lot, but the wood isn't that hard to cut, and if you did this, then we could get busy doing the actual constructing.”

He looked at the other two, who simply nodded at him, agreeing with the yellow mare's point. But the pirate liked to know what he was up against, and while he could simply take their word for it, he did want some inclination of how long it would take.

“And ye've made how many?”

“We've made eleven, soon to be twelve,” answered Turner with a smile, motioning towards a half built structures on his table.

“In how long? And usin' how many timbers?”

Ditzy looked towards her friend before scrunching her eyes together and tapping her hooves on the ground.

“We used up three timbers in about two hours. B-but not all the things are the same size.”

Barbossa let his hands find their way to his face, before he rubbed his forehead and eyes. Two hours to use up three timbers? That would amount to at least seven or eight hours work. How could building hutches take so long?

Seeing Barbossa's thought process played out by his actions, Fluttershy worriedly shook her head, tapping her forehooves on the ground in front of him.

“B-but with your help, I'm sure we'll get done twice as fast. Right guys?”

Time Turner merely shrugged his shoulders.

“We'll have to see what he can do then. Come on then, Mr. Barbossa, chop chop,” he said before laughing to himself, “Get it? Because it's...it's, it's chopping?”

Ditzy shook her head, half closing her eyes before moving to his side. Watching the two ponies walk towards the table with the half built structure on top, Barbossa took a deep breath before begrudgingly turning back to Fluttershy. The brown one was going to annoy him. He was sure of it.

“Just show me what I'm doin'.”

Lowering her eyes, Fluttershy sighed before leading Barbossa to a second table, positioned next to the piles of wood, as well as a small set of tools that were sat on the grass.

There were only a few saws, but along with their smaller size, the human also saw the handles were very different from what he was used to. They were cupped at the end, and had straps attached to the sides. He had a a fairly good idea of why they were there.

“How am I meant te use these bloody things? There's no handle!” he said, trying to keep his rant from reaching the ears from the other two.

“Oh...um...”

Fluttershy looked at the saws, picking one up and examining it before checking the pirate's hands. Looking back down at the tool, she put it back onto the ground before going over to the other table. After talking to the grey mare, she came back with what appeared to be an axe.

“This isn't as safe, but...I-I guess you could use this...”

She lowered it into his grasp before pulling it away, apparently look down the road they'd came before staring back at the pirate.

“I-if you promise not to hurt...anypony.”

Grumbling under his breath, wondering why she thought he'd suddenly go on a equine killing spree with an axe, he nodded his head and held out his hand.

“Aye, aye, cross me 'eart and hope te bloody fly, just give me the damn tool,” he replied, sounding more sarcastic than actually threatening.

The mare obliged, despite his poor rendition of Pinkie's promise, and taking it into his grasp, he noted that, once again, the axe was much like any axe from his world. The head was made of stone rather than iron, but from what he could tell, it was sharpened enough to cut through tree bark, though he doubted it would last very long. The only other oddity was the teeth and bite marks at the base of the wooden handle.

“Ye chop wood with yer teeth?”

“Well, yes, we have strong enough teeth, but some ponies just prefer doing it the old fashioned way. No one turned up to use it though.”

Despite how the situation was going, Barbossa could at least see the creature in front of him was thoughtful, going as far as to bring different tools for the sake of a complete stranger. Despite he himself being the number one charity he supported, there had to be something said for those who helped the poor. He could respect them for being fair, if nothing else.

“And ye just want these chopped?”

“Yes. And each piece should be about...this big,” she said, pointing to an already clean cut piece of wood, “and after you've cut them by length a few times, you then do the same by width. Then one of us will sand it or cut it to the needed size before we use the rest to make a little house.”

“So just cut 'em in te bits, an' then those bits in te two?”

If she'd asked him to do that, he could have simply got on with it, rather than have to stand and listen to the whole process of making an over zealous birdhouse.

“Yes, basically. Is that okay?”

Unsure why she was asking if his punishment was okay or not, he merely nodded and cracked his shoulders, took off his hat and large jacket, and tossed them onto a nearby tree stump. Flinching at the crunching of his bones, Fluttershy let herself shiver before trotting away. She wandered back to the other bench before apparently doing her own task.

Picking up the axe with both hands, spinning it around in his grasp, Barbossa smiled and launched the head of the tool into on of the timbers, which had already been partially cut into segments, forcing a loud grunt out from his mouth.

Letting his arms follow the weight of the stone, the tool suddenly stopped, wedging itself in between the layers of the wood. Pulling the axe free, after a few moments of struggling, he did the same again, this time cutting the log in two.

Balancing the cut piece on its side, he then did the same again, falling forward as the wood split apart into two halves, rather easier than he expected it to. They weren't perfect halves, but there wasn't anything obviously uneven on either side.

Deciding it wouldn't take him as long as he thought it would, he cracked his neck before once again launching at the wood, showing his teeth as he smiled a toothy grin.

He mindlessly continued with the task for a little over two hours, finding some cuts of wood much harder to cut than others. Looking over at all the wood he'd successfully cut, the pirate wiped his brow before looking at what was left. Only two.

He wondered how it could have possibly taken them so long to simply get through three, but after noticing that barely any of the wood he'd spent so long cutting had left the new pile, he gathered building took up more of their time.

That, and he wagered cutting wood was probably easier for him; he was taller, and likely had an easier time grabbing hold of the tool itself.

Ready to begin once again, rather tired and growing somewhat bored of his task, Barbossa stopped when he noticed a shadow appearing on the ground next to him.

Not really in the mood to humour the horses, he attempted to push his frustration down, not wanting to raise his voice if he could avoid it. He slowly turned to see Turner stood next to the pile of cut logs, smiling.

“Aye?” Barbossa asked, widening his eyes slightly at the stallion.

“Can I see your teeth?”

The captain allowed himself a few seconds to grasp what he'd been asked before responding. Maybe the heat of hard labour after doing nothing for the past few days was finally getting to him.

“What?”

“Your teeth. You know, your gnashers, your bridgework, chompers, pearly...uh, whites. Your teeth.”

Unsure of what to make of the question, the pirate complied, bearing his teeth in a less that kind manner to the stallion. Rather too happily, Time then waltzed up to the pirate, closing one eye as he used the other to peer into his face.

“Oh, this is...surprising, I guess. Never knew Ditzy was this observant. She does have her little moments though; she's nice like that.”

Closing his mouth, forcefully pulling himself out of the pony's glare, Barbossa picked up the axe and held it back over his shoulder with one hand.

“And what be so surprising?”

The brown stallion, seemingly coming out of his daydream, worriedly looked up at the captain, trying his best to put on a reassuring smile.

“Oh...nothing. Nothing at all. Sorry to take up your time.”

Cantering away from the pirate, coming away with the small pieces of wood he'd originally went for, Time Turner left the grumbling creature on his own, letting the man get on with the job he'd been assigned.

Sitting himself back down next to his bubbly friend, Time endured as Ditzy continuously poked at his side, whispering his name over and over again. He merely smiled, letting her continue before she lost patience and moved her head in front of his.

“Well?”

“Yes, he has got some pointed teeth, so yes, he likely does eat some meat. I'm surprised you even noticed his teeth, actually.”

“I just thought they looked weird. And black.”

“Yeah, they weren't black, but they were pretty vile. His skin wasn't too nice to look at either. Full of little holes and scars. Doesn't matter all that much though.”

“What do you mean? He eats meat. He might be dangerous,” Ditzy delicately whispered, shifting her good eye towards the tall creature holding an axe within his grasp.

Turner followed he gaze, silently agreeing with her. At least to some extent.

“Yes, but Fluttershy said she could vouch for him. And if he actually ate ponies, I doubt he'd last long living with Twilight. I don't know her that well, but something tells me she might not be the kind of pony to let others get eaten, especially while the being doing the eating slept in her house.”

Ditzy looked at her friend, frowning ever so slightly as she pondered what he was saying.

“So...you're not worried? At all?”

“Maybe a little,” he admitted, “I mean, I wouldn't trust him any more than any other stranger, but he doesn't seem that bad.”

The grey mare once again tilted her head to face the pirate, pulling her bottom lips over her top one as she sat there, staring at him. He was just cutting the wood, like he'd been doing for the past few hours.

“I mean, you've talked to Miles quite a bit. You've met him at work well over fifty times, and he hasn't once tried to eat you.”

“Griffins are different.”

“How so?” he kindly shot back, smiling, knowing that he'd won the argument, “If Mr. Lanky Limbs over there lived solely on meat, all his teeth would have been pointy.”

“But you said they weren't.”

“Exactly,” he said, hold the first letter of the word as long as he could, “which means he eats other foods as well. Which also means he has a similar diet to a griffin. Which also means, he has just as low a chance of eating you as a griffin does.”

“Not really. I mean, you can't just assume he has the same diet as a griffin because he has some spiky teeth,” she answered back, teasing the stallion with an impression of his own voice, when relevant.

Ready to answer back, Time stopped when he realised he didn't have much else to say, seeing as he, actually, knew next to nothing about the creature apart from his name and status as an omnivore.

“Well, yeah, I suppose...”

“And I know I'm not the smartest pony,” she said, rubbing a fetlock with her hoof, “but I haven't heard of anything like him. He might have different beliefs and stuff wherever he's from.”

Time sat there once again, not quite sure how to respond to his friend's, unusually, logical thought pattern. Then again, she wasn't as dimwitted as a lot of other ponies seemed to think she was, and he felt privileged in knowing he got to see more of her than anypony else did.

“He...he might, but I'm willing to give him a chance. I mean, if Fluttershy has faith in him, I can't see the harm in giving him the same benefit of the doubt.”

Ditzy had to agree there. As weird and, frankly, scary as Captain Barbossa seemed, Fluttershy seemed okay with him, or as fine as she would be with anypony else she didn't know that well.

“And he didn't stare at my eyes...”

Most ponies or griffins did, but the captain didn't. She was painfully aware it was an obvious trait that most ponies could name her by, but Barbossa didn't even seem bothered by it. If anything, that was a nice change to have when meeting something new, even if he didn't mean to do it.

The pair continued to chat idly about the human for a while longer, still awkwardly trying to recreate the design of the hutches with their forehooves. However, Fluttershy, Time and Ditzy all turned to face the pirate, hearing an audible thud, as well as a content sigh, emanating from his direction.

He was making his way over, carrying his jacket in one of his arms and wearing his hat on the top of his head.

“There. Done. All the wood's been cut.”

Looking behind him to the pile of freshly chopped wood, Fluttershy blinked before looking up at him.

“You did all of it. Already?”

“Aye, and as that's all ye required, I'm goin',” he proclaimed, jovially sauntering off the way he'd came, putting on his jacket on at the same time, flexing each hand as they made it through the long sleeves.

Widening her eyes and shaking her head, the yellow mare flew up in the air and landed in front of him, standing her ground once she was safely on it.

“But we haven't finished yet. You could help build the homes. I'm sure the animals would appreciate it.”

“I'd rather not, if I'm talkin' from honesty'.”

He'd arrived, and done his work on the belief that was all he had to do. She hadn't mentioned he would actually be building the houses. She had even said herself that he'd cut while they built. As far as he was concerned, he was done. They just had some serious catching up to do.

Fluttershy watched a cocky smile creep on to his face as he moved around her, heading back down towards her cottage. Not quite sure what to do, she once again flew up into the air, landing at his feet. This time she landed with a harder force, spreading a tiny cloud of dirt and dust into the air.

“And if you stay, we're going to have a picnic,” she happily said, regaining her usual calm composure,”You'll get some sandwiches and a cake from Pinkie and...”

Once again walking around the mare, he waved a hand in the air before putting the other in his pocket. While he'd enjoyed the chopping to some extent, it wasn't something he'd choose to do.

He knew he'd likely get in trouble with Twilight for leaving and going against the yellow mare's wishes, but he had done the work he was asked to do. It wasn't like singing; this actually involved a certain amount of effort, and it was obvious none of the ponies living nearby wanted to do what he had done.

And he could have left at any point during his task, but he didn't. He finished the chopping, and even told the mare he was leaving, despite the fact that he could have easily snuck off while she was embroiled in her own work.

“I'll tell the princess.”

Stopping in his tracks, he slowly clenched his hand into a fist, letting it fall from the air and down to his side. Letting the whites of his knuckle show, he quietly growled to himself and turned around, sighing, before making his way back up the incline he'd just walked down.

Twilight was one thing, but Celestia didn't seem like a pushover. Not after what he'd read. The meat she'd promised him still hadn't arrived either, nor had Twilight confirmed that the princess had even sent him any. He didn't honestly know if it was fear or gluttony that compelled him to walk back towards Fluttershy, but his pride wouldn't accept it being anything except the latter.

As he walked back towards the work site, both hands now shoved into his trouser pockets, he passed the yellow mare that had been calling out to him. She had a stern look on her face, much unlike the smiles or shy expressions he'd seen before.

“It seems yer not as big a pushover as I first thought ye te be, little Fluttershy,” he said, smiling as he marched passed, “Pity.”

Unsure of whether to take what he said as a compliment or not, she instead chose to go fetch the saddlebag filled with food that she'd brought along with her. Perhaps if he had something to eat, he'd be in a better mood.

She hadn’t intended to sound mean, but there was barely anypony to help as it was, and if he left, it would take the rest of them longer before they could go home. Barbossa was supposed to be being nice to her too, so saying she'd tell the princess wasn't completely uncalled for. She hoped.

Unrolling a blanket and placing it on the ground, she ushered the volunteers and Barbossa over, and after each of them sat down, she pushed a small, wicker box in front of each of them.

While the others simply opened the small boxes and ate their food, the captain looked at his, holding the box in both of his hands.

Eyeing with a curious gaze, he laid out on the grass before carefully opening it. He clicked at his teeth with his tongue, seeing that there was nothing but two sandwiches and a rather sizable, swirling pastry with icing, raisins and a cherry on top resting inside.

Frowning at his meal, he picked out the sandwiches and checked in between the slices, only to find his filling was a red jam in one, and nothing but butter in the other. Looking at the others, he felt somewhat cheated, as they appeared to have some sort of salad, as well as what could possibly have been cheese.

“Why did ye give me a child's fillin'?”

Sitting on her haunches, Fluttershy moved a hoof across the dirt, drawing little circles while the Time and Ditzy sat there, silently comparing their sandwiches to the pirate's.

“Well...I didn't know what you'd like to eat and I don't have any....any meat, so I used what I could. Twilight never said you ate flowers or many vegetables, and Pinkie made you a much bigger cake though...”

“Flowers?”

Once again looking at their sandwiches, and seeing that the filling was actually more flora than actual salad, he sighed and settled to eat his childish meal. It was better than nothing anyway. Taking a slice from each sandwich, he swapped the two around so that both were now filled with a mixture of fruit and butter; it was more interesting than the two apart.

After eating his two sandwiches in less than four bites, he moved onto the cake, which also seemed rather childish, despite its size. But then again, he'd never had cakes all that often, so he was pleased to be having it as a treat, if he was honest. They went out of taste that much quicker than most other foods, and if they got wet, they were less than pleasant to eat.

Biting into in to the cake, he savoured the first bite for a few moments. It was moist, sweet, and, actually, a rather a fine thing to eat. But still more or less happy to eat it in as few bites as possible, he was soon done with his small, yet somewhat filling meal. Although he was slightly surprised to see that the others had barely even eaten their sandwiches.

“You've finished? Already?” the grey mare asked.

“Aye, what of it?”

Barbossa knew he wasn't acting as pleasant as he had been, but the revelation that even Fluttershy had sway over him rattled in his mind. He'd get over it soon, just like everything else that had happened, but it didn't stop him being annoyed for the time being.

“N-nothing. Just thought I'd start a conversation.”

Barbossa eyed the mare opposite him, still gnawing away at one of her sandwiches. He waited for Ditzy to try again before Turner spoke up in her steed.

“Would you have preferred something else? Fish?”

The brown stallion didn't know as much about animals as Fluttershy did, but he knew, at the very least, a lot of omnivorous creatures used fish as a mean source of meat in their diet. They ate most other meats, but seeing as Ditzy seemed a little anxious, he didn't fancy bringing up red or white meats.

The yellow mare sat next to Turner looked up from her food with a slight look of worry, letting her pupils switch between the brown pony and the human.

“Would have been preferable te jam.”

“Any particular kind?”

Barbossa took a second to think, rather curious himself about the answer he would give. He had fish that often, it wasn't really something he adored to eat any more. It wasn't anything special, especially after over thirty years at sea.

“I be a man o' the ocean, Mr...Turner,” the pirate finished, struggling to keep a stern face as he pictured young William as a horse, “All fish taste the same after it's the only food open te ye.'”

Not quite sure of what else to ask, the two ponies looked to Fluttershy for guidance, but when she merely shook her head, the three ponies continued with their picnic.

They talked amongst themselves occasionally, taking their time with their food, leaving their guest to his own devices. He just sat there, watching the world around him, before eventually choosing to lie down on the grass.

But when the ponies, after a little under an hour of eating and talking, finally finishing their food, the captain pushed himself off the ground as Fluttershy stood over him, motioning her head towards his next working location.

“You're eager,” Time shouted over.

It wasn't so much being eager, but more wanting to have his work finished. He knew it wouldn't be hard, and it likely wouldn't be too arduous, so going about it with a more positive attitude couldn't hurt. Besides, after an hour of sitting around, simply looking at the sky, he didn't have much to complain about. Not yet, anyway.

“Aye. Very.”

Bringing Barbossa over to the same table the others were on, Fluttershy began pointing and showing him how to sand the wood and make the homes. She made use of her teeth to tie and pull the rope, but the pirate couldn't help but think she wasn't bred for this kind of work. It all seemed rather basic to him, yet overly difficult for her.

“You take the rope, and tie it around two pieced like that. Then once you've made two of them, you put another pieces at the top, bottom and behind. Got that?”

The captain raised an eyebrow at her explanation. It seemed quite simple once he'd been shown what to do. Almost easy, in fact. The way she described made it sound overly complicated though, so he ignored most of it.

“What'll be the animals livin' in 'em?” he asked, curious, seeing as he'd never been told how big the things inside were going to be.

“Oh, this isn't the only kind we're making, these are just the kind I want you to build. We're making nests and ten larger homes too. And tomorrow I'm going to help dig some new burrows for those who don't want a home built for them.”

“Yer goin' very far for some mindless, woodland creatures.”

“They're not mindless. They need care and love just like anypony else. I'm just giving them a little help.”

The pirate nodded before sitting on the ground, facing the table he was about to begin working on. She put too much work in to helping others, but that was hardly something he couldn't respect, even if just a little. She was apparently the bearer of kindness, after all.

She was like a relaxed nun or priest. She wasn't a complete push over, he'd discovered, but he couldn't see Fluttershy taking charge of anything for herself. If she did, there'd be more helpers here already. If anything that made her strength her weakness as well.

Letting her trot away, and after having fetched enough wood for himself, he got to work creating the homes. It took him considerably less time to make one than it did the ponies, but he put that down to his fingers more than anything else.

In the time that it took her to make one, and show him the ropes, he had almost made three. Not of very high quality, but he believed the tighter knots more than made up for it. Looking at the pile of wood to his side, he pushed the newest home across the table, picking up the next lot of wood.

It was going to be a while.

Eventually, two or three hours had passed, or so he assumed, and he was in the middle of the final wooden home. He had gotten better, but only during the last dozen or so. It didn't really matter how good they were, but the fact he'd almost finished made him feel rather proud of himself.

Tying the last knot and chipping a splinter of with his nail, he tossed it on to the pile with the rest, standing up as soon as it left his hands. The sun was still in the sky, but given how long he'd been there, he guessed it would be no more than a few hours before it set.

But then again, who knew? The princess could leave it there all night if she wanted too. Then again, the lunar princess would probably begin another rebellion if she did.

But the air was cool, and the slight breeze in the air all but confirmed the day was getting on, even if the sun wasn't.

Noticing the others were also near completion of their projects, he once again walked up to Fluttershy, ready to leave. However, this time, he played the game with a less arrogant look on his face, assuming it would play better in is favour.

“There. I've done yer houses. As many as the wood would allow, and to a desirable standard, I'm sure.”

Realising what he was getting at, she shook her head.

“We have to wait until the animals move in. What if there's something wrong with a home and the poor dear can't fix it?”

The pirate sneered, turning around as he brought up his palms to rub his cheeks and forehead. Struggling to fight the enticing voice at the back of his head, the one eagerly informing him to just bugger off, he twisted his neck and turned back to Fluttershy, attempting to muster, what very few would consider, a smile.

“Can't ye handle that with the other two,” he struggled to mumble in the kindest voice he could manage, “I'm sure they'd be more than willin' te help.”

“But they're going in a minute; they've already stayed much longer than I originally asked. And I'd really appreciate it if you stayed. I'm sure Twilight and the princess would be proud of you too.”

He couldn't tell if she was blackmailing him or genuinely trying to make him stay out of goodwill. But given the princess wanted him to choose his punishment, he doubted leaving would impress her. Plus, he still wanted something decadent and meaty to eat, and she was supplying it.

“How long?”

“Only forty minutes or so at the very most. After that you can go. I promise.”

He nodded in return, begrudging accepting her terms, seeing as he now had a definite time to set his mind too. Still standing next to Fluttershy, he turned around as he heard the brown stallion clearing his throat.

“Well, it was nice meeting you Mr. Barbossa, but we have to be off. Places to be and all that,” he chirped, looking up to the pirate with a cheeky grin on his face.

“Yeah, it...it was nice meeting you,” Ditzy agreed, shining a weak smile as she looked down towards the ground.

Exchanging nothing more than a nod and a sociable wave, Barbossa watched the ponies leave the work site. He would have likely smiled at their leave, had he been in a better state of mind, but that couldn't be changed now.

Looking around the barren work area, apart from his own work table, the others had been put away, stacked up near where Barbossa had cut the timbers, as had most of the tools. Fluttershy was tending to the rest.

Deciding he had nothing better to be getting on with, Barbossa sat down on the grass and stretched his legs. The day had been long, and somewhat laborious, but at least he was free of the work now. Something could go wrong, but if it would only take forty minutes at the most, he didn't really care. He'd been there all day, and a little under an hour more wasn't going to kill him.

In retrospect, he'd made the day of crafting out to be much worse than it actually was. While it was far from what he'd call enjoyable, it was good to get his old muscles moving again. But everyone could say that about something they'd completed; hindsight was a wonderful thing like that. It was still a bloody pain while he was doing it.

Moving his focus back up to Fluttershy, the good captain looked around the landscape, searching for anything close to a small animal that would live in what he'd built. Needless to say, there weren't many.

“They know when to arrive? Ye train the animals te come at yer call?”

“I just sent a little bird of to get them. They'll all be here soon.”

Unsure of whether to take the animals, or the ponies themselves, in this world seriously or not, he nodded in response and continued to sit there on the grass. He took many things with a pinch of salt these days. It made the things he read and saw easier to accept. After a few minutes of lounging on the green grass, Fluttershy came and sat next to him.

“Can I ask about Jack?”

The captain rolled his eyes, turning his head back towards the sky, before realising she likely meant his pet monkey rather than petty hate.

“If ye must.”

“Have you had him long?”

“Over a decade at least. He were wi' me before we took the gold.”

“Gold?”

Right, she wasn't there for Twilight's little episode. He found it surprising that the others hadn't told her about the curse, yet had chose to mention that he'd gave the unicorn a tattoo. Maybe they weren't going to tell her? He appreciated that, to an extent.

“Ask Miss Sparkle; I'm sure she'd tell ye if ye care enough te listen.”

Not wanting to stop talking about something she thought she had in common with the pirate, Fluttershy tapped her hoof on the ground, trying to think of anything to keep him speaking with her.

“Does he do any tricks?”

Tilting his head in her direction, he let a curt smile rest on his lips, holding back a raspy chuckle as he stroked at his beard and chin. At least she was talking about something he liked for a change.

“He can't die. Rather fine trick if ye ask me.”

Fluttershy didn't respond right away. Barbossa wondered if she'd even heard his response, but that thought was soon laid to rest.

“He...he can't die?” she reluctantly enquired, hesitantly looking into his eyes “Really?”

She clearly didn't believe him, but he continued to talk about it none the less. She'd believe him after talking to Twilight, or so he assumed.

“Aye. Cursed by the gods themselves. Mighty useful trait te have in a pet, 'specially when yer a man o' the open ocean.”

“How so?”

“He don't need feedin', nor does he die if harmed in a crossfire. Plus he'll live as long as yer days, and longer still if he takes te ye properly.”

“That must be nice.”

“Havin' a faithful pet?”

“No, having a pet that can't die. It must be...nice.”

Even Barbossa could tell the yellow pegasus at his side sounded sad. He was hardly sure, but with as many animals as she seemed accustomed too, more than one must have died in the past. Maybe even more than a few, if they were all wild.

“'Tis a fine thing, to be sure, but not without consequence. Eternal youth don't come without a shortage o' somethin' else, and the gold sacrifices feelin' te the one under it.”

“Doesn't he mind?”

“He were the one who chose te take the curse after losin' it. I'd say he doesn't care.”

“Is he a cute monkey?”

The captain raised an eyebrow, unsure of how to answer. Even if he did describe things as cute, he didn't know if Jack would still be considered so in this world, especially after everything he'd seen in it. Then again, both monkeys he'd owned had a charm to them. Polly would have to be classed as the cuter one though.

“He's a fair thing, but I wouldn't go callin' 'im cute, 'specially not when he's bein' seen durin' the night. Keeps me company though.”

Wanting to follow up on Jack, somewhat intrigued to see a more pony side to the alien, Fluttershy was instead occupied by the small number of creatures coming through the various trees and up the hill. Watching the mare fly off to meet them, Barbossa stood up and slipped his hands into his pockets.

As the pegasus guided the animals into the different wooden structures they'd built, the captain watched from further back, somewhat melancholic about his situation. He did miss the little monkey. He'd never admit to how sad he actually felt, but he did miss the wee thing. Jack was grand company, and enjoyable to have around.

He missed a lot, now that he thought about it. Meat for one, as well as not being bound to so many rules and regulations. And animals that didn't talk back at him. And animals that weren't every colour under and over the rainbow.

But Jack was always here, at the back of his mind, reminding him that he was, once again, in a place the little monkey couldn't reach him.

But he'd get back soon. The pirate was sure of it. He could feel it in his bones. And as for the other problems, as bad as they were, he still had the meat to look forward too.

Not that he expected a lot of it, but it was something to look forward to, all the same. He liked having something to strive for, to look forward too. Even in his own world, it made the days feel better than they actually were.

Still absent-mindedly watching Fluttershy guide the animals into their respected hutched and pens, the man hesitated to smile as he saw that the mare was now trotting towards him with a smile on her own face.

“Not all the animals are happy to be in a new home, but the ones that are say they are very thankful. Especially the shrews.”

“So I can go? Yer pleased with me now?”

He didn't expect a 'no' as the answer, but he still wanted to ask. Even if she said no, there wasn't anything he could do about it. Hurting the most diffident being he'd met, in any world, likely wouldn't go down well for him.

“I know you didn't want to be here, and I know I said I'd tell the princess on you, but you could still have gone. I'm sure the princess wouldn't have put you in jail for not helping me here, but you still stayed. So...thank you for helping today.”

Barbossa had some doubts as to whether Celestia would be as forgiving as the mare implied, but he'd only met the royal sister once, and Fluttershy did know her better than him. He still wanted to stay wary though, both based on his stomach and the books he'd been reading.

Watching as Fluttershy packed away the final table, somehow folding it away and placing it in a pile with the others, Barbossa made his way back down the incline he'd came up earlier that day, rather pleased to be going down it for the final time.

He still had to walk back to his temporary home, but it wasn't that long of a walk. If he walked at his normal pace, it wouldn't take much longer than twenty minutes.

Seeing Fluttershy flying towards him, Barbossa looked over his shoulder as the pegasus landed, quite shakily, at his side, cantering along the ground rather quickly before slowing to a walk.

“Ye leavin' the tables and tools?”

In his world, they'd likely be gone by now, becoming the thief's own possession or the lining to their pockets. But it would take two men to lift the table, so he didn't really think a pony could manage a whole one on their own, let alone three or four.

Though there was the big one from the farm. Or the unicorns.

“I only borrowed them. They'll get picked up later tonight.”

Probably the unicorns. It would be awkward, at best, for two or three ponies to carry them down the hill and back to town.

“Thank you again for helping me today,” Fluttershy said out of the blue, “I really do appreciate it.”

“I were only doin' what I were told. It's best te learn when obeyin' an' order is the best course o' action, especially when yer in a situation the likes of mine.”

Fluttershy smiled at him, hoping for a moment he hadn't seen her. Hector was greedy, mean, and eager to be insulting when could. He'd sent Rainbow to hospital, broke Twilight's ribs, and...revealed her own preferences to her unicorn friend as well, simply for the sake of doing so.

But he wasn't completely horrible at making up for it. So far, at the very least. She'd need time, but he wasn't a horrible soul. Far from it.

“If you say so, Hector,” Fluttershy nodded, “If you say so.”

Dinner is Served

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 13
Dinner is Served

The banging on the cellar door continued. Someone was shouting to him too. It was probably Twilight, like it always was, but Barbossa couldn't be bothered going the extra mile, especially after how tiring the day before had been.

Though, despite the work he'd done, the pirate didn't really feel the need to sleep. He didn't even feel tired. He just wanted an extra hour or so to himself for a change, rather than spending whatever waking moments he had with the ponies.

“Hector! Can you get up here?!”

Laying down on top on his dusty mattress, Barbossa rested his arms behind his head. As far as he was concerned, he had done an honourable duty with the task he had been set. He had sung to the children, given one of them a tattoo, and helped the skittish pegasus with her charity work.

And Barbossa was doubtful that Twilight and her friends had all that much faith in him to begin with, so he'd likely gone above their expectations as well. All in all, he'd made good on the princess's request, and as long as he stayed amiable, he wouldn't have to do much more work to keep his freedom.

The captain doubted he was completely finished with doing tasks for the horses, but at least he didn't have to worry about doing anything wrong. His previous victories likely held his security in place.

“I know it's early, but it's important!” Twilight yelled, still smacking her hooves against the bottom of the basement door.

But the pirate lay there in defiance, hoping the little unicorn would assume he was still asleep. If it really was as early as she implied, she'd probably leave him be. The ponies seemed like the kind of beings to do that.

Or maybe not. A long, drawn out creak echoed throughout the underground bedroom, and the unmistakable sound of hooves hitting wood followed soon after.

Twilight curiously peeked her head down from further up the stairs, looking straight into the eyes of her alien guest before pouting her lips.

“You are awake! I've been shouting you for at least twenty minutes.”

Barbossa just waved a hand in the air, letting out a curt laugh as he bounced off his makeshift bed and got up to his feet, wobbling slightly as he caught his balance.

“Have ye? If ye had, I surely would have heard.”

Twilight's pout didn't shift from her face. He'd been awake the entire time she'd been shouting him. Fully dressed too, spare for his hat, which he was currently in the process of putting back on top of his head.

“It doesn't matter. We got a letter from the princess; it's about you.”

Satisfied with his hat and its placement, Barbossa nodded, and suddenly deciding the topic at hand was worthy of his time and interest, the pirate made his way up the awkwardly sized steps, moving past Twilight and out of the door that led to the library.

Arriving upstairs, and taking a glance around the room that welcomed him, Barbossa caught eyes with the rest of Twilight's brigade of six friends. The pink one just waved at him, bouncing and shifting around to get his attention, while Fluttershy gave a weak smile, bowing her head. Spike gave a quick wave too, albeit less enthusiastically than Pinkie had done.

None of the others gave him the same amount of courtesy. Applejack and Rarity shot him a sidelong glances from where they stood, but that was about it.

Grumbling, not lowering himself to greetings if they weren't willing to do the same, he lowered his head to Pinkie, Spike and Fluttershy in turn, before moving to the green sofa in the corner and sitting himself down, sinking into the cushions when his body landed upon the fabrics.

“I hear I'm needed?” he asked, crossing his legs over each other, and hoping one of the more sociable ponies would answer.

Pinkie nodded, bouncing over to him with a scroll in her mouth, speaking to him with the parchment still loosely held within her own jaw.

Not catching a single mumbled word, Barbossa sarcastically nodded and pulled the paper from her mouth, none too bothered by the saliva covering a small portion of it.

“To My Faithful Student, Twilight Sparkle,

I request the presence of Captain Hector Barbossa, as well as you and your friends, at the castle as soon as you are able. We have good news for your resident alien, and much to discuss, and we feel having everyone present would make the ordeal easier to explain.

I hope to see you within the day.

Princess Celestia.”

Scratching his beard with one hand and holding the unravelled scroll within the other, the pirate allowed his brow to rise slightly. She wanted to see him. The princess herself. He didn't know what reason she had for summoning him on such short notice, but he certainly knew what he was hoping for, as well as what was most likely.

His hopes held even more truth in his eyes when he considered that he wasn't the one being visited. A summons implied he was needed at the other end.

“I wonder what the princess wants?” Pinkie said, cocking her head to the side.

“Perhaps yer royal majesty has procured a way for me te leave this land,” the human proclaimed, slapping the paper with the back of his hand, “About bloody time too.”

Sticking her tongue out at him with a smile, Pinkie casually shrugged as Twilight came into view. She levitated the scroll from the pirate's grasp and opened it in front of her own face, apparently rereading it. Her eyes flickered back and forth before adjusting to face the man sitting opposite her.

“I don't know. She never really mentioned it in her letters; Luna was the one looking into it, and you haven't repaid everypony yet.”

“Aye, but what's te say she hasn't simply found a way back?”

“What do you mean?”

“Yer princess don't seem te be dark hearted. And I doubt she'd have me stay in this world longer than I be needed.”

“So you think she was going to send you home the first chance she got?”

“Ye catch on quick, purple pony. If I were goin' te be imprisoned and sent away at the first chance, why would she keep me longer still on pleasant grounds?”

That made sense. Twilight herself knew the captain was hardly enjoying himself, and sending him home at the first chance they got seemed like the fairest thing to do. Even if he hadn't helped everypony he was supposed to, he'd shown he was willing to do so. That was likely all that mattered.

“Well, we won't know until we see her.”

“Then shall we get goin' then? I'd rather sate me curiosity than sit here dwellin' on it.”

As everyone nodded, the ponies all made their way to the door. However, Barbossa stopped in front of Twilight before she could leave, crossing his arms and scrunching his forehead together. She moved to the side to get passed only for him to do the same.

“Yes, Hector?” she sighed, tiredly looking past him towards the door.

“Ye'll be getting' that book with me sword and pistol, Miss Sparkle. If I am te be leavin' yer world, I'll not be leavin' me things where I'm unlikely te see 'em again.”

Twilight paused, realising that, in all the rush, she had actually forgotten Barbossa's confiscated weapons.

Asking Spike to fetch the book, Twilight patiently waited for it, and finding the correct page, levitated it into the air so the pirate could see for himself. His sword and pistol were still there just as they had been left, along with the lines Twilight had sliced to pieces during her demonstration, still chopped into pieces.

“I didn't want proof, I be wantin' 'em back.”

The purple unicorn abruptly closed the book, letting it slam before she lowered it back into Spike's ready claws.

“And you will get them back before you leave. I promise.”

Fetching her saddlebag, and resting it over her back, Twilight lowered the book inside, kindly gesturing for Barbossa to move aside when she was done.

He didn't.

“And some o' yer pet’s food, for me troubles, of course. I've been more than tolerable with yer antics, and it would be a nice farewell gift te yours truly.”

“Why would you...you know what? Fine. Spike, please get him some gemstones.”

Sighing at the loss of his food, Spike moved over into the kitchen, disappearing for less than a minute before coming out with a small armful of gems. He didn't know how much he was meant to get, but he knew Twilight would replace his snack store eventually.

Walking up to Barbossa, Spike casually let his arms go limp, dropping the stones within his grasp onto the floor at the captain's feet.

“Why do you want gems?” Spike asked, somewhat curious as to why he had to give away his food to something that couldn't eat them.

“From what I read, in yer world, gemstones are a somewhat common artefact, yet in mine, they are most certainly not.”

“You're going to sell them? They're not worth very much.”

“Aye, not here, but they'll fetch more than just a few pretty pennies where I come from.”

Rather annoyed that the pirate was not only taking his food, but selling it for some sort of profit, Spike gave a meek growl before wandering outside with the rest of the group. Pirates were meant to steal gold and silver, not rubies and emeralds.

Picking up the assorted treasures, Barbossa took a brief glimpse at each new colour that entered his grasp, storing all of them within his coat soon after. He just smiled at how easy it was to actually get them.

He had planned to steal one, or twelve, when he had the time. But now that he was leaving, the experienced pirate was suitably happy that asking actually worked for a change.

“I have your things, and you have some gems. Can we go now?” Twilight said, making it sound more like a statement than an actual question.

Rather pleased with his new found bounty, Barbossa nodded and made his way out the door. The others were gathered around outside, and spare for a few other ponies wandering the streets, there was not another soul to be seen, which contrasted with the other times he'd been surrounded by every pony and their lover the second he stepped outside Twilight's front door.

“What time is it? Ye said it was early?”

“It's just gone half past nine, and the princess' letter arrived about half an hour go, so we have to make up for lost time.”

He hardly thought half an hour was lost time worth reclaiming, but seeing as a way home was possibly waiting for him at the other end, Barbossa didn't want to bother commenting on it.

Though, now that he thought about it, the princess had yet to deliver his meat, so perhaps he was just going on this trek for a meal?

He bloody well hoped not. As nice as it would be, getting his hopes up over a voyage home would hardly leave him in the best of moods. Especially when Celestia was making him drag his good self all the way over to the her castle.

And he didn't even know where that was. Twilight had mentioned the castle whenever she spoke of her past endeavours, and she referenced it more still whenever she could, but he couldn't recall where it actually was, or if she'd even told him at all.

“Where we goin', exactly?”

“Over there,” Twilight said, pointing in the distance towards a mountain, “To Canterlot Castle.”

Squinting his eyes, he focused on the sharp, craggy incline in the distance to see a castle cascading from its side. It was white, and judging by how big it was compared to the distance, quite large in size too. He wondered why he'd never stopped to notice it before.

He also ignored the name. The pirate had learned there was no point complaining about them since no one else thought they were strange. If anything, complaining made him look stupid by comparison.

“And how long's that goin' te take?”

“Two and a half hours on hoof, maybe just under two if we galloped the whole way there.”

The pirate let out a small groan before scratching the back of his head. Then again, two hours was hardly a large amount of time to be on ones feet. He guessed he'd walked further in shorter amounts of time too.

Following the colourful group as they walked towards the edge of Ponyville, he looked around as what little residents that were outside carefully moved back as he approached.

He wasn't sure if he was accepted or feared, seeing as during the day, half the populace would crowd around him, whilst the other would hide in their homes. But if he was actually set to be leaving, then they could take his presence however they wanted.

Eventually reaching the edge of Ponyville, and passing over the small bridge that Barbossa assumed marked its entrance, the pirate looked to his side before realising something.

“Yer out o' yer chair, Rainbow! Ain't that nice?”

The cyan pegasus looked towards him for a moment before focusing her gaze back on the path ahead. She trotted forward with a limp, as if she'd sprained her ankle the day before, rather than actually breaking the bone.

“Yeah, no thanks to you.”

Letting their short conversation fall in on itself, Barbossa didn't bother striking up anything else to say to her. He doubted she wanted to talk to him anyway. Most of the others were conversing with each other however, chatting about various subjects, some of which the masculine pirate didn't fancy getting into.

After another twenty minutes of savouring his personal silence, Pinkie Pie approached his side, moving away from Fluttershy and Spike to match his pace.

“I never threw you a party. I always throw parties when somepony new comes to town.”

“Aye, well, I'll be leavin' soon. And unless ye had rum, I wouldnae have bothered comin' te the 'party' anyway.”

“I could have got rum,” she replied, trying to sound confident in her ability to find the beverage at such short notice, “Ooh, I could have got rum and raisin ice cream. Or made it into a cake for you.”

“Iced cream?” he asked, frowning at his lost chance to actually have the delicacy of a dessert presented to him.

Twilight turned her head from her position at the front of the group to face Pinkie. The others had since started listening to the pink pony and the pirate's conversation as well, ever curious about how he answered whatever the party pony could think to ask.

“I don't think his race have the ability or the means to store ice yet, if what he's told me is true. They probably don't have ice cream either.”

As she turned her head back to face forward, Pinkie continued on with her chat with the pirate, much to his own displeasure.

“You don't have ice cream?! Not even vanilla?!”

Barbossa eyed up Twilight from behind, none too caring for the assumptions she thought she could make.

“We have iced cream, for yer information, Miss Sparkle. I've just never had the pleasure te eat it meself,” he scowled back, receiving an appropriately guilty look from the unicorn in return.

Lowering her ears, as well as her head, Twilight cleared her throat before mumbling something apologetic under her breath, coming free of the conversation as Pinkie saw fit to change it.

“I've thrown everypony a party. Twilight, Fluttershy, me, Rainbow, Peculiar, Lyra, Bonbon, Ditzy, Rarity, Timey, Honeydew. Everypony except you.”

“I'm not a pony. And ye can hold a special one with yer friends once I'm gone,” he casually spat, hoping she would ease up on her yammering.

“What are your friends like?” she said before gasping, “What's your pirate crew like?! Are they all cool and swashbuckley? Are they all moody?”

The others were all looking towards him now. Fluttershy and Applejack had moved to walk at his side with Pinkie, while the others kept their formation in front of him. Even Rarity looked somewhat interested, as did Spike, who now sat on her back.

“Come on, Hector,” Twilight asked, “I gave you some gems, just like you asked. And seeing as we might never see you again, you won't have to answer anything more after today. The least you could do is tell us about your friends.”

The others nodded, especially Pinkie, but Barbossa focused on the fact that he might never see them again. They'd likely not let up though, and seeing as he did now have a child's weight in gemstones resting in his pockets, the information was more than paid for.

“They be as good as any other crew.”

“Is there anyone in particular who stands out?” Twilight asked, rather more interested in hearing a less vague answer.

“Joshamee Gibbs. He's very useful. Good man te have on a ship too.”

Twilight sighed at his answer, still unsatisfied.

“What does he do? Is he fun to be with?”

“He's useful, Miss Sparkle. Most of the crew respect him, and he's a hard worker on deck. But yes, he has a knack for stories and legends.”

Ready to ask more, Twilight was cut off as Pinkie excitedly jumped in instead. Happy to let her friend take control of the conversation, Twilight moved forward to let her to ask what she wanted.

She was somewhat curious as to what Pinkie, of all ponies, would try and ask too.

“Does anyone have an eye patch? Or a parrot on their shoulder?”

“Ragetti's missin' an eye, and Cotton had his tongue takin' from his mouth, so he has a parrot.”

“What's its name?” Fluttershy said, hopping forward slightly.

“Cotton's parrot.”

Unsure of how to follow that up, Fluttershy nodded and went back to simply listening. Pinkie quickly got back into the swing of things.

“Any peg leg pirates?”

“Not on my crew; they hold ye back.”

As the walk towards the castle continued, so did the questions. He was definitely getting tired of Pinkie's questions. Talking about his life, that was something any man enjoyed, but she often enquired about the most trivial and random of issues, which ended up with him continuously saying yes or no for most of them.

“Can you get pink pirate ships?”

“No...”

He regretted dropping the name of his favoured ship now. Even after his explanation on style and pattern, as limited as it was, Pinkie still seemed to think that her own species’ taste standards matched that of his own. Barbossa hardly considered himself cultured, but he at least hoped he had a grasp on what was considered garish or not.

“Not even a little rouge?”

Variety would have been favoured as well, but the ponies that spoke apparently had no intention of any deep minded questions, choosing to ask about his favourite this or funniest that.

In the end, he spent a good deal of the trip talking with them, finding little else he could do to make the time flow faster. It wasn't overly monotonous, and he'd told them of most of his crew in the process, but it definitely consumed the time it took to take the trip.

They eventually came close to what he assumed was another town, and coming from behind some trees, he once again saw the castle, though this time, it was much, much closer.

It was a sight to behold; white all over with barely a blemish. It was gloriously large too, and much bigger than he assumed it would be. It towered high into the clouds, and as much as he didn't want to admit it, it looked quite impressive. It was finer than the palace the King of England occupied at least, and it was more imposing too, standing tall and dominant over the city below it, like any ruler should rightly do.

He knew it was a city now, seeing as it was bigger than the small town he'd been living in. The ground was composed of mainly cobblestone and rock, unlike Ponyville's dirt roads and the buildings were of a much higher quality too.

They were made from mortar and brick, but most still kept the hay covered roofs that he'd become used to, though a good deal opted for thatched slate instead.

“This is Canterlot,” Twilight said, waving her front hoof forward.

“Canterlot,” he mumbled to himself, still very much loathing the ponies habit to name things after themselves, “Jesus Christ...”

He was growing tired of all the horse themed talk and names, as much as he'd come to accept it. Ponyville was laughable enough, but after days of 'everypony' and them constantly getting his body parts wrong, he was getting rather irritated.

At least humanity had the decency to name the world after what it was made from rather than themselves. Even their countries were named before the people living inside it. England and France came before any Englishmen or Frenchmen littered the land, or so he assured himself.

Continuing their walk through the city, he garnered a less than favourable response from passers by as he followed his equine entourage.

Unlike Ponyville, where most of the residents had attempted to be talkative, every creature he passed ran away. The males looked upon him from over their muzzles, while any mother with a child quickly scampered away to areas unseen.

Or, at least most of the ponies did them did.

“You there!” several voices hollered at once, catching the group of ponies, and especially their human, off guard.

Barbossa took a cautious step back, remembering he still had nothing except a knife to protect himself with. The voice had came from the direction of a crowd of horses, and each of them were clad in a set of pristine golden armour.

The crowd of eight equines marched towards the group, taking notice of the ponies and cautiously moving their eyes away from the creature that had their attention.

“It's okay, he's got a meeting with the princess,” Twilight announced, walking up to the stallions as she gestured back to her otherworldly friend.

The stallions didn't move from their spot, still staring at Barbossa with a skeptical look on their faces, unsure whether Twilight’s word was enough to go by. Even the one who led the group seemed less threatened and more curious about the creature they were investigating.

“If you ask Celestia, I'm more than positive she will tell you he is expected. And trustworthy.”

Twilight's claim was hit back when she turned around, only to see the human growling towards another stallion stood in the street. Barbossa was hunched over, pushing a dark smile up onto his face while the grey unicorn kept a defensive stance, growling back.

“Then could you please tell...him, to stop growling at passers-by?” the foremost guard asked, still trying to keep both his eyes on the alien.

Twilight turned back to see the unknown male unicorn briskly trotting away, close to running as the captain crossed his arms into his chest and laughed.

“I think we'll just escort you, Twilight Sparkle,” the guard declared with a smile, nodding towards the other stallions to make their way to the rear of the group.

Twilight reluctantly obliged, annoyed that she had to be escorted through her home city, but glad it got the issue of Hector out the way. It still annoyed her Celestia hadn't simply sent a chariot to take Barbossa to Canterlot, but the little unicorn knew from prior experience that they weren't used for every little thing the princess wanted them for.

But while Twilight focused on the trot to the castle, Barbossa eyed up the guards, staring worriedly at each of their identical features.

“Why'd ye all look the same?”

There were two guards behind him, with the rest surrounding the group in its entirety, so the pirate didn't have a specific one in mind when he asked.

“It's tradition for every solar guard to look the same,” Twilight remarked, “It shows they are both loyal to serve under Celestia, and proud to wear her colours.”

“They born the way they are?”

“No, if they have been welcomed to the guard, their armour turns them, and them alone, into what you see here.”

Barbossa just looked back down at them, finding it rather bizarre that such a thing was applicable in their society.

“Right...” he said, not completely sold on the idea of changing appearance to suit a leader. A uniform, sure, that would acceptable, but changing what you are? It seemed a step too far above being a simple patriot.

Wandering through the rest of the city, passing a large number of ponies who crowded in the street simply to gawk at him, Barbossa saw it fit to growl and pull faces when appropriate, scaring them away.

Every now and then a stallion or mare chanced themselves getting a little too confident or cocky, scowling at the human, only to receive the same treatment back.

“Stop scaring the locals. Or next time we will take you down, whether or not Twilight Sparkle is with you,” the guard wandering behind Barbossa ordered, speaking with only a hint of anger in his voice.

Though Barbossa still did as he was told, he'd had his fill of scaring random ponies for now.

Soon after leaving the main streets of the city, and after being told once more to behave by a different guard, Barbossa soon stood at the castle doors. They were a good deal taller than him, and unlike many similar doors from his own world, these giants were not simply decorative. Surprisingly, when pushed in by six of the guards that had escorted him, the two, large doors moved effortlessly to the side, revealing a large entrance hall behind them.

The princess was already stood atop a set of stairs when they arrived, and unsurprisingly the others swiftly made their way up to her the moment they could their way past the guards.

Barbossa took his time heading towards the stairs, attempting a menacing glower as he walked past the guards who had told him off. Both stood emotionless for the most part, but the wary flickering of their eyes were enough to please the captain.

“Hello, Captain Barbossa. Are you well?”

Watching two of the hulking stallions close the doors behind him, the man absent-mindedly waved his hand in the air before replying. The princess had called him from the stairs where she stood, and Barbossa wandered forward towards her, seeing no reason not too.

“For now, but we'll see how this meetin' goes.”

The princess laughed before elegantly raising a hoof to her mouth. The ponies and dragon stood below her didn't follow in her example, but they still smiled.

“Quite right, captain. I believe you should all come with me then, though we do have some time before I demand each of your company. And it is nearing lunchtime.”

Rather keen with the implication of the princess' words, Barbossa pushed his way up the smaller than average stairs, skipping two or three steps at a time as he made his way towards the mares at the top.

Though by the time he got there, all seven ponies were advancing down a hallway positioned just past the marble steps, as was Spike, who sat atop the largest equine's shoulders.

Slowing from his brisk paced walk to a slow one, Barbossa caught up to the group and lagged behind, taking in the corridors of the royal castle as he passed through them.

Much like literature, art wasn't something he really appreciated to its fullest, though Barbossa wasn't afraid to admit that a good few of the paintings and stained glass windows were definitely attractive to look at.

A lot of the sculptures seemed pleasing to his eyes too, but he reasoned that it was more due to the fact they were all made from rare gemstones and crystal, rather than because of how they looked.

Some of them were quite large, coming up to around the pirate's chest, but he was logical minded enough to know that even if he had his entire crew to assist him, he wouldn't get out with the things in his possession.

Mostly because there were far too many guards dotted around the palace corridors. There were other ponies too; beings the pirate assumed were the staff of the royalty living inside, but not very many wandered close to him, even with Celestia acting as his guide, but none outright ran away either.

Still mindlessly following his pony acquaintances and their benevolent princess, Barbossa nudged into Applejack's rear, only realising when he looked to the group that they had come to a stop. Celestia was looking straight towards him, as were the rest of the beings at her hooves.

“I believe that I promised you a meal, Captain Barbossa.”

“I remember somethin' along those lines, aye,” the captain answered back, only to see Celestia smile back at him.

“Well, our original plan was to have your meal sent to you while you stayed in Ponyville, but recent developments mean it would be impractical.”

“Because you summoned us here?” Rainbow Dash butted in, asking before the pirate even got a chance.

“More or less. It would just be a waste to make your guest wait for one thing in Ponyville, whilst another in Canterlot.”

“And what exactly be waitin' for me in...Canterlot?”

The whole group turned to face the alicorn now, somewhat curious about the answer themselves. Her letter hadn't been too informative, to say the least. Though Celestia only smiled, not answering their question right away.

Instead, she opened the door to the room they had stopped in front, and ushered the group to follow her inside.

“My sister believes that she may have found you a route of sorts back to your own world. Though, Captain Barbossa, I cannot stress enough how prone to change that 'may' might be.”

That was...a start, Barbossa thought to himself. He was stood there, wishing for a definite way back to his own shores, but at the moment, a possibility was enough to keep him reasonably happy; it was better than no way back at all.

But despite his impulse to ask how she was going to go about sending him back, Celestia spoke first, nudging her head towards the table in front of her.

“Though I do believe a meal would be worth a while. You have all been walking for more than an hour or two.”

Finally taking notice of the room they had wandered into, Barbossa looked to where the royal mare was pointing before smiling to himself. The room itself was impressively large, and clearly a dining room. The walls were covered with ornaments of gold, as well as other fine materials and several large paintings.

The table in the middle of the banquet hall was a fine sight to behold. The table was dressed as elegantly as the room it was in, stretching from one end to the other. But it was the large array of food visible at the opposite side that brought a grin to the captain's face, not the covers or candles.

“I promised you a small portion of meat, and I am a mare of my word, if nothing else,” she said, graciously winking to the human as she walked past, “though I hope you'll excuse me if it is not your taste. The griffin I asked for advice eats meat far more often than I ever have.”

Barbossa allowed himself to smile at the joke, though most of the ponies behind them didn't do the same.

Twilight shared an awkward glance with her friends, while Spike shook the thought from his head. The little dragon wasn't as bothered by the idea of a meat eater as his friends, but his upbringing still made the thought unsettle his stomach.

“But I must confess the meat you will be eating is being served cold. You have a selection to choose from, but seeing as we are all eating together, I didn't wish for the smell to affect our appetites. You may be an omnivore, but you are still in our country.”

Barbossa let a small sound emanate from his throat, something in-between a groan and a sigh of acceptance. He had meat, and that was good enough, given he would be sat with sentient horses while he at it. Which, admittedly, wasn't something he had expected to happen during his lifetime. Or anyone's lifetime, for that matter.

Waltzing up along side the table, taking notice of the huge number of chairs he was passing, Barbossa took a good look towards the pinnacle of the table.

Every chair was a good deal smaller than he was used to; each one looked fit for a child, much like every other piece of furniture in the ponies' world.

Though while enough chairs were around for is smaller allies, a much bigger chair sat at the table's peak, obviously for the largest mare in the group. Watching her sit down, letting Spike crawl from her back beforehand, Barbossa watched as she motioned to the chair next to her.

It was just as large as her own, and appeared similar in design too, thought he only assumed it was of a matching set, seeing as his frame wouldn't exactly do well on the seats the ponies were to occupy.

The pirate sat to Celestia's left, taking a moment to look to his own left, curious as to whom had been placed next to him. Though it appeared only he, Spike and Celestia had pre-determined seating.

The middle of the table itself was decorated and glorified with a selection of salads, vegetables, and an array of other edible items the pirate couldn't place. Though he did quickly notice, that while the mares all shared the spread in the middle, both he and Spike had an extra selection of delicacies to choose from.

Spike had a small selection of gems and sparkling rocks in front, decorating a shining, silver tray, but it was the one opposite the captain himself that interested him. In front of Barbossa was an another silver platter, and on top was a decent selection of cold meats set in small, even piles. From sight alone, he could tell at least one of them was chicken or turkey, while another appeared to be a small, neatly layered, stack of ham.

It was safe to say all of the meats were sliced, though some were cut thinner than others. There were five meats in all, and while he couldn't rightly tell without taste, he had a good idea of what each one was.

Looking up from his future meal, Barbossa took a second of pause, realizing everyone at the table was staring at him. Though much to his own expectations, their looks were more of curiosity than disgust, especially Celestia, who seemed inclined to find out whether her choice was actually something the pirate would want.

“Uh...” was all he awkwardly mumbled, reaching out to grab a slice of ham, and what he assumed was beef, from the top of their piles, before reaching over and taking hold of some lettuce, sliced tomato and buttered slices of bread.

Making a loose sandwich from what he had, leaving the beef on his plate, Barbossa took a rather large bite from what he'd made, still rather ill at ease with everyone looking at him.

He couldn't deny the meat was good though. The ham was sliced, but still thick enough to retain some form of chewiness, and the greenery wasn't too bad either; the lettuce was crispy, and the tomato was as juicy as any other he'd eaten.

Taking another look around the table, the only other creature attempting to eat was Celestia, seemingly pleased that her new guest enjoyed what she'd managed to procure for him.

Twilight was just staring at him with a somewhat pained expression, as if she'd seen or smelt something that didn't agree with her senses, while the others held something between displeasure and curiosity in their eyes, if such a thing existed. Pinkie was doing her own thing. She just looked at him with a giddily happy expression, rubbing her stomach and nodding her head. It was then that Celestia swallowed her current mouthful, clearing her throat to address her subjects.

“Is something wrong?” the white mare asked, not sounding completely innocent with her question. She was met with Twilight turning her head down towards her own plate, and the others, spare for Pinkie, doing something along the same lines.

“It just feels...” Twilight began, “unusual, to be sitting near an omnivore while they're...”

“Actually eating meat?” Celestia replied, watching as all the mares nodded, except for Pinkie Pie.

“Well...yes, to be honest.”

Despite the atmosphere, and the focus it had on him, Barbossa picked up his slice of beef, pulling it apart with his fingers before placing it on another slice of bread, along with some carrot slices.

“Does it make you ill?” Celestia said, rather bluntly as Barbossa picked another few slices from his platter, deciding to continue with his meal before the alicorn teacher's morality lesson got him sent outside.

“N-not really,” Fluttershy said, stepping into the conversation, “I know animals eat meat. It just feels strange knowing one's being...eaten next to me.”

“Yeah, I mean, I used to hang out with a lot of griffins, but most of them ate with each other, rather with us,” Rainbow added, “It's just...weird to see it.”

Celestia looked over those who hadn’t answered her question, surmising by the nodding that they all shared a similar view on the idea. Not that she didn't understand. She'd just had a lot more time to accept the fact for what it was.

“Well, I can assure you that the meats Captain Barbossa is eating were reared specifically to be eaten, and didn't suffer when or before their time ended. If it was not for our otherworldly guest eating them, another would have done so in his place,” she said, sounding calm, and clear, despite the topic being discussed.

Still trying to enjoy his meal, before anything could go wrong to pull him away from it, Barbossa continued to gather a variety of vegetables and salad dishes to go with what he had. He was no connoisseur of fine cuisine, but he knew what he liked, and he knew what he liked to go with what he liked.

“And he's eating vegetables too,” she said, pointing to the captain as he paused to look up at her. holding a quarter of a cucumber in his hand, “Granted, he's being very greedy with his meal, but if you don't concentrate on the issue, eventually it stops being one at all.”

The mares reluctantly giggled at the princess's mild insult, much to the chagrin of Barbossa himself, but he was happy enough to let it go. He was actually enjoying his meal, despite everything being cold.

But after Celestia had finished her speech on social, and mealtime etiquette, Barbossa suddenly remembered how he had things of his own to say. Swallowing his mouthful of potatoes and turkey, which was slightly too dry for his taste, the pirate moved for more bread as he spoke.

“Ye were sayin' about me way back?”

“Ah, yes. My sister was the one in charge of finding you a way home. Though, for the first few days, she made little to no progress with creating a way for you to travel.”

“Then what changed?” the pirate asked back, tearing the bread he had in his hand with his teeth, bypassing whatever table manners the mares were currently following.

“She actually found the portal you originally came through. Teleporting is hard enough, Captain Barbossa, without knowing exactly where it is you want to go.”

Celestia looked out towards Twilight, and following the princess's line of sight, the pirate saw the little unicorn eagerly nod in agreement.

“Travelling between worlds seemingly has the same principle, according to Luna. You need to know the other end before going there. If you don't, you could end up anywhere, which would be a problem if you ended up somewhere more alien to you than our world.”

Barbossa could sense the princess was trying to make a joke out of it, so he smiled in return, hoping to keep the conversation on track. The others had started to eat their meal, albeit slowly, though they all listened to their princess while she spoke.

“After failing to find a spell to recreate the portal you came through, Luna devised a plan to find the original. Spells to create a gateway of the kind you need are apparently all but unheard of, yet there does exist a spell that lets an extremely competent user reactivate an older one.”

Celestia paused to pour herself a drink, finishing it before continuing with her explanation.

“It took a great deal of effort on our part, as well as locating and creating newer spells to allow the old one to work, but we eventually did reactivate it.”

“Then why are we 'ere and not in the forest?”

“In order to reactivate the gateway, the spell needed much longer to cast than we originally thought. In the end, we found a surprisingly easy way to move the portal here to Canterlot so Luna could work on it without prying eyes, though in doing so, we fear we may have moved the portal in your world, as well as our own.”

“And I be guessin' that's where the 'may' comes from?”

“Of course. But I believe we can talk about this freely after our meal. Luna knows much more about the situation than I do, and I'm sure she'll be more than happy to explain everything herself when you meet her.”

For once, Barbossa agreed. What he was being told was good enough for his ears, and as much as he wanted to get going, he didn't want to risk falling into the dark abyss above the world's end. The crew were surely long gone from the Locker by now, which wouldn't bode well if he were to end up in Jones' prison on his own, with no man or map to help or guide him.

But the meal went on regardless of Barbossa's inner musings. He ate his meat, and most of the ponies attempted to eat their own food while he did so, with varying levels of success. Pinkie didn't seem to mind, but the pirate couldn't comment on the rest of them.

Savouring his food for a while longer than the others seemed to, Barbossa eventually did declare himself finished. He enjoyed a good meal when it was thrown his way, and it wasn't often that royalty was the one feeding him. Noticing Barbossa had finally eaten his own weight in food, Celestia stood to look over the menagerie of creatures sat in her banquet hall.

“While your new friend's route home was the main reason I called you here, there is also something else that needs to be discussed.”

The ponies got up from their low chairs and onto their hooves, while Barbossa did the same.

“Though I am afraid this matter is something I'd rather not get you involved with, Captain Barbossa. For now, at least.”

He stood still, only halfway out from his chair. Looking at Celestia, he creased his brow, throwing the princess a suspicious glare.

“Rest assured, we are not leaving you, nor are we abandoning you. There is just something I require the Elements for, and although you are a friend, it is still something few are privy too. But you are welcome to stay in here and help yourself to more food. And we won't be longer than twenty minutes, if all goes well.”

Sighing to himself, Barbossa dropped himself back into his chair, nodding towards the mares and waving his hand mindlessly towards the door, “If ye must.”

The princess nodded at his approval, though the captain suspected it wasn't necessarily needed. If this was so important, they would have likely left without his consent. All the beings made their way down to the other end of the room, eventually piling out the door as a group, but not before Pinkie could squeal, “See you later Barby!” from just beyond the doorway itself.

Cringing at his apparent nickname, Barbossa waved his hand absent-mindedly in the air, not really minding if Pinkie saw the gesture or not. Her voice barely reached his ear, so he doubted she'd hear a reply.

And like that, he was alone.

Taking a gander over what was left of the banquet, Barbossa licked his lips at the sight of two green apples, which sat rejected amongst bananas and pears by the ponies that had just left.

“Maybe it ain't all bad,” he mumbled in the silence whilst reaching out to them, placing one in his outer jacket pocket before struggling to find space for the other.

Taking a brief glance around the grand hall, and to the various artefacts that lined it's perimeter, he pushed himself from his chair and towards the nearest wall, hoping something would suffice until Celestia returned.

He remained calm in the knowledge he didn't have to steal anything, for a change. Even if he wasn’t in his own world, the gems lining his pockets were bounty enough. Robbing a royal family seemed idiotic, in retrospect.

Hearing the clatter of a window, Barbossa looked towards the roof, and its massive skylight, before turning back to the room he was wandering. Paintings were dotted around the hall, as were nameplates, dates and description for said paintings, so he deduced he'd found something to pass the time.

Looking to the half a dozen or so portraits he passed, reading the brief plaques underneath as he went, the captain eventually stopped in front of one in particular, rather more interested with it than the others.

It portrayed a bright, pink pony, who, much like Celestia, had both a horn and a set of wings adorning her sides. But while the creature was pink, she handled the scheme much less garishly than Pinkie did, assuming it was a female. However, it was the small plaque underneath that caught the pirate's attention.

“Princess Mi Amore Cadenza?” was written below the painting, though Barbossa knew it's rough meaning; “Princess I love everythin'?”

Focusing his eyes on the Italian name, sure it was actually Italian, Barbossa moved on to the next painting, deciding the he could ask the princess, and impress Twilight with his knowledge, when they got back.

“Ye'd think royal ponies would have less boastful names,” he whispered to no one in particular, only realising how insane the comment was after it left his lips, “They're gettin' te me...”

Once again hearing a clatter, this time inside the room itself, Barbossa turned his head to face it. Nothing was there though. He couldn't pinpoint the source, or what had actually made the noise.

“I completely agree. Though you have to admit, the whole idea of theme naming does work out rather well for the rest of us.”

Once again turning on the spot, standing parallel to the hall to keep guard on both ends, the pirate growled at the sight that met him.

Nothing.

There was still nothing.

Thinking back, that was always the worst sight to see when someone was talking to you; it usually meant there was an ambush, or something worse if fate wasn't looking down on you. Barbossa even turned to view the paintings for a brief moment, cautious in case something was suddenly going to jump at him; it made as much sense as anything else he'd seen.

But there still wasn't anything worth seeing to see.

“Oh, don't be so ridiculous; I'm not going to jump out of a painting. That's much too predictable,” the voice rang out, coming from not one spot in the hall, but rather all of them at once.

Barbossa was losing his patience now; whatever was talking to him was trying to create havoc with his mind. Much more so because he couldn't decide on whether the voice was a threat or not, but even with the kind nature of the ponies, he had his doubts.

“But you!” the voice bellowed, fading into cackling, maniacal laughter, “I don't know what I was expecting to find when I got here, but it certainly wasn't something like you.”

Gritting his teeth, Barbossa stood his ground, reminding himself where the door was in case the situation demanded it. His walk had brought it him much closer to it than he had been, and no more than a few dozen meters could stand between the buccaneer and a possible exit. Looking over the walls, the ceiling and skylight, as well as double checking the paintings from where he stood, the captain looked for anything similar to a living being. The lack of one didn't make him feel any better.

“But it isn't like Celestia and little Luna gave me much to go on, after all. I'm just surprised you lived long enough to actually get inside the castle.”

“Show yersel'!” the captain yelled in retort, still waiting for whoever the coward was to show himself, for the voice was most definitely a male one.

“But it all worked out for the best, I suppose. Freedom is quite a gift when it wasn't even thought possible in the first place,” the voice said, “And I'd empty your pockets, if I were you; it's rather cluttered in here.”

Pausing what little movement he was doing, Barbossa looked down towards his torso, raising his arms into the air. Holding his stance for little more than a second, the feel of life wriggling at his chest and it's unnatural vibrations was enough for the captain to decree pulling the jacket free from his body a worthy cause.

Not accounting for all the gems still inside, as well as a few more of his previously owned artefacts, the pirate looked from above as a few of his belongings spread to the floor around the long coat.

Mentally berating himself for throwing most of his belongings on the floor, the movement he had previously felt began to show sign of itself. A little pouch was squirming around next to his jacket's left sleeve, and the golden coin inside was pushing itself out.

“Oh, this is such a disappointment now that I actually have it. I still love the design on the front though. Very archaic.”

Looming over the coin, and the voice emanating from within, Barbossa bent down to examine it, tapping the doubloon with his knuckles before picking it up.

Holding it between his thumb and forefinger, Barbossa watched as the face embedded in the gold began to smile, moving it's skeletal jaw, and matching the voice coming from inside.

“A tad small too, though I do suppose it is a book you can't judge by it's cover. Isn't that right, captain?”

Honestly praying that sanity had yet to leave his sense, and not quite sure what to do, the pirate tossed the cursed medallion on to the floor, letting it collide with the stone before slamming the heel of his shoe on top.

Moving to look over the medallion once more, Barbossa couldn't hold back a flinch when it flew straight it to the air, stopping in front of his face, only to dance around, spinning and gyrating around an invisible axis.

“Here I thought you were a greedy, nefarious pirate, yet here you are, scared of a little, gilded coin,” the coin once again said, before a form began to appear in the air behind it, “Rather spoils the whole pirate thing, don't you think?”

The being took its time appearing, but the first limb to materialise failed to match the next, as a claw blinked into existence, along with a coated leg and hoof. The rest followed soon after, and with a final pop of the air, a new being floated eerily in the room with the human pirate, still spinning the coin between an unnaturally bright, yellow paw.

“Though it's a shame it doesn't want to work properly. I was getting so excited for a while there too. Still, a spit and polish surely couldn't do it any harm.”

The creature was mismatched, and bizarre, yet there were still limbs the pirate could place. A bat's wing hung from the beings back, and what he could only assume to be a horse’s head sat atop its overly long torso.

“Chimeras now?” Barbossa mumbled, eyeing the being over without trying to show a hint of fear, despite the rising feeling of panic he felt in his stomach.

The creature took it's time responding, blinking down towards the captain with its big, yellow eyes and beady, red pupils.

“I do hope that isn't an insult. I prefer the term, draconequus,” the creature said, ending the final word with a flair of his hands and a small explosion of coloured paper.

Barbossa couldn't care less what the 'dragon horse' wanted to be called, as long as it wasn't a threat. Though despite the childish exterior, the pirate couldn't help but wonder how wrong this was going to turn out. The being didn't strike the pirate as someone he would want to strike an alliance with.

“And what it is it ye want, dragon horse? Assumin' ye came wi' an intention in mind,” the pirate asked, using the surprisingly civil conversion to return his jacket to it's rightful place, along with what used to be inside.

“My name is Discord, not dragon horse. But I thought I'd just come and see you before you left for home. Back to your own shores, as it were,” he explained, only to be met with a crooked glare, courtesy of the pirate.

“I find meself doubtin' that.”

A quick glance down towards the door emphasized the captain's point, though much to the ignorance of the being floating impossibly before him.

“I've even brought you a gift,” the creature exclaimed, clicking his talons, “I just couldn't stand by and do nothing after hearing how much you loved your treasure.”

Despite the flaky nature of the being’s argument, Barbossa let his jaw drop as a heap of golden coins hit the ground, spreading here and there when they all made contact with marbled floor. His heart, soul, and a good deal of his very being driving him to do otherwise, Barbossa did no more than hold a hand out towards the mountains of gold, pulling it back when his priorities spoke for themselves.

“Look at all of this treasure.”

“All o' it...” Barbossa subconscious uttered out, surprised he had said it at all.

And as if to meld the pirate’s mind into turning, more coins continued to appear, pouring from a single, empty, invisible void next to the dragon horse. A steady stream of shining gold, just falling to the ground, chiming as each trinket made contact with the mound already below it.

“It could be yours, you know. I mean, I certainly don't have any use for it.”

“...Aye...”

His life had been full of hidden treasures, and many more stolen ones, but even his time as an undead monument to the curse of Cortés hadn't yielded a single mountain of doubloons the size in front of him. And it was still increasing.

“Quite the bounty too, wouldn't you agree?”

Every second Barbossa stood there, thinking, watching, rethinking and looking over the creature bargaining with him, the mountainous pile of wealth was growing larger and larger. And the little voice singing at the back of the pirate's mind was getting louder with it, as was the feeling in his heart; take it. He could hear it so clearly, as if it were really there.

Take the gold!

But...

“I am a slave te greed, no longer,” was all Barbossa replied, hoping for the love of God he was making the right choice.

Discord leaned back into the air, feeling the armchair that didn't exist contort perfectly to his body. It didn't matter how he sat, as long as it was done with an air of flair and random confusion. And on something invisible.

“Are you sure?” Discord questioned, once again clicking his talons together, holding his eyes closed with a confident smile on his face.

The fountains of gold continued to flow, as more and more spurt from the fabric of the world, tearing at the air throughout the dining room, and forcing itself into the tangible reality. The doubloons sang in a mismatched chorus as each of them chimed against themselves and any surface they seemed to hit.

Bribery was something Barbossa enjoyed when directed his way. It opened new doors, closed old ones, and held no ill consequences for him whatsoever. Most of the time. But bribery only worked when the offer toppled any older ones. And as it stood, the captain saw no such thing in front of him. His perception of the being in front of him had been secured too, whether said being liked it or not.

And the medallion, still spinning in the beings grasp. How could he make the same mistake again, when the memory of the past was still floating right in front of him?

“And if I were te take yer gift, how, pray tell, de ye expect me te take this hoard back wi' me? Yer offer ain't been implied, but already yer losin' yer chances.”

It was also best to keep calm, even if the situation was teetering on the edge of comprehension. Then again, Barbossa considered his threshold thoroughly widened, given what he'd seen during his life.

Though the last week had made him much more accepting of new impossibilities, to say the least.

“Oh, I never said you were leaving with the gold.”

The captain took a cautious, and well desired, step backwards as he subconsciously reached down towards his missing sword, “What happened te yer farewell gift.”

“No, no. I implied it was a farewell gift. You merely let your mind wander. I mean, really, what use could you possibly be if you weren't even here?”

Another step backwards seemed like a safe bet to the captain. The door was far away as it was, and any head start wouldn't be looked down upon. And Barbossa was more than positive the chimera wasn't an ally now, if he ever had the chance of being one.

“Then again, I assumed you'd be willing enough to accept my offer of riches. Somepony else certainly did.”

Moving his hand from his waist, the pirate rummages through his coat, hoping the vague idea he had forming in his head would work half as well as he imagined it would.

“As generous as yer offer is, I'm afraid there'll be no accord on me own side, Discord.”

And with his sentence finished, Barbossa pulled at one of the many gemstones buried within his jacket, and Discord watched as the sparkling jewel flew up into the air by the power of the aliens arms and, following the rather laborious rules of the universe, fell back towards the ground. The human who threw it, however, was well on his way towards the door, running fruitlessly away from the god behind him.

Discord sighed, partially because he fell for such a basic tactic, but mostly because such a basic tactic had been used in the first place.

“I'm not entirely sure why I had high hopes for you,” Discord announced with a dramatic wave of his paw, tossing the coin into his talons, “To be honest, I assumed you'd have something a little more crafty up your sleeve.”

Barbossa got himself to the door, not truly expecting to get there at all, and pushed his hand towards the exit, reaching out for the handle.

But the door wasn't there. His hand met nothing that he expected, and rather than wood, or even metal, the pirate's skin met the wall itself. Focusing his eyes, and hoping his plan wasn't a total failure, Barbossa found the air leave his lungs as he looked up to a crude painting of what should have been his exit.

“Of course, it isn't completely fair, having you against me. You don't even know who I am,” Discord’s voice said, echoing throughout the room before finally appearing in a bright flash of limelight.

Barbossa clenched his fist, digging his nails into the skin of his palm, not wanting to admit to himself that he wasn't faring too well without the ponies nearby. He didn't even know if they'd be of help to him, but seeing as they were the only allies he had in this world, they were the only beings that he hoped could.

Reminded they weren't actually with him, the pirate captain knelt to his knee before sliding his hand in his boot, swiftly pulling out his blade and hiding it beneath his sleeve, despite there not actually being a real need to hide it.

Standing back to his full height, Barbossa froze as he came eye to eye with Discord, his eyelids half closed and both of his scruffy, alabaster eyebrows confidently raised above them. The sudden twinge of the lion’s paw pushing against his chest didn't better the pirate's resolve on what he wanted to do.

“I suppose you regret leaving the gold?” the chimera smugly teased, poking the pirate harder in the chest with the same expression and smile on his face.

Then Discord flinched back, concentrating for a moment as to why he'd flinched. Opening his eyes, the god of chaos looked back at the pirate, following his line of sight, eventually coming to stare at his hand, and the knife that Barbossa held within it. The knife lay half buried in Discord's neck, twisted ever so slightly to the side, drawing nothing except a short lived sigh from the draconequus himself.

“Not the most novel way of trying to kill me, but I've seen others try worse.”

Barbossa pushed himself further back against the door, half hoping the wall behind him would miraculously give way, he threw a punch out towards the creature in a rash attempt at turning the situation around. The hit landed, but it did no more damage than the knife, or any less, as it appeared; the creature moved only as much as the punch made him, and any pain was far from evident, if he felt it at all.

Barbossa couldn't help but notice the harsh irony; him standing before an immortal being with a knife sticking out from his body, when he had been on the other end of the situation not under a year ago.

“I ain't the only thing in this castle, and ye ain't goin' te make me stay, not for any amount o' gold!”

“Oh, you’re being such a baby about all of this,” Discord nodded, tapping the pirate on his forehead, “But that's okay; I can fix all that. You just need a fresh outlook on life. A new goal to strive for.”

Spinning the coin between his talons and their knuckles, Discord flipped the medallion into the air, catching it in his paw before closing his eyes with it tight in his grasp, feeling an unusual strain of magic above his own.

Squeezing his grip slightly tighter, the god hovering above Barbossa cleared his throat, shivering as he let a tiny puff of air escaped his lips.

“Oh, that'll do for now,” he decided, frowning at the medallion as it refused to change completely under his will, “It's not as fun a I’d thought it would be anyway.”

Once again tossing the coin in the air, letting it fall towards the ground below, Discord watched with glee as Barbossa reached out his hand, clutching the doubloon mid fall.

Eyeing up the cursed medallion in his hand, the pirate moved his eyes lazily over the treasure he held, creasing his face into a wicked smile and clutching it tightly between his fingers.

Then Barbossa began to laugh.

The Medallion Calls

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 14
The Medallion Calls

The six ponies continued to follow their princess through the halls of Canterlot castle, leaving the banquet hall and the very un-ponylike pirate in their wake. It hardly seemed fair, making him wait on his own in a vast, empty room on his own. Even if he didn't seem like the kind of creature to get upset by such a thing.

Then again, it probably only seemed unfair because whatever they were leaving to accomplish obviously involved him in some way; why else would Hector be denied access to it now, but possibly have the right at a later time?

“Princess, what exactly is it you wanted to talk to us about?”

Twilight finally spoke out, breaking the relative silence that had dominated the last few minutes of the walk. The celestial mare only smiled in response, briefly looking down at her student with a warm glow stretching over her muzzle.

“I understand this is all rather unorthodox, but this is something I'm not sure I would like Captain Barbossa to know. At least, not quite yet. I don't think he has the most positive view on our society, and this may not make him any happier. If I can avoid it, I'd rather he left us with fonder memories instead of resentful ones.”

“Is... there a problem with getting him home?”

The others stared at Pinkie, rather surprised she of all ponies was the one to breach what could potentially turn out to be a sensitive topic. Celestia just shook her head at the mare.

“On the contrary,” Celestia said with an upbeat tone, “As I said before, Luna believes she has found a way home for him. She's even completing some of the final preparations as we speak. But given the circumstances that brought us the good fortune to meet Captain Barbossa, we both thought it a suitable time inform you of certain truths surrounding his arrival.”

Twilight raised her eyebrow.

“Certain... truths?” she repeated as she flexed her shoulders, shifting her saddlebag around on her back until she was comfortable with it again.

Not divulging anything more to the little ponies, Celestia kept herself silent, continuing down the stretching maze of corridors and halls until she came upon an old, purple set of double doors.

While they had the same basic design and appearance to most other doors situated around the castle, this set also had the added charm of having some engravings carved into the door. Runes of varying styles and sizes decorated the rim, as did the odd simplistic carving of a pony depicted in what appeared to be a defensive stance. Time hadn't treated it as well as most other doors, however, as while it stood tall, it was weathered by the passing of time.

Standing in front of the door beside their princess, the group waited for whatever it was they were meant to be waiting for, when the door began to slowly creak and screech itself open. Celestia still stood there, watching in concentration as the door opened further and further until it stood weak, yet proud, with both entranceways wide open.

“I don't think I've even been down this end of the castle before, princess,” Twilight joked, peering through the doors in front of her.

“That's because this area of the castle doesn't exist.”

The others looked up to face Celestia, while Spike looked down from over the princess's shoulder and Twilight titled her head back, realising what her mentor had actually said.

“What?” Spike muttered, trying not to scratch the princess as he climbed down her side and onto the floor at her hooves.

“This area of the castle is locked away from the rest of the waking world. What we store here isn't necessarily meant to be seen by the general public. Blurring its location from reality seemed like the most appropriate solution at the time.”

“So... it's, like, top secret?” asked Rainbow with a blooming smile, which was met by a brief chuckle from Celestia herself.

“Not really, Rainbow Dash. Back when this room was chosen to store what we now keep inside, we had different beliefs about what said things actually were. If ponies were to find out in this day and age, it wouldn't be something we had to hide, but some things are better left forgotten.”

Casually making her way through the doorway, Celestia sauntered to the centre of the room itself, allowing the Elements and Spike to follow behind. Twilight eagerly trotted alongside her mentor, striding past as her friends took a less zealous approach and cantered at their leisure, taking in the sites that met them.

The room they entered also wasn't what they expected. Unlike the door, the room appeared new, gleaming and shining. A patterned floor made up from black and white square tiles of marble, and the walls were painted a faint shade of lilac with a decorative vines of darker purple etched and flowing across its entirety.

The room was also furnished with objects. Strange in their design and appearance, with larger ones taking up space at various, yet organised points on the floor. Smaller ones also littered the room, albeit sat atop appropriately sized pedestals.

Moving into the middle of the new room, Twilight let her eyes wander, as did the rest of her friends. It was strange, all the things they were staring at. While the room itself was clean and well organised, some of the objects couldn't be described as the same. Some were heavily damaged, and others looks broken and dead beyond repair.

“Is this...” Rainbow uttered, twisting her head to stare at one of the larger items on display, “a museum?”

She hated museums. She could feel herself growing less and less willing to stand on her own four hooves right then and there. Rainbow only came out of her lazy stupor thanks to a kick to one of her shins, courtesy of the ever friendly Rarity.

“I suppose, “ the princess said, briefly laughing once again, “Our initial intention was to store these things neatly and out of the way, but it has come to like a museum, hasn't it?”

As the others continued their look around the museum that wasn't quite a museum, Twilight jumped around from exhibit to exhibit, practically forcing her muzzle against some of the bigger items on display in the room, even if there was only three of them.

“Princess, what's this?” Twilight said, pointing towards a large, heavily damaged metal object with charred and burned orbs decorating its surface.

“I don't know, Twilight. We have very little idea what many of these things are, spare the obvious ones. And there isn't much we can do to change that fact either.”

Rainbow moved away from what she was looking at, a primitive club of some sort with a rock tied to the end, and moved in front of Twilight, standing firmly in the princess' line of sight.

“And what are these...things?” she said as she looked up at Celestia, nodding her head back towards where Twilight stood.

Rather than simply answer Rainbow, Celestia cleared her throat and motioned for the other mares, as well as the little dragon, to come closer. They all complied.

“It may surprise you to hear that Captain Hector Barbossa is not the first creature to arrive here from another world. What you see around you are objects we believe hail from another world, or once belonged to creatures that actually did.”

Realising she had lost the Elements’ attention at the objects’ description, Celestia once again cleared her throat and tapped her hooves on the marbled floor. The ponies focused immediately on the princess, while Spike's concentration was still lost on the objects.

“He is the eighth being we know of, and certainly the most amiable. As well as by far the most intelligent.”

“Most amiable? Hector is one of the nicest?”

“Nicest is the wrong word to use, Rarity. While eight beings have arrived here from other worlds, there may be more we don't know about, and there are even less we've had a proper conversation with. Our world just seems destined to attract a lot of unwanted visitors.”

“What do you mean?” Twilight asked.

Celestia paused for a moment, tilting her head to the side in order to let herself think. It had been so long since she had to think about any of this. It had been a good long while since any new creature had come to Equestria. At least, she thought it had.

“Have any of you heard of The Moonlight's Torment?”

Most of smaller ponies all shook their heads, save for Twilight, who moved forward and rapidly nodded.

“I have.”

“Of course you have...” Rainbow sighed.

Twilight glared at her rainbow-maned friend and pouted, turning back to the princess once she was sure Rainbow had received the message. She smiled as she held her head higher than usual, eager to impress.

“It's an old fairytale. A really old one. Ponies used to use it to scare naughty foals into being good.”

“Do you know of the rhyme that was sung with it?”

Twilight shook her head this time, lowering ears slightly at the question.

“Not really. I never really looked into it, it was just something I read about when I was little.”

She looked up at Celestia, who looked back before pulling her head away from the mares crowding around her.

“A beast doth dwell, deep within old castle town, who glimmers and shines by the Moonlight’s power, and takes the wanton with dagger and claw, back to his nether tower. But ne'er the good, nor gracious at heart, or generous, true and kind. For the power he fears, above the sun, is the magic residing inside.”

She never actually sung the rhyme, as one would sing a song. Celestia instead spoke it, talking as if she were indeed telling a naughty foal a bedtime story, lowering her head back towards Twilight at the mention of magic and its power.

“Of course, the original had different lyrics, and was considerably darker, but even I can't remember it in its entirety; the Equestrian language has evolved in the last nine or so centuries. But the message is still the same.”

“And the ‘Moonlight’ refers to...” Rarity began.

“Nightmare Moon,” Celestia continued after a breath, “The Torment may have been around long before, but it was only after Luna's banishment that he became more of a publicly known fairy tale.”

“Does it matter when he was around?” Pinkie asked.

“To an extent,” Celestia said, answering Pinkie, “While he is now called The Moonlight's Torment, that is only because it is the most popular name he went by. For a short while he was called 'Mistress Moon's Grand Executioner', and for an even shorter period he had the... less deserved title of the 'Fallen Sunshine'.”

“And... he wasn't as nice as Hector?”

Fluttershy wavered as she spoke, visibly shaken by the mention of the more grievous names on the creature's record. Then the princess looked away from the mares, turning her attention to a curtain at the other side of the room, losing her smile and sense of ease when she did.

“No, he wasn't. He was harsh and ruthless with how he approached our kind. Any kind, for that matter. And sadly, he paid a price for it.”

She then moved away from the group towards the back of the room, and towards the curtain she'd had her sights set on. A second or less of concentrated magic was all it took, and the large sheet of fabric came away to reveal a statue, much like anything else that could be seen from the castle's garden outside.

“He is also the main reason I wished to speak with you.”

Walking towards the statue, the ponies let their eyes roam over the sordid form in front of them. It had the shape of a man, like their friend Hector, but the similarities thereafter were far and few.

It stood upright and ready for battle, with one arm raised in the air, a large weapon welded to its grip; a jagged stick ended with a large spiked ball and chain. His height matched Hector's, as did the shape, spare for the head. It was was slightly larger, longer and littered with scales. Long, sharp teeth crawled their way out of its wide mouth, and a long angler fish lantern forced its way from the creature’s forehead. An eye to match its aquatic appendage sat on the right side of its face, but the other was different. It looked almost human.

Unlike a good number of statues outside, it also wore clothing. The clothes also seemed a lot like something Barbossa would wear; two large thick boots, baggy trousers and a torn, raggedy shirt, with puffy sleeves and stitching below the neck. All were cast in greyed, solid stone.

“He looks... uh...” was all Rainbow could manage, closing one eye as she stepped right up to the statue, looking at it from just below its uneven chin.

“Kinda fishy,” Pinkie finished.

“And he had the smell to match, if I recall.”

“What did he do then?” Spike asked, raising his claw to point at the statue, walking towards it while he did, “I mean, he doesn't look too friendly to begin with, but what did he do to get turned to stone?”

“A long list of things, if I'm being honest. But in the end, we gave him a choice, and offered him the chance to go back to wherever it was he came from.”

“How did that get him turned to stone?” the dragon asked.

“By the time we had him cornered on the outskirts of the city, he'd already been with us at least a decade, if we go by when the legends began. And all that time he scavenged in the nearby forests for food, and he even ravaged nearby houses for supplies. Towards the end of his freedom, that also included the ponies inside.”

The little dragon lowered his pointed claw, snapping it back to his sides as he wandered back towards Twilight and away from the statue. He stood behind her and kept his distance from the creature, despite it being for intents and purposes, just a statue.

“So, as I said, both Luna and I tried to reason with him; he used tools, and seemed intelligent as far as we could fathom. The only replies we got back were attacks or insults, some of which were more vulgar than I cared for. But he still understood us, to an extent, so we attempted to do what we have successfully done with Captain Barbossa; offer him safety, and a way back to where he belonged, and in exchange he would be out of our world, and no longer a threat to those who lived on it.”

“And... it didn't work?” Fluttershy whimpered.

“No. He refused. He maimed my leg beyond recognition, killed three of my guards, four of Luna's and outright threatened us to let him stay. And as you can see... we let him.”

“Doesn't sound like he had his head on straight,” Rainbow muttered.

“I don't think he did. I honestly don't believe he was completely to blame for his actions, despite how barbaric they were at times. You had to hear him speak to know something was wrong with him.”

“If he was going about killing ponies,” Dash added, “that doesn't exactly strike me as something that can have an upside to it.”

“Oh, I know. What he did can never be excused, and he was punished for it. However, on the final day during his struggle with us, he spoke of his reasons, even if it was only for a moment. He told us we could never make him go, now that he was free. Not back to the servitude. Not back to the pain,” she said, emphasizing the name on her lips just as he had all those years ago, “Not back to Davy Jones.”

Twilight looked back and forth between the mares around her and to the statue staring her in the face, jagged maw wide open and eyes piercing into her own. All the girls, and even Spike, appeared to be thinking along the same lines.

“Hector spoke of somepony called Davy Jones,” the purple unicorn muttered in confirmation.

“Yeah. Barby said he was the evil overlord of the piratey underworld,” Pinkie added.

“And we get back to the reason I wished to speak with all of you. It had bothered me since Twilight mentioned the name in a letter and I wanted to know if he'd mentioned anything like the Torment to any of you during your time together.”

All the mares looked to each other once again, one by one shaking their heads from side to side as they shared unknowing glances back towards the princess. Even Spike joined their motions, if only after asking if zombies counted, them being the only creature he remembered Barbossa talking about. Celestia didn't frown at the lack of information. Or at least, not as much as she thought she would. She wasn't sure if she expected anything from them at all.

“That is... a shame. Despite his nature and his deeds, he has sat here for over a millennia, and we still know next to nothing about him.”

“Ain't ya better just on goin' an' askin' Hector yerself? Rather than askin' us for somethin' he may or may not have said?”

“I'm now planning to. I just wanted all of you to see him first. If they do indeed come from the same world, I don't know how he'll take seeing something from it turned to stone, or even if Captain Barbossa will recognise the creature at all. If he does react rather unfavourably, it would be nice to have you seven here to reassure him that he isn't in any danger.”

Pinkie raised her hoof in the air, waving it with glee as she sat down on her other three hooves, receiving a smile and a nod from the princess for her childish actions.

“What's his real name?”

Celestia perked up her ears. Out of all ponies, she never thought of Pinkie Pie as the most astute. Maybe she'd have to change her way of thinking about the Elements; they often surprised her whenever she had the pleasure of talking to them.

“How did you know that wasn't his name?”

“Barby said they all had boring names where he comes from. Nothing like 'Torment' or 'Pinkie' or 'Fallen Sunshine' unless they made them up themselves.”

“Well, you're right. It isn't his real name. The Moonlight's Torment is what he's known by today because that is the name he made for himself. We never did discover his real name.”

Getting over the fact Pinkie had interrupted her own conversation with the princess, Applejack wandered closer to Celestia, even if she didn't have all that much more to talk about.

“So, it's basically goin' to be a hit or a miss? Showin' Hector the statue...” she clarified.

“More or less. There is no high chance he will know the Torment personally, but even so, I think the species looks identifiable enough for him to recognise it if there is a connection.”

“C-couldn't...” Fluttershy squeaked, trying to recompose herself after hearing what the creature had committed, “Couldn't you ask one of the other creatures? You said there were eight.”

“If that were so easy,” Celestia stated, talking as if no such option was feasible, “While Barbossa and the Torment both somehow found their way into our world unharmed, none of the others were quite as lucky. Four fell from the sky without any way to soften the fall or fly to safety...”

An echo of winces spread over Twilight and her friends, a louder set of two coming from Pinkie and Fluttershy. In hindsight, if Hector hadn't fallen into Everfree, would they have ever met him at all? Would they have even found him? Even if he'd never stated how far he'd fallen, a lack of trees and shrubbery would have at least led to something breaking or tearing.

“Were they from Hector's world too?” Twilight asked.

“It's hard to say. They varied so much in shape and size. But none matched your friend in body, of that much I am certain. While some may have stood on two legs, the only one who closely resembled the human shape was, and still is, the Torment.”

“And the other two? Did they make it?”

“No,” Celestia said, lowering her ears, “they didn't. One was found starved and terribly dehydrated in a cave not far from where Appleoosa now stands, and the other had the... grave misfortune to run amidst the castle courtyard whilst my guards were on patrol. Needless to say, it didn't run around for very long.”

The others lowered their ears now, Spike silently voicing his sympathies along beside them.

“The guards weren't punished; they were only doing their job. Quite a number of beasts did have the habit of wandering through Canterlot back in those days. And both incidents happened during eras when we were not as adept at healing magic. We tried our best, but neither of them lasted longer than a few days after we found them.”

“So... Hector is the first to go home?” Fluttershy asked with a smile.

“Yes, he is, and we are very pleased about that fact. The others may have fallen victim to circumstance and terrible luck, the Torment included, but Hector Barbossa will go home, and live out his life as he was meant to.”

“But still know about us?” Fluttershy added.

“Of course. He'll receive the best of both worlds,” Celestia said, pausing, “Quite literally, it seems.”

A nervous laugh spread over the group, dying away as quickly as it had arrived. They were happy for Hector, that he would get to go home, and live in his own world like he wanted. It was just that the prior talk of the statued creature and unlucky fates did not wash away as quickly as the positive thoughts came in.

“There is more I wish to discuss with you, but right now, I would like to speak to the esteemed captain himself. After I've had my talk with him, and possibly brought him here, we can finally continue in our efforts in getting him back home.”

The ponies and Spike all nodded along with their princess, plodding out of the room as Celestia kindly ushered them forward. Most of the ponies were all too happy to leave. It not only meant that they would see their friend again, and help him get home, it also meant they'd be leaving the statue and its gruesome gaze behind.

Twilight was the last to leave, trotting behind Celestia as she strained her neck to catch simple glances at the smaller objects sat atop the alabaster podiums. A quick reminder of their next task stopped her curiosity getting the better of her, however. The objects were all well and good, but they would be here forever. Hector wouldn't.

Plus, he was her friend. She couldn't forget that part. A very angry, mysterious, meat-eating and alien friend, but a friend nonetheless.

The unicorn followed her friends outside into the hall, waiting for Celestia before all seven of them wandered back through the hallway that didn't exist and into the more recognisable parts of the castle. Namely, the areas Twilight knew were actually real.

Twilight couldn't tell when they left the non-existent parts of the castle, but she guessed that was sort of the point. If a new hallway suddenly appeared without merging with anything else, it would look rather suspicious. Celestia probably used some other spells to blur its location on top of that as well.

The silence of the walk ended when Pinkie asked, “Do you think he'll miss us?” as she hopped along next to her friends.

Rarity tutted under her breath, trying to cover it up upon the realisation that it had come out ruder than she honestly meant it to.

“I doubt it. He hardly seems like the kind to reminisce, especially when he doesn't seem too taken with us.”

“But he might though. I'm going to miss having a pirate to talk to.”

Rarity wished to point out the pink mare hadn't spent all that much time with Barbossa in the first place, but she chose to leave the conversation as it was. She was honestly surprised Pinkie hadn't run the pirate off his feet, given how she usually acted when a new face appeared in town.

The group turned the final corner, nearing the door Barbossa was waiting behind when something else greeted them instead. A guard was laying on the floor, blood streaking down his side as a large wound cut into his thigh, stretching up to his flank from just above his knee.

“What happened here?!”

Celestia ran ahead of the others, stopping to lean down when she reached the guard’s side. He attempted to lift his head in her direction, only to give up part way through the act and lean against the floor instead.

“The pirate thing you left us with got out...” the guard admitted between deep breaths, “He was screaming and shouting behind the door. We opened it to check inside, then he kicked my face into the wall, stabbed me and... ran away. I think.”

“Hector did this?”

Twilight's question fell on deaf ears as the mares just looked back and forth between each other, all of whom hushed up when Celestia spoke to the guard again. Spike still sat on her back, wondering what to do with himself as he squirmed at the sight of the stallion's injury.

“Where are the others I put on patrol in the hallway? Why didn't you call for help?!”

The questions seemed more like demands rather than kind queries, but neither the guard, nor anyone else present could really argue against her. It wasn't often that Celestia grew angry, and Twilight had only seen a couple of times. It was always too controlled, too calm to be actual anger. It was as if Celestia didn't bother showing any expression to let you know she was angry. You just did.

“You think we didn't call for help?” he attempted a half hearted laugh, cringing when he looked back to whom he was actually talking to, “Nopony came when we did. Maelstrom and Cobblestone went after him, but I haven't seen them for about five minutes...”

The princess turned away from the injured pony, moving her head slowly from side to side as she examined the hallway; there weren't many choices he had when it came to running away, seeing as Barbossa only had left and right to pick from.

“Which way?”

“I don't know,” he moaned, once again berating himself for forgetting who was asking, “I honestly don't know. I wasn't even seeing straight. They said they'd get... him, and get me some help, then left.”

There was only two ways he could have gone. Both choices eventually led to more corridors, as well as a large number of possible rooms and potential hiding places. The hallway opposite to the one the seven mares had come from, however, also eventually led to Luna's “Room of Experimenting,” the place she'd moved the portal.

“We need to find him,” Celestia stated, “Quickly.”

None of the ponies present disagreed with her.

“I wonder what's wrong with him?” Pinkie asked her friends.

“Regardless, he needs to be caught. If he wishes to make himself a threat, he shall have to be treated like one. And I need to check on Luna and the portal. If he's gone there, then we may not have to hunt him down after all. The rest of you please try and find him; he can't have gotten that far.”

Everypony nodded, and with a shine of her horn, Celestia carefully lowered Spike onto the floor, letting him fall from her aura the final inch. He hit the carpet with a small thud.

“You stay with the guard. Captain Barbossa isn't likely to come back here.”

Spike stood up to argue, sitting back down when he met not just Celestia's glare, but Twilight's as well. Resigning himself to his not-quite-as-exciting-as-looking-for-the-pirate fate, with the injured pony, the little dragon sighed. He sat down with another small thud and crossed his arms with scowl on his face, something the guard appeared offended about.

“Should we split up? The castle is pretty big.”

The small group paused to look at Applejack. Twilight stopped to think before reluctantly nodding, looking up to the rest of her friends. Celestia had already galloped off down the hall in front of them, leaving everypony to their own devices.

“I suppose,” Twilight admitted “But only into groups of three, anything smaller would just be idiotic if he's... angry at us.”

Despite how often such tactics never seemed to work in fiction, it would help them cover a lot more ground than they could all at once. Going in groups smaller than three was also a stupid idea if he had a weapon on him. She didn't know what he had, but whatever it was seemed capable of doing quite a bit of damage.

All the mares nodded to one another, mixing into two fair groups and wandering down the hallway of their choice. Rainbow and Rarity joined Applejack to follow the hallway Celestia had sped towards, whilst Twilight took the rest of the girls back down the series of hallways they'd came.

Twilight knew the pirate couldn't have gone exactly the way they'd came, but there was a junction of sorts in the hallway, a three way choice that gave them one hallway they hadn't actually walked through. If he was anywhere in their direction, he would be that way. That is if he hadn't reached any stairs or wandered near the main entrance.

“I don't know what's wrong with him,” Twilight muttered to Fluttershy and Pinkie, “I thought he was getting more comfortable around us.”

Their search took them through any rooms they could find, which lead the three mares to check any space Barbossa was capable of fitting inside. They always checked one room at a time and splitting up inside it, but that tactic soon grew tiresome. Twenty minutes after their search had began and there wasn't even any clues for them to follow.

“Why is he doing this?!” What's he trying to do?!”

Pinkie turned around to face Twilight as they all wandered out of yet another bedroom. She cantered backwards with a smile as she answered the unicorn's question.

“Maybe he just got really, really bored. I know I would in a big empty room all by my lonesome self.”

“Yes, he got really bored,” Twilight mockingly agreed, “He got so bored, he decided to escape from the dining hall, attack a guard whose job it was to stop anypony getting inside the room, and then led the other guards off to goodness knows where.”

Regretting her less than kind outburst as soon as it had finished, Twilight hastily apologised to her friend, hoping she got in there before Pinkie began feeling guilty for even talking in the first place.

The three mares stormed into yet another room as they continued their search through the hallways. They repeated their tried and tested process, occasionally yelling Hector's name out loud in the hopes it would somehow tempt him out into the open.

As they all sighed at yet another fruitless search, the three mares wandered into the next room they could find, which happened to be a bedroom of some sort. It was decorated with fine furniture, like most of the other rooms, and had a rather large bed against the leftmost wall.

Pinkie ran for the bed first, looking under it and announcing, “Not under this bed either!” as she pulled herself over the mattress, clearing it in one leap.

The loud slam of the bedroom door caught the mare off-guard. Rather than stick the landing, she fell face first onto the marble floor, briefly shaking her head as she got to her hooves. Twilight turned to face Fluttershy, catching sight of her in front of the door itself.

“Hello, Miss Sparkle.”

She wasn't there alone. Barbossa was there too, Fluttershy clutched just under the jaw by his left arm as he held a knife within the hand of the other, forcing it against the mare’s neck as a small whimper escaped her lips.

“I must say, it's rather nice te be seein' the three o' ye again,” he said, showing off his carnivorous front teeth with a large, sadistic grin.

The two other mares just stared at Barbossa, and then to the sight of their friend in front of him, hanging from the alien’s arms. Twilight didn't look away, as much as she told herself she wanted to, if only to keep an eye on Fluttershy.

“H-help...”

Barbossa shook his arm around, causing another muffled squeak to escape Fluttershy's mouth as her body moved around the point where she was hung. Twilight didn't move, mouth hung slightly ajar as Pinkie moved her forehooves onto the bed, readying the leap over.

“I shan't be doin' that if I were ye, Pinkie Pie,” he rasped, gently drawing shapes with his knife into Fluttershy's yellow coat, “Lest ye want te see what yer friends innards look like, ye'll be stayin' right where ye are.”

She didn't hesitate taking her hooves away from the bed, slowly lowering herself down and taking another step back, just in case. The bearded man turned to Twilight next, still squeezing his prisoner tight.

“And there be no reason te try magicin' meself with yer powers. Ye take yer time castin' incantations, and can ye truly be sure yer horn’s quicker than me wrist?”

As if to strengthen his logic, Barbossa pushed the blade against the pegasus’s throat as the smallest trickle of darkened red appeared against her soft yellow coat. He continued to show off his teeth, this timewith a knowing grin as held the knife in place.

She was sure. No, Twilight was more than sure her magic was faster. She had some of the most powerful magic in Equestria, and she'd been praised for it. She was practically known specifically for her magical capabilities. But looking at Fluttershy, and the knife at her throat, she just... didn't feel like she was. She wasn't prepared for this.

All the times went through her head when she'd missed a spell. All the times when she was just ever so slightly off about how much power she could use, or how much was actually needed. All the times her spells had went catastrophically wrong. She couldn't outright freeze him in place either; his arm was still around part of her jaw. She just didn't want to risk it if the risk was even there. Not when her friend was the prize at stake.

“W-what are you doing?” Twilight managed to stammer, “Why are you doing this?”

“Ye have me weapons, and I be wantin' 'em back.”

Twilight blinked, dizzily looking to the saddle bag on her back as she turned back to focus her eyes on the human.

“I told you we would give them back! I wasn't going to go back on what I promised!”

“Aye, well, the tides have changed, and so 'ave me goals and ideals. So it were on that notion that I decided a change o' plan were urgently needed te match those goals.”

He once again motioned the knife closer to Fluttershy as he shifted his wrist to move the blade, never actually digging deeper. Only ever scratching the surface.

“But we were going to send you home! We told you,” Twilight found herself begging, “Luna was preparing it for you!”

Twilight didn't want any of this. Out of all the things he was, Hector didn't feel like a monster. He certainly wasn't the kindest of beings, granted, but never a monster. Even after his previous attacks, it just didn't seem right. She never thought he'd ever go this far.

“And what then? Livin' me last mortal days in pain and poverty? Why would any man be daft enough te do that when he can live here?! A world suffocatin' under the jewels contained inside it! A world where the dangers of nature and the cold are kept in order! A world where one man and his hand is more than a threat te anythin' without magic adornin’ it's head. Tell me, Miss Sparkle, why would I leave?”

“To see your crew! And rescue your friend, Jack! He's the whole reason you ended up here, isn't it? You still need to save him!”

“Jack?”

Barbossa began breathing harder, clutching the knife as his chortle rose from its meagre depths to a bellowing cackle, ending up in full blown laughter as the two free mares stared back at him, Fluttershy quaking under his strength.

“Why would I help that bastard? He shot me. He bloody killed me!” he said, suddenly calming himself with a smile, “And now he's dead.”

The man continued to laugh, and for one of the few times since meeting him, Twilight thought he looked happy. Genuinely happy. And it was horrible.

“I may have wanted te save him once, but that time has passed. Me failed labour te restore his heart has led me here, and te the pompous bitch who knocked me unconscious, and te the land of naïve, infantile creatures content wi' doubtin' me own honours and mockin' the dangers I've survived!”

He thrashed his foot around, slamming it against the door behind him, causing more than just the mare in his grasp to quiver on the spot.

“It was through Jack's need for life I ended up here. And he can rot in his Hell while I live breathin' the splendour of the world I've uncovered. That's my pay for what he caused me; a world fit te plunder, and a world unready te fight back against it, as he lives through a never-endin' nightmare until the trumpets sound and Jones himself falls from power.”

He once again stood his ground, keeping the knife against Fluttershy's neck. She was crying, bubbling away to herself with her eyes shut tight and her hind legs attempted to make what little contact they could with the floor.

“Now!” he bellowed, grabbing back the ponies' attention, “Me effects, Miss Sparkle. If ye'd be so kind?”

Choosing Fluttershy over any chance she rightly had to taking Hector down, Twilight nodded and let the bag fall from her back. She felt safer using her hooves to unpack the book from the bag, rather than taking the risk of levitating it out. The something hit her.

“I have to use magic to get t-them out for you.”

Furrowing his brow, he looked down at Twilight and then to the book, slowly nodding towards her once, “Do as ye please, but any attempt te go against me wishes won't end in yer favour. Of that much I can assure ye.”

Shakily nodding, Twilight began casting her spell to remove his belongings. She was so sure she could separate the two beings without him harming Fluttershy. She'd done far more powerful spells many times before, on creatures much larger too. But she wasn't perfect and even she got things wrong. She just didn't want this to be the one time when that mistake proved to be fatal.

Taking her time, Twilight cast her spell slower than she usually would have, even if Barbossa could never tell the difference. She watched as the occupied pages floated from the book and, one by one, they spun in swift succession over the floor until only the physical objects were left in their wake.

“Kick 'em over.”

Doing as she was told, Twilight pushed his items and watched as they slid across the floor to the pirate's feet. Switching the knife into his other hand, Barbossa held the blade against Fluttershy's cheek as he returned the sword to its rightful place at his side. He did the same for his pistol and charges, hiding them deep within his coat.

“Now release Fluttershy!”

Smiling to himself, Barbossa ignored the request and pulled his sword back from his side. He slid it against Fluttershy's throat as he stored the smaller blade away, using the free hand to once again take hold of his hostage.

“Now why would I be doin' that?” he innocently answered back.

The two free mares stared back, Pinkie smacking her forehooves against the floor from her position behind the bed. Twilight leaned forward, pushing herself to stop when she began moving towards Barbossa.

“Because you said you would if we gave your things back!”

“Ah, ye see, I never said I would, so I hadn't the realisation that it were part of the negotiations. I assumed ye were goin' te let me keep her. Ye really should have made yersel' clearer about what it is ye were wantin'.”

Moving himself backwards, he opened the door with his elbow and foot, using the former to push the handle down and the latter to pull it open

“But don't worry. She's me safe passage from the castle, so there'd be nothin' to be gained from killin' her...”

He pulled Fluttershy out the door, still smiling to himself as Twilight and Pinkie continued to stand there, unable to do anything. They didn't want to be reckless; Fluttershy was important, and one wrong move wouldn't do anything but trouble her. Even if it meant just... letting her go.

“...Yet.”

The pirate laughed to himself, letting the door shut with a slight slam as he dragged his captive along through the hallways of Canterlot castle. His arm still held her tight, now grasping around her neck itself as the tips of her hooves struggled to gather grip on the floor and a sword poked at her stomach.

She could breathe. The significant lack of the floor beneath her left her completely within Hector's hold, something her neck wasn't comfortable with, but she could breathe. The blade scratched at her belly every few steps he took, ushering whimpers and tears from the mare in his company. She didn't know if she was bleeding, but if she was, she took little comfort in knowing it wasn't anything more than a cut.

“Quiet yer snivellin'! Yer in the safest position ye could hope te find yersel'!” he said in an overly jovial voice.

Still moving their way through the corridor, not quite sure where she was being taken, Fluttershy allowed herself to smile at the unmistakable sound of hooves beating against the stone floor and carpet coating the hallway. It was slow and casual, but there. Definitely there.

Breathing slowly as Barbossa stood his ground, keeping his stance on the floor, Fluttershy watched his eyes narrow at the sight of her friends: Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow. She watched as her orange friend smiled at the sight of the pirate, shifting her gaze to the pegasus and stopping where she stood, lowering her head and leaning forward barely half a second later.

“Fluttershy!”

Rainbow ran forward, jumping into a hover as Barbossa rolled his eyes and clicked his tongue against his teeth. He merely waved the sword against the pegasus in his hold, slicing away a few choice strands of her coat as he watched her take notice.

“Ye sure that's wise? Even if ye do fly in te me, what are the chances ye push the blade further down yersel'? Could ye live wi' that on yer conscience?”

“I knew it! I knew we shouldn't have trusted you!” she retorted, hovering in the same spot before eventually landing herself on the ground, taking up the same stance and Applejack.

“Oh, me heart bleeds, Rainbow. Pity ye and the white harlot didn't take action sooner then! Ye might have averted this cruel state of affairs.”

“Her name is Rarity!”

“Aye, I'll keep that in mind. An' I'll engrave it on her tombstone, te be sure.”

“Oh, I do like your style!”

All action stopped in the hallway, save for the alien shuffling his arm at the whimpers and snivels that escaped from his prisoner.

The free ponies looked to the air in every direction, looking for the voice that seemed to come from all of them at once. Barbossa looked to the air for the source as well, albeit keeping a straighter and more composed face than the ponies had.

The creature to match the voice appeared in a flash of light, slowly fading into reality to the sound of a brass band and trumpets, playing notes lower and deep the more solid Discord became. The light eventually faded, and in its place the draconequus floated, holding a cardboard cut-out of himself, an image that had its arms held out in joy and stretching at the feeling of freedom.

“Isn't he marvellous?!” he exclaimed, folding the drawn caricature of himself into nothing, “He's so snarky and violent. It may be a tad excessive, but still.”

The captain moved back against the wall, looking up to Discord and then to the ponies attempting to corner him further down the hallway. Fluttershy dared to look up to her captor, thinking it never once looked like Hector thought the god an ally. It seemed like he was just tolerating his presence.

The ponies not bound by the pirate stood there, wavering on their hooves about what to do, unwilling to claim which threat was more dangerous than the other.

“Oh, but here's the best part!”

Discord closed his eyes, lifting his arms high into the air as he pompously clapped his paw and claw together, summoning the moon as the sun lowered itself out of sight. The lights switched their duties and just as quickly as the change had come about, the moon began working its magic on the world below.

Clung tight below his arm, Fluttershy squealed and flailed her hooves for freedom as Barbossa began to change. She watched as his flesh rotted away, turning blue and grey to the sound of crumbling skin and the spoiling of his organs. His skin thinned, revealing the cracking bones and tendons beneath.

His clothes followed in the body's example, tearing and fraying with the passage of years that seemed to happen in the space of seconds and melting away as the moonlight crawled over the threads and fabrics he was wearing. The yellow mare in his possession dared to open her eyes once they had closed, seeing only the remains of his hand, barren and dead as it held the blade to her stomach.

“He turns into an undead pirate; two for the price of one! Three if you count him being an alien. Which I do, of course. He's like the gift that keeps on giving.”

“Discord!” a unicorn’s voice wailed through the hallway.

Barbossa pushed his body further back against the wall, clinging to it as Fluttershy watched Twilight and Pinkie appear from the hallway she'd been dragged. Twilight's bag had been abandoned, and both mares galloped faster and faster through the halls and past the moonlight glistening through each window.

Applejack and her group began trotting their way forward, moving at a slow pace and ready to move faster at a moment’s notice. Hector saw them first, responding with a shake of his head as he poked at Fluttershy with his sword. Never drawing more blood, nor causing serious pain, but causing enough discomfort to their friend to get his message across.

“What have you done?!” Twilight screamed, feeling the fire burn in her eyes as she saw Discord, just floating there above Fluttershy without a care in the world.

“Not much, I'm afraid. Then again, it is still early days,” he replied, leaning his paw against the wall as he checked the non-existent nails of his talon.

The beings gathered around him in the hallway, most of whom held fury in their eyes as they switched their views from him to where the pirate stood, holding their kindest friend at rapier point.

Twilight spoke up first, talking when her friends were either too angry to do so, or seemingly too scared to do anything against Hector's threats.

“We turned you to stone.”

“So I saw. A rather horrible business if you ask me. It can get so frightfully boring inside those statues after a while. And they give you such a crick in the neck too.”

“You weren't in there for very long, “ Rainbow answered back.

Scratching at his neck, and twisting it around in circles, Discord looked back down to Rainbow. He gave a little smile and a nod, his head rotating along with his spinal cord. If he even had one.

“I know. Lovely, isn't it? It feels rather nice to be on the receiving end of some good luck for a change.”

“And what was this luck?” Twilight calmly asked, with only an edge of ire cracking at her voice with the hope not to give Discord the satisfaction he desired.

“You know, I wasn't quite sure myself until a little while ago. It was quite the nice end to my day actually. I saw two guards arguing about a creamed cake earlier, so you can only imagine how nice it was to have a small side of freedom on top of that.”

The ponies all stood still, watching over Barbossa as Discord was almost forgotten in their worry. The god of chaos was one thing, but looking at their friend and the small cuts of red that were etched into her coat, they couldn't bring themselves to worry about something other than their friend’s safety.

Rarity moved forward by single step, flaring her horn as it began to glow only for her efforts to be shut down moments later as Twilight screamed, “Stop, he'll hurt her!” at the top of her lungs across the hall.

“Best be listenin' te what yer friend has te say; there be more than just an inklin' o' logic te her claim.”

Rarity obliged and moved back, further than she had stood before with her head held low. She wasn't ready to cast magic. She was just trying to make sure she wasn't doing anything else wrong.

“Oh, give him a bit more space than that,” Discord said with a snap of his talons, “You don't want to see Fluttershy getting sliced in two, do you?”

Each of the free ponies slowly started to rise into the air, losing grip on the ground as each of them floated towards the ceiling. Pinkie flailed her hooves in attempt to swim, only to end up there with everypony else, somehow landing with her hooves touching the ceiling itself.

“Now, isn't that better? You can't possibly get close to him by accident. If anything, I helped you with your problem.”

“You're the one that caused all this in the first place!” Twilight yelled from up above.

“If you want to try and get all technical with me, he was the one to cause all of this,” Discord returned with a smile, pointing towards Barbossa, “If it wasn't for your new friend, I very much doubt we would even be talking right now.”

Twilight focused her eyes, cranking her neck up so she could look down to the floor from her position on the the ceiling. She stared directly at the skeletal Barbossa, who stood there with Fluttershy still in his grasp.

“How... how did you free Discord?!” she asked.

Of course the connection had occurred to her. What were the chances that Hector would start acting more violent at the same Discord reappeared? Even if he wasn't under some sort of spell, both creatures and their actions couldn't have been a coincidence. Could it?

Barbossa only answered back with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders, still holding his blade to Fluttershy's stomach.

“Ye look at me and ask as if I have any idea of who that mismatched arse actually is,” he deadpanned, “He can do as he bloody well likes as long as me own obligations ain't subsided in the process.”

“Oh, that's hardly fair, Twilight Sparkle,” Discord chided, ignoring the insult, “You can't just go around blaming the undead alien pirate for everything...”

Shifting in the air and standing on the same upside down plane as the ponies, Discord tapped his hoof on the floor. He smiled with glee as the ceiling began to move, acting as a fantastical conveyor belt for the ponies stood on it.

“I mean, if you did, you wouldn't be giving credit where it was due.”

The draconequus sighed as Rainbow just hovered into the air, avoided the moving surface entirely. He primed his paw for clicking when Barbossa spoke out instead.

“Walk Rainbow!” he bellowed, nodding towards Fluttershy.

The cyan mare gritted her teeth, staring daggers at both beings before doing as she was told. She let herself fall to the ceiling, following her own personally warped sense of gravity as she galloped along the ceiling with her friends. Discord clapped as hands with glee, smiling like a child.

“What do you mean others wouldn't be getting their dues?!” Twilight asked between breaths, still trying to keep up with the surface that moved just that little bit faster than she could keep up with, “You said it was Hector!”

“If you must know, it was more to do with his magic than anything else.”

“M-magic?”

“Oh yes; I've never seen anything quite like it. I couldn't even make it do what I wanted, which is pretty new for me, I'll tell you. After all, there isn't much that can't be swayed by yours truly. Makes you wonder how powerful the creatures in his world actually are.”

But Hector couldn't use magic, Twilight found herself thinking. He'd never mentioned it, nor had he made in any effort to show that he could. And he’d even asked questions about the most basic of spells. Why would he suddenly have powers that they didn't know about? Unless...

“His coin...”

“But I'm guessing you would rather find out who helped the pirate set me free. They're quite the little scoundrel too, you know. If it wasn't for her, I'm not sure Hector Barbossa would have even come close to setting me free.”

The others watched as Twilight grew silent, slowing down in her gallop as she began to stare down at the moving floor beneath her. Something that didn't go unnoticed by the creatures around her.

“Or maybe you already know who it is?” Discord asked, swimming in the air as he leaned closer to Twilight, “I'm just kidding. I can tell by your sombre look you already know who it is. Care to share the answer with your friends?”

Twilight didn't answer. She didn't even look up at Discord. Her pace slowed, going from a gallop to a mild canter as the moving floor pulled her back, bit by bit.

“No, it's okay; you take your time, my dear,” he said, sounding genuinely kind, “It will only make the surprise all the more exciting when they hear it. I, on the other paw, must be on my way. I've got a couple of lovely princess awaiting my return.”

He landed on the floor with a tap of his hoof, materialising a sparkling blue suit into existence, complete with top hat and cane. A quick scratch at his nose allowed his fingers to pull a thin black moustache into existence to complete the ensemble.

He wandered over to Barbossa, lowering a paw into the man's shoulder and receiving a less than kind glare from the human in return. Fluttershy still hung under Barbossa's grasp, struggling to keep calm, but still finding the time to wonder how a creature with rotted bones and muscle could even hold her up at all.

“So I bid you adieu, my good little ponies. I would stay, but as always, I have some things that need seen to.”

A tap of the cane against the floor summoned something else. A plume of confetti accompanied with pieces of cake and cream exploded into the castle, flinging itself to every inch of the floor and wall as Discord vanished beneath the messy illusion.

With Fluttershy and Hector alongside him.

Two Hornpipes

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 15
Two Hornpipes

Pintel and Ragetti continued to sit on the shores of Jones' Locker, hoping either one of the men they were waiting for would actually turn up. At the very least, they hoped Jack would show his face, then they could leave. But the two crewmen still held onto the hope that their old captain would return, if only just so they didn't have to leave the damned landscape one memorable man short.

The other men present seemed less inclined to wait for both. Many just wanted to leave the place that they seemed destined to wait inside for an eternity, even though there was a set time limit. The time limit itself also seemed to be the reason why many of the Chinese were worried. Those who knew the witch instead chose to trust her judgement. If they wanted Jack back they had to.

“What you suppose them two are talkin' about?”

Pintel spoke to Ragetti with an air of curiosity, pointing towards Will and Elizabeth. The two lovers were sat to the pirates' far right, talking to each other near the water’s edge. Tia Dalma sat slightly closer, hoisted atop the rock and chanting whenever she threw smaller stones onto the sand. The rest of the men were scattered around the shore, some of whom were attempting to play games with an incomplete deck of cards.

The Chinese all sat together, however, talking in their own language and drawings shapes in the sand for entertainment.

“I reckon Mr Turner's gone and found out 'bout somethin' little Lizzie don't want 'im knowin',” Ragetti answered, folding his arms into his chest.

Pintel pursed his lips and nodded. He continued to scratch Jack the monkey, who had been sat in his lap since the witch had finished her explanation on Barbossa's whereabouts. It had only been around twenty minutes, so he was none too bothered by the little monkey's presence. He found it somewhat soothing, even if he knew the creature couldn't feel anything when being touched.

“Somethin' sordid, no doubt. She ain't been too good with 'erself these days.”

“Yeah, not too good,” was all Ragetti said in response, giggling to himself as he remembered the free show he'd received at the bath house.

Despite the laborious act of waiting, everybody present seemed to be coping. Then again, it had only been little over an hour since they'd arrived.

Most people agreed it was more not knowing than the actual waiting that had them bothered. Even without asking, Pintel and Ragetti could tell that. And with Barbossa now missing, some men were a little on edge, worried that they too would be taken away by whatever it was that snatched up the captain.

“Where you suppose Barbossa is then?” Pintel asked.

It was about the only thing most of the men were talking about. Even the Chinese could be heard muttering his name every now and then.

“Don't know. Can't really imagine other worlds.”

Pintel had to agree. The only other worlds he could think of were Heaven and Hell, and if Barbossa was in either of them, it was unlikely to be the former.

“Can't be too good if it's gone and taken Barbossa though. The world, I mean,” Ragetti added.

Pintel once again nodded his head. He and his nephew weren't really the intelligent sort, but Ragetti was still prone to the odd philosophical thought every now and then. It was sometimes interesting to hear what he had to say about a given issue.

“You think he's dead then?” Ragetti asked, raising his brow and allowing his wooden eye to roll around in its socket.

“Could be. Takes a lot to kill the captain though.”

Pintel then soon found himself struggling to hold the monkey in place. Jack was scratching around and prying himself away from the pirate's grasp. He was close to succeeding despite being a good deal smaller.

“What's up with 'im?”

Pintel threw his nephew a gruff frown in response, still trying to hold the monkey down.

He wasn't quite sure why he wanted to keep Jack in place, but seeing as the monkey couldn't feel anything, he couldn't see why the petting should have been a problem.

“Don't know. He just started getting' all shifty.”

“Eager te get away, ain't he?”

Struggling to hold the slippery creature within his grasp, Pintel finally let go when he received a long, swift scratch to his arm. Feeling the pain, the pirate didn’t hesitate to grasp his wound, losing Jack in the process.

“Bugger it!” he yelled out.

Squeezing onto his forearm, Pintel simply sat there with Ragetti as they watched Jack scamper away. Then the chubbier man' mind finally caught up to him and his eyes widened.

“Catch him!”

His yell didn’t go unheard by the rest of the crew, but few turned to face them. Ragetti and Pintel were known for being troublesome, and there had to come a time where they said “no” to whatever it was they were planning or causing.

Shakily nodding, Ragetti gave chase, passing his uncle and leaving him to catch up

“If we lose the captain's pet in the Locker, he'll have us drawn and quartered!”

“What if he's dead? He can't do nothin' to us then,” Ragetti replied.

“Aye, well, I ain't takin' that chance. He'd meet us in Hell if it meant gettin' us paid for somethin' we did.”

Rather than waste energy talking back, Ragetti continued to chase after the small monkey, who'd ran quite far ahead despite his size.

Jack was running further into the Locker. While the men and women were waiting on one end of the beach, the small monkey was hopping and sprinting down towards the other. There was nothing in that direction. Only more sand, and the same lifeless sea.

If anything else was present in the Locker, it was concealed by huge dunes of sand stretching higher and higher the further inland you went. And sadly, that's was the direction Jack was taking.

The little monkey had reached a small dune, and despite how far they'd come already, Jack seemed happy enough running up at a rapid pace. Pintel and Ragetti stopped for breath, sighing when they looked up to see where they had to climb next.

“Bloody... immortal... monkey...” Pintel wheezed, hauling himself up the sandy bank, a good deal further back than his friend and even more so behind the monkey.

He would have nothing to do with the curse again, but he had to admit the abilities it gave you were more than helpful. Durability, invincibility, and a slight increase in strength; that was something a man could hope for. But the lack of feeling made those values completely undesirable. He was a man who loved his food, and a decade without it was more than he could take.

But there was no point complaining. He was mortal and tired, sure, but the lifeless state he had lived through was a torture more despised.

As he reached the top of the dune, having long since seen Ragetti disappear over the edge, Pintel hauled himself over with just a little bit of difficulty. He then proceeded to fall over, tumbling down the other side as he failed to grab hold of anything. He landed at the bottom, spitting out a mouthful of sand as he wearily looked around.

Ragetti was a few dozen feet ahead, wrestling with Jack on the ground.

Heaving a sigh of relief, Pintel pushed himself to his feet, wandering over to his friend and the undead monkey.

“Hey....” was all he could manage before putting a hand on Ragetti's shoulder.

Ragetti didn't answer.

“At least ye caught th' bugger—”

Pintel cut himself off as he looked into the lankier pirate's face, and then to the direction it was facing.

“Bloody hell...”

There was... something in front of them. There was no way to fully describe it. It was as if there was a shapeless layer of water in front of their eyes, sparkling and shimmering away as it floated in mid air. Looking through it was also like water. The scenery on the other side was disrupted.

The two pirates blinked and strained their eyes. Although it was a good few feet in front of them, it was definitely there. They couldn't deny that.

They slowly walked towards it, with Ragetti still holding Jack in his arms. The monkey was still struggling against his captors, seemingly attempting to get towards whatever it was they were looking at.

“What you suppose... that is then?” Pintel asked, slowly reaching out his hand.

Ragetti didn't answer. He just shrugged his shoulders, still not entirely sure how to approach the situation.

As the two men walked towards the glittering form ahead of them, Ragetti lurched back in pain as Jack slashed at his arm. Clutching at his forearm as it began to bleed, Ragetti watched as the monkey scampered away from them, and through the glittering anomaly.

Standing there, unsure of what to say, the two pirates merely looked at each other with unsure and unintelligent looks on their faces.

“You see...” Ragetti sighed.

“Aye...”

“And Jack... he's...”

“Aye...” Pintel once again answered.

Still feeling a bit dumbfounded, they hesitantly walked further towards what they assumed was a portal. Slower than they had previously, they reached out their hands. At least until Pintel suddenly pulled back his arm before contact was made.

“What are we doin'?!” he said, flailing his arms in the air and pointing towards the obvious. “How do we know that thing ain't dangerous?”

“More dangerous than Barbossa?”

Pintel retracted his statement, remembering that they had, in fact, likely just lost their captain's pet. One of the only things he appeared to actually care about too.

“Point taken.”

Slowly inching their hands towards what could possibly be a portal, both men suddenly stopped, allowing each other the pleasure of going first. Neither man took the offer.

“I dare ye te go first...”

Ragetti didn't reply. He just looked between the chubbier pirate and the shimmering light. He had been duped into idiotic acts more than once, and for once he didn't feel like falling for it.

“I'll give ye a silvery penny if it hurts.”

Happier with the offer, and the prospect of having a silver penny to spend, Ragetti smiled, dramatically waving his hand in the hair and slowly moving it towards the anomaly. As let his hand touch the shimmering form, Ragetti watched as his fingers vanished from view, and then after he pushed further, his wrist. Pintel stood there, tensing his fingers as Ragetti flexed his own, attempting to prove to himself that they were indeed still there.

Nervously smiling, Ragetti pushed more of his arm through, still flexing his hand around. Pintel licked his lips and lowered his eyes before pushing his own hand through and wiggling them around in mid air.

“Don't seem... too bad,” was all he said.

He looked up to the taller man as he swirled his arm within the void, waving it around as if his arm was elbow deep in a pool of water. The shimmering light even reacted the same way too. At least, it looked like it did.

Ragetti nodded, still none too sure what to expect. But hoping to get the ordeal over and done with, he pushed himself through, yanking on Pintel's collar.

As he pushed forward, Ragetti misplaced his feet, falling down a three sets of steps as Pintel did the exact same. They landed on a hard, marbled floor, gazing up to see where they'd arrived moments later.

It was a room. A big room, for that matter. The walls were a light shade of beige, and the ceiling wasn't that different. A chandelier was hanging from the ceiling, with a good few candles still burning away inside. Like anything a noble would be proud to have in their home.

But while the room appeared to be somewhat elegantly designed, everything that sat inside it seemed more like implements of science rather than that of art. Large tables were against the walls, scuffing them in places, and papers littered the space on top.

Strange devices sat proud on the tables as well, and metal boxes of varying sizes were on the floor, each making noises and doing things neither man could fully comprehend.

Dozens of books lay forgotten across the floor, a select few of which were sat open around the stairs leading up to light they'd just came through. It was a small, circle set of stairs with the portal floating eerily at the top.

“Least we know it's a portal now...” Pintel sighed.

Looking passed all the mess and metal debris, Pintel got up, helping Ragetti to his feet. While the room was a mess, there was also something of greater interest there. A small monkey at the door, scratching and carving his way into the wood while he hung from the door knob by his tail.

“Found 'im!” Pintel cheered, slapping Ragetti in the chest and pointing with his other hand.

Reaching the door, Ragetti picked Jack up by the collar of his shirt, holding him in the air as he moved his fingers over the gashes now present in the mahogany woodwork. Pintel looked at the floor, kicking the loose shaving and splinters with his shoe.

“He's done a right number on the door.”

“Aye, and he were only here a minute,” Ragetti replied.

“What you suppose we should do now then?”

Pintel thought it was an appropriate question given the situation. Barbossa had apparently been taken to another world, and now his pet monkey had led them to one. He wasn't the smartest man, but he knew those two events weren't likely to be coincidental.

“I reckon' we should keep goin',” Ragetti answered, seemingly staring past the large door.

“Lookin' for the captain?”

Ragetti nodded.

“Aye, we have Jack,” he said, grabbing firmly at the monkey's waistcoat. “We can use 'is lead te find Barbossa.”

Looking back over is shoulder towards the portal they'd came through, Pintel spent a few moments considering his options

“Ye think he'll reward us?” he asked.

“If I were saved from another world I'd be rewardin' the ones doin' the rescuin'.”

Confidently smiling, the rounder man nodded his head, pushing down on the door handle with both arms. The thing was stiff, and was likely the reason the little monkey hadn't gotten away from them yet.

Waiting for his nephew to leave the room, Pintel smiled again as he watched Ragetti shake Jack around, paying the thing back for taking them to the ends of an earth and into a completely new one.

One he'd stopped, the monkey continued to try and clamber out of his holder's grasp. He always tried to move in the same direction.

“See? We can follow whatever ways he's wantin' te go. Shan't be to hard te find Barbossa, me thinks.”

Pintel looked down at the monkey, not sure if he was convinced that their tactic would actually work. Deciding it was at least worth a try, he waved Ragetti forward, allowing him to lead the way.

“Famous last words, Ragetti. Famous last words.”

- - - -

“I knew we shouldn't have trusted him...”

Twilight lowered her head, still mulling over what had transpired over the last few hours. She sat with her friends in the palace gardens, tired after their trek through the castle. It was easy enough to get off the ceiling, given there was no longer a pirate threatening to gun them down, but searching through the castle for any trace of Fluttershy proved to be more difficult.

She wasn't anywhere to be found. Nopony was. Even after an hour or so of searching, they were no closer to finding their friend and her captors. Celestia and Luna weren't in their usual places either, and not a single guard was roaming the halls. Even Luna's guards had disappeared.

It didn't help that the castle seemed determined to misbehave. The hallways had twisted and turned around at irregular angles, and the doors thought it would be funny to shift out of the way whenever somepony went to open them.

“Did you see the smile on his face? I never thought anyone could find such fun in being so horrid...” Rarity hissed.

Given the state of the castle, the mares had expected the outside world to be in an even worse state. Chocolate falling from the sky, brooms dancing in the courtyard and maybe even a flying grizzly bear wearing a fez.

When they finally found themselves wandering into the garden, they saw none of that. The birds still sat in the trees, the clouds floated through the sky just as they had done since the day they were made, and far as the mares could tell, everypony in the city below was going about with their daily lives.

“Speaking of his face, he seemed pretty happy considering how rotten it was! I mean, you could see his skull and everything!”

Pinkie and Applejack were being quiet, listening to Rarity and Rainbow lower the reputation of the being they couldn't find the heart to stand up for.

“I didn't notice it...”

Twilight regretted her words the moment they had left her lips. The others turned to stare at her, two of whom furrowed their brows. The unicorn composed herself, taking a deep breath before she spoke again.

“It happened to me, and I didn't even see it. I didn't even feel it,” Twilight elaborated. “I didn't really feel anything.”

“And we have no idea what he's going to do with Fluttershy...” Rarity added.

“But... has... he really done anything?”

“You saw what he was doing!” Rainbow reminded her, waving her hoof in the air.

“Yes, but was it really him? Discord made all of you do strange things when he was here last time. What's to say he hasn't done the same to Hector?”

Rarity prepared to talk back, to emphasise her own view on the matter, before pausing and lowering her ears in realisation.

“I mean, if he wanted to hurt us, really hurt us, why didn't he do it when he was with Fluttershy? Or alone with me or Spike?”

Rarity kept her ears lowered, thinking it over. As much as she disliked the human for hurting Fluttershy, she couldn't deny it all seemed rather sudden. And far too coincidental.

“And... he did help get Sweetie her cutie mark...” she mumbled to herself.

“And he told me and Twilight,” Pinkie complained, “he wanted to stay here now. He's been moaning about leaving the whole time he was here!”

Everypony nodded at Pinkie's statement, Rarity and Rainbow included. For all he was doing and had done to them, it did seem out of place. While he was certainly violent, he wasn't dense enough to act even more so just before he was about to get exactly what he wanted; the chance to leave.

“What should we do then? Just keep looking for them?” Rainbow asked, honestly.

“Yes, but I have no idea where to start. Discord didn't even leave us any clues to go on...”

Twilight tapped her hoof against the grass, rather more eager to get back to their search. The events weren't convenient, nor were they pleasant, but they still had to try. Even more so, given the purple unicorn felt somewhat responsible for what was happening.

But she didn't have time to dwell on that. A scream pierced the air, coming suddenly from the city below.

Moving their heads towards the noise, the five ponies wordlessly looked to each other and nodded, making their way towards the shrill noise. They didn't know what was going on, or whether it was even Discord or Hector, but they couldn't leave it be. If somepony was in danger, they had to see if they could help.

Following the source of the sound, Twilight took lead of her friends as they charged down the path, away from the castle. The path was wide, and after a few hundred metres began to move down a hill and into the city below. A small portion of Canterlot actually rested on the steep incline, until it flattened out and lead into the rest of the city.

More screams came on top of the first, urging the group on. Though once they were close enough, they didn't need to go any further to know why ponies were screaming. They were honestly surprised they hadn't seen it from the gardens.

“Is that...” Applejack started.

“A pirate ship?” Rainbow and Rarity finished in unison.

A large, black ship was piloting its way over Canterlot. It was like something from a story book. A vast, black, wooden ship, with a tall mast and ebony tattered sails, flying a black and white flag from its very peak. Cannons jutted out of the ships side while more sat ready and waiting on-deck.

The five ponies ceased their run taking in the bizarre sight before them until they carried on. Arriving in the nearest streets of the city, still moving down the incline, it soon became clear that not everypony was screaming. Some just stood there in awe, staring up at the ship floating in the sky, whilst others began galloping towards it.

Following the steadily growing crowd, and growing tired, Twilight yelled, “Rainbow! Fly up on deck! See if Hector and Fluttershy are there!”

Nodding, and showing off a sly grin, Rainbow ran faster. Flapping her wings, the pegasus lost no speed as she elegantly lifted from the ground. Approaching from where she had set off, she made a straight for the ship's port side. Or what she thought may have been the port side. She called it left.

With her forehooves out in front of her, Rainbow gained speed until she was finally high and near enough to the ship to see those sailing it.

“What the...?” she uttered, confused.

The men on deck glared back at her, wicked smiles plastered on each of their identical faces. Every one of them stood there, stopping their designated duties for a moment to simply look and watch. Each one of them with the same face. Barbossa's face.

And as Rainbow drew closer, she regretted flying so near the ship. Each of the identical pirate's began to laugh, but another simply stood there with his arm raised in the air. The pegasus wasn't the most intelligent pony, but she guessed he wasn't waving at her.

“Fire!”

Widening her eyes, Rainbow deftly pulled herself up, straying from her intended course. It wasn't until after she realised the cannon fire wouldn’t have hit her. They weren't being aimed at her.

Breathing heavily, more out of surprise than anything else, she watched as the small number of cannon balls ploughed their way to the city. Contrary to her belief, there was no explosion or fire. They just smashed their way through buildings, horribly splintering the wooden ones and cracking the ones made from stone.

Surprised to see a pirate ship firing shots at Canterlot, Rainbow continued to hover in mid-air, still trying to work what she was going to do. The men took a moment to stop and stare at her, forgetting their duties, but soon going back to them.

The same man that had done so before lifted a single arm into the arm. She could swear he was smirking at her.

“Once more!”

All of the cannons fired this time. Both sides of the ship destroyed what little silence there was left in the city as smoke wafted from the weapons. Too high to be hit, Rainbow just watched in horror as even more buildings crumbled to the ground. Those that still stood after the barrage were mere husks of their former, pristine selves. Dust plumes coated the air where they once stood.

The Barbossa commanding the crew looked up again, smiling directly at Rainbow with his head lowered and his large hat hiding most of his forehead. She had hovered closer, almost subconsciously, wanting to see the alien responsible for all this before she left. It only then occurred to her that out of all the men there, he was the only Hector wearing his trademark hat.

“Ye seem lost Rainbow!” he finally yelled, the sounds of the cannon and what they had caused dying down. “Not used te yer sky bein' shared?!”

Rainbow didn't answer, still working out what she wanted to say. She didn't really know what she wanted to do. Was it even worth talking to him, given what Twilight had said? Did she want to in the first place?

“Because it pulls at the strings o' me heart te inform ye that the world above is under new management.”

The Barbossa clicked his fingers, and as he did, those gathered behind him moved into action. Each of them pulled a pistol from beneath their long coats, waving it in the air and pointing it straight towards the lone pegasus. Each weapon was as identical as the men holding them.

Diving back towards the ground, she glided through the city as she heard Hector laughing behind her. She didn't try to think about how many of him were actually adding to the noise as she looked for her friends. There was a distinct lack of ponies wandering around now compared to how many there were when she had left the ground.

Searching for the only ponies who were still running towards the ship instead of away from it, Rainbow landed with a thud in front of her friends, spreading her wings wide.

“I really don't think you want to go up there.”

“What? Why? What's wrong?!” Twilight asked.

Confused as to why the ominous floating pirate ship and the destruction it had just caused wasn't bad enough, Rainbow continued.

“Hector's on board, but there's way more than just one of him! And they all have pistols! And cannons!”

“We saw the cannons, dear. They weren't hard to miss,” Rarity added, sadly motioning her head towards a shattered set of buildings just within view.

“What was that about Hector?” Applejack asked.

“There are a lot of humans on that ship. And they're all Hector. Like...” She was trying to think of a good comparison. “Like human shaped changelings.”

The cannons fired again, destroying whatever buildings happened to be in their way. If the ship had stayed dormant, the damage could have been reduced. But with every inch it moved through the sky, a new set of targets came into range. And the cannons had just destroyed them.

The ponies winced at the carnage, and Rainbow ran with the her friends as they charged towards the ship.

A few stray ponies ran past them, looking over their heads as dark laughter began emanating from the ship, carried by the sheer amount of human beings cackling on the deck. The ponies in pursuit of the pirates finally reached the ground below the ship. It was a wide street, much like everything else in the city.

The vessel was slowly lowering towards the ground. It was still above the buildings, though lower than it had been previously.

One Hector peered over the edge of the ship, casually leaning on the railing as he stared at the only ponies in the nearby vicinity. It was the one wearing the hat, and he spoke to them, yelling from on high.

“Ye've impressed me. I were beginin' te assume the tales told about ye were nothin' more than a tale told te children at bedtime! But bravery won't be savin' ye now.”

“What are you doing Hector?!” Twilight shouted back.

“What I want, Miss Sparkle. Makes a stark contrast te what I've been bound te do for the last week o' me long life.”

“And you want to destroy Canterlot?!” she replied.

The Barbossa didn't answer back, choosing to stand at full height instead. Twilight couldn't tell, given how far he was from herself, but she was sure he was smiling at what he saw.

“Denizens of the ponylands, heed the words o' a humble captain!” he said, his voice reaching whoever was left to hear it. “I am here today te make ye a most gracious and fair offer!”

Twilight could see a small number of ponies out of the corner of her eye, either hidden inside buildings or scurrying down a connecting street. If she had to guess why they were still nearby to hear what Hector was saying, she assumed it would be because most of them were attempting to escape the cannon fire. You couldn't get hit by it directly under the ship, after all.

“I merely ask fer the wealth o' yer land! The precious jewels, gems, metals and artefacts that ye hold dear te yer grubby little hearts!”

Those few ponies kept moving. They listened, some out of curiosity and some out of fear, but they listened.

“How in tarnation is that fair?!” Applejack objected.

“Because in return ye'll live te see the days ye've yet te have. Where I come from that most definitely comes under the definition o' 'fair'.”

“Your world doesn't seem to have very much inside it that sounds fair!” Rainbow shouted. “And what makes you think you're going to get away with this?”

“Yeah!” Pinkie added, for no other apparent reason other than to join in.

“Ye wish te stop me then?!” he said, laughing. “Ye'd best start prayin' for a miracle.”

“And why's that?!” Rainbow asked

As if on cue, the sky darkened, and the moon rose high into the sky, stopping at a great height behind the pirate ship. The moonlight shone through the tattered and worn sails, creating beams of light that rested on the deck and over its crew.

The sickening sound of flesh rotting away was all that could be heard for those split seconds as the captain stood there, resolute and deprived of what made him alive. He was a living corpse, and the rest of the crew stood behind him, cheering, though apparently untainted by the moonlight or the effect it had on their captain.

“Because not even Death himsel' has sway over me now. And if I'm beyond his reach, I can't say I see yer own attempts fairin' any better.”

The Black Pearl

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 16
The Black Pearl

From the streets below, the few ponies that actually dared to look back saw the black ship as it continued to hang there in the night sky, touched only by the flickering light of the moon as it struggled through the torn and tattered sails. On board, the men stood tall and looked up to their captain as he gazed down on everything else, his form reduced to a wandering pile of bones and rotten flesh.

Whilst the rest of their kind fled through open streets and back alleys, Twilight and her friends stood their ground. They nervously watched as the other ponies pushed and shoved, galloping away in frantic and disarrayed herds.

At the very edge of the ship was Hector Barbossa. He peered over, casually leaning his ragged form against the railing of the main deck. He surveyed the world below as the rest of his crew roared and danced around behind him, cheering in his own rasping voice.

As the last pony to flee the vicinity vanished from sight, the Elements of Harmony reaffirmed their resolve to one another and gave their full attention to the enemy above.

Moments passed, and as the mares stood still, Barbossa never spoke a word. Instead, he simply stared at them. He confidently tried to curl his lips into a smile, despite his how his own body betrayed him. His rotten skin and the remains of his lips clung to his skull like a foul mould, and a horrid, torn attempt at a grin surfaced instead.

Despite his skeletal appearance, the mares below didn't sway under him. They were too far away to see him with complete clarity, and they were thankful for it.

“Hector, listen to me!”

Deep down, even if his actions seemed to suit him perfectly, Twilight knew he wasn't acting on his own mind. She also doubted simple words were ever going to actually reach him, but despite the pointlessness of it all, she tried anyway. What else could she do with him so out of the way and well protected?

“Discord's just pulled you into one of his twisted games! He's got you right where he wants you! Please! You don't have to do this.”

Barbossa recoiled sharply at her words with a poor rendition of surprise to accompany it.

“Yer... right, Miss Sparkle. I'm... I am no beast's pawn! I'm me own man! I don't have te do this!”

Restoring his composure, he uttered a single word and waved his hand out towards the city in front of him. In the moments that followed, the air exploded in a hail of smoke and iron as the cannons fired, reducing the stunning equine architecture in their way to a pile of crumbling debris and dust. The faint sound of screams could be heard through the turmoil and destruction.

“No!” Barbossa bellowed back down. He didn't bother holding back the laughter rising from his gut. “I want te do it!”

Sure that the cannon-fire had ceased, Rainbow flew up to the ship. She stopped just below the deck this time, not quite sure she was ready to tackle the arsenal of pistols waiting for her up there.

“Where's Fluttershy, Hector?!"

The captain of the Barbossas took out his flintlock and dangled it loosely between his fingers as he returned to the railing of the ship. He waved the barrel of the weapon in Rainbow's general direction and swung it gently from side to side.

“I have no idea. Maybe ye should be keepin' a better eye on yer pets?”

“I know you know where she is! And she's our friend, not our pet!”

“Pet, or not,” he joked, “I have no idea where she is. Perhaps she found some other lady-friends to occupy her time?”

She ignored his taunts. Though, much to her own annoyance, a brief glimpse of the deck and the men gathered there convinced her she wasn't any closer to her goal. She was certainly ready to argue some more, but soon found herself cut off.

“But we're wastin' time. Right men?!”

Raising their fists into the air, the crew cheered along with their captain. Four of them marched forward, joining the talkative Barbossa at the edge of the ship. Each struggled with a long, thick piece of rope held in their arms, and one by one, they flung them overboard. The loose ends fell past Rainbow and struck the cobblestone streets below with a dull thud.

“And I'm finished,” Barbossa growled to Rainbow. “Done dealin' wi' the likes o' you.”

“What's that supposed to mean?”

“Since the day we met, I've been abidin' by yer customs, yer rules. Helpin' the ponies in town, tendin' te the children, and givin' 'em tattoos. But now...”

He raised a skeletal hand into the air and snapped his dry, bony fingers together. The sound resounded, and with its toll, the crew behind him began to move. The four men from before took hold of their ropes, and they grasped onto them tight as they leaped overboard.

“Now, Rainbow Dash. Now yer in my world.”

The four Barbossas hit the ground and landed unsteadily on their feet. When they found their footing, they stretched their backs and stood up to their full heights. They all reached to their sides, drawing out their swords.

Applejack pushed herself forward, head held low as she guarded those behind her. Rainbow dived down from the sky and joined her as Twilight stepped up her guard too. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen.

“Um...hello?” Twilight timidly asked.

Ignoring Twilight's words, the men just stood there, still and silent. Everything about them was identical; the clothes they wore, their movements, their mannerisms. Their faces. They were just like the Hector they knew. The only difference was that, unlike the original, they didn't wear a hat; only a dark green bandanna. Their captain was the only one still wearing it.

“The all powerful Elements o' Harmony,” Captain Barbossa grumbled under his breath with a dead smile, just loud enough for the crew to hear. “Strike 'em down! Show 'em no quarter!”

And the four men did as they were told.

The first of the pirates lunged forward, slicing his sword down towards the ponies before Rainbow swiftly bucked him out of the way, throwing him down onto the ground. She gasped as two of the others came forward in his place, their own swords aimed for her head.

Shoving her friend out of the way, Applejack turned to kick the pirates. She missed one and landed a firm hit on the others' arm. The man she failed to attack continued in with his own. She barely had a time to dodge before the sharp blade grazed her hide.

Seething through her teeth, Applejack stumbled back away from her attackers as four more made their way down from the ship, hauling themselves overboard and sliding down the rope.

“There's more comin' down!” she cautioned.

As the new arrivals dropped to the ground, more than willing to serve their good captain's cause, another set of four were already forming at the brink of the ship.

Stumbling back from yet another attack aimed her way, Twilight struggled to put her magic to any use. Every time she cast a spell, the men barely seemed to acknowledge it. If she attempted to levitate their weapons away, they pulled them free from her influence. If she attacked them outright, they shrugged her magic away as if it was nothing at all.

That was even if they gave her enough time to cast a spell at all. If she got the chance to try again, she soon found herself dodging another incoming attack. And from the looks of it all, Rarity wasn't faring any better.

“Our magic isn't working on them!”

Barbossa yelled from his position, ordering more of his men over the side of the ship.

“Now why would I do what I'm doin' if that weren't the case?” Barbossa mocked them, laughing. “Let's see ye take away me weapons now!”

Another group of four came down, and then another. And each time a new selection of old boots touched down, they went for their weapon of choice and chose a target. More than a dozen littered the ground, and more were at ship’s edge, ready and eager to follow.

Pinkie was running circles around one of the men, jumping from side to side on her hind legs as she raised her forehooves into the air and boxed them around. Pistol ready and aimed, the pirate sneered at the pink mare. His attempt to fire was foiled as Pinkie dived down and bucked him hard in the stomach.

The Barbossa wheezed and slowly fell to the ground as another duplicate elbowed him out of the way. He unsheathed his sword and began his own assault on the pink nuisance.

“I think,” Pinkie said as she gleefully hopped back further and further, avoiding the pirate as he fruitlessly tried to slice her open, “we're making them angry...”

“Too angry,” Rarity agreed.

Barbossa watched from above as more of his other selves leapt overboard. Amidst the struggle, Twilight looked up into his eyes, her own sad and pleading. A brief glimmer of hope flickered across her features when Hector calmly stared back. But all she got was an undead pirate looking back at her with an degraded, incomplete grin. Not another moment was spared on her as he urged another selection of his men down to the steadily growing battlefield. He wasn't going to let her ruin his fun.

Eventually Twilight accepted the rejection, and turned her attention away from him as well.

“Just go. We can't take this many of them on our own.”

The others nodded before heading down the nearest escape route they could find. All five of them retreated back down a nearby alleyway as their tails trailed in the air behind them.

Hector Barbossa glanced down at the world below. First to the mares as they ran, their power over him gone, and then to the men at his beck and call. A crew crafted and molded in his image, and the finest replica of the finest ship his world had to offer. And he adored what he saw.

“Five o' ye, get after those cullies! I want their hides linin' the cabin walls!”

Five of them men did as their captain ordered, and dutifully gave chase.

“The rest o' ye, take a walk through town,” he calmly commanded. “The vermin of this world think themselves better than us just because they have command over the weather and magic at their control. They think themselves better than us because their world blossomed in peace without chaos or anarchy clawin' at their back. I say it's high time they saw what the world was meant te be like! Let's see how they take a world they can't control, a world where the rain falls hard an' cold on their furry faces! A world where pirates are no longer a child's fairy-tale.”

Each of the men cheered as a harsh, grating chorus spread over their ship, the new Black Pearl. They marvelled at the world being described, their merciful natures as poor as their captain's.

“Their homes are demolished and their spirits are broken! Now get me what I'm due. I want everythin' they think they deserve. Every jewel, every speck of gold and silver. Anythin' of interest or value! I want it all layin' at me feet!”

The brash, cackling laughter continued to fill the air as the men mindlessly and excitedly set about their task. They ran in different directions, spreading like a plague throughout the streets of Canterlot. The rest of the crew on board continued to pour from the ship, heaving themselves down the long ropes in perpetual groups of four.

Five of the men had a different task, however, and they kept to it as loyally as their brethren did. The five ponies galloped on, constantly trying not to look back to their pursuers.

But even without looking back, Twilight could tell they were gaining ground. Not only had they been given a head start, they also had another advantage; the mares all had four legs, and the humans only had two. While humans could have been faster, it was still something small to hold onto.

And sure enough, when she finally took the chance to glance back, the pirates were falling behind.

“Keep going! They're not fast enough!” Twilight yelled, mustering a smile as the sun suddenly popped unceremoniously into the sky.

The others didn't bother nodding to Twilight; they felt that continuing on was a better use of their energy. The mares ran on, and bit by bit, the men fell further and further behind. And they knew it. The pirates struggled and panted as their legs refused to take them as far as they wanted to go.

So one of them stopped. The man reached down to his side and grabbed hold of his firearm. Lifting the pistol from its resting place, the static Barbossa raised it, and without a moment of hesitation or restraint, fired. His arm recoiled as the bullet shot through the air with a loud bang.

And Rainbow wailed out in pain as the shot hit its target. She fell over to the ground, grinding against the stone slabs as she scraped to a stop against them.

“Rainbow!”

The others stopped at the sound of Rarity's voice. Rainbow's right, hind leg was bleeding from just below the knee. Slowly, the cyan mare got to her hooves, and she hissed through her teeth and held her eyes shut tight.

“Right,” Twilight warned, her nostrils flared. “That's enough!”

Stamping her forehooves on the ground, Twilight pointed her horn in the pirates' direction. Focusing on the cobbles around her hooves, she forced them into the air as the humans took a step back. They all raised their pistols to fire, not that it helped them.

“I can't cast spells on you, but around you is good enough for me!”

The pirates watched as the cobbles from the streets burst from their rightful places and shot into the air and straight towards them. Three of the men fired their flintlocks, failing to hit anything as the bricks hit them instead. Two of them fell back as multiple projectiles hit their torsos, and the other three howled as their arms were attacked instead.

Unable to refill his gun, one of the Barbossas pulled out his sword and deflected whatever he could as more cobblestones shot in their direction. He repelled most that came his way, and his comrades followed in his example, only for his blade to snap clean in half soon after.

Gritting his teeth, the Barbossa looked towards his attacker. But he couldn't see her. In the place of the alleyway that had been there before, a crudely constructed wall was now forming, built from mismatched stones and bricks.

He turned to his mates, only to see another forming behind them. Stones flew in from above and clicked swiftly and firmly into place with bright flashes and sparks of purple magic.

The five men howled as they hurled attacks at the wall, kicking at the bricks as it continued to grow higher and higher. More stones came from above and a choice few struck the men on their shoulders and stomachs. Then the walls began closing it.

The mares watched curiously as Twilight concentrated. She pulled more and more bricks from the ground as the pirates fought their losing battle with the stones. The walls had began to fold in on themselves, with one continuous dome starting to form as the ends met each other.

Eventually, Twilight teetered back to look at her work. The alleyway was now mostly dirt and weeds, and the bricks were now piled and fused together into a single stone dome. The humans could still be seen and heard from inside as they moaned and roared through the crude gaps the different sized bricks created.

As easy as it was to justify pelting them with bricks and kicking them to the ground, Twilight couldn't bring herself to genuinely try and kill the creatures. And after what they did to Rainbow, it was also so much more satisfying to see them trapped inside something she had made.

“Come on. That should buy us some time.”

The mares nodded before continuing down the streets. Rarity ran to Rainbow and offered a shoulder for support, but was politely declined. Rainbow casually waved the unicorn away as she hovered into the air and shakily followed on behind the rest of her friends.

Out of the noise, one man shouted above the others in a harsh, broken voice. If the mares had stayed a few seconds longer to hear what he had to say, they might have thought he had yelled, "sparkle".

But they didn't, and while not desperately, they still ran from the pirates they had left behind. The ship wasn't far, and they didn't want to risk more men catching up to them.

Their alleyway split into two, so they chose left as they ran through more twists and turns in the hopes it got them somewhere marginally safer. They all breathed hard, but none were doing so more than Rainbow. She was flying as fast as the others could run, though her pained expression and clenched teeth gave her away.

Coming to the end of the alleyway, the five mares slowed to a stop as they came to see a larger road in front of them. It was a wide main street, and one that lead through various turns up to the castle. The pavement was littered with various shops and buildings, some broken and charred from the cannons, and others barely recognisable as buildings at all. Wrecked stalls and carts lay strewn across the road, as did their wares.

The groups of ponies herding themselves up the street were more noticeable, however. They all galloped as fast they could down the streets while the humans bled from the flying ship in the distance and gave chase after them.

But like before, the ponies were all faster and none of the men ever caught up. For the most part, anyway; some appeared injured and cut as they limped along with the others.

As more and more ponies evacuated the main street, the Barbossas soon began to ignore them and focus on what had been left behind. Some of the men never even reached the creatures they were chasing.

They instead chose to ram into doors, kicking them down or destroying them outright with small explosives, for no other apparent reason than to cause more chaos than they already had.

More and more of the men raided the buildings, and for as many as there seemed to be moving in, a small number eventually began moving back to the ship, their undeserved spoils in hand. Which was, apparently, anything they pleased.

One was carrying a selection of hats within his arms. A particularly fancy collection of hats, for that matter. He was wearing one too; a large, yellow top hat with a wide rim. Another was riding away at a near breakneck speed, hunched clumsily over a foals scooter as he struggled to control it properly.

“They're just... stealin' everything?” Applejack asked.

“I think so,” Twilight answered as she looked between the men and the pastel colours of the ponies scattered around. A small number of whom had stopped to watch the strange, bipedal pirates raid their homes

Then again, that is what Hector had said he'd do; get all the treasure he wanted. And nopony was exactly trying to stop him from doing so. Realising the pirates seemed to be more than occupied with their current objective, Twilight turned her attention to Rainbow. She was sat on the ground, her breathing laboured.

“Rainbow, how are you holding up?” Twilight asked.

“Yeah... fantastic. You know, considering that's the second time he's broken one of my legs,” she managed to say.

Twilight was prepared to argue that it wasn't exactly Hector's fault, nor did it appear that her leg was actually broken per say, but she decided that now wasn't the time to argue. Especially if it involved standing up for the alien who had organised a looting spree of the city and shot her friend in the leg.

“Just stay still for a moment.”

Twilight focused on her friend's leg, controlling her magic as it kneaded and hugged the injury. While she had a decent amount of knowledge on healing spells, the purple mare had only gone as far as healing cuts and the occasional small breaks in bones, and even then, she'd practised a lot before even trying.

Healing somepony else's injuries shouldn't have been all that hard, in theory. But she'd only ever healed herself for the most part, and even then she'd studied for it. A lot. She'd needed x-rays and knowledge of unicorn anatomy. She had practised on a plastic skeleton and memorised the structures of the body-parts she'd wanted to heal.

The only reason she'd healed her ribs on the spot a week ago was because she'd healed them before; back when she was trying to study Pinkie's sense and had her... incident with Ditzy. If it had been anything else that had happened to her, she would have seen sense and went to hospital.

Rainbow's wound was deep, but save for the bullet embedded inside, it appeared to be fine. Both the muscle and the bone had been untouched. The only problem was how would she go about healing a bullet wound?

A dull thudding echoed into the alley as three men stormed past, prompting the mares to adhere to their instinct and dive back. Rainbow winced and covered her mouth as she leaned more than she wanted to on her leg. The aliens wandered by unperturbed, and the mares all breathed a small sigh of relief.

Moving back to the the task at hoof, Twilight did the best she could. She numbed the wound and did what she could to cease the slow but steady blood-flow. She then began easing the small bullet out of its nesting place, only for it to entice the blood out that little bit quicker.

Finally giving into the sour frown on Rainbow's face, Twilight left the metal ball where it was, and numbed the wound once more. A piece of cloth to physically stem the blood would have greatly helped. She'd never really needed to heal anything more than a cut when it came to gashes on the skin.

There was a reason there were different doctors for different injuries; they each had specialities. Pistol wounds apparently weren't among Twilight's.

“We need to get you cleaned up, Rainbow.”

The cyan mare shakily nodded, almost tempted to say she already knew that. It wasn't so much the pain that bothered her. That was bearable, and she'd suffered plenty worse before, but the sight of her own blood spreading around her leg made her stomach churn.

Broken bones and wings were fine. It was just the more red she saw, the more squeamish it seemed to make her. In the end, she just deterred herself from looking, which didn't work as well as she thought it would.

“And how do we go about doing that?” Rarity asked.

“If I had enough time to concentrate and something to cover the wound, I'm sure I could heal it.”

“Saying that is all well and good, Twilight, but I can't see time being on our side right now. That, and there's an army of pirates gallivanting all around the place.”

“And we still ain't got a good idea of where Fluttershy is,” Applejack interjected. “There aren't even any guards around town.”

“Or Spike and the princesses,” Pinkie added.

Rainbow giddily nodded from where she sat on the floor and looked outwards the pirates raiding the buildings outside the alley. Most of the ponies were gone now, though a few still at least tried to fight back.

The pegasi were having the most luck. They dived down from above and pushed the men down to the ground. She wouldn't be surprised if some had also stolen their weapons, much like she had done when Hector first arrived.

Though, it all seemed pointless in the end. If the downed men didn't get back up, a few more arrived in their place soon after.

Across the street, there was also another skirmish taking place that caught her attention. Two earth ponies, who looked rather upper-class in their top-hats and monocles, bucked and kicked against another pair of humans that had managed to get halfway through the door to their home. At least, Dash assumed it was their home.

And while it seemed for the slightest moment that the ponies were winning, using whatever they could to get the advantage, they lost in the end. As their attacks continued, one of the men pulled out his pistol, and it only took the sight of a sword and the sound of the flintlock firing to scare them away.

Rainbow looked to the ponies who stood by and watched. Some were close to the men, but until they got in the way, nothing seemed to happen. The Hectors would scrounge and steal to their hearts’ content.

“They aren't bothered about us.”

“What?” Twilight asked.

“The Hectors,” Rainbow pointed out, “Unless we go after them, they don't go after us.”

Raising an eyebrow, Twilight slowly marched out into the city street, expecting the complaint unfounded. But Rainbow as right. While most of the aliens had a weapon at hand, none seemed inclined to attack unless something stood in their way. A few brave ponies even watched as their homes were robbed, and received nothing more than angered grunts and sidelong glances for their trouble.

That's when something else caught her eye; the pirates weren't the only thing the ponies had been running from. Buildings that were once rooted to the ground now lay marooned in the air. They shared the same invisible sea with that of the blackened pirate ship bobbing up and down in the distance.

The sky sifted and churned. The sun was high, shining down on the city, yet the sky itself was dark and cold. A storm was brewing. Lightning crackled across the horizon and thunder sounded to match with the marching men below, yet there were no clouds. It was as if it was all drawn onto the sky itself, behind the sun. Like a painting of a raging storm at sea. Wafts of sands flicked at Twilight's eyes, and a damp wind stroked at her coat. Bizarrely, it smelled like fresh blueberries.

And yet, the world was not upside down. The clouds were not raining chocolate milk and the hills were not patterned like old chess boards. Everything was getting there slowly. A little old storm of chaos was brewing. Literally.

“I think everypony might have guessed Discord's free...”

“But what about the Hectors? Why are we the only ones getting shot at?”

“I don't know. Maybe the Hectors looting Canterlot have other priorities,” Twilight responded. “I think we should just get away from the Hectors that are trying to hurt us before they manage to get out of their cage.”

The others nodded, and careful not to distract the Barbossas pillaging down the street, the five mares moved up the road towards the castle. Though Applejack stopped in front of Rainbow before following.

“On ma back, now. Y'all ain't in no fit state to be walkin'.”

Initially trying to shake the offer away, Rainbow soon found herself nodding. Applejack pulled the pegasus onto her back and shifted around until they were both comfortable. Once the all clear to move was given, the farmer followed on behind the others.

Despite the number of ponies that had ran through the streets, very few were left now. The only ponies outside were those brave enough to attempt a counter-attack on the pirates, while the rest appeared to be hiding in whatever buildings or dwellings they could.

Though, Twilight realised, some were probably just waiting for the men to finish their raid. She assumed they were thinking logically; if there was nothing left in the homes to pillage, then the aliens wouldn't have any need to go back inside. Whether it proved to work in the end or not was another matter entirely.

But with her eyes already set on the castle, Twilight led her friends to the front gates. They needed either the princesses or the elements of harmony. While they couldn't do anything about Hector unless they got close to him, they at least had a way of luring Discord out into the open.

That is if he hadn't already hid the elements somewhere for them to find again. Though he hadn't made it obvious he'd done anything to them, so it was about the only thing Twilight could think about doing.

At least, that was the plan until the number of pirates near the ship dwindled enough for her to free Hector's mind without difficulty; teleporting up there was all well and good, but she doubted there'd be enough time to do what she wanted, given how many men with pistols surrounded him.

The castle also had supplies they could use for Rainbow's leg. Twilight had stemmed the blood loss for now, but that would only keep the wound from getting worse for so long. The bullet needed to be removed eventually.

Before long, little under an hour had passed. They had helped anypony they could on the way, and it had been relatively easy to avoid the pirates that patrolled the streets. Growing near their destination, some more stood in their way.

Three Barbossas were raiding a small building off to the right, not caring to look at the ponies who stood barely five metres away. Two men kicked and bashed at the front door, while the other man stood there, rummaging through some crates out in front. He occasionally hauled out the innards and tossed them thoughtlessly to the ground.

“They're like wild animals,” Rarity whispered.

With a final smash, the wood of the door splintered and cracked. It hung loose from one hinge as one of the Barbossas tore it free from the other. He laughed as his mate threw what was left of the door to the ground and the two of them wandered inside.

“Think they'll want to hurt us?” Pinkie innocently asked.

“I don't think so,” Twilight replied. “I honestly think they'll leave us alone if we don't bother them.”

Seeing no other way to go other than forwards, the five mares slowly cantered behind the Barbossa rummaging through the wooden boxes. The street was wide enough for them to do so, but hardly so big that they could simply wander past, letting their hooves clop noisily on the streets. It was kind of hard to gauge what the men considered ‘getting in the way’, and being careful had proved to work thus far.

Still moving slowly, and still carefully watching the pirate going through the ponies' belongings, they all held their breath as the man suddenly stopped rummaging. He stood up straight and looked down as he cracked his shoulders.

The mares let out a sigh of relief as he then shoved his hands back into the box and pulled out a foal-sized stature of an alicorn. They couldn't tell if it was Celestia, or even Luna, but it was still an alicorn. It was made from a dull green, cloudy gemstone.

Seemingly pleased with what he held in his arms, the pirate turned towards the house again. The malachite carving was clutched in his arms as he stood at the doorway, waiting for his mates.

Smiling at their distraction, the ponies moved down the street, still making sure to keep quiet. Pinkie and Rainbow stuck out her tongues towards the man facing away, pulling faces until Applejack nudged them both enough to stop.

“Barbossa!”

The mares widened their eyes as the man in question sharply turned his neck to face them. They slowly tilted their heads away from the captain and towards the direction the sound had came from. Twilight had to resist the urge to slump her shoulders at what she saw.

There was now another human stepping out of an adjoining street, clearly not another copy of Hector. He was skinnier, and slightly shorter. His clothes also weren't of a high calibre; they looked more like rags than anything else. He wore a brown shirt and a dark brown jacket, complete with matching trousers and shoes.

He also had a monkey held within his arms who wore the same style of clothes. The little creature had a white, puffy sleeved shirt and a miniature waistcoat with a dark red pattern on it.

Still coming to terms with the new creatures stood across from them, as well as the copy of the captain now blatantly staring directly at them, the ponies blinked again as they heard a curt yell from behind the new human.

“Where?!”

Another one came out from behind the other, ragged and gasping for breath. Unlike the other man, he was fatter, and again, slightly shorter. He had no shirt, and instead just wore the dark brown jacket, with the same trousers and shoes. His chest was bare of fur, but it was still somewhat hairy, not that the same could be said for his head; he was going bald.

“It is the cap'n!” he cheered.

Both men ran towards the Barbossa holding the statue. The copy still looked towards the other men, paying no heed to the ponies well within his line of sight.

“I'm tellin' ye, it's bloody good to see yer still standin', Barbossa!” the fat man yelled as they made their way across the street. Both he and his friend briefly stared at the group of ponies before leaving them be.

“Ye seen the screamin' horses too?” the taller one asked, pointing at Twilight and her friends with his thumb. “Thought we was somewhere unholy fer a while, back there.”

The Barbossa didn't answer back. He just stood there with the statue within his clutches. A smug smile was winding its way onto his face. Applejack and Twilight shared worried looks as they resisted the urge to cause a hassle.

The two other men just looked back at him, and then to each other. The lankier one awkwardly moved his lips before raising his eyebrow. In a fit of realisation, he tore the monkey away from his chest and presented with glee to his captain.

“And we brought Jack too!. He was the one what helped us track you down.”

Twilight mouthed the monkey's name with her lips, recalling it from the first day Hector spent at the library. She looked towards Rarity, and then to Pinkie, and they had realised it too.

“Barbossa?” the fat man asked, waving a hand in front of the man's face, looking at his partner when the captain, once again, refused to answer. Or even speak at all. “Ye okay?”

- - - -

Once more ignoring their questions, Barbossa merely raised his head. He peered over their shoulders, cracking a smile at the sight beyond them.

Raising their brows, and somewhat curious, Pintel and Ragetti turned to see what was supposed to be so interesting. Six more of Barbossa stood on the street they had come, their own faces contorted into the same, strange smile the other man had.

Standing in a mild stupor, Pintel hurriedly turned back and forth between Barbossa, and Barbossa, and the other Barbossas. Ragetti did the same, flailing his lips as something he wanted to say didn't quite want to come out. Jack reached out towards the duplicated men, screeching and howling with his teeth bared.

“I don't think he's what we're lookin' for...” Pintel mumbled.

Hoping they could pull such a feat off, and rather sure they could, both men began to casually wander away. They ignored the little monkey as he raked at the open air, and they ignored the colourful horses as they watched from the sidelines.

They watched the copies of their captain began to crowd towards them. Ragetti felt a hand clasp down on his shoulder, and Pintel wandered in close as Barbossas began to surround them on all sides. A ring of men had begun to form around them.

In a fit of panic, Ragetti kicked back his leg out, striking one of the copies' legs and forcing him to the ground. Seizing the opportunity, Ragetti moved away and pulled out his sword, frantically pointing it towards the Barbossas.

Jack just climbed higher and clung to the man's hair, much to Ragetti's own discomfort. Pintel didn't stop backing away.

“Yer pullin' out yer sword on the captain?!”

“Which one you think's the real one then? We can leave that one alone!”

Somewhat pleased with the answer he received, Pintel pulled out his sword. It just so happened that they all did as well.

Not quite sure he fancied his chances with eight enemies hailing down on them, Pintel pulled out his pistol and fired the one shot it had inside. One of the men fell unceremoniously to the ground, not that any of the other duplicated seemed to care about his demise. Ragetti did the same, and he watched another man fall back as the others marched forward.

Two men down, and nothing seemed to have changed. They were still outnumbered, and if they were being honest, the attack hadn't gone as well as they thought it would. It got worse when the Barbossas charged forward, raising their own swords.

“Oh... oh bollocks...” Pintel took some more steps back, still not quite he fancied his chances. He kept his sword raised regardless.

He parried with one of the Barbossas, blocking the attacks that came and frantically struck back where he could. The blades chimed, practically sparking with each hit as the chubbier man failed to match his captain’s expertise. Or so he thought.

Striking forward once more, Pintel pierced his blade through the man's gut. The Barbossa blinked, staring down to the metal as he slid lifelessly from it and onto the ground. Looking at the body, Pintel rolled his shoulders, cracking a confident smile. He'd defeated Captain Hector Barbossa. One of them, anyway.

It had been a bit easier than he thought it should have been. He didn't know a man better with a sword than Barbossa. There was no way he should have landed a single hit, let alone won the fight. Maybe he had just been lucky? It was about time.

Coming back to his senses, another attack was blocked as another of the Barbossas stepped forward. It was only then that Pintel had a chance to look at the blade. It was clean.

“No... blood?”

Struggling to come up with the same luck he did last time, Pintel continued the assault until his opponent was forced to step back. Ragetti wasn't faring all that much better.

Running forward, Ragetti went for another Barbossa as it ran for him, only to see it forced to floor as a set of orange hooves bucked into him from the side. Ragetti creased his brow as he looked at the little orange horse in the weird little hat, and promptly decided that as long as it was helping, he didn't really want to know. He moved onto the next man.

This time, nothing stopped him from attacking, but much to his dismay, the captain's copy pulled up his cutlass, blocking the strike perfectly. The rest of the opposing side had donned the tactic too, blocking when the fight didn't go their way.

Trying again, Ragetti struck his sword down as hard as he could, and then did so again from the side, but all his hits were parried by the captain. Each time he failed, he was forced back, and he soon found his uncle by his side, albeit walking away on his own accord.

Out of the corner of their eyes, the two deckhands could see one little horse sneaking across the floor, her pink body lowered as if she was ready to jump or pounce. If she meant to attack or simply surprise, Ragetti never found out as she watched a Barbossa swiftly kick her in the face. She fell back, but the copy didn't deter, and continued fighting.

Believing it was high-time for a new tactic, Pintel blocked one final attack, and forced his foot into the air as hard as he could manage. It struck his enemy below the belt, and the man slowly dropped to his knees as he clutched his trousers. Another two men soon came from a nearby building to replace him.

“I don't reckon',” Ragetti said, not really trying to attack any more as he wandered back, “I like this...”

“I reckon it be about time for a tactical retreat.”

“But we ain't found the captain yet.”

“I'm pretty sure he's around this place somewhere!”

Also not trying very hard to attack their prey, the duplicate men wandered ever forward, and as the cobblestones beneath their feet began to rise into the air, both crewman decided there wasn't much room for debate. Especially when it came to the joys of a tactical retreat.

And besides, they were facing a crowd of Barbossas. Unless something had gone very wrong while he'd been away, there was a good chance they were on the right track.

- - - -

Wanting to at least talk to the new humans on the scene, Twilight tiredly sighed as they proceeded to run away, already fleeing from the Barbossas on their tail. She attacked the copies as best she could with the stones as they all ran, though only one fell to her. Creating the dome and healing Rainbow must have taken more out of her than she thought.

Twilight turned around, pushing the frown she had away from her face as she held a deep breath, releasing it a moment later. The situation was continuously getting more and more complicated. Pointlessly complicated. Everything was just trying its hardest to go wrong.

Fluttershy, Spike, the princesses, and apparently the entire royal guard were missing. Hector was unknowingly (or so she hoped) sending an army of himself to attack the Equestrian capital. Discord was free to do what he wanted. And Rainbow had been shot in the leg.

And now, to top the perfect day off, two more humans were running around for no other apparent reason than to simply make the entire ordeal more complicated. She didn't even know who they were, or how they'd got to Canterlot in the first place.

Oh, and there was somehow a monkey involved too.

“At least we know they're friends with Hector...”

Looking at her friends, and realising she had spoken out loud, Twilight let out another long breath as she trotted back towards them, briefly making sure no other duplicate buccaneers were trying to hunt them down. There weren't any.

“What was that, dear?”

“I'm just trying to get my thoughts into order,” Twilight moaned, “There's just too much going on. I don't even know how those two got here...”

It was obvious who she was talking about, even without a species, or indeed a name, to go by.

“Perhaps we shouldn't dwell on that for now, Twilight,” Rarity offered, motioning down to Rainbow. “There are other things for us to worry about.”

She was now sat on the ground, thanks to Applejack’s impromptu attack on the pirates.

“Leg still hurts by the way,” she joked with a casual wave.

Several pieces of cloth hit the blue mare in the face as she finished. Pulling them away, she twitched her muzzle and glanced up to see Applejack stood in front of her, dropping a few more onto the ground.

“Now we can go about fixin' that.”

Twilight moved forward and gently kicked the small pile of fabrics with her hooves. She looked to Applejack with an eyebrow raised.

“Where did you get these?”

“They were in the front hall o' that house. I left some bits for 'em.”

Asking more out of curiosity than to accuse the good farmer of stealing, despite now being one of the few times Twilight would have considered the deed appropriate, the purple mare thankfully nodded and turned to face the injured Rainbow.

“Well, we're going back in there. I'd rather be somewhere indoors in case any Hectors come back.”

So they did. Rarity and Applejack helped move Rainbow, who insisted she could walk on her own. She didn't fare very well, and soon found herself laying down on a stranger's living room floor. Twilight was already doing whatever it was she needed to do, which seemed to be nothing more than mumbling to herself and preparing the cloth.

“Now we can get that little bullet out of you.”

Rainbow looked down at her leg, swallowing hard as she closed her eyes. Twilight was levitating the cloths to her side and removing any dirt or contaminants from Rainbow's injury. Specks of sand were removed too.

“It's going to hurt, isn't it?”

“Probably. More if you try and move,” Twilight said casually, “Now... hold still.”

Nodding meekly as a reply, Rainbow lowered her head, resting it on the floor as she prepared for the inevitable. At the very least, she reasoned the pain would be followed by less pain and less blood, both of which would be welcome.

After waiting for five minutes she felt a good portion of leg numbing, as well as becoming tighter and tenser. She cautiously opened her eyes, only to see her limb being wrapped in some patterned fabric. It had some green ducks on it.

Minutes later, Rainbow pushed on her forelegs, trying to stand herself up. She was lightly pushed back down by Twilight.

“Stay down for for a while; magic takes time to heal wounds. You should be good enough to limp in about five minutes.”

“I thought you said it would hurt?”

“I assumed it would. I haven't done this before, though it wasn't as hard as I initially thought. Mopping up the blood helped. And I got the bullet out, see?” she said, floating the bloody, steel ball in front of Rainbow's face.

Rainbow curiously glanced at it, feeling her stomach churn as she took notice of the small, red pieces of... something stuck around it.

“Can I keep it?”

But she still thought it was cool, and she was sure nopony else had something that had been shot into their body, then removed. At least, she didn't know anypony that had something that was shot into them by an alien.

“If you want?” Twilight nervously replied, levitating the aforementioned item into into Rainbow's eager hoof. ”But we still need to work out a plan and get to the castle.”

“What about those two humans?” Pinkie wondered out loud.

Twilight honestly had no idea. The only thing she had to go on was the monkey, but even then, that did nothing to explain who they were. They obviously knew Hector, so that was a start. Then again, it was likely that not all of the honourable captain's friends could be called trustworthy. Or friendly. But she couldn't just leave them, could she? What if they were trustworthy? What if they were the good guys?

“I don't know. We don't even know where they are right now, and to be honest, I think we have bigger problems to worry about.They don't seem bad, but even if they are, they're drops in the ocean now.”

She realised that sounded slightly harsh, but Twilight knew she was right. There were countless copies of Barbossa running amok in the city. Much more than Rainbow said there were on the ship. Two more humans weren't going to cause a massive amount of change in the equation, and even if they were good souls, she wasn't sure how much they could help.

“If we get the elements or one of the princesses, we can help them along with everypony else. But until we can actually do anything, they're on their own.”

- - - -

“Move yer bloody legs!”

It was a small hope of Pintel's that shouting would somehow make up for the lack of speed his legs were inclined to offer him in his current situation.

“You're the one behind me!”

“Just keep goin'!”

Sadly, it wasn't. The men had no earthly idea what was going on any more. They'd given up trying to guess an age ago. Moving through the castle had been simple enough, seeing as there hadn't been any guards or people around to see them. But now they knew why.

People weren't anywhere. Just horses. Lots of coloured horses. Looking back on it all, it made some sort of distorted sense. The castle was filled with luxurious works of art and even suits of gilded armour. And the all of them took inspiration from the equine form instead of a human one.

But even seeing that, the notion that men in general weren't a prospect here didn't really occur to the two pirates. They had just assumed the owners of whatever castle they had found just really, really liked horses. Many lords and ladies of the higher societies had a love for horses, so what else was there to think?

But this was just bizarre. Everything was a size too small, there was a storm brewing behind the sun as it sat high in the sky. They were close to being attacked by bricks from the street and every time they passed a little horse, it screamed at them and fled in raw terror.

Then again, it was more likely they did so because of the horde of Hector Barbossas that Pintel and Ragetti were fleeing from.

The men just continued to move their legs as fast as they could, running anywhere that looked inviting in the foreign city. They had no idea where they were headed, nor where they even were, but anywhere was better than slowing down.

“How many are there?!” Ragetti screamed at his uncle, jumping over another small horse as it cowered at his approach.

Pintel still continued to run, waving his arms at his side in the hopes that it made him move faster. Breathing deeply, and fast losing what was left of his breath, he turned his head, quickly turning it back to his front.

“Oh God...”

At first, there was just the three of them. They had made good on the notion to attack, seeing as there was a good chance they could beat three enemies seeing they'd done so well before. But when they moved to take them down, two more appeared from within another building.

They, for no apparent reason, dropped whatever it was they were carrying and joined in the chase with the others. Abandoning hope to actually win the fight, and rather hoping not to contract a terminal case of death, Pintel and Ragetti just kept running as they desperately tried to escape their pursuers. Which, for the most part, was a pretty solid plan.

Now there was more than he cared for. Twenty, at the very least, and probably more. They had continued to run through the alien city. And with each street they ran through, more copies of their captain joined them to pointlessly give chase.

“Too many!” Pintel screeched back, remembering he had, in fact, been asked a question. “Where the hell they all comin’ from?!

“And why're they chasin' us?!” Ragetti whined.

“How the hell should I know! Just keep peddlin' yer legs!”

The little horses were of no help either. The one in the hat had been a diamond in the rough. Any others that they came across just fled at the sight of their pursuers, though the two men couldn't exactly argue with their reasoning.

It was like some sick, twisted nightmare. Everything was just wrong. Pintel thought he'd be thrown in an asylum if he ever told anyone about what he was experiencing now. He was being chased by a crowd of his captain, surrounded by colourful horses and in a world where day and night lasted but a few minutes at a time.

The younger of the two men wasn't faring much better. That became obvious when Pintel managed to catch up to him. During their run, Jack had somehow climbed up onto Ragetti's back. He hung from the man's collar, still screeching at the army of faux Barbossas following them.

“We can't keep goin'!” Pintel cried.

He could feel his legs going numb. All the blood he'd gathered for the first few minutes had long since vanished, and the only reason he was still going was for the sake of his own skin. If he was running for something he genuinely wanted, all the gold in the world, a dinner to make old King George jealous, he would have undoubtedly stopped a long time ago.

“Ye wanna...” Ragetti wheezed, “go out in a blaze o' glory, like what the captains Jack and Barbossa did?”

Briefly turning his head back over his shoulder, and seeing the threat looming closer than it had been before, Pintel let a dry cough escape his lungs as his answer. He eventually found the strength to nod.

“Aye... Let the bastards have it!”

As both men hobbled to a stop, they wearily pulled out their swords and turned around. With the last ounce of strength he could muster, Ragetti pulled his pistol from his side and aimed it straight for the horde approaching them. Pintel did the same as his nephew. They were glad they had refilled them.

“Good luck,” Pintel said, clenching his hand around the weapons in his grip.

“Aye, Uncle,” Ragetti said, moving his neck to let the little monkey hold on tighter. “You too.”

You Look Good Jack

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 17
You Look Good Jack

“Heave!”

A hefty portion of the royal guard forced their bodies forward, ramming their armour-clad heads into the gates of their prison. Their helmets grated with each impact. It seemed a tad primitive in a way, but it was all they could really do at this point, whether they liked it or not.

“Ho!” Shining Armour yelled out from within the group, forcing his way forward along with the rest of them. The herd of ponies at the gate comprised of a dozen or so soldiers, but that was largely due to the gates size; they couldn't really fit much more around it. "Put your backs into!"

Though the more the ponies tried, and the more the bars refused to strain under their strength, Shining wondered how much their efforts were actually achieving. Two hours must have passed since they had begun, and the dent in the bars largely remained unchanged. And that was with the guards constantly switching out every fifteen minutes to keep the assault going strong.

Not that time truly seemed to matter at this point.

The gate wasn't impervious, which was Shining's ray of sunshine in all of this. If it could be opened to let them all in, it could be opened to let them out.

Groups of ponies had been stuffed into almost every corner of the tiny cage. Well, it was more like one large group was gathered inside the cage; by Shining's reckoning, near enough the entire royal guard had to be there. Those under Luna's direct command included.

Hay was scattered generously beneath their hooves and dishes filled with multicoloured pellets were positioned in one of the corners of their prison. A water bottle was poking through the bars against one of the walls.

If their current reduction in size hadn't been insult enough, a prison better suited to a household hamster was surely the icing on the proverbial cake.

As dire as that seemed, there was little time to be spent wallowing in self pity. Especially now that Discord himself was free for the second time in little over a year. Not only were Twilight and the Royal Sisters in jeopardy, the ponies in the city below were also at serious risk.

“Once more!” a much darker pegasus called out. Her sharp teeth bared as she swooped down on the door and joined the fray, her fore-hooves crashing into the metal bars. Captain Stark Light was commanding now.

Both sides of the force had always been on uneasy terms, given their rulers' history with each other. But, at the moment, either side wasn't really concerned with which commander was commanding them. They had a job to do, and even if they were against chaos itself, they were going to do it.

“And again!” both leaders bellowed in unison, rearing their head as the ponies under their command pushed and shoved their shoulders forward. Light charged once again from above.

The ponies fell forward with differing yells of surprise as the gilded metal suddenly shifted further than it ever had before. With an end result actually forming from the effort, more soldiers rushed to join them. Pegasi began to charge at the gate in a barrage from above, following in Stark Light's example.

There was at least twenty ponies now. Those resting towards the back of the cage raised their heads, marching forward in some show of support. They cheered and pounded their hooves on the hay covered floor with each forward charge, urging their comrades on.

“It's giving way!”

Shining couldn't tell who had called out, but group morale picked up regardless. Whatever guards were stood at the door ran back, and stormed forward faster and harder in a singular force. A unified army. Many of those gathered at the sidelines rushed to aide in whatever way they could, though most hovered around the cage, moving eagerly from hoof to hoof.

And then, with one final effort, the gate finally gave way.

The guards at the forefront tumbled out of the cage, hitting the marbled floor as their armour clattered to a cacophony of dull thuds and scrapes. None of them stopped long enough to check for damages.

They were out.

“Right!” Captain Stark Light yelled, her voice commanding out above the rest. “You lot! Check the perimeter. Search out potential escape routes and assess the situation!”

The uneven gathering of dark and light guards she'd motioned towards gave no hesitation in agreeing with the mare's orders. They all had the exact same goal in kind, regardless of who was giving them the task.

“And the rest of you!” Another gathering to her left immediately stood to full attention, hooves raised in a salute. “Get your sorry flanks to the mirror before Discord gets his back in here!”

Shining rolled his eyes at the Lunar Captain. Despite her high authority, she had always been a rather frank commander. He had to admit though; it was refreshing to see a mare take charge of an army rather than a stuffy old stallion with a beard.

Turning away, Shining Armour gave his own set of orders to any soldier near enough to hear, though careful not to go against anything set down by his Lunar counterpart. If anything, this was the best both sides of the royal guard had worked together since the Princess of the Night's return.

But given the situation at hoof, he didn't really think it was quite worth celebrating at the moment.

Besides, it was their only chance to do something, given what Discord had done to them. It had happened all at once, really. One minute he was in his office finishing the last of his lunch, and the next thing he knew he was surrounded by the rest of his guard, locked in an undersized cage with Discord towering over them like a deranged child.

A humongous child.

While most had settled into a routine of attempting to escape, some had not taken the situation very well. Discovering you were, suddenly, smaller than a common mouse did nothing for your self-esteem, after all. It was a miracle that morale had not faltered entirely.

Shining Armour felt the top of his head, massaging the space where his horn used to be. The rest of the hornless unicorns had done the same countless time since their incarceration. That hadn't helped the situation either.

But now they were out of the cage, and despite their less than dignified size, they were finally at liberty to make a difference. No matter how small it was.

“Pegasi, ready!” the Night Commander yelled.

Both species of pegasi moved into what little formation they could muster, with groups of stallions and mares looking to each other for any sign of a unified stance. Not everypony had extensive battle training, admittedly, since there really hadn't been a need until recent years. But flight formations were still a practised exercise in the guard.

The ponies took the skies at the Lunar Captain's command, uniformed and ready to search for a means of escape. Or anything that could give them an advantage.

The rest of the stallions charged towards a mirror at the other end of the throne room, watching it tower over their diminutive stature. Their hooves beat against the tiles, tapping away as their journey stretched on for much longer than it would have done at their natural size.

What should have taken seconds took them minutes, but they soldiered on regardless. Given who their enemy was, they probably didn't even have that much time to make a real difference. But a difference, no matter how small, was still a difference. And that was all that mattered.

A soft chuckle suddenly echoed out through the oversized throne room. “Oh, how simply adorable,” an unmistakable voice taunted, as if on cue.

The captains were the first to stop in their tracks, followed closely by the rest of the ponies galloping across the floor towards the mirror. One by one they all turned to look up to the gigantic form of Discord as he sat there on empty air, ignorant of whether he should have been able to float there at all.

Discord slowly floated down, putting his face right up to the captain of the Lunar Knights before picking her up by the helm with his lions paw. The mare barely measured up to the size Discord's eye, let alone anything else.

“I mean, really, can't you see how cute you all look?”

The Captain struggled underneath the paw holding her. She watched on as her forces far below on the tiled floor began to attempt some form of attack. It came as no surprise to her that nothing came from the effort. No weapons and a distinct lack of magic will do that to a pony.

But the Pegasi charged on. Ponies of both races were storming towards the draconequus with their wings held close to their sides. A basic set of formations spun together in the air and dove down from above Discord's head.

Before he could even notice them, they slammed their hooves against him as a single attacking force. Their hooves impacted hard with Discord's antler, all their weight thrown into the attack. But the overall effect barely seemed to bother him at all, as if the harsh impact had only nudged him. From where Stark Light was held, it barely had.

The draconequus let out a deep sighed.

“Oh, ouch, that really hurt,” he managed to muster. He turned to the ponies, hovering in the air behind him “Quite frankly, I was expecting a rather more daring rescue attempt.”

In all fairness, even the captain held within Discord's grasp was saddened by the attempt her ponies had made. She doubted they could have done much to harm Chaos Incarnate even if they had been their normal size.

“Maybe I should have taken away your wings?” Discord mused, tapping at his chin. “Taking away your horns away worked a treat, after all.”

<< ☠ >>

Cracking his tail against the air, Discord watched as all the little ponies scrambled their way towards the floor below, anticipating their magical amputation. He watched them eagerly as they neared the floor.

It would be all well and good to let them fall to their deaths, but that wasn't really his style. It would be much more fun to treat them like pets. Ponies, like a large number of creatures, all had the rather common trait of getting a rather fatal case of death when falling from great heights. And it could be needlessly messy at times.

Just as most of them had landed safely he let his powers snap away at their reality, pulling their feather coated limbs out of existence. A few lonely guards fell the last few inches, while another dozen or so followed the rules of motion and skidded across the floor when they finally made contact.

Seeing the little things panic and squirm as they tried to move their wings – the ones that weren't there any more – was quite the sight to see. As soon as they realised what had happened, anger resounded across a great deal of their faces.

“Stop doing that!” a lone guard yelled up at the air. Discord's only response was to turn the pony's coat from white to green. Luminous green. With reflective, white polka-dots.

Not quite pleased with the effort he'd put into the transformation, he clicked his tongue against his teeth and watched as a tree painlessly grew from the stallions back. A few apples, equally as white and reflective as the spots, bloomed from the leaves.

“Now,” he announced, suitably pleased, “I think you've all been out your cage a little too long.” And with that, the guards all vanished with an audible pop.

Once they had reappeared, the ponies glanced around to find themselves all back inside the confines of their cage, the bars seamless and unbroken. Anything that even closely resembled a gate was now gone.

Waiting until they'd all realised they had utterly failed, and lost their wings for their efforts, Discord looked down upon the small cage. Combing a paw through his beard, Discord did his best to pretend to count how many guards were back in the cage.

He'd been in the room the whole time, and he was more than certain no pony had escaped, but it was still fun to tease them with the hope.

“And...have some food too,” he decide, letting a giant – giant to the ponies, at least – carrot cake appear amidst them in the cage. It practically buried a few of them upon impact. “I hear it's still in style. Imagine, after all these years.”

No point in letting them go hungry though. Starvation wasn't the nicest thing to look at either, and there was no point trying to mess with the populous if they could barely walk the length of themselves. Besides making it rain food was as good a pastime as any, Discord mused.

“Speaking of which...”

He cracked the joints in his claw with a flex, letting the sound of fireworks emanate from his immortal bones instead of a mundane crack. Discord waited intently until the satisfying trickle of cherryade began raining down on the world outside.

It even fizzed when it hit the ground.

Chocolate rain was so last season, anyway. Or was it two or three seasons? It would be less than chaotic if he did the same thing twice in a row, especially now that a good deal of the ponies alive remembered his last visit. Where would the thrill be if everyone just expected him to do it whenever he turned up?

Moving over to one of the many windows that lined the throne room, Discord stuck his head out through the glass, as if it wasn't even there at all. He looked out over the city below and, subsequently, the pirate ship floating just above it in the distance.

“I know he wanted black, but it's a tad droll...”

Shrugging his shoulders, he nonchalantly waved his paw in the air towards the vessel. Paint began to draw and decorate the sails until his own likeness was there in bright pink on the black fabric. Complete with pirate hat to boot.

“It is still black,” he mumbled to himself, trailing off into a chuckling.

The pirate was fun though. Hector Barbossa didn't even need to be hypnotised or influenced to be chaotic. After all, he acted that way on his own. He was like a child.

“A bearded child.”

Children were naturally chaotic. Order and harmony weren't yet locked into their minds. They did whatever they wanted. Or most did. Times had changed, but even in this day and age, most of the foals around the land seemed to enjoy the prospect of causing mischief and mayhem.

Though the captain didn't stop at mischief. He was violent, and clearly none too humorous to the idea of complete harmony, which made Discord wonder what kind of wonderful world the human came from.

He didn't really care for worlds other than his own, but the idea of a world run by the ideal of chaos rather than order still amused him.

But right now, in his own world, everything was once again going the way he wanted. Nothing was set to a schedule, the days and nights weren't planned right down to the minute. The animals weren't being told what to do and the populous had no idea what was going to happen anymore.

And this time, Discord decided, he'd be sure to stay free for a lot longer than a few hours.

“What do you think Celestia?” Discord asked, gleefully. He waved towards the small gilded cage as he spoke into the mirror. “Aren't they cute?”

And this was his first way of staying free.

Celestia just looked out from the shining glass as she sat within the mirrors reflection. The room was exactly the same, spare for that fact that she and Luna were the only living things inside the door-less room. Their company couldn't very well be enjoyed if they could wander very far out of sight

“Oh cheer up,” he grumbled. “If Twilight Sparkle had done this you'd be all for fawning over the littlest guards in Equestria.”

“We,” another voice called out, “don't think Twilight Sparkle would do such a thing on purpose.”

Luna wandered out into the mirrors view. She didn't wear any happier an expression than her sister did, though the Princess of the Night at least had the decency of answering back. It was fun when they answered back.

“Maybe not, but you'd still think it was adorable.”

Discord leaned over and rested his paw against the rim of the mirror. It was simple in its design. A simple, oval casing framing the sleek piece of glass at its core. It stood as tall as Celestia herself, hovering effortlessly in the air with nothing below to support it.

“You're not very talkative today, are you, Tia. I mean, you should be ecstatic; Discord's back in town,” he exclaimed to the sound of trumpets and party poppers. “And so soon after my last visit too. I'm surprised you let me through the door in one piece.”

Celestia didn't bother responding. The mare had gone to check on her sister and the state of Captain Barbossa's portal home, only to find Discord dancing in the hallway with a set of maracas. Luna was held against the wall, her torso and limbs held in place with used chewing-gum

Eventually, however, Celestia did say something. “You shouldn't have been let out the first time, let alone a second,” she sighed.

Discord nodded at Celestia's comment. It was, after all, not really something he could argue against. “Yes, well, I must admit it was a rather nice surprise,” he admitted. “I mean, really, what are the chances?”

Truth be told, Celestia didn't really know. Discord would have gotten out eventually. She had to accept that, now that mortals had the Elements of Harmony in their hearts. But it hadn't even been a whole two years. Surely he needed just a little longer in his imprisonment?

It wasn't like she would have left him in the statue forever. She'd planned on a change of sentence compared to his first thousand years trapped in stone, but he'd still been freed far too fast.

“How did you bring him here?”

The only difference to anything was Hector Barbossa. Everything else had remained constant until the man's arrival. He was the deciding factor in all of this. It was the only logical cause she could think of.

“Really? This again?” Discord sighed. “Celestia, my dear, you're far too quick to blame me.”

“You really think I believe you had nothing to do with it? That a he just happened to fall from the sky into our world one week and you're free the next?”

Discord pinched the space between his eyes with his talons, letting both of them close as he let out another sigh. He was just waiting for her to bring it up. He knew she would.

“Tia, I have trouble believing it,” he said. “I just don't like to look a gift horse in the mouth.”

Especially when it was so close to the last time he was free. He honestly couldn't believe he'd been that fortunate. Sure, beings from other worlds had came to Equestria before, but they were so very far from common. And for one of those few to actually have a power chaotic enough, active enough, to release him just sitting in their pocket?

Well, that was luckier still.

Thinking back on it, Discord had even seen one of the other arrivals during his first incarceration in stone, even if it was nothing more than a wild animal. It was a curious thing to behold, and quite a size too; it was almost like a giant turtle of some sort, except it had deep sapphire scales and cannons mounted in its shell.

Then again, as intriguing as the giant turtle was, all it had accomplished was to tear through the royal gardens in a panicked frenzy before being set upon by a sizeable herd of Celestia's royal guard. If memory served, it breached the castle walls and lost the ensuing battle. Rather badly.

Barbossa's coin, however, was something so much more interesting than any creature to arrive in Equestria. It was a wild, untamed kind of magical. As if the chaos inside it was merely a by-product of its true purpose, not created by design. From what he'd seen of its power, it probably was.

The only downside of such a powerful artefact was that Discord himself couldn't really do much with it. As much as it pained him to discover, whoever created the coin was clearly a class or two above his own.

If Twilight Sparkle hadn't kick started the curse inside, he wouldn't have even been able to reach out for it and gain freedom in the first place. So the creator was likely a being with more power than the Element of Magic and the Lord of Chaos combined. A rather tricky customer indeed.

That same being may or may not have been the reason Discord quite liked the idea of staying in his own universe. Unofficially, of course.

Not that he wasn't impressed by the coin, because he was, but it was such a hassle to work with. Reigniting the curse inside was hard enough as it was, let alone getting it to work properly. Still, the captain turned into a skeleton at night, which was good enough for now. It couldn't have done much more than that, surely?

The captain himself wasn't all that strong though; he was chaotic in nature, but nothing much beyond that. His mind was a tameable as any other creature Discord could get his paws on.

“And the others?” Celestia continued. Her voice came stern, but curious. “The turtle, the cave creature?” She paused. “And the Torment? You...truly had nothing to do with them?”

And there it was. Celestia was persistent about the Torment. Even before his first time as a statue, she'd been adamant he'd had something to do with the fishy thing. Discord didn't even have to do anything to that one, that creature was beastly all on his own.

“I've told you before, and I'll tell you again. I'm a reality warper and this is our reality,” he said as he waved his arms in a large arc, creating a rainbow in their wake. “Anything beyond that is strictly outside of my jurisdiction.”

As sad a fact as it was, he couldn't just summon beings from other worlds. Once they were inside they were fair game, but he couldn't just pull them through. It would have been marvellously fun if he could.

Perhaps it wasn't a huge loss, especially when it was obvious that certain aspects of other worlds seemed to better him. The magic of the coin, and its creator, included.

“If I could get anything I wanted, from any world I wanted, there'd be a lot more of those pirates running around outside,” he teased. “Oh...wait a minute, there is!”

Discord danced a little jig in the air before swaying his pawed arm towards the city outside. There was suddenly a loud squelch from beyond the castle walls. He wasn't sure what he'd just created, but he'd made sure it messy. And chocolaty.

“Is that why you made more of him? To compensate for your lack of p-”

“Actually,” Discord swiftly interrupted, “he wanted a crew made up of his own species. And seeing as I didn't have much to work with, I improvised.”

“But why so many?” Luna interrupted. “What possible need is there for the amount you provided him?”

“I gave him what he wanted; a nice, strong crew of thirty men.” He paused, tilting his head to the side. “And another for each one that stepped of the ship. He felt at such a loss with so many ponies around, I just had to even the playing field.”

“So you just gave him an army that would allow him to do what he wanted to the city unhindered?” Luna bellowed.

“Ah, now, I didn't ask what he wanted them for. Why would I want to do that?” He shrugged. “It's more of a surprise that way, don't you think?”

“Not when you hypnotise him into doing what you want.”

Another sigh from Discord. “It was most definitely not hypnosis. I'm not that trivial. I merely brought some his desires to the forefront of his mind. Seeing as he had very little mind to act on them, given your little ponies have gotten on his good side. I just gave him a little nudge in the right direction.”

“He was going home,” Celestia stated. Her face was closer to the glass, yet no closer to discord himself. Her eyes were wide with what Discord thought might have been sadness. Guilt?

“Well, he can do what he wants now. I've gotten what I can from him, so he can go for a wander through your little portal whenever he pleases. It isn't like I can close it anyway.” He had Luna's spells to thank for that little gem.

Besides, closing it would stop any other potential fun, fury filled pirates from walking through.

“And how is he meant to find it when he isn't even thinking with his own senses?” Luna asked.

“That's his problem, not mine. Chances are, he'll break free of my control eventually,” he replied confidently. “He'll probably find it sooner or later.”

Luna and Celestia both took notice, realising the paradox between what Discord had said and the way he'd said it. They glanced at each other briefly.

“Why doesn't that worry you?” Celestia asked with concern.

“Because, now that I've seen how he thinks, he isn't really needed,” Discord said, floating over to the window with the mirror in tow. He shattered the window, letting the royal sisters see the world below, and the pirate swarm that had began to swarm over it. “I can just make more of him.”

<< ☠ >>

“Bloody idiot.”

Pintel just hung there, dangling unceremoniously from the pole his wrists and ankles had been bound to. A pair of Barbossas carried his limp form through the oddly colourful streets like a hog to a roast. Ragetti's captors followed on behind with the man in no better a situation.

“It weren't my fault!” Ragetti whined. “You were the one what agreed te stop!”

Their blaze of glory hadn't gone quite how they'd envisioned it. They were expecting death, or something painful at the very least. While they were glad they'd escaped their seemingly terminal fate, the situation they were in now didn't appear to be much better

The hoard of Hector Barbossas hadn't so much attacked them as simply crowded around the two men and jumped on top. Once the mass of men had eventually removed themselves, the two deck hands had been tied and secured.

Now they were being carted off to an, as of yet, undisclosed location.

Jack had gotten the same treatment, though rather than being paraded about on the stick they had bound the little thing and given him to yet another Barbossa to carry around. Despite the monkey’s struggles, the pirate appeared to have no issue lugging him around.

Not a lot of the copy-cat captains stuck around after that. As soon as they were captured, most of the blighters wandered off and began to raid the nearby buildings. All that was left were the four clones carrying them and a few more walking along with the spoils of their raids.

“Nice spectacles,” Ragetti gingerly said to the Barbossa walking not too far from his side.

The man was wearing large, black rimmed frames surrounding deep purple pieces of glass. Ragetti couldn't even see his eyes. In response, the Barbossa merely growled and turned back to face the road ahead.

That particular Barbossa was also carrying a large black wooden box. It had an indent in the middle covered in some sort of fabric which took up more than half of the container. Ragetti couldn't even hazard a guess as to what it was for. 'Pon3' was emblazoned on the side in silver, which only managed to confuse him further.

Another Barbossa had something stranger still. He was pulling a little red wagon behind him which held, among other things, a strange board with wheels stuck onto it. A long bar rose from one end and was topped with a handle at either side.

The wagon also held Pintel and Ragetti's weapons, but there wasn't much they could do about that. They didn't really have a way of actually reaching them.

“What you got there then?” Pintel asked, not really sure which of the men he was really asking.

Thinking on that, it appeared none of them actually had the ability talk beyond simple phrases, laughter or yelling. Or, if they could speak, they simply chose not to. They were like animals or even the captain himself if he'd suffered a rather bad knock to the head as a baby.

The only responses Pintel got for his question were nothing more than deep noises and grunts, just as he’d come to expect.

In the end the two detainees just relaxed in the grips of their captors as they watched the strange world go by. Jack was still struggling away though. It only amounted to the little monkey wriggling his feet around and screeching out in frustration, but it was something.

After a while, it dawned on them that watching the city of horses go by wasn't as interesting as they thought it was going to be. They saw more than a few Barbossas roaming between buildings and scrounging around through boxes and crates, but not many horses.

Well, there weren't many out in the open. Quite a few were looking down from behind closed windows or atop buildings. Pintel and Ragetti were sort of hoping one would be kind enough to try and save them, or even attempt to steal them away from their kidnappers.

“Hey,” Pintel called out, finally seeing one on the ground. It stood down an alleyway, cowering behind a set of metal bins amidst rubbish and debris. “Hey!”

He wanted to try and get some help, at least. If the orange one in the funny hat was willing to help fight Barbossa off, one more must have been willing to give them assistance.

“Over 'ere!” For a moment he thought the little creature hadn't even noticed them. A brief moment of eye contact suggested otherwise. “Help!”

The little horse didn't so much as budge from the spot and lowered its head, shaking. A couple more walked into view from somewhere behind the creature, both of whom stopped as they looked straight at Pintel.

“Oh come on! Please?” Pintel tried to once again wriggle free from his pole in a frantic struggle. It didn't do anything to get him away from the Barbossas carting him down the street. “Anyone?!”

All three of the horses looked warily from one to the other, eventually aiming their sights back on Pintel. They shrunk back further into the alley as both men and their procession moved away.

A few seconds passed before Ragetti let out a sigh and said, “There goes that idea then.”

“Aye,” Pintel mumbled in agreement. “Just peachy, ain't it?”

Neither of them bothered trying after that. Most of the horses they passed didn't really pay much attention to them. A good deal of them seemed more concerned with the state of the buildings around the city or running away from the pirates as they approached.

Most of them were, anyway.

“Hey, butter-beard!” a voice suddenly called. “Give me back my speaker!”

Ragetti tilted his head back, trying as hard as he could to look to where the voice had come from. He couldn't see it clearly, but he still caught a glimpse of the little horse. It was alabaster white with a bright, lightning blue mane. And a horrid set of red eyes.

The Barbossa holding the black box came to a swift halt and turned around. The rest of the clones just wandered on as if the horse wasn't there at all.

“Oh, you remember me?” was all Ragetti heard before the black box began floating into the air, taking the captain with it as he held on tight to his plunder. “Well, let’s see how you like getting flung against a brick wall!”

Pintel and Ragetti watched for as long as they could until they'd passed the commotion. The Barbossa held tight onto the 'speaker' as it was raised high into the air. He held tighter still as the box shook violently from side to side. Like a child's rattle.

The last thing they saw was their captain's copy struggling to keep hold as the continued motions of the box catapulted him to the side of a building. Then to the ground shortly after.

“Any chance of you gettin' the rest o' them?!” Pintel shouted out. He waited eagerly for any sort of response.

Both men sighed as none came.

“Damned horses,” Pintel mumbled.

The skinnier of the two men nodded in agreement before deciding, once again, that just watching the world go by was the best course of action. It was the only course of action they could take, but that was beside the point.

Nothing else worthy of notice happened for the rest of their journey. A few Barbossa could be seen looting whatever they could find, but a good deal of the houses now remained broken and empty husks of their formers selves.

Windows were smashed, and undersized doors and been broken in. It was clear the area had been pilfered of any value already. Both men assumed it simply meant there was nothing left there that their captain found worthwhile, despite the sheer number of buildings that now surrounded them on both sides.

After the ruined buildings had been passed, the two men took notice of something far stranger. It was also then that they found out where it was they were being taken.

“B-boat...” Ragetti mumbled, watching as the massive ship floated in the air above them. Effortlessly drifting across the skyline on a sea of air.

“Flyin'...” Pintel focused his eyes. “Here, ain't...ain't that the Pearl?”

It was just there, flying in the sky. Like a dark cloud over a castle, or a storm getting ready to rage at sea. Or something equally as ominous, Pintel thought. While it didn't look exactly like the Black Pearl, it looked enough like it. Anyone would think they looked the same before a second glance.

But at the same time, it wasn't the same. It was bigger, for starters. And it looked as if it was pitch black, as if someone had painted the night sky itself onto the timbers. Empty and endless, and not a sign of the wear or tear it should have shown. No barnacles or scrapes on the hull.

And even though the sail was still infested with holes, they seemed somehow unnatural. Like they'd been planed and designed to be there instead of the usual toll nature would take on it.

“Ye think the captain's up there?” Ragetti called. He thought on his words for a second. “The real one, I mean?”

“Best be hopin'.” Pintel replied. “If he ain't, I don't see this goin' any better than it already has.”

Either way, both men couldn't see anything they could do until a chance presented itself, and chances were more than hard to come by when your ankles and wrists were tied. More so still when men were holding you up by a pole.

Looking around themselves once again, hoping something convenient would crop up soon, they eyed up the area below the ship. The sights they saw kept getting stranger and stranger.

On the side they were approaching a continuous torrent of men, the same man, continued to leap overboard. And on the other side there was...something. It was like a waterfall, except it fell upwards, and instead of water the flow comprised of items and artefacts that, they assumed, the Barbossas had stolen from around the city.

Trinkets made from silver and golden statues. Hundreds of gems in various sizes and colour, as well as items they couldn't rightly describe, much like the board with wheels or the wooden 'speaker'. And it was all going upwards rather slowly.

So not very much like a waterfall, then. But both men couldn't think to compare it to anything else.

“I...uh,” Ragetti mumbled as his captors carried them under the hull. The Barbossas strutted down towards the pile of jewels, boxes, objects and whatever else it was that horses kept inside their homes. “I think we're goin'...up.”

Shaking his head, Pintel frantically began struggling against the captains again; only to be carelessly tosses onto the pile of flotsam. He landed with a pained grunt, rolling over to avoid whatever it was his backside had made contact with. He didn't care to look, but he could feel the ears of some statue digging into his ribs as well.

Ragetti didn't fare much better. The taller of the men let out a squeal as he landed on a pile of objects, most of which appeared to be a collection of gilded cutlery.

But Ragetti's complaints were prematurely silenced as the cursed monkey that had brought them to the land of Hector's and horses was absent-mindedly thrown into his face.

“Hey!” Pintel yelled, his complaints ignored by his captors. The Barbossas were wandering back the way they'd come.

Pintel shuffled forward, attempting to wriggle out of his current position and onto his feet. Or to his knees, at the very least. Now that he wasn't being held up, it seemed irritatingly simple to shuffle his limbs free from the pole.

A few seconds of applied pressure to the ground the pole slipped right out from beneath his wrists and ankles. Ragetti copied the action with the same outcome.

“Great...” He kicked the pole away. “Bloody brilliant,” he mumbled. His attention was caught before he could moan about anything else.

A small clock made from some sort of green stone had drifted up past his face. Pintel stared at it, scrunching his face up as he remembered where he'd actually been thrown. The timepiece rose higher.

Against his better wish, Pintel slowly began to rise with it. Ragetti let out as weak howl as he began doing the same, watching as most of the smaller objects floated up past them.

Attempting to swim in the air, despite being tied down, Pintel sighed as he ended up with his head pointing towards the ground as he rose up towards the ship, backside first. Ragetti sat up, despite the lack of anything to sit on, and dragged Jack on to his lap.

Ragetti began scratching the little thing with what little freedom his finger had, asking, “We sure we ain't dead?”

Pintel pondered the question for a moment, looking out towards the view they could see from their position in the air. Hills and grassy plains lay out before them, decorated in a plethora of different patterns and shades of gaudy colour. Chunks of loose earth floated in the sky along with them, shifting around and moving as if they were lost dinghies adrift on a calm sea.

“Pretty sure we ain't dead,” the man finally answered, frowning as he struggled to right himself. “We definitely ain't right though.” He managed to tip his hands to his forehead. “In the 'ead, I mean.”

As if to emphasise the thought, a herd of cows drifted passed their field of vision. The animals were whistling a quick tune, one they didn't recognise. Whatever it was, they were all perfectly in sync with each other.

The two men had their talk cut short as they saw the deck of the ship finally edge into view. There was a continuous clatter coming from above. It turned out to be everything falling onto the wooden boards, free from whatever influence that had taken them up there.

With a brief thud and a grunt the two men joined the flotsam and jetsam. Pintel winced as he made contact, falling straight onto his head before toppling over onto his stomach. Ragetti and Jack fared better, with the man landing on his backside.

“Jesus...” was all Pintel managed before once again finding himself pulled into the air. This time through a more natural means.

Not quite back from the shock of finding a Black Pearl, then flying up to the deck, Pintel had very little mind to complain or fight back as he was dragged across the deck. Once he'd finally cleared his head enough to concentrate on what was going on, the chubby pirate didn't know whether to be elated or scared by what he saw.

“And why have ye brought me them?” Barbossa said.

There were more than just a handful of pirates. An entire crews worth of men did their duty around the deck. Hauling ropes, cleaning the deck and dealing with the stolen goods, keeping the ship afloat and on course. At least, Pintel assumed they kept it afloat. He wasn't sure how it all worked up in the air.

And at the head of them all was a single man on the upper decks. It was only now that Pintel realised that, despite all the men he'd seen, none of them had worn a hat, or held the air Barbossa held. That pride at standing tall and powerful above everybody else. Authority.

The man on the upper deck had it all.

“I asked for wealth and intrigue, not the opposite,” Barbossa said, waving an arm to Pintel and Ragetti.

If it were any other day, Pintel would have inwardly sighed and got on with his work, as was the norm with Barbossa. But then it dawned on him that the words had actually been spoken. He craned his neck up towards the higher deck.

“Barbossa?” he asked, still not quite sure.

Then, at the sound of his voice, the Barbossa up there craned his neck downwards. The captain's eyes focused on Pintel's, like a bird spying a mouse in the undergrowth. Pintel didn't like it.

“Aye,” the man eventually replied, letting a rasping chuckle rise from his throat. “Ye can say me name. Well done.”

Barbossa, or what Pintel assumed was the true Barbossa, turned back to the rest of the copies. His fists banged against the railings of the ship and every one of the crew members stopped in their tracks. Dead, as still as statues.

“Why did ye bring them here?!” He looked over the duplicated men, waiting for an answer that never came. A growl rose from his chest and his fists once against slammed hard into the railings. “One o' ye answer me!”

After another brief lapse of silence, a lone Barbossa stepped out of the lowly ranks, shuffling towards the captain. Arms were hanging at his sides, a weak smile resting across his face. It was strange, Pintel and Ragetti thought, to see their captain in such a meek state; as if he was finally in their shoes.

“They...a-are...” he began to say, his voice coarse and weak. Almost as if he was new to the whole concept of speech. A child speaking his first words. “They are like...u-us. My Captain.”

The captain of the Barbossas rolled his head backwards before bringing a palm up to rub his eyes, breathing in deeply then releasing it. He wandered across the upper deck, pulling his hand away as he calmly, slowly, made his way down the steps towards everyone else.

“I've seen more than me fare share of men. Of idiots,” he moaned. His steps came harder. “I don't care if any of ye haven't done the same. Fling 'em over!”

Before he had time to react, Pintel fell limp as the captain leaned over and yanked him up by the collars of his coat. He was pulled back up from the deck; his face came up close to Barbossa's.
“...Or have ye somethin' worthy o' me time?”

Pintel nodded, mumbling confirmations as Ragetti quickly followed the example.

“A-aye, cap'n! We brought yer monkey back! Little Jackie!”

This made the captain stop, but only for the smallest of moments. His eyes opened a crack wider, looking down at the other man still heaped on the floor. Then to the little creature tied and laying on Ragetti's lap.

Barbossa stared at it, and opened his mouth. When words refused to form, he dropped Pintel to the ground and clicked his fingers. He motioned a hand towards the monkey.

A copy wandered forward, pulling the creature bound in rope up from the ground. A knife appeared from within the clones' jacket and the bonds that held Jack in place fell to the deck in torn bunches

The animal screeched loudly before it bounded from the forgery of his master. He effortlessly scrambled across the floor, moving for one Barbossa out of the countless others present. Jack then leapt up onto his master’s leg. He clambered up the jacket before finally resting on Barbossa's shoulder, like he had done countless times before.

Barbossa just looked at him as if he couldn't decide whether the animal truly belonged there or not. His mind seemed undecided, even as he turned back to Pintel. The monkey was his now, regardless.

“Aye, good. Anythin' else?”

Both Pintel and Ragetti looked from where they were, briefly eyeing each other, deducing after several blank stares that neither had an appropriate answer to give. The pause lengthened, and at its peak Barbossa nodded his head laughed.

“That'll be a no then?” he said. “Men!”

Barbossa raised a hand into the air, and each of his duplicated took notice. He clicked his fingers, enjoying the obedience of his new crew. “Show em' no quarter.”

Half a dozen or so men marched over; mindlessly obeying the order they'd been given. Half of them walked towards Ragetti, while the rest towards Barbossa and his hostage

“B-but but," Pintel nervously pleaded, looking over to check on his nephew on the floor, “but Barbossa, it's us! Ol' Pintel and Ragetti.”

“Aye, us!” Ragetti said, frantically nodding in agreement

Barbossa just continued to hold Pintel in his hands, pushing his face ever so slightly forward. Pintel could smell the rancid air from his captain's breath.

“Oh, I know who ye are.”

Three of the crew knelt down to drag Ragetti from the floor, pulling him away as he attempted to kick and struggle around. The ropes did a decent job at stopping him.

“That be why I'm throwin' ye off. Too long I've had te deal wi' yer antics, and utter abomination of a service. I've got better men te stand by me side, and I'm afraid yer both no longer worthy o' standin' at all.”

“We can serve ye again, we can! Just give us anythin'!” he yelled back at his nephew, looking for a confirmation. The skinnier man gladly gave it, vigorously nodding.

“There ain't nothin' ye can do that they can't do te a higher standard. And I've become rather fond o' them as of late.”

“N-nothin'?”

Barbossa dryly chuckled, lowering his brow as his lips squirmed into a slick smile. “Nothin'.”

Shaking under Barbossa's hand, Pintel turned his neck to see Ragetti struggling under the crews' hands, helplessly jerking his body in an attempt to fight back. It occurred to him then that there was little else for him to do. With his hands tied and no weapon, he only really had one course of action to take.

Pintel turned back to face Barbossa. He swung his head back and slammed into Barbossa's face. The forced flung Jack from his spot onto the deck below. The little primate even looked dazed for a moment.

It was far from a sane idea, as the voice in his head had said, but if it could prevent their deaths for a few moments longer it would be worth it. He didn't want Ragetti to die if he could prevent it, even if just for a little longer.

He soon regretted his choice. While the men holding up Ragetti dropped him, which was an assuring sight to see, every single member of the crew turned to face Pintel. The man who had dared to attack their captain.

Barbossa had dropped Pintel as well, which was a bonus.

“Ye...wha-” Barbossa caught his breath, dazed. He clenched his eyes shut as the effects of impact continued to pound at his head. When he opened his eyes again, they were filled with fire. A burning anger. “Ye bloody, ingrate!”

Barbossa reached down for Pintel, wrapping his fingers around the man's throat before turning and slamming him to the wall. He stood there, forcing his fingers down on Pintel's windpipe as the rest of the crew stood watch behind him.

<< ☠ >>

“How...dare you.” Barbossa pushed harder, forcing his thumbs into the undersides of Pintel's jaw. “After all I've done for ye, and yer worthless nephew. After everythin' I saved ye from, gave te ye, and worked wi' ye for! Ye think it wise te attack me!”

Ragetti crawled forward, shuffling his legs and arms towards his uncle, stopping at the realisation he was surrounded. Even then, though, the duplicated pirates didn't move. They just stood there, watching the one sided fight between the stranger and their captain.

“I am yer captain. I am the man ye sacrifice life an' limb for! I am the one who saved yer sorry carcases from the road te hell fifty times over and...”

Barbossa stared into Pintel's face, watching the veins in the side of his neck as they burned a vivid purple. The colour soon spread to his cheeks and forehead. He could see the blood vessels straining to against the pressure.

He looked down from the man held within his grasp to his own hands as they held the neck in place. The hands that were still tightening around Pintel throat.

“I...” Barbossa mumbled.

He was killing him.

“I...” He didn't like the idea of that.

So he let go.

Pintel fell to the floor in a crumpled mess; his limbs still bounds by ropes. He squirmed against the wall, gasping and spluttering as air finally reached his lungs. There was a distinct redness forming around his neck.

Barbossa looked down at one of his, slightly, more loyal crewman as the man lay on the floor. Then he turned around, slowly catching sight of his crew and the ship he was standing on. He took notice of everything.

The men on board, the ship beneath his feet, and where it sailed. Of the castle, and the guards, the little yellow pegasus. And everything else that had befell him in the last week of his life. It was as if he'd finally found the right key to a door inside his head. The door was open now, and he could see everything so clearly.

Ragetti nudged his way further up the deck. He was hopping on his feet now, hunched over as he moved forward in small jumps. Away from the forgeries and towards his uncle.

Then Barbossa looked at himself. All of himself, and he squirmed as each of them looked back. The silence that his curious glare unsettled something inside him. His stomach churned.

“W-what ye doin' ye bilge-rats?” He waved a hand towards them, scowling. “Get back te work!”

Despite having no real idea if that was the right thing to say, it didn't matter. His other selves didn't move a muscle at his voice. Not like any of the times he remembered them doing. They just stood there.

Smiling at him.

“Bollocks...”

He looked down at the only different men on the ship, eyeing them as they looked back up at him, both of them doing so with obvious difficulty. They were both standing, or kneeling to some extent, which boded well for the extremely risky plan he had just concocted.

There was only twelve or so men on deck, but Barbossa knew all too well that more continuously sprouted from below. He searched the edge of his eyesight, tilting his head slightly until he could see a door. The only door he knew of on the ship that actually had a lock on the other side.

His quarters.

Spinning on the spot, and taking holding off the circular handle, he gave it twist, pushing the door open as Ragetti and Pintel knelt further up the wall next to it. Hearing the wailing of his own voice, and the stamping of feet against wood, Barbossa unsheathed his sword before screaming at the only men he felt he could trust.

“Get yer arses inside!”

Both men mindlessly nodded. Eagerly, the two men got to their feet as best they could and hobbled over the floor, pushing themselves inside. They didn't even dare to look back. Jack soon followed their movement, scrambling inside the door.

Watching as his only known crew hobbled over the edge of the door, Barbossa kicked Pintel in the backside with the heel of his boot, forcing him over the last few inches.

Seeing no reason to stay outside with the demons any longer, Barbossa joined him. He shoved the door shut behind him, ignoring the squeal that came from the back of the room. There was a sickening crunch as a set of fingers were caught beneath the force of the wooden door. It was from another Barbossa outside.

Still holding the door shut, Barbossa reached to the side for the iron lock resting against the wall. Grasping the huge piece of metal, he pulled it down until it rested over the midsection of the door. He stayed there for a few seconds longer, not quite willing to tempt fate. The bar reached over the whole length of the door, but he wanted to be sure it would hold.

For a short while, at least.

As the voices from beyond the door died down, and the door itself remained stiff and sturdy. Barbossa let out a nervous laugh as he slowly slid down to the floor below his feet, his back against the door.

Resting his head against the door, trying to get his mind back on track, his nerves failed him as he jumped at a single, sudden thud from the outside. After that, the men on the other side apparently ceased their attempts at entering.

There was no further noise. Nothing hitting against the door.

Getting back up to his feet, and holding both hands against the door, Barbossa pushed it. He forced his weight against it, assuring himself it was as sturdy as he thought, as sturdy as it was before.

But now it was sturdier still.

Not only had Barbossa used a bar to hold off the hoards of himself outside, but they had used another bar to keep him inside. Or so he assumed. Something substantial was keeping the door closed from on deck at any rate.

Though if it meant they were safe, for the time being, he wasn't complaining.

“Just means we'll be needin' a new way out...” he muttered under his own breath.

Suddenly remembering and revelling in the fact that he wasn't alone in the room, he turned back to the two men on the floor. Picking up his sword, Barbossa wandered towards them, slicing his blade through the rope that bound limbs, somewhat careful to not graze their skin.

Finishing with Ragetti, he pulled the man and slapped a hand on his shoulder, resisting the urge to smile more than he already was. He did the same for Pintel, pulling him up by the hand before forcefully resting a hand on his back.

It had been so long since he'd seen a familiar face. A human face that wasn't his own.

“Mr Pintel, Ragetti!” he said, once again slapping a hand on each of their shoulders. “As much as a pain it is te say, it be damned good te see yer sorry faces again.”

Barbossa then looked down as a familiar creature began to scramble back up his leg. This time, however, he gave no indication that he was bothered by the act. Barbossa welcomed it.

“And ye be lookin' good too, Jack.” He raised a hand to scratch the monkeys chin. His pet leaned into the action.

Once his Barbossa eyes fell back onto his shipmen, however, the smile on his face faltered. He was done with the pleasantries, and he'd enjoyed the moment. Neither did anything to resolve their current situation.

It also brought up new issues entirely.

“How'd ye come te be here?”

The other two men just stood there, eyeing up their captain as he continued to act like the man they thought they had known.

“Yer...not goin' te kill us again?” Pintel asked, dreading to think that he was possibly treading on more thin ice.

“Ye got a head shot, Mr Pintel,” Barbossa replied, practically growling, “and I've now seen fit te excuse it. I think we're more than even.”

Barbossa did nothing to hide his growing irritation, but in the end, he would have done the same thing. He cautiously rubbed at his head forehead and nose; he was sure a lump was forming. Pintel eagerly smiled at his punishment, mostly because it was non-existent. He just made a mental note to be careful around Barbossa for the time being.

Moving back to the question, Ragetti began to speak. He told his captain of their time in the Locker, and how Jack had just ran away from their company. Pintel spoke of the portal and the castle. They mentioned the town and the lack of people and all about the horses.

Ponies, Barbossa corrected. Barbossa said he already knew about them in detail.

“...And then we saw you, and then more o' ye tried te catch us,” Pintel added, waving a hand towards the door, and the monsters presumably gathered outside.

“And then they did catch us,” Ragetti added.

There was a silence from Barbossa as he took in the information. He mulled of the details and picked at them, picturing the events as they had been described, sizing them up to his own experiences. He thought about what had happened to him and wondered how interconnected everything was.

“Who else?” Barbossa asked back. “Whole else is here?”

“No one. Just the two o' us,” Pintel replied.

Barbossa moved back a step as he pulled his hand through his beard, wondering how to approach what was going on. There was so much to contemplate. Then something obvious occurred to him. And the answer made his stomach churn.

“Ye...ye said ye were still in the Locker?” he asked. He received a casual set of nods as his response. “But it's been a week! It were only meant te be a few hours!”

Ragetti turned to his uncle, letting his wooden eye twist in its socket before he turned back to Barbossa. Both men shook their heads.

“We was only there an hour or two.” Pintel said. “Still waitin' out for Sparrow on the shore.”

“Only...two hours?”

Both men nodded their head, adopting the same perplexed look Barbossa had on his own face, He hadn't really thought about what had happened to the others since he'd left, but he'd assumed with the map in their possession they'd have escaped the locker just as well without him. It wouldn't have been all that difficult, especially with Tia Dalma in their party.

Yet they hadn't even been there long at all. Nor had they accomplished their quest to locate Jack. But it had been more than a week. He'd spent that time with alien creatures, doing their chores and singing them songs. He'd slept for the nights and spent the days. Seven of them.

A week had surely passed. Of that alone, Barbossa was sure. Yet, in the mess that was his mind, he knew for sure, for definite, that Pintel and Ragetti were simply not that stupid. Not even a child could mix up two hours and a whole week, it just wasn't logical.

Though logic was interchangeable, Barbossa had found. Especially while he had been living with the magical talking ponies.

“Ponies...” Barbossa shifted his head to the back of his quarters, aiming his gaze straight towards the little equine restrained by chains against the wall.

Striding over, pushing a chair to the side as he approached, Barbossa moved to kneel down next to Fluttershy. She flinched violently back, curling her form against the wall with her eyes tightly clenched shut.

He knew what had happened to her though. He had been there, after all.

Fluttershy lay there, curled against the back of the room with shackles around all four of her hooves and a thick, brown strap around her torso. The man noted how well it held her wings together.

All five links were welded straight into the wall with chains made of a tough, silver metal. Barbossa wasn't sure if it was iron, steel or something else entirely, but it was cut so smoothly and precisely that he assumed it didn't matter; the craftsmanship was superior to any chains he'd ever seen. Perhaps they were even magical in nature?

She'd tried to escape once or twice, but the links hadn't so much as shifted from the wall. He was somewhat sorry to say he'd punished her for it as well.

Most of her mane had been cut from her head. What was left was purposely rough and poorly sheared. The result was scraggly mess of pink hair and a horribly rough coat. He remembered thinking that a woman's pride was in her appearance, or something along those lines. In hindsight, it seemed needlessly cruel, even by his standards.

Regardless if he felt remorse, or not, she still shied away from his hand. The acts had already been committed so there was no need contemplating his actions; they weren't exactly his own.

He got down to one knee, tilting his head to the side as he held up his hands in surrender.

“Yer gettin' set free. I wouldn't be complainin'”

One eye opened a tad, looking him over. After a moment the other followed suit and her gaze looked Barbossa up and down.

“A-are you...back? Back to normal?” Her eyes focused on him. “You're not bad anymore?”

The little mare picked up at the thought. The brief improvement was cut short as she fell back into the curled position. Pintel and Ragetti had wandered up behind the human she was familiar with, towering over her.

Barbossa had seen his fair share of injuries and innocent people being done over by the worst kind of criminals, but Barbossa still felt something rise inside him. Fluttershy had to be the meekest creature he'd ever met, by a very large margin. It was like seeing a child wronged by an adult who should have known better.

If he were ever humiliated to such an extent, he knew he'd want revenge. No matter who they were, he'd want his own back. Gods were not exempt from that desire, it seemed. And a part of him wanted that for Fluttershy. A small part, mind you, but he still recognised it was there.

And with only two allies, one more would do nothing to hurt him in his vendetta against Discord. Even if it was only a small pony named Fluttershy.

“As good as ye've known me te be,” he said in return, forcing a smile as he moved his hand around the shackles binding the pegasus. “And bad be such a subjective word. Ye could apply it te anythin'.”

Barbossa pulled back to fish around in his jacket, knowing he had the keys to the shackles in there somewhere. Finally finding them, he tossed them in the air with his right hand before catching them in his left. He twitched the keys around in their matching locks, eventually pulling all four shackles free from the little pony's ankles.

“There,” he said, dropping the final shackle to the floor. “As told.”

Fluttershy stood up, tapping her back hooves against the floor before staring down at her torso, then up to the captain. She instantly shied away as she, once again, caught sight of the two new creatures stood behind Barbossa.

“Miss Fluttershy, feel free te meet two o' me more loyal men; Mr Pintel and Ragetti,” he exclaimed, motioning a hand toward each of them in turn. “Men, meet one o' the lasses whose care I've been under durin' me stay in the Ponylands.”

Pintel gave a somewhat gracious bow, closing his eyes and pursing his lips, whilst Ragetti just waved, bemused by the situation. He continued to stare at the little pony on the floor. The wooden orb in his socket twitched at random.

Seemingly pleased with the current state of affairs, Barbossa pulled out his sword and moved for the strap at Fluttershy's stomach. She outright refused to stand still as he attempted to cut it free.

“Keep yer tail on. I'm cuttin' the strap loose.”

“C-could you not use a sword?”

Fluttershy still didn't stand still. He regretted undoing her shackles first.

“Ye want yer wings free, or not?”

Whilst not enough to keep her still, it was enough to calm her enough for Barbossa to get his blade between her body and the strap. He would have undone it by hand, but as far as he could remember Discord had just...made it appear. It had no end, and no buckles to hold it in place. It had just materialised already bound to her.

Not really wanting to harm Fluttershy more than he already had, he slid the blade back and forth, trying his best to slice the strap without cutting into the flesh. Or the wing.

Succeeding after several tries, he pulled the blade one last time, watching as the prison holding Fluttershy's wings fell to the floor, along with several feathers and cuts of her coat.

The pony ruffled her wings, opening them wide as she arched her back. There was a series of popping noises as her spine and wings stretched out to their limit. She took one last look at her wings, folding them back to her sides once she felt the stiffness wear off.

As she opened her mouth to thank the captain, a much smaller animal caught her eye instead.

“And this little fellah must be Jack,” she cooed, her voice overly childish.

The little monkey moved his body forward, tilting his head from side to side. He screeched as he stared at the pony in front of him, still glued to his master's shoulder. Fluttershy moved a hoof towards him, only caused the monkey to call out louder.

“As lovely as this is, cap'n,” Pintel carefully interrupted, “we're still in a bloody flyin' ship!”

As much as Barbossa hated Pintel, of all people, for pointing out something so obvious, the man was entirely correct.

“Aye. So we are.”

But Barbossa had very few ideas on how to actually deal with the problem. The windows had been barred by Discord at his request to keep Fluttershy inside. He acknowledged the irony of the situation, yet even if they did somehow get out the windows, they had a long drop to the ground below.

And if the men from outside used a more violent means to break through the door they'd be forced to fall to the ground anyway.

The only way out they had was the door they had come in and the rest of the other Barbossas had barricaded them inside. As much as that kept them safe for the time being, it also kept them under lock and key.

“But the way out don't matter. There be a thousand ways we could leave,” even though he struggled to think of a few. “The problem be gettin' back te the ground, not outside.”

“I-I can fly,” Fluttershy pointed out with a raised hoof.

Barbossa rolled his head back along with his eyes, noticing he hadn't done so under his own sanity for a good long while.

“Yes, we know you can fly, Fluttershy,” Barbossa mocked, “but that still leaves and me men wi'...”

But her words still caused an idea to form in his mind. A ridiculously deranged idea, but it was still an idea.

Moving away from the pony, as well as his freshly found shipmates, Barbossa pushed his way around the room. A large dining table lay in the middle, commanding a good deal of space within the room. There was a bed sat against one wall, as well as more than one set of drawers in a few of the others.

A collection of goods also lay on top of the table, more of it spilling onto the floor. Fluttershy recognised all of them, even if the humans knew no more than a few. One was a scooter, much like the one Scootaloo owned, only for an adult pony. And there was two sets of silver unicorn helmets with metal horns matching the owners'. Whoever they were.

There was also a magic powered engine and an ice cooler. A few bottles of cider were poking out from inside. A lone box of, what appeared to be, blueberry tea leaves also sat amongst the horde.

Fluttershy wouldn't have minded a quick cup of tea.

But Barbossa ignored all of them and moved to the opposite side of the room to that of the other beings inside. He rubbed his hands together over a barrel and a box that sat next to his bed. A hearty laugh echoed up from his throat.

“We have powder!”

His Discord-altered mind had wanted his own set of weapons, not happy with using any from the same store as the rest of his crew despite everything being, aesthetically, exactly the same. Discord had happily given him more than one set and a personal store of weapons.

More than he needed. Even more than the three men inside actually needed.

“And what we doin' with it? Blowin' the ship te smithereens?” Pintel asked, slightly confused.

Barbossa tossed five sets of sheathed swords and four pistols on top of the table, watching them slide towards the only members of his 'crew' who could man them. Trinkets and curiosities fell from the table and tumbled noisily onto the floor.

“Oh no, Mr Pintel,” Barbossa announced as he finally pried the lid from the barrel, once again laughing as he picked another pistol from the store and holding it into the air. “Somethin' much more darin'.”

His plan wasn't completely sane, nor was it completely flawless. And he didn't know quite how well it was going to come together. But he knew it was more than worth a try. It was bound to get them somewhere. Hopefully closer to the ground at a respectable speed.

“Miss Fluttershy, gentlemen,” he calmly said, stabbing a sword into the wood of the floor. It stuck firm as his hand came away. “We're goin' te be holdin' ourselves a mutiny.”

I Don't Think Now Is The Best Time!

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 18
I Don't Think Now Is the Best Time!

Twilight led her friends through the dank backstreets of Canterlot. The distinct lack of front doors and shiny desirables on display gave them a relative peace from the pirates; the men seemed far more interested in what they could steal rather than whom they could attack.

The city wasn't faring well against the onslaught of humans, even without the addition of violence into the equation. Barbossa’s cannon fodder had seen to that. Homes had become broken and tarnished shells of their former selves, most of them nothing more than smouldering ruins. Even those that hadn't been destroyed seemed almost as badly damaged on the inside.

Everything from solid gold to tacky knick-knacks was up for grabs, apparently. It seemed the men stole to sate their curiosity just as much as their greed.

But the pirates weren't the only thing terrorising the city and that only proved to become more obvious as time went on. Everything, from the ground at their hooves to the grassy hills on the far horizon, was changing in disturbingly bright and worrying ways.

Looking back to the last time Discord was free; he was never truly in more than one place at any single time. He couldn’t see it all. Sure, he ravaged reality wherever as he saw fit and played around with those he deemed boring, but he seemed content with leaving Twilight and the others well enough alone as long as they didn't spoil his fun.

For the most part, at least.

The dominating light in the sky continued to change in an ever so random cycle, going from sunshine to moonbeams and back again in anything from a few seconds to just over ten minutes. And the sky no longer held its painted veneer; it now seemed happy to roll with the times. The colour and appearance of the vast empty space and the clouds within it were changing just as rapidly as the position of the sun and moon. Patterns and greens mixed with vibrant blues. Textures that didn’t belong were quickly becoming commonplace.

The weather followed in the example, coming to and from the city in random bursts. It came in many sizes and variations though smaller, isolated storms seemed to be more common. Especially over lone ponies who found themselves scampering out in the open.

It wasn't chocolate rain either, something Pinkie had quickly noted with a rather pouty frown slapped across her face, only for it to bounce back into a wide grin the second she realised it was cherryade instead. Even Rarity found the drink somewhat palatable to her taste.

Not that she’d ever admit to it, of course.

The only constant in the city now seemed to be the dark mark of the pirate ship floating in the sky, though even that appeared subject to Discord's whims. It now sported his smiling visage in gaudy pink paint, smeared across the aged black sails like a child’s poor attempt at a painting.

“So...what’s our plan, exactly?” Rainbow casually asked out of the silence. “If we have one at all, that is.”

Wandering past a house as it soundlessly rose a few dozen feet into the air, Twilight sighed. Her head lowered as she turned back to face her friends.

“I don't really know. Heading to the castle would be the safest bet, seeing as both the Princesses and the Elements are there. If Discord's there too, that would put everything into one place for us.”

“Ain't that makin' it a little too easy? Discord don't seem like the type to give us an easy time. Especially after what we did to him last time.”

Twilight pondered the thought, admitting to herself that it was outright strange that the draconequus hadn't so much as approached them since their initial encounter in the castle hallway. There were no games, no puzzles to solve and no challenges for them to overcome.

“I know, but I can't think of anything else. The only way to get rid of him is using the Elements of Harmony, and Celestia keeps them locked away. And with her missing...”

“Shouldn't we go find her first then?” Pinkie asked, cocking her head to the side.

“We could, but if Celestia's with Discord I'm not sure how well that would turn out for us. Without the Elements we don't stand all that big a chance against him.”

Discord wasn't omnipotent; he didn't know where everything was and what they were doing. If he did, then he wouldn't have been defeated last time, or the time before that. But dealing with something that could bend reality to the point it was unrecognisable was still a massive hurdle to overcome.

“Besides, we don't know where Fluttershy is. Without her, even if we did have the Elements, we wouldn't be able to use them.”

All of them had a good enough idea of where she was, though. Hector wasn't the best at lying, though he didn’t try very hard to cover it up.

“Why don't we just teleport up there and give Hector a good thrashin'!” Applejack asked, receiving an eager nod from Rainbow. “Or fix up his noggin' nice and tidy with that spell of yours?”

As much as Twilight appreciated the suggestions her friends were making, it only proved to make her mood worsen when she realised each of them still posed issues.

“There's too many of them,” Twilight said, shaking her head. “If our magic affected the Hectors I think we'd come out on top. But as it is, I don't like the idea of being outnumbered up there with a bleeding pegasus and very little in the way of an offence. And no magic means the spell probably won’t work anyway.”

Twilight kept walking, hoping to hear more suggestion. Or at least some that hadn't occurred to her already. Their current plan of action wasn't the best, but it would have to do for the time being. Especially since there was no way of knowing how the Elements or the Princesses were actually faring.

And then there was Spike. He was still somewhere inside the castle as well. She hoped from the very bottom of her heart that he was okay.

“Couldn't you throw things at the ship? Like, some big boxes or something? That'd get rid of the copies” Rainbow asked, wincing as she leant against her leg harder than she wanted to.

“But you said it yourself; Fluttershy might be up there. They could easily pull her somewhere where we could hit her once they realise what we're doing. And what if we somehow bring the ship down? What if we really hurt Fluttershy or Hector in the process?”

The rest of the group nodded, none too happy that each of their plans were being shot down one by one. Even if the plans weren't all that good to begin with.

“So, we're just going to wander into the castle where Discord's hanging around, hope we find the Princess to unlock the Elements, or hope even harder we can get to them ourselves before he gets to us first?” Rainbow asked.

“More or less,” Twilight blandly answered without a moment of hesitation, “Do you have a better one?”

The comment came out less curious and much cockier than she’d meant to, but the injured pegasus still shook her head. Rarity sighed at the conversation, rather annoyed that there wasn't a feasible alternative.

“I fear it will have to do, dear,” she said, sighing. “But what do we do once we get to the castle?”

Twilight smiled, hopping in her stride for a moment before slowing to a walk alongside the rest of her friends.

“Discord may be a god, but he's not an all seeing one. If I turn myself invisible I should still be able to have a look around some of the castle before he even knows I’m there.” Twilight tried her best to ignore the doubt in her friends’ eyes. “It's not perfect, I know. But it should be enough to find out what the situation is with the Princesses and still give me plenty of time to leave should I have to check on the Elements without her.”

The reluctant nodding of the others was enough to lift Twilight’s mood, and her friends were happy enough that the plan was more fleshed out than it first appeared to be. It was only then that the others caught note of Twilight’s plan and how she seemed to be the only one taking part.

“And the rest of us?” Rainbow asked.

“Keep a safe distance from the castle. If something happens to me that still leaves all of you to help Hector and Fluttershy.”

“But if we couldn't do anythin’ together,” Applejack began, “what are we gonna do with one more pony down?”

“Something might change; this is Discord's world we're talking about and there isn't any point risking all our tails when we don't all need to be in there. It's not perfect, I said that, but it still gives us a fighting chance if something goes wrong.”

Rarity eyed the rest of her friends, Rainbow in particular, before nodding with a confident smile on her face. Twilight was right; the plan wasn't perfect, far from it, but it was better than nothing. Even if they couldn’t use the Elements of Harmony without Fluttershy, the Elements were still the only way to deal with Discord.

Reaching the outskirts of the castle grounds and a small path leading towards the Royal Gardens, Twilight turned to face all her friends. There wasn't anything stopping all five of them heading up there but she didn't want to jinx the situation any more than she needed to.

“I take it we should make ourselves scarce?” Rarity asked, receiving a nod for her answer.

“It would be smart, yes. But if you find a way to save Fluttershy or Hector, take it. We could use all the help we can get. And even if you can’t get Hector back to normal we’ll still have Fluttershy back.”

Nodding at the purple unicorn, Rarity moved to wander away with the others close behind her. She stopped only to speak one last thing to her friend.

“Good luck,” she said smiling.

And with that, they all separated.

☠

Fluttershy sat on the floor in the corner of the room, sipping from the chilled bottle of cider Barbossa had thrown her way in the wake of his freewill returning. She didn't mind the stuff, and given what she'd been through, a drink of any sort was welcome.

The alcohol was, perhaps, slightly more than welcome.

She just sat there, flexing her wings in and out in a small attempt to get the blood flowing again. While flying had never been her particular speciality, having her wings restrained reminded her just how nice it was to actually move them, even if it was only to ruffle her feathers every now and then.

Her neck still felt sore; the small cut at the base feeling just that little bit too tight as she moved her head around. The tightness proved it was healing - that was good - but it also remained as a reminder that a knife had scored her neck just hours earlier.

Hector had apologised too, in his own way. She could tell it was sincere, even if he'd only said sorry as an off-the-hoof comment rather than a lengthy acknowledgement of what he'd done.

That suited him though, she guessed. And it was likely the best she, or anypony else, would receive from him. It was a long way away from the sarcastic replies and sly remarks he usually gave as an apology.

Not that she blamed him for what happened. Not really. Given how she'd acted under Discord’s influence, she'd be a hypocrite to say everything that happened to her was truly Hector's fault. He was making up for it now, for the most part, and that was all that mattered.

The two new humans weren't doing very much though. They just sat around the table at the centre of the room, watching Barbossa and occasionally glancing over at her in an attempt to find something to do.

Hector was the only one actively trying to make a difference, though he had yet to tell anyone what his marvellous plan actually was. Everyone appeared to be curious but given how much his idea apparently seemed to revolve around her, Fluttershy couldn't decide if she was eager or anxious to hear it

The most he'd done in the ten minutes since his initial announcement was move the big barrel closer to the table and rummage through the creates and cases stored around the room. Jack the monkey sat as a constant ally on his shoulder, perched over to see whatever it was his master saw.

It was kind of cute when Fluttershy thought about it. It was strange seeing Hector with a pet, even more so when he occasionally leaned around to scratch the little thing under the chin. She also swore she’d heard him coo to the little creature. That couldn’t have been right.

Perhaps the alcohol was stronger that she had first suspected, she mused, as she took another light sip from the bottle.

Coming out of her inner reflections, Fluttershy jumped in place at the clatter and crash of metal scraping against the table. Looking up, she saw the two humans suitably shocked as well. Barbossa was stood at the far end of the table, hands at his waist and smile threatening to pull is face in two. Jack sat leaning over his master, screeching and smiling along with him.

Fluttershy moved towards the table. She stood on her hind legs, leaning her forelegs on the table as she joined the pirates in their impromptu meeting. There were several swords piled up in front of her, and a good few pistols littered amongst them.

“Enough weapons for the both o' ye! Triple if need be,” he announced, looking primarily to the two human crewmen on his right. He turned to Fluttershy before adding, “Ye too, little Fluttershy.”

She didn't bother nodding in agreement. Her eyes were still transfixed on the weapons.

“I-I can't use a...a sword.”

“Ye can hold it in yer maw. Like an axe. Ye said ponies did that.”

“No...” she began, “I meant that I don't know how to use one.”

“Best be learnin' fast then. If ye want te leave the ship unscathed, I ain't havin' ye unarmed when we toss ye over.”

☠

Ragetti and Pintel shrugged their shoulders, trying their best to ignore the conversation their captain was having with a sheared, yellow horse sporting a pair of wings. They found it best just to accept the reality of their situation, no matter how unrealistic that reality actually seemed; if Barbossa had dealt with it, he'd likely expect them to as well.

That was easier said than done, but they could make a good go of it. The horses weren't as strange as the Barbossa duplicates and the flying pirate ship anyway.

“And how are we leavin' the ship unscathed?” Pintel asked, “Ye ain't told us nothin' of what we're doin'.”

Barbossa moved from his position at the end of the table, taking careful and precise steps over to the asker of the question, staring him down the whole way. The captain eventually stopped, laying a hand on Pintel's shoulder.

“What be yer main concern o' gettin' off this fine vessel?”

Pintel paused for a moment in response, furrowing his brow.

“Gettin'...te the ground?”

“No. Gettin' te the ground be easier than the rest o' our problems, Mister Pintel. It's slowin' our descent te the bottom that causes need for concern.”

Ragetti nodded eagerly with his captain. Pintel scolded himself for getting an easy enough question wrong. Straitening his face and shaking away the embarrassment, he looked back up to Barbossa.

“And how we doin' that?”

Showing off his less than clean teeth, Barbossa chuckled in his throat as he slowly turned his head towards the yellow mare stood opposite Pintel at the table. The two deckhands followed his line of sight, catching the pegasi's attention as she looked up from the swords.

“Wi' a set o' wings.”

Attention switched from the obvious back to the captain as the two human members of the crew pulled their eyes away from the pegasus and back to Barbossa before repeating the pattern. Each had an eyebrow raised, flabbergasted.

“Beg yer pardon?” Ragetti mumbled.

“Fluttershy has a set o' wings, and we do not,” he said, laying one hand on his chest and motioning the other towards the pirates. “Seems only fair she should be sharin' her talents wi' the rest o' us.”

Looking down at Fluttershy, Ragetti turned back to Barbossa one last time and raised a hand into the air. His captain didn't bother to acknowledge the idiocy of the gesture, nor how immature it was.

“How we doin' that? She ain't big enough te ride”

“I know that,” Barbossa chided. “We'll be grabbin' her ankles. Problem solved.”

But that idiocy was something Barbossa had become accustomed to, especially in the last few years of his life. Loyalty often proved more comforting, and in the end, infinitely more useful than intelligence. Despite how much a choice in the matter would have been welcome.

He could even think of better men than Pintel and Ragetti to have by his side; Gibbs for one, and William for another, if he was feeling generous. Even Jack if the times called for it, as dire as they'd likely need to be.

Right now, however, that idiocy would help keep them by his side. If they were as idiotic as they often implied – though he wished to believed that no one could be as idiotic as they implied – he was lucky to have them; who else would jump out of a flying ship whilst grabbing on to a yellow pony with wings?

“’Ere, what about the yous that's outside?” Ragetti asked, lowering his hand from the air. “They wasn't happy havin' us up here.”

“Hence, Mister Ragetti, why you have the swords for companionship. If they ain't goin' te let us go, we'll bloody well make 'em!”

“How are we going to get outside?”

The three humans turned to face Fluttershy, who crumpled back into a nervous heap under their gazes. She felt disheartened that she had already lost her short lived burst of courage. Scary new ponies were bad enough, but two scary new aliens was something terrifying all on its own.

“The little things got a point; ye said they barred the doors?”

Answering Pintel's comment with a mere sway of his hand, Barbossa pointed towards the powder keg, wandering back over to it. Jack leapt from his shoulder and onto the barrel, circling the surface until he eventually sat in place.

“I did. We'll just need te blow them back off te compensate,” he exclaimed, smiling to his mismatched crew and slamming his hand down onto the wooden lid of the barrel. Jack snapped to quick attention. “A load at the door'll blow it and any man foolish te stand by te smithereens!”

In unhinged smile snaking its way onto Barbossa’s face deterred the humans for the slightest of moments before they remembered that, yes, he was their captain; they didn’t really have much of a choice in the matter.

Regardless, Pintel still had something to say.

“But...why bother wi' the door?” he asked. “We got the windows at the back. Just blow the bars off them instead and we're 'ome free.”

Barbossa lifted his hand of the barrel, letting his palms meet slowly and carefully in several, loud claps.

“Fantastic plan, Mister Pintel. Ingenious. Ye'd have surpassed yersel' if ye hadn't forgot one little, insignificant detail.”

“...What?”

“We have te wait between trips for our ride down te return and, when we are, how long are we goin' te hold back against the horde outside when they eventually choose te come through that door?”

“But they ain't comin' in,” Ragetti said.

“Not now, but how long do ye think it'll take 'em te notice that we've blown a hole in the back o' their bloody ship!”

Barbossa had thought about those options, of course. If Barbossa was being honest, they were the first that had occurred to him when looking for an escape route. But the bars covering the windows weren't made by mortal hands.

They...bled into the wall. No screws or bolts, nor couplings of any sort. He'd even spent a good two or three minutes chipping his sword into the walls in a desperate attempt to splinter the wood around them. It did next to nothing, and even if it had, it would take longer to remove the grates than he felt comfortable with on a flying prison ship.

Blowing them off was also part of his original plan, but a gaping hole in the back of the ship posed more a threat than a solution to their current predicament.

Sure, it would give them an exit, as well as space for Fluttershy to land or let the men jump out. The only problem was it also boxed them into the room itself with only one way out. The men outside had weapons and powder of their own, and if blowing a large chunk out of the stern didn't give them the urge to charge in, Barbossa didn't know what would.

The hole was also directly at the back of the ship. If the demonic copies outside wanted to, they could swing their way in through the hole with little difficulty, assuming they didn't care about losing a few of their endless numbers through trial and error.

Even if they didn't come in themselves, they could easily throw grenades inside. Or stand around at the edge and shoot anyone that dared to venture out.

Not that the bullets could really bother him, of course; the bastard of a chimera, Discord, had seen to that.

“We ain't goin' out the window, we're using the door. That's me final word, and as the name implies, it's not bound te change.”

Nodding in what could only be acceptance, Pintel gruffly lowered his head into his hand, not one to go against an order Barbossa declared immune to change. He would never go against the man's orders, unless something took importance over their loyalty.

In hindsight, it was somewhat foolish to question his captain's ideals.

“What about when we're on deck?” Ragetti asked, “How we goin' about..." he struggled, "jumpin'?”

“One by one. Unless our young escort can afford te carry more than a single man at once?” he added, glancing to Fluttershy with a brief hope.

Fluttershy wandered around the table and stood closer to them than she had before, albeit with her head still lowered slightly. A sword was tucked, very carefully, under her wing.

“I-I...” she mumbled, taking a deep breath before continuing, “I don't think I could carry two of you at once...You're pretty big, and I don't fly very often.”

“There ye go; one by one it shall have te be.”

“What about the other Hectors outside?” Fluttershy asked.

“They'll need te be dealt with. Any not caught in the blast'll get what's comin' te 'em. That's why we have weapons, Fluttershy. We get them before they get us.”

The little pegasus lowered her head again, glancing towards the door and then to the sword she had been handed. She dropped it on the floor, giving it a slight nudge that didn't go unnoticed by the captain.

“Yer goin' under the hull where ye can't be seen,” he began. “That way ye ain't in range o' any shots, unfriendly or otherwise, and ye have time te see us comin' overboard. Out of all of us, if ye kick the bucket, we ain't got any hope o' leavin' the ship in single pieces.”

“Who's going first then?” Fluttershy asked, curious, only for one of the men to answer as the chance was given.

“Ragetti. ‘E's goin' first.”

Barbossa looked over Pintel, and then to Ragetti who stood there, looking unsure whether to be happy he was first to go, or fearful for the very same reason. Barbossa patted Pintel on the shoulder, smiling at the thicker man before doing towards his nephew.

“Good man!” he said with a flicker of pride and patted Pintel on the shoulder once more. He then turned to Ragetti. “In that case, ye'll be gettin' yer arse over the edge the second Fluttershy does.”

He nodded at the order, though Barbossa suspected the man was quaking in his boots, especially with the sea of cobbles and stone layering the city below.

Barbossa couldn't deny he felt somewhat proud of Pintel's demand. The captain himself would be last to go over; he wouldn't have it any other way. But offering to let Ragetti go first made him glad he had such a man on his crew, even if he was a blithering idiot a good deal of the time.

Then again, it could have been out of fear and cowardice, and if that was the case, Pintel would get a beating the moment he was found out. For the time though, pride still took its place.

“Pintel, yer stuck on the deck fightin' wi' me then. Be there a greater honour?” Barbossa said, adding the last out of humour more than serious want of glory.

“Of course not, captain!”

“Then we'll ready for the fight!” he cheered, raising an arm to punch the air as he watched his men and Fluttershy do the same. “Ready men?!”

“AYE!” the two cheered, their vigour restored. Each followed their captain and punched their air hard and fast.

“A-aye!” Fluttershy whispered with a muted smile, joining the small crowd after they'd all but finished.

Ignoring Fluttershy's low enthusiasm, but acknowledging that it was definitely there, Barbossa moved back from the table, once again leaning over the keg of powder that held his attention.

“Right, you two, shift the table. Lean it on its side and shove it against that wall,” he said, pointing towards the wall dominated with windows and steel bars.

Both men responded with a content “Aye, Cap'n,” as they got up from their chairs and began the job assigned to them. They took no notice of the artefacts and objects that littered the table as they all ended up on the floor.

The crack and clang of all the gathered items hit the floor, and spare for the fact the cooler was now leaking its icy content onto the floor, none of the artefacts fared too badly. Both men briefly glanced over the items laying on the floor, looking at each other with giddy smiles as they saw two items in particular that caught their eye.

Barbossa busied himself with shifting the barrel, using both his arms to tilt it every few steps so it slowly, but surely, moved across the floor. The weight wasn't something he had to struggle with; it wasn't that heavy. The shape, on the other hand, made it awkward to carry. Rolling would likely have been easier, but he couldn't be bothered changing his methods part-way through a job that was almost done.

Fluttershy just sat on the floor, shifting the sword she had been given around, pushing it this way and that with her right forehoof. Picking it up in her mouth, she slowly swished it around in the air, occasionally watching the humans ready their plan.

Barbossa glanced back at her as he struggled past, bending down as he dragged the powder keg across the wooden floor boards of the cabin. Fluttershy once again sliced the sword through the air, hoping he got the message that she was trying to practise.

☠

The practise wasn't going to change anything, she briefly thought to herself. The blade was awkward to hold in her teeth, unless she bit down over the guard, which itself strained her jaw. Human swords didn't seem too pony-friendly, and Hector's had a big guard over anything she could grab on to. All the swords appeared identical too, so she doubted that asking for another would really help her situation.

Looking back to Pintel and Ragetti, who were pushing the table into where there captain had advised them, she stared at their heads. She blinked more than once, trying to process what she saw them wearing.

The two unicorn helmets the Hectors had brought on board were now worn atop their heads, with what seemed like pride on their faces. They didn't sit on the humans as perfectly as they would have on a pony, with their skulls being slightly smaller. The two men didn’t seem overly bothered by the fact.

It was quite a funny sight to see, if Fluttershy was being honest. At least when she compared it to the rest of her day.

“Barrel's in place!”

She turned her attention back to Hector who now stood over the barrel, nudging it into place against the door with his foot and holding the bar that had once been on the wooden frame loosely in his hands. He let it fall to the floor from his grasp, allowing Jack crawl back onto his shoulder now that the bulk of the work was complete.

He offered a finger to the monkey, letting the little creature shake it before the man wandered over to Fluttershy first. He crossed arms and hunched his back down towards her. Jack promptly fell off and scrambled his way across the floor.

“If yer quick, ye won't be needin' the sword. When the door's clear, just go up and over,” he explained, pointing into the air and then to the floor at his feet.

“You said I needed to learn.”

“I were yankin' what's left o' yer tail. Can't go wrong wi' weapon when faced with the likes o' those outside,” he explained, “Leave it if need be. Just be quick if ye do.”

Moving away from the mare, Barbossa went back to where the table had once been, inspecting the table in its new home against the far wall. The large, flat portion of the table was facing the door whilst the underside offered a small chance at protection.

A blast from a powder keg was going to be large. The keg they had wasn’t full, nor was it even half full, but the resulting explosion wouldn't leave them unscathed if they got too close.

They might not have even needed the table, given the size of the room. However, an explosion was still an explosion. And if all was to go right it would be better if those inside the room actually survived the escape attempt.

“Table's in place, Cap’n,” Pintel said, leaning against the piece of furniture in question.

There was a brief moment of silence as Barbossa finally took note that his men were now wearing something new.

“What in the name of Mary's hairy thighs have ye got on yer head?” Barbossa sighed, the act of a job well done replaced, once again, by something that forced him to question the intelligence of his men.

“Horny helmets,” Ragetti answered.

“Fer protection,” Pintel added.

Surprised to find the answer was actually a sensible one, Barbossa decided it was best not to question the pair on the helms. If it made them feel safer, or even succeeded in actually helping them, so be it. They looked to be of decent make, regardless.

“Line some powder along the floorboards from the keg te the table,” he asked both men, watching as Pintel complied and set off to do the task.

The room suddenly darkened, coating the room in one almighty shadow as the sunlight from the windows was exchanged for that of the moon.

Barbossa once again looked down to his hands, expecting to see them already malformed into their skeletal counterparts.

A gasp from Fluttershy offered the captain a chance to turn around, expecting her to somehow see him as an undead monster, only to realise that, of course, it was Jack rather than him. The little monkey was on the floor, scooting around in a square of light let in by the glass and patterned with the shadows of the bars guarding them. It made for an odd sight, with a single vertical bar of shadow keeping the curse at bay while the rest of the monkey rotted away.

Clicking his teeth together and ushering the little undead monkey towards his shoulder with a wave of his hand, Barbossa watched as his pet hopped away from the squeamish mare and clambered up his torso and out of the moonlight.

“Ain't so adorable now, is he?” Barbossa said, laughing as he shook the little monkey's hand.

Fluttershy followed the monkey over, stopping at Barbossa's feet to raise a hoof in Jack's direction. The moons light didn't pour to where they stood, and their bodies were as normal as they had always appeared.

“He wasn't as bad as you were,” she said, still reaching out for the animal and hoping the comment wouldn't be taken the wrong way.

“I wonder about that...”

Barbossa could be revealed in the moonlight, and his skin rotted away. His clothes tattered and aged and his body decayed in every manner of the word, in both feeling and appearance.

But that was it. And it shouldn't be.

In the light of the moon, this time, he didn't remember ever feeling completely empty, and he struggled with the kegs and shape; his breath had wavered and the struggle had made him tired. Neither of those things should have happened under the curse.

They just shouldn't have.

And Pintel had hit him in the face. The forgiven incident aside, Barbossa shouldn't have felt it, visibly under the curse or not. It shouldn't have hurt him, and while the pain had vanished rather quickly, it had still been there to begin with.

Jack felt nothing, all day and every night. He felt no wind against his fur, no drink in his throat, and no flavour on his tongue. Even the little acts of kindness his master and shipmen did for him were all but wasted on his senses.

So why had Barbossa himself been so different from his pet? Why had the experience been different from those torturous ten years spent at sea? It had been a while since that grim decade, but he still knew what it was supposed to feel like. It felt like nothing.

And that wasn't what Barbossa felt right now.

“Have I got a black eye?” the captain casually asked Fluttershy, trying to sound as natural as possible.

The little pony stood on the tips of her hooves, looking up at the human’s face until he got the message and bent his knees to match her own efforts. The medical check ended with nothing more than a shake from the mares head.

“No, it looks fine.”

Blinking his right eye, as if to test if she was telling the truth, Barbossa nodded to her and turned back to Ragetti who still seemed happy wearing the horned helmet which sat ever so slightly askew on his head.

“How is yer head?” Ragetti asked his captain. “Took a beatin'.”

“I did, but it’s fine. Ain't nothin' worth worryin' about,” or so Barbossa hoped.

He didn't even know how to break the curse, not without the chest. But if it was activated using magic from the Ponylands, then perhaps it could be broken with the same powers. Twilight and the princess would be his port of call when the chance offered itself, as well as for a few other things.

Getting off the ship was the first priority right now, however. Without his feet on the ground, he couldn't do anything worthwhile. There were things he wanted to get done and eldritch creatures he wanted words with.

“Line's done,” Pintel said as he wandered up to Barbossa, “Got a flint 'n steel too.”

“Good. We can be off then,” Barbossa announced forcing a smile and clapping his hands. “Fluttershy, get yersel' behind the table. The both of ye too.”

Motioning to each of the beings named in turn, the pirate captain watched as each member of his crew wandered and climbed their way over the table. Or in Fluttershy's case, she did a small, pseudo flying hop before landing on the other side.

Two of the three men sat against the table itself, with Fluttershy and Ragetti leaning against the wall opposite them. Jack still sat atop his master's shoulder, leaning towards the pony as she smiled back at him.

“Come on then!” Barbossa urged Pintel, watching the oaf struggle to light a spark against the line of powder scattered on the floor.

The gunpowder trailed all the way from the barrel to the table, as par requested of the captain, and detoured around the table itself, allowing a slither of the explosives to reach the man trying to light it.

Trying being the operative word.

“It ain't lightin'!” Pintel said with teeth held together, “I'm tryin' to do it,” still clicking the flint and steel together, creating no more that a flicker of sparks.

Forcing his thumb and forefinger to rub the sockets of his eyes, Barbossa groaned under his breath before muttering, “Oh, give me the bloody thing,” and attempted the act for himself.

Despite his lack of patience with the tool, it took the captain as many attempts as Pintel before the thing finally began creating sparks big enough. Finally getting a hang of the sparks, and how to make them big enough, the captain cracked the flint and steel together one last time and watched as the little specks of flame fell through the air and onto the obsidian black powder trailing to the door. A little plume of fire resulted thereafter.

“YES!” the captain exclaimed.

He lost his smile at the sight of the little ember growing and racing down the line much faster than any flame he had ever seen before. Much, much faster than any powder would – no, faster than powder should – alight.

“NO!”

It just wasn't natural. The powder burned faster, and what Barbossa had assumed would be undera minute of waiting for the explosion, turned into a sharp collection of seconds; the ship shattering kaboom was clearly coming a lot sooner than it rightfully should have done.

The light was storming down the powder, leaving nothing of anything behind. Not even a scorch on the wood in left behind.

“GET DOWN!”

He swung his hand through the air, practically commanding the air to bring his comrades to the floor. The piece of furniture itself didn't even feel safe anymore; if the powder burnt that fast, how big was the result at the end going to be?

He had very little time to think on the matter. Just as they hit the floor, an intense heat burst forth into existence. The world seemed to break down around them as all of their senses were commanded by the pained roar of the ship as it was torn apart from the inside. The table shunted back towards them, forcing their bodies much closer to the back wall.

The crackle of tiny flames and the fact that he could hear them was enough for Barbossa to brave looking over at the table and the destruction his poorly calculated explosion had caused. A black mass of charred wood now existed around the space the door had once occupied, spreading in every direction on the wall around it, or what was left.

It seemed the poor door had taken much of the surrounding room along with it.

The captain's quarters were in ruins, faring no better than the door that had once stood guard over it. The chairs were snapped and broken, and the windows were cracked and smashed into so many small pieces, leaving only stiff bars in place. The trinkets and curiosities gathered by his copies lay on the floor too, smouldering under perfect orange flames.

Their precious table even sported several small plumes of fire crackling against the surface.

Glancing back to the sizable hole in their prison, the captain suddenly remembered why they had caused such destruction in the first place. The rest of his companions peeked their heads gingerly over the table.

“Move!” the captain commanded, throwing his arms forward and grabbing hold of his sword. “Get yer arses outside!”

Standing to both his feet, and forcing the table onto its back, Barbossa leapt over and ran to their new ‘door’. He peered around the edge, and pushing his way outside avoiding a sizable hole in the floor their explosion had also caused.

It really had been a terrible plan, now that he thought about it.

The scene outside was the only thing going right, it seemed, and frankly, Barbossa was glad for it. The door sat half way up the deck, laying a top a limp body clothed in Barbossa’s garb.

Several more lay slumped over around the door, their bodies in various states of hideous disrepair. What caught Barbossa’s attention were the ones that weren’t dead, however; the ones clinging to their blackened injuries or simply dazed by the situation.

He wasn't really counting, hoping more that the first of his men could get away without consequence, but there couldn’t have been more than ten or eleven left alive on deck. Those still standing just stared slack-jawed at the blackened rupture in their already black ship.

Turning his neck to assess the situation behind him, he smiled a devilish grin at the sight of Fluttershy rapidly flapping her wings through the door, and then after a short spell spent hovering the air above his head, Barbossa nodded as he watched her disappear overboard.

Ragetti was still making his way outside, much to the chagrin of Pintel pushing him out the door in a fit to get him onto the deck and out of enclosed quarters. The shoving did its job though; the lankier of the two men made his way onto the deck, and as per the plan, pushed his way towards the guard rails encircling the ships side.

He just looked over, turning back to face Barbossa then focusing his gaze on what could only be Fluttershy as he followed something with his head, still peering overboard. Jack the monkey stood on deck with them all, screeching and howling.

Beastly roars coming from the demons commanding the ship were enough to bring all three men back to reality, convincing them that what was happening wasn't a dream, or an obtuse fantasy.

It was real.

So Barbossa pulled out one of his two pistols, holding both sword in one hand and firing into the crowd, and swiftly marked one of his other selves with a new orifice in the middle of his forehead.

“Go!” he bellowed.

And just like, Ragetti was gone, existing only as a squeal befitting a small child more than a fully grown pirate. The little monkey was gone too. Both men left only hoped their new winged comrade knew what she was doing. With the scream all but disappearing, they assumed it to be true.

“Hold nothin' back,” the real Barbossa announced, forcing his pistol back to its resting place and both swords into their own hands.

Pintel did the same, letting his pistol slide into his pocket and swinging one sword clumsily in the right hand, almost dropping it in the process. “Take no prisoners!”

The other Barbossas ran forward, own swords raised high. A lone clone stood at the far end oif the deck, fumbling with its pistol and powder.

The one and only captain Barbossa went for him first, slashing at another's neck as he stormed past, watching as Pintel spent his own time just cutting at the air at whichever copy happened to be at hand.

The lone gunman didn't succeed in his task, gasping a wordless plead as he fell to floor as lifeless as the men nearest to the door. Even if Barbossa knew the torment wouldn't end any time soon, he hoped to every God he knew that they’d killed enough to last them a few minutes, at least.

More duplicates charged up from different directions, though there only appeared to be two gateways that birthed them. The guard for the lower decks in the middle of the ship held them back, their hands reaching up through the grates whilst the rest came charging up through the door that led downstairs.

At the very least, it confirmed that they come from within the ship, and not out in the open. Barbossa was thankful they didn’t magically spawn wherever they pleased.

Slicing at another imposter as it charged forward, Barbossa pierced the man's chest, pulling the blade back and kicking him with the heel of his foot. Making his way towards the magical door they all seemed to be coming from, Barbossa searched for anything that would help close it, grinding his teeth together as nothing immediate seemed to help.

There wasn’t even a way to try and block it.

The heave of the ship and the shifting of its sails did nothing to help the captain's mood, as he paused in his tirade and turned to see another of his copies at the helm, twisting the wheel and pulling in a direction he knew for a fact wheel couldn't go; up.

The copy was laughing, cheering with a sword raised in the air as he spun the ships wheel, pulling the entire thing in a swift upward motion. The steering mechanism didn't come free from its place, and instead moved the ship in the very direction it implied.

“Damn you, Discord!” Barbossa roared, pushing both swords in front of him at once, cutting into two other clones and pulling them out to cut another at the neck.

Despite the fight erupting on deck, all men present swayed in their step, struggling to keep upright as the ship tossed and turned from side to side, continuously soaring higher into the sky in the process. More men attempted to come from below deck to join the rest, but the original captain did his best striking them down as they came through the door one by one.

Even he knew such a tactic wouldn’t last, but now wasn’t the time to lament on that fact.

How hadn't he considered the ships steering? It was so obvious a thing to check, and it hadn't even crossed his mind. Steering usually wasn't an issue, a man at the wheel could only shift the boat from side to side, but doing so was an idiotic tactic; not only did it ruin your enemies chances, it also stopped your own men as well.

But the men on board didn't care! There were too many to care about missed shots and lost lives; they could just summon more as they were needed.

And this ship wasn't on the water, it was in the air. Of course it wouldn't move the same way as any boat he'd sailed on before! It had to go up and down as well as from side to side if it flew in the air, else ways how would it ever land?

It didn’t change much, but it was an oversight nonetheless. One man was free from the ship and only two more remained; that was the plan, and he was sticking to it, no matter how absurd the situation was.

Hearing a gunshot and a yell from on high, Barbossa grinned as he saw the man at the wheel had fallen to his knees and Pintel with a smoking pistol in his hand.

“Good man!”

Pleased that Pintel appeared to at least have some wits about him, Barbossa went back to his duty, and continued to fight back any men that came up through the door.

The act was growing old, however. More and more men were coming, and too many were there to keep fighting off the second they left the doorway. He couldn't even see an end to the men as the queued up in a wild rabble at the door, some with weapons ready as the neared the exit.

And he began to falter soon after. More pushed out than he could deal with, and Barbossa moved back to compensate. He used the skills he’d learned at sea to the best of his ability, taking care to miss as few precious openings as he could possibly manage.

He was still inevitably pushed back as more men came out, adding to the numbers already gathering on the deck. The appearance of Pintel at Barbossa's side only helped so much, with the man's own sword skills not matching up to his captain's.

Barbossa was happy for the assistance all the same.

“How many are there?!” Pintel yelped, “There ain't no end to 'em.”

“There ain't!” Barbossa affirmed, kicking one back when his sword failed him. The copy fell back through the door and onto the waiting crowd. “But we don't need them all dead; we just need te live 'till our safe passage returns!”

Too many were in front of them too keep up now. There couldn't have been more than twelve on deck, but that was becoming too many. With every one they downed another rose up in their place. And even if the process was slow and arduous, the sheer amount of the creatures rushing on board through the door wasn't an easy thing to handle.

A few steep steps backwards allowed them more room to fight, and keep up with the numbers, but the control the captain had over the spawning door was gone. Pintel didn't bother speaking up, concentrating as much as he could on his enemies.

The floor beneath them tilted again, violently to starboard, forcing both men on to their knees, and a good deal of the demons they were facing alongside them. Or so Barbossa had assumed. The one's he could see had fallen. The others out of his sight moved through the door, pushing passed and marching over the fallen before charging at their mark.

It wasn't them that concerned him; he could deal with them. It was faint wail of a grown man growing ever quieter. Barbossa turned and it dawned on him that Pintel was no longer on board the ship.

Pintel was gone.

☠

The rotund man flailed his arms in air, attempting the impossible, and trying to fly himself to safety. He flapped his arms through the air in the hopes he could grasp it, and hold on for dear life.

It didn't work.

The ground was impossibly far away. He didn't know how high he was, or if there was even a way of telling how high he was. The houses looked like children toys, in both appearance and relative distance and even if this was part of his captain's almighty plan, he still felt a shiver run down his spine.

He couldn't even find the courage to close his eyes, as if the fall itself was forcing them open. Whilst the ship had been close to the ground when he initially boarded, being in line with debris and just above the level of the grounded buildings, he was now at least ten or twenty times higher.

Running out of breath, and still falling aimlessly through the air, Pintel cackled and coughed from the bottom of his throat, growing tired of constantly screaming as he plummeted towards the ground. He took a deep breath and continued to wail regardless, hoping it would somehow help his situation.

Wondering if praying would actually help, the man held his hand at his chest, doing his best to take up the form of a man kneeling to God. He was never a huge lover the big man upstairs, but there couldn't have been a better time to get acquainted with him.

Salvation came without call, however. Closing his eyes, the faint speak of, “No!” being continuously uttered over and over again brought him back to his senses. “No no no no no no no no!”

Twisting his head in every direction, unconsciously swivelling about in the middle of the air, Pintel cracked the biggest smile he thought possible at the sight of the magical flying horse coming towards him.

She was coming slowly. Or slower than he would have preferred given his current predicament, but she was getting closer none the less. From directly below him too.

“Quicker please!” still seemed like an appropriate thing to yell at her, despite already falling in her direction.

Fluttershy continued to flap and push her wings as fast as they would go. She hadn't expected to see one of them coming from the ship so soon. It had took her long enough to take Ragetti down at a slow enough speed to begin with.

It was a lot harder than she had thought. Taking him down was one thing, but he was heavy. Slowing down the speed they were falling proved harder than she initially assumed it would.

But she was anything if not determined. She found an easier, safer way to take Ragetti down. Rather than doing a direct vertical drop with her wings flapping mercilessly and the human hanging on to her legs, she slowly glided down towards the ground. She picked up speed for most of the way down, before letting up and covering a bigger length of ground at a slower speed.

He just had to run a little when his feet touched the ground before he let go and she was on her way back up again. He still fell over after a few steps, but he was off the ship, safe and sound.

Catching him had been planned out, for the most part. The initial attempt at flying with him hanging on proved somewhat arduous, and the tiniest bit painful. It was only after falling for a short spell with him hanging on that she began the glide.

“I'm coming!” she squeaked, wondering why he'd chosen to jump from the deck when she hadn’t even finished with the other human's rescue.

Wishing she had Rainbow's strength more than her own, Fluttershy moved towards the human falling from above, moving in the direction he was falling in. He wasn't directly above her, but he would need to be if she wanted to slow him down.

Holding both her front hooves forward, she sped up once again, moving forward towards the point where she and Pintel would meet in the air, and finally down when he passed her. Still planning on the same tactic she'd used with Ragetti, Fluttershy began her glide when the human beside her began shouting and squealing.

“The ground! The ground!”

Still aiming for the human, Fluttershy looked directly ahead of her; which happened to be down. The houses where she'd dropped Ragetti were far closer than they should have been. So was Ragetti himself, for that matter.

Holding her forelegs out for the human, Fluttershy stretched her wings as far as they would go, pushing the force of the air through her wings. Pintel grabbed hold of one of her fore and hind legs, holding tight as the ground drew ever nearer. Hoping to slow their fall, the pegasus began flapping her wings, only for a new probably to reveal itself.

“You're really heavy!” the little mare squealed, flapping her wings harder to compensate, and watching the streets and buildings below appearing clearer as she slowly began to level herself out

“Me fingers are slippin'!”

Still pushing her wings harder, ready grab hold of Pintel to control the newest problem, the man's grip came loose of her hind leg, shifting more weight than she could possibly have been wanted. He managed to grab hold of her other foreleg, but it was already too late.

“What' goin' on?!” was Pintel's only response to the pained sound that came from the pony's mouth.

They were forced down, and rather than the straight trajectory Fluttershy had attempted to employ, they were now veering off to her left, her right wing no longer abiding by her command.

The ground was close, and going past increasingly fast as they flew directly down towards it, passing a waving Ragetti as a frown suddenly rushed onto his face. Her teeth were grinding together, and her eyes were welded shut, not even wanting to see what they were about to hit if it only kept them in the air for just a few more seconds.

Pintel hit the ground first, or rather, the branch of the tree that had gotten in his way. His fall through said tree and onto the cobbled streets were what warranted his landing being the first. Fluttershy abruptly followed soon after.

She'd not hit the tree. Rather, she’d stormed straight through. Even if it did slow her fall, the grunts she made when she did sounded harsh to even the skinny pirate chasing after the pair.

He briefly peered back to make sure Jack the monkey was still nearby. The little thing was just staring blankly up at the sky.

Fluttershy and the newest escapee had hit one of many trees planted throughout the city streets. Despite the situation as it turned out, Ragetti was relieved more than he could describe; any later in pulling up, the result could have been a good deal messier.

“Ye's alright?!” Ragetti said, running up to his uncle first. He glanced over at the escort a second later.

“I think so,” he replied, shaking his arms and legs, wincing at the movement his right shoulder offered. “Maybe.”

He slowly got to his feet, softly clutching his shoulder and spinning it around in smooth, small circles. The two ushered each other over to Fluttershy, who was barely two legs up from the ground.

“What 'appened up there?” Pintel asked the mare, continuously pushing at his shoulder blade with his free palm.

Letting Ragetti help her onto all four hooves, Fluttershy reluctantly thanked the man. She copyied the motions Pintel had followed upon standing, albeit with her own network of body parts.

“You came down too early,” she muttered in an all but whispered voice, once again wincing as she attempted to move her wing. “A-and I think I hurt my...wing.”

Though they weren’t the injuries the mare was talking about, Ragetti let out a sympathetic moan as he saw the newest collection of grazes on her coat and face. Pintel hadn't fared much better from the landing; he had more than a few cuts and pricks on his face and hands from where he'd hit the tree.

“A-and you were heavier than I thought...” she added, sheepishly trying to avoid Pintel's eyes as the sky suddenly went from day to night. “Just a tad.”

“Yer wing alright?” both men asked at the same time, albeit with slightly different terms of phrase.

“I-I don't know,” she said, flapping both wings at once before letting out another squeak, “I think I sprained it.”

Both men nodded, slowly opening their eyes wide and then turning to face the ship they had daringly escaped from just moments before. It was disappearing above the clouds and heading away from the large castle moulded into the mountain side. It was also a good deal of a distance away from where all three currently stood.

“Barbossa!” Pintel’s pupils shrunk small. He turned to Fluttershy. “Ye have te go an' get Barbossa! He's still up there wi' 'imself!”

Fluttershy only responded with a determined snort through her nostril, looking back towards her wing and then to the men staring down at her. Moving her wings as much as she could, the little mare shook and strained to get even a few feet of the air. Her weight shifted heavily to matching her weakened wing before she gracelessly landed back on the ground.

“I c-can't; my wing’s sprained!”

Audibly breathing and pushing his hands through what little hair he had left, Pintel stared out towards the flying ship and the little black specks that now continuously fell from it. They littered the air like beads of obsidian black rain against the ever changing colours of the sky.

☠

Barbossa stood on the deck of the ship, swords branded in both his shaking hands as the men continued to swarm all around him. He'd found solace and ease with the battle as it had gone, forcing whomever he could over the edge and using his skill and power with whatever cretins happened to be left over. It left him less men to fight and more energy to fight them with.

The guard over the hold in the middle of the ship had been broken. Smashed in battle or with a purpose he didn't know, but now they bled from the belly of the ship rather than just the lone door he had taken to lashing out at.

Now the men came from all side, attacking the man with his bare bones showing in the moonlight, revealing his newly returned curse to the world. The men still in mortal guise continually pushed him towards the port side, forming a tight circle around him.

But Hector Barbossa didn’t give a damn.

“If there be days worth livin',” he heaved, forcing his swords through four men in swift secession, elbowing another back into the crowd as he let a ghoulish cackle clambering from deep within his rotten throat, “then this be the day worth dyin' for!”

Any men he sent to the grave – or over the side of the blasted ship – came back with a rejuvenated vigour from within the belly of the beastly vessel he was standing on. He didn't know if the same men were returning to continue the fight or if new men were being born from Discord's magic, but they all acted on the same desire, the same order; attack.

No more were they jumping from the ships sides and into the houses of the ponies below, and no more were the obsessed with the riches and wonders they could find in the city. All they did was attack him.

And he couldn’t work out why! They’d listened to him just fine hours before!

Cutting the throats of two other men, using both his arms and the occasional kick to keep them at bay, he waited for the call that would let him just run from the ships edge like an almighty eagle, or something equally as majestic and untamed.

Wait until Jack Sparrow heard word of his efforts. A ship filled to the brim with himself, fighting an everlasting mutiny on a sea made from the skies and clouds themselves. There was no way Jack had done anything remotely similar. In Jones’ Locker or anywhere else.

Stick that in yer pipe, Jack!

The number of men stayed constant enough for him to count. Twenty in all, at all times. For any man lost or sent overboard, another came in his place. But never any more than that; always twenty. Barbossa couldn't tell why he'd had the time to count, but in his struggle to fight the good fight, he'd bloody well found it.

And he'd found time to count the men he'd downed after a while. Fifty eight he'd counted. He'd defeated almost sixty men on his own, with no allies beside him, and with only two swords to hold down the horde. The pistols still sat at his side, with no time suitable enough to pull them out, lest he give the opposition their chance to strike. There certainly wasn’t anytime to refill the damned things afterwards.

A sudden kick from the side forced Barbossa into the arms of the crowd. The copied man that caught him found both swords buried deep within his ribs as Barbossa forced his way back out again.

“Bastards...” the original swore under his breath, pulling his swords back from the, now, lifeless body. The blades came back slower than they had before.

Despite his skeletal form bearing it's presence on the ship, he still felt tired. He couldn't escape that fallacy, and it would be his downfall if there ever was one. Even he wasn't a god; he couldn't fight a fight for the rest of time.

Pain, however. That was still numbed in the moonlight.

“Hurry up Fluttershy!” he bellowed at the heavens. He waved his swords in violent circles, each man stupid enough to stand close earning deep gashes into their faces.

As the fight raged on, the ship was grew higher and higher into the clouds. The mast was already lost to the multicoloured madness that was now the norm of Discord’s Equestria, and the rest of the ship following in its example.

He couldn't take much more of this, let alone in the darkness of the clouds. Even if their colour was bright and vibrant, his sight wouldn't be once he was immersed. If being in the clouds was anything like a fog, he wouldn’t stand much of a chance against so many.

The ship was still growing ever higher, with a man at the helm cackling and screeching as he turned the wheel this way and that. Another Hector was fighting him for the privilege, turning it in whatever way that the other wasn't.

But the vertical direction was always at a constant, and that was up.

Watching as the atmosphere travelled down the length of the ships tall mast, Barbossa continued on, using every inch of the sword he could against whatever weakness revealed itself. The imposters didn't have his skill, nor his intelligence, but their numbers more than made up for the stupidity.

The hilt of his sword connected with the skulls of three men in quick secession, knocking each free from the crowd as his enemies parted and allowed them to fall free from the ship, clearing their path to the captain.

Then the sun came up.

In another blast of strength, Barbossa forced the men that had parted back, using their glances to their fallen partners as a chance. He elbowed the one most central to the group and forced him into the others, pushing a few of them back towards the banister. Four of them fell from the ship’s deck, towards the practically endless drop below.

But one grabbed hold of Barbossa’s arms. The copy dug his nails into cloth of Barbossa’s jacket as a wicked smile etched into the his maw.

Shifting himself in a bid to get free, Barbossa swivelled the sword in his grasp. He caught his captor in the face, only for another to knee Barbossa in his stomach and forcing out what little wind was left inside him.

The others joined in, taking hold of one arm as Barbossa struggled to fight with the other. Cutting the air and whipping whatever he could with the blade of his rapier, he lost it in the struggle as his other arm was ceased by two more demonic duplicates.

Another had seen fit to assist the others with his opposite arm, bringing the number of men holding him by the limbs up to four. Barbossa watched as they picked up his blades and effortlessly tossed hem overboard to join the many men they'd lost.

Another two grasped hold of his legs, receiving sturdy kicks to both their faces for their efforts. They took hold regardless as the real Barbossa found them suddenly heavy. Another couple of copies joined them, finalising the capture.

“Ye better go an’ warn yer serpentine master,” Barbossa spat, shaking and jutting his limbs in any direction he could, “Because in this life, or the next, I will have his head for this!”

The pirates continued their barrage, punching him the visible parts of his body, his face and chest primarily. All the while they simply laughed in a mirthless, demonic chorus, looking down on the man who once held them under his every command.

Then as a single body, every one of them moved towards the rail. They left space at the edge for their final act of battle. Those not holding Barbossa down crossed their arms and watched.

Then the captors swung their arms back and forth, crying out timed grunts until, with one final step backward, every one of the men let go.

Frantically grasping out on all sides, Barbossa reached out and, in some divine miracle, his hand wrapped around one of his enemies’ jackets.

But the men on board didn't see it as a iracle. As Barbossa himself reached his other hand out to grab hold, they struck out at his arms with their own weapons, slicing the skin along his knuckles and carving down to the bone of his fore arm.

A horrid, unnatural wail of pain left Barbossa as he left the safety of the ship, announced only by the hysterical laughter of those who looked just like him. His grip was lost, and his reward was the nostalgic feeling of the daylight sun and the heavy rush of air as it hit his face.

But even that was taken from him and in Discord's will of cruel chance the sun vanished once more, bringing out the moon in all its cold, cursed glory. The pain in his hand went with it. That was good, he thought. At least something was going right or him.

“Fluttershy?!” he begged out to the open sky, searching for any glimpse of the little pony.

No reply came back for him. He continued to fall down to the ground below and to the harsh, unforgiving cobblestone that would surely greet him. His hat was gone too, which only seemed to make the whole ordeal that little bit more painful.

After all, he liked his hat. He wasn’t quite sure when he’d lost it either, which only proved to aggravate him further.

The buildings were surely getting larger, and the streets below were growing clearer to his eye, as were the many number of himself wandering the through the alien world. He couldn't see many ponies. At least, he didn't think he did. It was still dark down there.

But what did it matter? He'd all but commanded an army of soldiers with weapons held high – and no honour to speak of – to steal from their homes and scare them half to death. Whether it was truly his fault or not, there weren’t going to be any kind words said by the ponies about him.

Then again he could survive. It couldn't be taken for granted; the curse wasn't as it should have been, and that was all that worried him. How far would his pain be able to go? How far could he stretch the power of the coin before whatever bastardised spell he was under gave way?

“Rainbow Dash?!” he eventually begged. He stared helplessly into the night sky, long passed the technicolour clouds and shimmering stars.

She didn't reply.

No one did.

It was a silly thought, really. How could she have saved him? Rainbow might not have even been alive after what he'd commanded his crew to do. A small part of him hoped she was.

At least he'd scared Rarity though; that was one silver lining, he supposed. Not that he really wanted her dead either, mind you; the little ones would probably cry about it and make it his fault.

Still...

Closing his eyes as the ground drew its final few feet towards him, Barbossa let his body go limp. He was ready for the heavy collision with the hard ground when it eventually met him.

Angry and Dead Again

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 19
Angry and Dead Again

Fluttershy frantically galloped through the city streets of Canterlot beside the two newest humans – along with a rather cranky undead monkey– that had entered her life. All the while, the three of them pushed their way towards the black pirate ship as it maintained on always moving just that little bit faster than they could keep up.

Her ultimate failure of an escape attempt had brought them away from the ship. Consequently, that also brought them out of the way the vessel had chartered. She had silently hoped that the ship might simply drift towards them, though that particular dream had been squashed rather quickly.

Not that the vessel was impossibly far away, mind you; when the chase had begun there seemed to be an irritably large number of streets and alleys in their way. Now it drifted just out of their reach, no more than a few streets away when approached from the ground.

Getting anywhere near that up high in the air was another matter entirely.

As she ran, Fluttershy held her wings tight to her side as she struggled to ignore the uncomfortable burning along the length of her injury. Her wing throbbed right through to the bone, forcing the little pegasus to wonder whether there was more to it than a simple sprain. Even with the limb held somewhat naturally at her side, it felt strained and disturbingly out of place.

Her hooves and legs were fine, however, and for that much she was grateful. Through a sprint she managed to match Pintel and Ragetti's pace despite her lack of physical prowess. Though she suspected that just might have been more due to the pirates' own lack of fitness than anything on her part.

She then briefly wondered how a creature with only two legs could possibly be a fully functioning pirate without being as fit as a phoenix.

The two aliens weren't very elegant on their feet either. Pintel barely got more than a few dozen paces each time before he had to force his trousers up above his waist and Ragetti often flailed his arms at his sides. The man practically waved to the world as he ran past it.

There wasn’t an awful lot for him to wave at anymore. Fluttershy had never spent all that much time in the middle of Canterlot, but she'd certainly never seen it – or any place – in the condition it was now. Window panes sat broken and smashed with the jagged glass littering the nearby pavements. Object of every size and worth were haphazardly broken alongside the rubble.

There were barely any ponies to see either, which was perhaps the most jarring difference. Most buildings boasted nothing but the destruction Barbossa and his clan had caused. If any building did contain a pony, they were likely curled up as far inside as they possibly could be.

It was almost amazing to think that, just yesterday, the very idea of pirates raiding Canterlot would have been scoffed at as a foal’s fantasy. Only now it seemed more akin to a nightmare.

The only sign that ponies even existed at all was the odd survivor skittishly fleeing from one place to another. Even then, those ponies often veered very far away the moment Pintel and Ragetti stormed into view.

As the two men made a mad dash into a new street, two earth ponies dived from their path only to end up cowering on the ground. Fluttershy apologised in pirates’ wake –slowing briefly to smile – before she galloped on her way.

But despite everything they were doing, and as hard as the men themselves tried, the ship never grew significantly closer. If they were moving any closer, or gaining any real ground, then it was hardly visible from the streets.

Fluttershy didn't even know what the two of them had planned if they eventually got to the ship. After all, they'd be directly under the thing with no way to get onto it. She couldn't fly. And she was sure Pintel and Ragetti had an even smaller chance of getting up there, let alone helping Hector back down to safety when they did.

“Hector...”

Part of her mind questioned why she was even going along with the two humans, given everything Hector had done in the recent days. Even the things before Discord had made his grand appearance were less than what she considered kind.

He...wasn't a horrible creature, to be fair. Mean, most certainly, but not horrible. Then again, she pondered the idea that if Discord had never appeared to them in that hall – and never gave her a reason to suspect – would she have thought Hector any different? Would it have occurred to her that taking her hostage and siding with Discord was out of his character?

Would she have ever found it in herself to forgive him then?

Shifting her neck as she ran, Fluttershy cringed at the numbing pain against her skin. Small cuts and the threat of something much worse still remained etched into the flesh just below her throat whilst a single trail of red stained part of her yellow coat. The choker that had once been strapped around her neck hadn’t exactly helped her condition.

Barbossa had wanted her wings bound too and he'd been somewhat adamant about it when talking to Discord. He had claimed it to be his way out of trouble. Fluttershy had assumed it was to bargain with her friends, but she’d never found the courage to ask.

She shook her head, pushing the thoughts out of her mind to focus on the current objective rather than what had occurred before. Hector was in trouble, and now in total control of his own mind. She wasn't about to let a creature get hurt when there was still something in him worth saving.

No matter how small that part may have been.

The chance for the thoughts to resurface passed by when Pintel suddenly broke free from the group and began running over towards a lone purple pegasus. The man came to a halt just in front of the mare, hollering something about help as he hysterically pointed up towards the ship sailing in the sky.

Fluttershy kept her own course as she slowed to a stop, watching with Ragetti as the portly man bent over the pony and began to reach down for her forelegs.

A second later – after a well timed buck – and Pintel was on the floor clutching at his stomach. The mystery mare was already up in the air, soaring deftly over a building before she vanished out of sight.

Ragetti stood there, looking back and forth between the ship as it flew away and his uncle as he lay slumped on the floor. The taller man shuffled on the spot, anxiously running his hands through his hair before finally deciding on the latter of his two choices.

“That went well, didn’t it?” he asked.

“Shut up,” Pintel spat back under his breath, “Let’s just get to the bloody ship...”

“What…what exactly are we going to do when we get under it?” Fluttershy asked. “I can't fly anymore. How are you going to get up there?”

“That's why I wanted the flyin' horse to help,” he mumbled in reply, kicking at the street as he peered into the sky. His breaths were heavy as he got to his feet and began to wander back along their original path. “Ain't my fault she got hersel' spooked.”

Fluttershy wanted to voice her believe of the contrary, but kept her silence.

Pintel led he group as he began into steady jog. His two companions stopped beside him less than a minute later as he bent over and tried to catch the breath that had been cleanly bucked of out him. Ragetti just blamed it on his uncle’s age and form, something Fluttershy silently believed too.

After the fatter of the two men assured that he wasn't as unfit as everyone assumed, the group moved out from the street they were in. They suddenly stopped as they found themselves in open square of architecture. An ornate marble fountain sat proud at the centre of the courtyard, surrounded by a wide circle of marble buildings that harboured small sideways and exits into the rest of the city.

The scenery wasn't the reason they had stopped, however.

At least dozen of the faux Barbossas were slumped motionless on the dirty cobbles. Several others were hung limp over the roofs of several houses, free of blood and whatever else it was that made them work. They all followed a wayward path, dead breadcrumbs to the ship that lay just out of reach in the distance.

Ragetti grasped hold of Jack’s waistcoat before the little thing had even thought of moving anywhere that wasn’t his shoulder. It didn’t do much to stop the monkey as he shrieked and clawed to the dead forms on the ground.

“Captain's been busy,” Ragetti mumbled.

Fluttershy was somewhat surprised – perhaps a little in awe – to know that Hector had done as well as he apparently had against an endless stream of enemies in an enclosed space. She knew she would have had a hard enough time in such a situation.

Then the sky suddenly turned black, stirring the horizon from the cacophony of colours it had been into a starry night and the dim light of the moon fell over them. The stars stirred through the air, painting into the sky a collection images and symbols. A smiling face and a dancing pig in a skirt were among those pictures, quite clearly, represented in the sky in place of any recognisable constellations.

Then again, Fluttershy had never spent too much of her time studying the stars; that was more Twilight’s field of expertise. She wagered the unicorn would be a little more than livid he she knew the constellations had been reduced to dancing pigs.

“That he has…” Pintel blankly replied.

Fluttershy took wary steps as they began to wander passed the lifeless crew members strewn around the ground, rather unnerved that the other two hadn’t so much as turned at the sight of the dead. Even when she knew they weren't really Hector, it still tugged at her heart to think that the creatures had once been – in some small capacity – alive.

Letting her slow steps develop into a steady canter, she peered over a duplicate of her antagonistic friend, lowering her ears as his likeness struck her a little harder than she thought it would. A soft moan sounded out from beneath her and the little pegasus shot her body back when she realised what it was.

The form below her was very much alive, and it had started to move. Bent at sickly angles, the arms continually convulsed as the hands struggled to push the rest of the body up from the ground. There was a horrid crack as one of the arms snapped back into place and the copy began to repeat the process.

Fluttershy found herself wandering away, trying to stifle a sound coming from her lips that was halfway between a squeak and a jittery laugh. She hurried in a quick trot to the humans, bumping into the skinnier of the two as she kept close.

The two men took notice, peering into the darkness towards whatever it was that had their equine guide so scared.

The ragged chime of “Yo...” echoed throughout the streets, followed by a chilly silence as “Ho...” was sung from within the shadows soon after.

The voices came from every direction, rasped and held in the air by hushed whispers. Not quite to the group’s surprise, the West Country accent was all too familiar to them.

Pintel and Ragetti stopped in their tracks. They shared an uncertain look as they peered into the streets around them, and then down to Fluttershy.

Even Jack had grown silent in the aftermath, pausing in his futile tirade to peer silently up into the night sky.

“All...” followed on from within the darkened streets, choired by the continuous voice of Barbossa. Every Barbossa. “Haaaaaands...”

“This place is givin’ me the fear,” Pintel whispered into the air. “Talk about creepy.”

He began to walk faster, heading out further into the vast open area they had uncovered. If anything, the wide open nature of the square left nowhere for any unpleasant beasties to hide. If anything came for them, they’d be sure to see it coming first. The abundance of side streets gave them more than enough exits to choose from, too.

Ragetti swiftly followed in his uncle’s example and tugged at Fluttershy's coat to urge her along. It was then, with their air silent, that they all realised the ship had begun to significantly slow its course. It was reassuring, though made the trip up there no less difficult.

The area they were in hardly made the task any easier. Fluttershy didn't know where exactly they were, but some sort of central plaza seemed quite likely. It definitely wasn’t the centre of Canterlot; she'd wandered through there enough times during her brief visits with Rarity.

Still, the wide open space and a distinct lack of any real way to scale the buildings offered them no real vertical assistance.

Regardless, the three hurried their pace. The ship had slowed – of that much they were sure –and if there was ever a time get below the vessel, it was now. Pintel briefly voiced his hope to find another “flying horsie” to get them up there.

“Hoooooooist...”

When she thought about it, Fluttershy wasn't really sure what she was hoping for. A chance to get up there? A way to simply bring Hector down to them? Either way, she'd need a willing pegasus. And unless Dash was just around the corner she didn't think there'd be a multitude of them running around.

It was times like these she wished she knew where Pinkie hid all her strange things. Her flying machine would have been helpful. Pintel or Ragetti would even be able to have a go at using that. A party cannon or two would have been a nice boon, too.

But she wasn't about to leave a friend behind. She didn't know how she could help, or what Pintel and Ragetti had planned, but if getting under it was the best they could do right now then that's just what she would have to do.

“The coloooours!”

The Barbossas were getting better at their efforts to stand. Fluttershy couldn't speak for any others that were out in the darkness, but those that had been silent and downed on the streets were now struggling up on their elbows.

And they were still groaning, singing in a clear chorus whenever they could.

“High!”

“That song,” Pintel whispered beneath his breath. In the ensuing silence it was enough to catch everyone’s attention. “That’s the song, ain’t it? The song?”

“A-aye, right enough. Don’t seem so good to hear it no more.”

“What song?” Fluttershy asked. “Is it important?”

“The song!” Pintel repeated in a harsh whisper. “Every pirate knows -”

One of the clones struggled up from the ground, reaching out towards Ragetti before falling back down with a dull thud. All three of them flinched to the side, cowering beneath the echoes of the song being sung. Ragetti and Pintel thanked the lords above and beyond that their trousers were already brown.

“Jesus bloody Christ!” Pintel swore. He moved forward and kicked the lifeless body away. “Trust Barbossa te leave the men for dead, only to have the things scare us at the bottom.”

“I-I'm not sure he left them for...f-for dead,” Fluttershy whispered, trotting forward. “I think they were dead.”

She caught up to Pintel's side, still looking around as the other copies began to get better and better in their attempts to stand. It was like watching foals learning to walk, or a creature that was far too eager to walk on healing bones.

One in particular was a particular sight to behold. It was moving faster than the others, though in a far worse condition. It dragged itself at a snail's pace across the ground by the strength of a single arm. The other arm appeared to be missing outright, as was a good deal of its legs.

“Neeeever...”

The others kept shifting towards the ship as Ragetti suddenly held back a shriek. He shook as his hands as Jack launched himself from the man’s shoulder and towards the broken Barbossa. The others turned back to see the monkey clambering onto its back.

The monkey leaned its head on the man’s back, and, after a brief stop to natter something out of earshot, the Barbossa kept on moving.

Ragetti was the first to comment on the situation. “Barbossa?!”

Ragetti lifted his hand into the air and awkwardly waved it as the dilapidated Barbossa stopped in its tracks. It was then than Fluttershy noted, through the dark, how broken the Barbossa was. It wasn’t just hurt or down like the others; it was rotted down to the core.

Much like the little monkey, it was undead.

And, judging by the voice, it was angry too.

“Don’t just stand there, gawkin’!” it roared. Or, rather, he roared. “Get yer paper skulled arses over here and help me!”

Ragetti nodded and made a beeline for his captain. Pintel and Fluttershy just watched, looking at the scene until their senses truly came to them and they followed suit. When they were by Ragetti’s side they could truly see the Barbossa for what it was: the real Barbossa.

Despite that, it took Fluttershy a few long second before she could look at him proper. His form was bathed in the moonlight, deprived of skin and whatever else it was that made the pirate seem alive. She swallowed and weary breath as something shifted in her stomach.

One of his legs was gone, completely detached from the hip. His other was broken off at the shin or the knee; she couldn't quite tell under his trousers, as ripped and frayed as they were. He also appeared to be missing a large part of his upper torso, mainly the left side along with the socket and arm that should have rightly been there. She watched as Barbossa shifted his head frantically between the way in front of him and the darkness draped across the sky. The moon in particular held his attention.

“W-what happened to you?” she eventually mumbled.

He came to a sudden stop. He shifted his back and Jack fell back to the cobbles.

“Oh, good te know ye care about me health and earthly well bein', Fluttershy. He stressed her name with his lipless mouth. “It’s a pity that ye weren't there te give it when I got me arse handed te me on a silver platter!”

“B-but it wasn't my fault, I-”

“I don't care; quite frankly, yer excuses ain't high on me list o' priorities at the moment.” His attention shifted to face his own two men. “Mr Ragetti, Pintel!”

“Aye?!” they called in unison.

“Me arm and legs appear te be keen on stayin' buggered off,” he stated, pointing towards the general direction of the fountain. Something that could have been a grotesquely deformed fish was flailing this way and that in the water. “Get them. Now.”

The last word came out sharper and harder than others, and the two crewmen didn't hesitate in taking it to heart. Fluttershy wondered if they had enough information to go on, but the men took to their task before she could say anything on the matter.

“Never...”

Barbossa looked at the world around him, clenching his teeth at the sound of his own voice as it sang out all across the square. And beyond it, too.

Pintel came back first. He ran by, tossing a rotten arm in Barbossa’s general direction before storming away.

“Neeeeeeever…”

The captain quickly moved onto his behind, removing half of his coat. He picked his amputated arm up from the floor and forced it back into – what was left – of its socket.

Fluttershy winced as the bones cracked and the arm reluctantly clicked into place. Barbossa raise this hands slowly into the air, though it was a matter of seconds before the limb fell from its place and back to the ground.

“Bugger,” he groaned, flexing what was left of his shoulder as he held the arm back into place. “That shoulder better grow back fast....” He turned to look at Fluttershy. “What? Ye think yer exempt?”

Fluttershy attempted to stammer a response. She didn’t get very far.

“Well, ye ain't,” he responded in a calm voice, before his tone radically shifted. “Find me legs!”

The mare did as she was told, feeling a little more like Hector's servant as she did. Is this what real pirates were like? Constantly being shouted at by their captain? If it was, all the stories she'd heard as a foal suddenly seemed a whole lot less adventurous.

“Shall...”

The other Hector's were still singing and, if the sudden addition of pistol far was any consideration, they were growing stronger.

Fluttershy searched across the plaza, catching sight of Pintel a few yards from the fountain. He was holding part of a leg in his hand, complete with boot still snugly worn around the foot. Though, with the way he was using it to whack away at the rising Barbossas, it could very well have been a club.

A club with…a foot with a boot. Something in that description didn’t quite agree with Fluttershy’s stomach.

“We...”

The other downed Barbossas were rising and those that weren’t being thwarted by Pintel and Ragetti moved forward.

Fluttershy couldn't work out who they were heading for. They went wherever their legs took them, and aimed for whoever was closest. She wanted to believe that would buy them more time, but in the end it didn’t matter.

She just wanted to get away from them.

“Die!” they all screamed at last.

Most of them were finally back on their feet. While it didn’t take long for Pintel and Ragetti to bring them back down, the numbers were against them. Those that that fell dead once more stayed dead, but anything less seemed futile.

And even then, Fluttershy had her doubts that they would stay dead for long.

It wasn’t before long that Pintel had successfully delivered his captain’s first leg. Unlike the arm, Barbossa seemed content to just shove the limb back into its normal space without so much as a change of expression, much to Fluttershy's dismay.

This limb, however, seemed inclined on staying where it was meant to. With his trousers rolled up, the limb clicked neatly back into place at the knee.

Ragetti, on the other hoof, was wading through the water in the fountain. There wasn’t much more commission than a few splashes before he announced, “I got it!” with the torn leg held tight in his grasp.

“Bring it back then!” Barbossa demanded.

Fluttershy had hardly left his side, and a little part of her was glad for that; she didn't really know how willing she'd be to pick up the remains of Hector's leg.

It was then that the sun rose up. And, for a split second, all action on the square ceased entirely.

Hector began to scream.

From the very bottom of his chest, he screamed. His body writhed on the on the cobbles, broken and twisted as his mortality abruptly returned under the harsh glare of the sunshine. There were moments between breaths where he stopped, only to gulp down what little air he could and carry on again.

Jack was a fluffy monkey again, Hector wasn’t a skeleton anymore and he was missing far too much of his body.

Time slowed to an abrupt halt as everything Fluttershy could see seemed to revolve around the man on the floor. A steady flow of blood seeped out from the remains of his torn leg. A good deal freely dripped from his shoulder.

While his body had once been a long dead cadaver at best, now he was an entirely open wound with everything that implied.

The red seeped into his clothes, staining the dark fabric. It pooled below him. There was a sick noise with each haggard moment he made; a sinful mix of cracking bone and the shifting of raw meat.

In the end, Barbossa clenched his palm tight over his jaw and kept it shut.

As the world seemed to right itself, Hector's muffled screams were barely overshadowed by the gunshots from Pintel and Ragetti. As the real Barbossa lay swearing on the ground, his former comrades were making their presence known.

Both Pintel and Ragetti weren’t up for a second round, it seemed. They scarpered towards their captain the first chance they got, waving whatever they had at hand into the enemy as they ran by. This was, in Ragetti’s case, a severed leg.

That wasn't too pleasant. Fluttershy wasn’t sure how much of all this she could take. Coming back to her senses and not quite sure how she could help, Fluttershy did the first thing that popped into her mind.

In hindsight, it probably wasn’t the best thing to say.

“A-are you okay?!”

“Do…do I look okay ye feathery bitch?!” Hector screamed in-between breaths, openly wailing into his sleeve. Fluttershy attempted to cower into the depths of her mane, suddenly forgetting that it wasn’t there anymore. “Me leg’s bein’ waved around like a club!”

Fluttershy looked over to see that the comment still rung true. The two humans arrived at Fluttershy’s side, the leg still held in one of their hands like an unwieldy sword.

“Barbossa!” Ragetti called. “Barbossa, ye ok-”

“Just you dare finish that question!” Barbossa roared. “Just! You! Dare!”

“W-what should we do?!” Fluttershy shakily asked the men, “I don't think he can walk.”

Something between a laugh and gurgle escaped Barbossa throat between breaths.

“Oh, thank ye for yer rather astute observations there, Fluttershy,” he screamed, slamming his free arm into the stone. “Do ye want te give me a hug, Fluttershy?” he screamed, shifting his body violently towards her. “C’mon, Fluttershy! Let me use my lovely arms te give ye a great big bloody hug!”

He reached out, though failed in doing anything to change where he was. His screams devolved into heavy breaths as he forced his forehead into the ground. Then he just stayed there for a few choice moments, mumbling into the stones.

“The other Barbossas ain't lettin' up neither...”

That much was true. While those that fell to the end of a sword and a bullet stayed down, more were leaking in from the surrounding streets. The darkness hid them from view, but they were there; Fluttershy could feel it.

And if every one of the copies they’d passed by was up and walking, Fluttershy doubted they would get very far with Barbossa in the state that he was. Besides, according to what she had seen he was their best fighter.

By a massive margin.

“I've got his leg!” Ragetti suddenly remembered, waving it in the air.

Barbossa only growled in response, clenching his hand as he motioned his subordinate to bring the offending limb over. Ragetti did so, dropping it into his captain' lap once he’d managed something close to sitting up.

Taking hold of his leg, Barbossa clenched his teeth tight as his worn shoulder audibly popped and creaked. He winced again as he lowered his leg to where it was meant to be, hissing violently through his teeth when it made contact.

“Go in go in go in go in go in go in go in! Get! In! There!” He didn't react favourably when the pain didn't cease. With each push of his leg, the only change it offered was an increased flow of blood spilling from the open wounds. “The bastard ain't goin’ back on!” he wailed. “Why ain’t it goin’ back on?!”

Fluttershy swallowed hard. Her flesh grew visibly pale under the patches of her shaved coat. Her hooves were beginning to stain a dotted red.

☠

Barbossa just continued to fail at putting his leg back in place. He kept forcing and pushing, wondering why the limb refused to go back on.

It was simple; it was meant to be simple! If something broke, you just put it back into place. Given a short enough wait, whatever it was you lost could be put back on. Even if you couldn't find the body parts, it would get back to you somehow. That was just the nature of the curse, and the crew had dealt with it. They’d all had to deal with it.

“But I...it ain't the curse.”

Barbossa let his leg fall to the ground as he peered into the sky. He felt the heat from the sun wash over his skin, the breeze through the air. His skin crawled at that and he couldn’t keep his healthy arm from shivering. They were true feelings; they were most definitely something.

Then, through the burning and the sheer something that goaded his body, he finally came to his senses.

“That...that bastard!”

“W-what's happenin'?” Ragetti asked.

“Whe- when the moonlight ain't out...” the captain seethed between breaths. He saw black spots batter the mismatched sky. Whether they were truly there or not, he couldn’t tell. The world seemed to dull the more he looked at it. “Discord ain't cursed me. He's bloody buggered it up!”

“I-I don't understand,” Fluttershy muttered. “W-what’s going on?”

“The curse…” he managed with clenched fists. His breathes came quick and shallow. The lightness it brought to his head did nothing to relieve the pain. “The curse ain't workin' durin' the day. I ain’t meant to feel nothin’, ever. Never ever! When the moonlight leaves the night sky, so does whatever magic he’s managed te shove on me.”

“So now…you ain’t cursed?” Pintel asked. “Unless the moons out?”

“But...it ain’t all gone, right? You ain't dead now,” Ragetti suggested, before Barbossa could even summon a response. “Shouldn’t you be dead now?”

Barbossa didn’t know. He couldn’t bring himself to think properly on the subject. Things were missing and shifted and wrong and it was almost…torture. Nothing like it had been moments ago. He desperately wanted the moon to come back, to have the night devour him until it was only the stale sense of feeling that remained.

He didn’t want the burning and the spots that littered his vision. He didn’t want his inside where they shouldn’t have been, pushing and broken against each other. He wanted peace of mind. Hell, he would settle for good old fashioned unconsciousness.

But even that seemed reluctant to take hold.

As cheering once again filled the air, Pintel peered up to its source. The ship was beginning to move once more and, as everyone turned to look to it, they something infinitely more troubling. The demons were leaving the ship once more. Dozens of men had begun to haul themselves over the side, using the same ropes they’d used to originally take the city.

“I couldn't care less; I ain't waitin' te find out!” Barbossa wearily reached out to Pintel. “M-mister Pintel, lend me yer shoulder!”

Pintel obeyed the order, lowering himself enough to give his captain leverage. Barbossa hauled himself up, clenching his teeth shut as he stared down at his leg. It didn’t move with him; it stayed on the ground.

“Bring it,” he heaved. He clenched his eyes shut once more. “I can shove it back in when the sun comes up. Knowin’ Discord he’ll do it when he damn well pleases.”

Ragetti did as he was told, picking up the arm once again as he wandered next to the others. Pintel slowed his pace for the captain –which Barbossa was grateful for – but both realised they weren’t truly going anywhere. They could walk, but not outrun anything.

Especially not an entire crew of pirates.

☠

Fluttershy let her eyes wander, searching for anything that could actually help. She didn't know what Hector needed, or how his curse worked, so she fell back on her own logic. When one of her larger animal friends hurt their legs to the point they couldn't walk, she would put them on a suitably sized mobile surface and take them somewhere that could help them.

In this case, that pretty much meant as far away as physically possible. At least until the moon came up.

And then she saw it.

“We could use that!”

Pintel followed her hoof and set his sight on the cart she was pointing it. It had four wooden wheels, space enough for a pony or two at the front. Several broken bales of hay were stored at the back.

“A farmin' cart?” There wasn’t even a chance for Barbossa to complain. He couldn’t even find it in himself. “It’ll do. Gentleman!”

He meandered over against Pintel’s weight, trying to pick up speed but failing with only one leg to do so. Pintel moved as fast as he could, half carrying his captain with him. Jack simply followed behind his master the entire time.

Moment later, he dropped Barbossa onto the cart with an unsympathetic thud and turned back to the noise. Barbossa held his breath, using his good leg to kick Pintel in the back, only to feel something sharp stab into his abdomen. The inside of his abdomen.

Whatever it was hadn’t healed either. Neither had his cracked shoulder blade and socket; he could feel the arm ready to split free from its resting place. The bone wasn’t set where it should have been. There was a dull thud as Ragetti dumped his leg by his side.

“W-who's going to pull it?”

Fluttershy was met by three blank stares, all of whom gave her a look which made her question her intelligence.

She had thought the question was fair.

Using the sound of the Barbossas fast approaching as a push, Fluttershy galloped to the front of the cart, attaching the reigns as she shifted herself into place. Several seconds of pulling passed before she realised something.

“Go!” she heard Barbossa shout, and the gunfire of a pistol soon after.

As her hooves scraped against the ground, her face reddened as the wooden cart refused to move more than a few inches each time under her strength.

“It's too heavy!” she wheezed.

“Oh, Jesus Christ...”
With a shove of his good arm, Barbossa thrust Ragetti out of the cart and back onto the street. The motions forced his raw amputation to hit the wood once more, though he was far from caring. The burning did nothing to raise the bar.

Ignoring the newest pain that lost itself in all the others, he waved towards the front. “Help the poor lass, ye ingrate!”

After a quick glance to several of the approaching enemies, he did as his captain said. He even went as far as to wrap himself up in the reigns like Fluttershy, if only to make sure his captain was kept happier than was needed.

This time Fluttershy tried with the human by her side, feeling the cart move easier than it had done before. Not by a lot, but more than enough to get it moving. Ragetti was using his reigns as grips in his hands, pulling with his upper limbs as well as trying to run with his legs.

The cart began to move and none too soon. Barbossa seethed at his torn leg, shifting it around in the hopes the burning would stop. He looked out the back of the cart.

“For the love of God...”

The ship was still off in the distance; above the buildings, but the crew weren't. They weren't even trying to stay on board anymore. The copies wandering the square had been tolerable. Even Pintel and Ragetti had seen to most of them.

But down the street, fast approaching were more of them. Ten or twenty at the very least, charging past the buildings in broad daylight.

“Move it ye filthy bildrats!” Barbossa wailed to his newfound horses. He felt the air leave his lungs as something shifted against them. “Shi…s-shift yersels! We've got company!”

Ragetti took the order to heart, moving his legs almost comically fast as Fluttershy struggled for the briefest moment to adjust to his speed. While the human used the orders to push himself, the yellow mare instead used the sounds of gunfire coming from behind.

“H-how…how many bullets ye got left?” Barbossa just about said. He didn’t feel right. Not that he really had done for the last few minutes.

He really, really shouldn’t have been alive. Nothing felt quite right.

Why was he still awake?

How was he still conscious?

“Uh...” Pintel said, looking at the pouch at his side, “a handful, Cap'n. Powder's runnin' low.”

As Barbossa loaded his own pistol, he winced as his freshly amputated leg flailed on the wood as the cart bounced along the cobbles. He aimed it carefully, holding a smile on his lips as he fired. One man fell to the shot, and two more ran into him before tumbling into a heap.

With a deep breath, Barbossa pushed himself to sit up against the bales of hay. He looked to Jack and stroked the tip of the monkey’s head before looking back to Pintel. Barbossa just about managed a smile.

“Better make ‘em count.”

A Family Affair

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 20
A Family Affair

It had begun to dawn on Rarity that, perhaps, their current plan of action was not as well thought through as it could have been. True, there wasn't much they could do given their current situation, but that didn’t stop the doubt from flooding through her mind whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Speaking of opportunities presenting themselves… there hadn’t been any. That was part of the underlying problem. Revolving their whole plan around some act of random happenstance seemed all well and good when it came to Discord’s world, but it could be – quite literally, if Discord so chose – an eternity before such a chance actually came about.

It hadn’t quite been an eternity yet, of course, but the prospect did not appeal.

Discord didn’t seem too keen on giving out any hints this time either. In hindsight, they were all rather lucky to get anything remotely like that from him the last time he was free. Maybe that was why he was keeping his mouth shut now?

Had Discord simply learned from his previous defeat? Apparently so.

As unfortunate as that was.

Or maybe Twilight had managed to get some snippet of information out of him. That would have been the ideal solution to their current dilemma. But as much as she loved that notion, Rarity still had her doubts; it wasn’t like Twilight to take anything more than half an hour to get through any given issue she found herself saddled with. She should have been back by now…

That brought them back to waiting.

And then, to top it all off, there was the whole issue with the pirates. They were probably the main reason Rarity was having her doubts in the first place; Discord was difficult enough to handle on his own, but an army of pirates laying siege to the city whilst he was out and about?

Hector ‘Big, Bad and Brainwashed’ Barbossa was hardly helping matters. He was probably just sat in a cabin somewhere on the ship, not a care in the world about the city of Canterlot below him. Pointing his wriggly little fingers in this and that direction for his crew to mindlessly follow.

Then there was poor Fluttershy…

“I still think we should get up there and search for Fluttershy,” Rainbow firmly stated, stamping her forehooves into the cobbled street.

“Sugercube, ya’ll have been sayin' that a while now. And every time you do, we point out they still have their pistols and you go and lose yer nerves.”

“Yeah, well…we still have to do something,” she hesitantly replied, lowering her ears as she peered forlornly at her back leg. She seemed to think on something before cringing, casting the thought aside. “I'm just, you know, not sure what that something is.”

Rarity and Pinkie couldn’t help but agree with the mare. The four of them were wandering through yet another side street, trying to avoid the larger ones and – by extension – the copies and clones wandering amidst them. Their numbers had seemingly increased and while not all of the pirates seemed inclined to attack on sight, none of the ponies were too keen on wandering into the open. Just in case.

“Is the ship back yet?” Rarity asked, her eyes cast towards Rainbow.

It had vanished for a time, rising up into the clouds. Rainbow had offered to go after it but reasoning from her friends had soon convinced her that going up there on her own was far from the sanest idea.

Not to mention all of the swords and pistols that were up there.

The pistols were proving to be a small problem, it seemed. Long ranged attacks were not the most helpful thing in the world when the opposing team had a large monopoly on them.

Regardless of the possible danger, however, Rainbow flew deftly into the air before she carefully pulled herself over the roof of the nearest building. Once she was sure that the coast was clear – because, quite frankly, those pirates got everywhere – Rainbow lifted herself onto the tiled roof. She took a long look over the city, or what she could see of it.

The sight didn’t do anything to settle her.

“Um...” was all she managed.

Some of the smaller buildings had escaped the carnage, sitting complete and resolute while all of the others struggled to support their own weight. The previously pristine white houses and stores were crumbling, falling apart and completely demolished in other places.

It wasn’t the whole city, but in the places that were broken and burned…well, you really noticed the difference.

Most of the ground was hidden behind the buildings surrounding them, but Rainbow could still hear the occasional yell or scream of a pony somewhere in the distance. She didn't even know where most of the ponies in Canterlot were hiding. If they were all inside their homes or any of the remaining buildings, Rainbow wondered how long they would last there.

Pulling her mind away from the thought of what everypony else in the city was going through, Rainbow looked up towards the ship that was most definitely back from its journey into the clouds. It was a dozen or so blocks away, still high above the buildings. As she squinted at it, focusing on the black vessel staining the shifting sky, there weren't just clouds above it.

There was smoke too.

Not that she had to squint very hard; the sight was hard to ignore. Mixed between the coloured and patterned clouds of Discord's Equestria, dirty plumes of smoke were billowing from the wooden ship. It seemed contained to one portion of it, somewhere above the deck.

It suddenly dawned on Rainbow Dash that the others were waiting for an answer. “Yeah, it's back,” she yelled. “And I think it's on fire!”

“It's...i-it's on fire?!” Rarity spluttered. Rainbow poked her head over the building and nodded back towards the ground, solemn.

Applejack and Pinkie stared up at Rainbow with the same mix of worry and apprehension on their faces. Rarity furrowed her brow, looking to the other and finally back up to Rainbow.

“We need to get up there,” she stated. “Now.”

“We could use the fire as a distraction!” Pinkie suggested, “Unless the Hectors can see through smoke.”

“Ya'll think you can go up there without being seen, Dash? And I mean really without being seen?”

“Of course I can,” Rainbow nodded with an almost cocky grin sneaking across her face at the prospect of finally doing some good. No sooner had the suggestion been said before Rainbow swiftly vanished from their view.

Rarity couldn't say anything before the cyan mare took her leave. Not that there was all that much to say on the issue. They had to do something. And this fire was the best set of cards they’d been dealt for a while.

“I hope they can't see through smoke,” Rarity quietly added.

“Even if they can, I doubt Rainbow's gonna go and fly in their faces.” At least, she hoped not. “Heck, they might not even care about her if their boats catchin’-”

Applejack’s ear very suddenly flicked to the side. Her head turned towards a foreign sound at the end of their current street. Pinkie followed her gaze.

Rarity quickly followed in their example. “Oh…o-oh dear...”

Much to her disdain, a Barbossa was stood there, flanked close by a three others. Rarity readied to charge, though not before something in particular about the lead pirate caught her attention. While the other clones stood there in formation and ready to attack, this one was already charging forward, a sword in hand with a crudely snapped blade. It didn't take the mares long to realise who the pirate was, or why the blade in question was broken.

He was the one Twilight had monumentally pissed off in the alleyway. Right back when this whole mess with the copies had started.

“T-that's a lot of pirates...” Pinkie pointed out.

The two other mares agreed, and after it was clear there wasn't anything substantial around them that was worthy of use as a weapon, they did the next best they could do. They ran for it.

Rarity still did her best at tossing – well, anything – from the ground. But her efforts weren't as effective – nor quite as heroic – as Twilight's own efforts at striking down the pirates. She was good at making clothes and fine frocks, not tossing garbage at aliens. Or doing it hard enough knock them out. And doing so whilst running at full speed hardly helped in the matter.

Applejack and Pinkie galloped ahead, leading the white mare on and swaying from side to side. If they were going to get shot at by a pistol, it seemed best not to run in a straight line. The bangs and small blasts against stone that littered the air behind them helped aid this theory.

None of them bothered to turn and check that they were indeed the ones being fired at. Not even Rarity once she gave up on the offense. They just ran forward, hoping to pull away from the livid, alien roar of the pirates.

Coming out into another street that ran horizontal to the one they'd just escaped from, the three mares took the briefest second to decide which way to go.

Out of panic and a slight smidgen of logic, right seemed the best option. The pirate ship hovered high in the air to the left and, even if the streets didn't join up, it seemed horribly unwise to head towards such a vessel when being pursued by those who owned the blasted thing.

Using the advantage of being on a new street and relatively out of sight, Rarity once again attempted her best shot at throwing whatever she could find at the pirates. She moved out of their sight, around a corner. She used her magic to levitate small stones, broken pieces of wall and clumps of metal into the air, flinging them down the road they had ran from.

The sound of broken grunts and a single harsh, pained moan escaped from the street before they were followed by a dull thud to the ground.

“Yes!” she squealed.

Ready to make full use of her valuable fleeing time – and more than ready to buck however many remained as they stormed out the street – Rarity briefly paused at the sight of Rainbow flying towards them, just off in the distance. She was waving her forehooves through the air, pointing quickly towards the ground.

Applejack and Pinkie turned back to look with the white unicorn and then searched the ground below their flying friend. They couldn’t help but widen their eyes.

“Fluttershy!” Pinkie beamed.

Hurtling across the ground below Rainbow was a small wooden cart. And at its front were a yellow pegasus and a skinny pirate pulling at the reigns. The human barely managed to keep up with her as he held tight to the harness, practically gliding with each massive set of steps; his feet only just managed to touch the ground every few seconds as it moved far too fast beneath him.

Much too focused on their lost friend running towards them, Rarity was the last to notice as the first pirate willing attack stormed out into the open. He snarled loud into Rarity’s ear, pathetically small sword raised as he tangled his dirty fingers into Rarity’s purple mane.

The Barbossa looked down upon his capture. His teeth bared, he lifted her into the air. He struggled at her weight but remained confident nonetheless. It wasn’t long before he raised his blade to the coat at her neck.

Though much like his prey had been, he seemed all too unaware of what going on in the world around him as a brief flash of pink hit his side and forced his form onto the ground. The remainder of his sword dropped to the cobbles with an empty chime.

The brute slammed his fists into the ground before looking up to acknowledge his attacker. He found himself forced back down onto his back.

“You do not hurt my friends!” Pinkie roared, stood over him with each of her forehooves held on to his shoulder. “Never, ever ever!”

The pirate tried to move, growling in response. A broken sound – something jagged and new – clawed its way out of his throat. “Make…me, Pie. Make me!”

He struggled for his sword, reaching over the stones only for Pinkie to remove herself without as much as another word. Pinkie Pie cantered merrily away, seemingly forgetting she'd ever attacked the pirate at all.

The Hector just furrowed his brow, looking around in dazed confusion before he seemed to realise that, yes, he was being let go. He growled again, snatching his sword and hastily getting to his feet as another set of hooves hit him with a solid force in the chest.

This time they were orange.

The man flew through the air for the briefest moment before landing back on the ground.

“And this time stay down,” Applejack yelled.

If the Barbossa had the ability to comprehend the waking world, he surely would have listened. His body lay there, dazed, and unwilling to get back up.

Applejack turned her head to see Rarity taking care of the third pirate that followed. And much like their rather overzealous predecessor they were just as willing to attack. Unlike the robbers and looters they had seen before, these pirates seemed perfectly willing to use their weapons as best they could.

But Rarity was using her magic as best she could. While she couldn't just cast a spell on the men, she could just as easily wield a weapon and hit them with that instead. Or an iron rod. An iron rod was the best she could do at the moment.

Each time the duplicate’s weapon came down she moved the rod in the way, none too sure how to successfully parry and fight back. Rarity took more steps back, cringing as the sword came down harder and harder, clanging with each well-aimed hit.

Forcing herself to stand still, Rarity waited for the next attack, growing tired of the pirate's seemingly endless amount of energy. Throwing her magic forward, and pushing the rod into the path of the sword. She smiled as the attack hit.

The clang was matched with the sound of a harsh snap, the metal of the sword cracking beneath the constant barrage of hits. The clone merely looked at the weapon, scowling at rarity as she swung the pole into his stomach. He winced once, not having a chance to think before the pole once again hitting him in the same spot. Then into the arm. And the legs.

The next attack just below the waist brought the pirate to his knees

One final swing slammed the rod into his face. The copy teetered around where it knelt, falling forward without so much as a grunt. The rod fell to the ground as Rarity let her magical influence vanish. She managed to half-heartedly smile before looking towards her friends.

Pinkie was somehow sat atop the final pirate, wearing his bandanna as a trophy of his defeat. It was cause for wonder, but like everypony else, Rarity had decided long ago it was best never to question anything the pink mare did. Or how she did it.

Not that she would complain about this particular instance.

What had gotten into the pirates? she wondered. Why did some only steal? Why did others go on the attack the first chance they got?

With the final pirate down, the mares turned their attention back to the approaching cart. And then to Fluttershy and one of the newer humans at her side. Then their view switched to Hector and a fatter human riding in the back of said cart, before eventually all for them continued on their route as they sped down the street.

Rarity remembered the humans. They were the ones that Applejack had helped earlier. She could even make out a little monkey in the back with the others.

Then Rainbow dropped down towards the ground, never landing as her wings flapped and refused to stop.

“Move! There are more Hectors coming!”

Rainbow's words were met with Pinkie casually looking back the way the cart had sped. Her gaze was met by the aforementioned pirates, and it was around that point she decided to calmly nod and follow in Rainbow’s advice.

Applejack and Rarity didn't find much to argue about either. If there was ever a time that Rainbow was to give them good, certain advice they were certain that now was that time.

It didn't take the mares long to realise that, despite the cart having wheels as well as two creatures to pull it, the mode of transport wasn't going as strong as it had appeared when they were motionless. It wasn't moving very fast, compared to how fast it could go with a couple of trained stallions at the helm. The three mares quickly caught up with the back end of the cart.

“Get out o' the way!” Barbossa – supposedly the one and only – barked at them, firing his pistol in their general direction. They took longer to move out of the way than they should have.

He fired in their direction regardless.

The ponies eventually leaped from his view and turned their heads to the see the small surplus of men charging to towards them, falling steadily into the distance. Slowly but surely, the men truly fell behind. More than a few fell from sight entirely as the succumbed to a well aimed bullet.

Rarity and Applejack turned back, looking at Pinkie as she now sat behind Barbossa with a certain monkey clawing playfully at her mane. She faced towards the front of the cart, ignorant of the little pest as she urged the drivers on. Fluttershy wasn't making so much as a peep as far as they could hear. The lankier human was being very imaginative with the insults he was throwing around, begging to be left alone while he ran.

The cart slowly began to turn and as Fluttershy and her partner pulled it towards the right, going of the larger main street, it pulled out of sight. The two ponies running on behind had no problem seeing it again when they turned.

The hell-fire of bullets stopped, and the fat one began to complain and moan. It didn't make much sense to Rarity, but the whining ended with him getting a smack on the head, compliments of his adoring captain.

The cart turned once again, slowing down as it was pulled into yet another street. As soon as the corner was turned, the previous speed returned and the action continued several time as the wooden cart twisted through the abandoned streets of Canterlot.

The entire ensemble of creatures soon came to a stop. Fluttershy and the skinny human unbuckled themselves from the harness and both promptly proceeded to fall to the ground, hugging it for dear life as they struggled for breath.

Applejack still stood by the entrance to the street they'd arrived inside, none too sure the pirate's were truly gone. They'd vanished into the distance several streets back. As much as she believed they'd all lost their pursuers, she still wanted to be sure.

Rainbow finally landed on the ground, ignoring everybody else present and heading straight for her yellow friend. Any friendly reunion and loving hug was halted the second she took a look at Fluttershy. The first chance she’d really had to do so.

“What...w-what happened to you?”

Fluttershy turned around, looking up to Rainbow from the ground as she awkwardly shifted around on her hooves. Her eyes wandered to the cart for the briefest of seconds, soon finding their way back to the other pegasus.

Her mane was cut and shaved, and whatever was left was nothing more than a few small tufts of hair here and there. Her tail hadn't fared any better: there was nothing but a small clump left of it. Her neck was red and swollen. Dim marks created a ring around her throat that did next to nothing to hide the small cuts and traces of dirty blood.

“I'm fine, Rainbow,” Fluttershy said with a smile, moving over to Rainbow and pulling her into a warm embrace. Dash returned the gesture, pulling the mare closer until they both calmly separated. Fluttershy smiled in a way that Rainbow couldn’t describe as anything other than reassuring. “I'm fine now.”

Nodding hesitantly at Fluttershy, Rainbow turned her attention back towards the rest of her friends. She moved to them, towards Barbossa – ready to talk the greatest of smack-down talks she had ever spoken in her life – only to find all three of them staring at the aforementioned captain, slouched in the back of the cart.

She had wanted some answers. But despite her wishes, she didn't like what she saw.

Barbossa was there, his teeth grinding horridly together and his nails digging into the wood upon which he sat. Every glance he could spare was aimed at the sky, as if nothing or anypony else was more worth his time.

His face was heavily bruised, tainted with heavy black and blue. Trickles of blood created small streams against the skin of his forehead. The left side of his head even had several small clumps of hair dyed and glued together with the congealed red.

The cuff of his left sleeve was coated in crimson too, and even more stained at various points on his chest and torso. His coat and shirt were torn and through the larger seams Rainbow could make out a dark of patch of blackened purple beneath his skin. If humans were anything like ponies, she knew that colour was never a good one to have beneath your skin.

And then there was his leg. It just...wasn't connected to the rest of his body. It was next to him. It was just laying there, limp and lifeless. Oozing.

The remainder of his leg was in even worse shape; blood escaped from the destroyed limb, drenching the lowest part of his trousers. Some had even seeped into the other leg, unless it was a different injury. For all Rainbow knew, it may well have been.

Rainbow couldn't tell where the limb was broken off. Her brief glimpse at the separated limb looked to be torn from around the knee, but she didn't want to look at it any longer than she needed too. She couldn’t stomach it anymore than her own injury.

Fluttershy's state momentarily escaping her, Rainbow was the first to speak up, much to the surprise of her friends. She asked, “What happened to you?”

The other mares did not try to hide their worry, even if they weren't as concerned for the man as they could have been. Especially after being chased by a near infinite army of him.

His response came back tired, much unlike all the conversations they’d had with him before. Despite that, it was just as dripping with sarcasm.

“Durin' our optimistic escape o' the ship flyin' in the sky, I were tossed off the damned thing while waitin' for yer friend te fly me down,” he said, flicking his head towards Fluttershy. Despite now being beside her friends, Barbossa cringed at the sharp, harsh pain the action brought. “Needless te say she didn't quite get me before the cobblestones broke me fall.”

Barbossa shuffled on the spot, wincing as he leaned on something he shouldn't have. He could swear his hips were broken now. Unless some of his ribs had fallen an unwelcome inch or two. He wasn't discounting that.

“All because this fat bastard broke Fluttershy's bloody wing!”

“I were pushed off too!” Pintel whined.

“Aye, but if ye weren't so thick she wouldn't have struggled te lift ye.”

The injured man once again winced as he felt something inside him move, accompanied by a very audible crack. The mares just looked on, distressed and not sure where they would even begin to discuss why he was in pain. Or if they could actually help.

“How are you even conscious?” Pinkie Pie asked, frowning. “I would not be conscious. I would on a snooze cruise! Several of them!”

“I'd rather not be,” he replied with a forced smile.

“On a snooze cruise?” Barbossa’s smile promptly vanished, replaced by a scowl unmatched by any other. Pinkie quietly decided that he had meant he’d rather not be conscious. Good thing too, because a snooze cruise sounded like just the right kind of thing for a hurt pirate. “It looks really sore...”

“Oh, it is,” he quickly answered back.

Pinkie thought on the spot for a moment, looking to each of his injuries and wondering what could be done about them. As much as she loved to be helpful to her friends, she wasn't too well versed in the ways of healing injuries. A cut or a bruise was fine, but a leg? It wasn't even attached to him anymore.

How was she meant to fix that? The power of hugs and kisses only took you so far.

A moment later the sky suddenly darkened, and an almighty smile returned to Barbossa’s face. His pet cackled from just behind and the sunlight beaming down onto the ground was replaced by the silvery sparkle of the moon.

A screech cut through the air as Jack succumbed to the curse, his fur and skin rotting away. Barbossa pushed his hand forward, watching as his life also crumbled away, leaving his nothing more than a broken cadaver in tattered rags.

“Finally.”

All flowing of blood ceased. His amputated limb became dry and barren. And his body decayed until blue skin and rotted muscle were the only things holding it all together. It made little sense to most minds, but then the curse had never bothered to follow how the human body was supposed to work: he’d seen enough of his crew to vouch for that.

Barbossa strained his shoulder, listening to the loud, enormous crack as the thing finally slipped back into place. He shifted his arms, clicking each of his fingers in turn as he felt his body dull and his senses dim to a complete standstill.

Shifting his back, he urged Jack towards his hand and the monkey eagerly obliged.

Then he lifted his hands up to the base of his neck. The ponies immediately shifted their vision away with sickly expressions as he cracked all the bones at the base of his skull. He pulled his decayed head free for the briefest of moments before forcing it back into place.

He had no idea how lucky he was, or whether he should have really died. But his neck had definitely been broken. Chipped. Cracked, or something as equally awkward to fix without a knife and a very cocky surgeon.

“He d-did not just take his – his head off...” Rarity tried to convince herself, holding back several heaves and a few more besides.

Reaching for his dismembered leg, he then pulled up the hem of his trousers. With another crack, and a forced twist, Barbossa looked down as his leg hung there. It needed light support, but it stuck fast.

He forced the limb further, watching as the joint of his knee finally clicked into its proper place. The putrid strings of his remaining muscles conformed back onto their natural positions.

He smiled – or at least, he assumed it looked like he was smiling – as he let his leg hang over the edge of the cart. He let it swing back and forth. A faint click sounded each time it moved, but he wasn't for caring.

“Better than havin’ te lug the bugger around.”

Barbossa got to his feet, paying attention to his body as a small number of cracks and clicks sounded out into the night. He looked around to see the small crowd giving him a whole a manner of different faces, though he couldn't but notice they all seemed a comically sick shade of green.

“Good to go now, then?” Pintel asked.

“As good as I'll get for now,” the captain eagerly replied. As if to prove it to himself, he once again stretched the deadened bones in his body. His back arched further than his muscles should have allowed, closely followed by the clicks he revelled in displeasing the ponies with. “But that doesn’t matter, Mister Pintel. I have things to do, and they be needin’ done.”

“Like…what?” Pinkie asked.

“Somethin’ I think we can all agree on gettin’, Pinkie Pie,” he calmly replied. Then he flashed the mares a rotten grin. “Revenge.”

☠

“Run this by me again, Twilight Sparkle. You thought that you could just wander in here, walk up to the Elements of Harmony, take them without me noticing, rescue your little dragon and the pretty pony princess before skipping out the front door on your merry way?”

“I got the Elements, didn’t I?”

Discord rubbed his claw against the bridge of his nose. If he was being honest with himself, he was growing bored with what he had once considered freedom. Sure, he was out and about, rendering reality obsolete and staying up as late as he wanted. Physics were mere dolls in his almighty toy chest.

He could turn planets into plants, gravity into gravy.

Make it rain raisins of days-ins.

Then why was he ...bored?

“You're missing the point, my dear. You can't just wander in here and take the one thing that could spell my doom. For one, it's a very, very boring way to round off a story. And so overdone, at that.”

“It gets the job done,” she hit back. Twilight floated aimlessly through the air of Celestia’s throne room. Or the remains of what had once been Celestia’s throne room. Discord had called dibs. “Like I said, I got the Elements halfway across the castle before you noticed they were gone.”

Oh, that's right. He knew why he was bored: he was the only one actually trying to have any fun around this pastel infested sugar bowl! The ponies just didn’t put in the effort like they used to. They weren’t even clocking in!

“Second,” he began, ignoring her previous and – if he was being perfectly honest – rude comment. “I don't know how naïve you think I am, but I did make sure to secure my freedom this time. And I mean actually secure it. It’s rather obvious that I am handsome and confident but last time I fear I may have overstepped that mark by perhaps a smidgen of a smidgen.”

He was…maybe a bit rash last time, he could see that now. He didn't really want to, but being turned to stone – for a second time, at that – had left him with quite a long while think about very little else. Especially when Celestia leaves you in the corner of the royal garden that nopony really tries to visit.

In a bizarre coincidence, it was after his statue was placed in that section of the garden that ponies started avoiding it. Either they had grown more perceptive of him after his little jaunt into the outside world or they were just being mean for meanness sake.

“What do you expect me to do? You didn't play by your own rules. You didn't even give us any clues this time!”

“Wha-” he spluttered. He just about caught his eyes before they rolled out into the sunset. “You honestly assumed I'd give you clues and a silly little riddle after how well that worked out for me last time?” Discord teased. “My dear, you hold me in such low regard.”

“I thought you'd be content with playing more games with us.”

“Yes, well, that was so last season, Twilight Sparkle. Maybe even two or three seasons by this point.” Frankly, he had no idea. Who knew how long it had been since this whole narrative had really begun. “Besides, games aren't all that fun when the other players take losing as well as you and your friends did.”

“You brain-washed my friends!” Twilight yelled. Her body involuntarily shifted into a small flock of stark naked ravens and raving naked storks before she managed to pull herself away. “And almost ruined Equestria!”

She wanted to ask about the birds but they were gone the moment she turned her head. Well, of course they’re gone, Discord wearily thought: they were only there for that one line. What did she expect?

Discord heaved an exaggerated sigh as he floated down from the ceiling, leaving Celestia’s throne behind. He readied to have the throne pop into something quite unlike a piece of furniture had any right popping into before merely letting the thing melt like thick ink into the paintwork. The rest of her furniture was just aimlessly floating here and there, much different from their appropriate sizes: writing desks for the ravens and all that jazz. He hadn't really gotten around to arranging the room how he wanted it.

Part of him had actually lost interest in playing with the furniture. It was…such a small thing. He had complete creative freedom to do what he wanted and he was still there, in Canterlot. Waiting for ponies to join in on a brand of fun that – for some incomprehensible reason – they had no interest of entertaining.

How droll, it was.

The magic mirror was among the flotsam and jetsam, bobbing up and down within the air as two regal mares stared out at him with disproving glares. At least, he assumed they were disapproving; he'd long since drawn a moustache and spectacles over the glass and you couldn’t very well take anyone seriously when they had a dapper moustache.

The purple unicorn currently drifting through the middle of the room was also floating around aimlessly, her motions not entirely dependent on the actual movement of her body. He could have wrapped her in up in duck tape or something as equally delicious to mispronounce but he oh so liked seeing her confused. The analytical types were always the best ponies to see confused, so subtlety was key.

“See, Twilight Sparkle? That's what a sore loser sounds like.”

“But we won!”

“You're not meant to keep playing the game after you lose!” he whined, snapping at the air until her coat turned orange, complete with scented rind. “And that's why I've started a new game! A game where there is no game, therefore, I can't actually lose playing it. Which means I win!”

The debatable logic aside, Twilight didn't pay the lord of chaos much heed. At least, she tried not to. She wasn't too sure what she was going to do. Not after she'd seen what happened to everypony else in the castle

“And what's more fun, sending you on a treasure hunt for the very things that could ruin absolutely everything I care about or having an army of alien pirates pillaging Canterlot?” The question wasn’t entirely rhetorical. He wanted the answer that was written on his card. “Come one, I’m going to need your final answer. What’s more fun, A: Sending you on a treasure hunt for the very things that could ruin absolutely everything I care about or B: Having an army of alien pirates pillaging Canterlot?”

There was five seconds left on the clock. Four. Three. Two.

One and three-quarters. One and a-

“And you think you’ll just be able to walk away from this?” Twilight asked, her voice almost accusing in its intensity. The clock promptly counted to zero and a claxon resounded around her ears. “You'll just end up trapped like you did last time. And the time before that.”

“That isn’t the answer I have written on my card,” he added flatly. “And I’m afraid not. Nope! Not this time. Because unlike last time, I've actually solved my problem before it actually became a problem. Namely Celestia. And Luna. And the Elements of Harmony. And the Royal Guard, just in case. I was just going to leave you outside to have fun with your new pirate friend.”

“How very noble of you,” Discord said.

“I know, right!” Discord also said. “But then you just came to me. Me! And I barely had to do anything!”

“You really thought we'd just leave you to do what you wanted? You thought that would be the end of it?”

“Not really, but I was willing to hope. Still, it was nice for you to come on your own: it was very kind to leave everyone else outside for me to play with.”

With another click of his fingers, Twilight wavered in the air before finally coming to a stop. She gasped as her form twirled and spun in circles through the air before she finally flew towards the princesses. Her body passed seamlessly through the glass of the mirror and with a brief quack her body hit the tiled floor inside.

Twilight shakily got to her hooves, stepping around to the sounds of tweets, honks and twangs. Each time her hooves tapped the ground, a new sound came from them. Never a tap, always something else.

“What?” she exclaimed, stepping on the spot before jumping up and down. Every single hit of her hooves came with something new. A horn, a buzz. The sound of an animal or an outdated catchphrase. “What's the point in that?!”

Discord held his paw and claw together, wiping a tear from his eye with a smile. The rip-in-cloth kind of tear, not the watery kind. He wasn’t that sentimental. “It got a reaction from you, didn't it?”

He peered through the mirrored glass, leaning on the golden rim as he casually motioned to those inside. He eagerly waved to the other inhabitants.

“Hello Celestia! Would you like anything? Some…uh,” he waved the air, searching for the word. “-food, perhaps? Oh, that reminds me.”

He finished his wave to the open air and, reaching behind his back, pulled out a bowl of fruit. The bowl vanished an instant later, reappearing within the mirror and then within the teeny cage the guards were trapped inside. The bowl dropped with a slight thud, and fruit inside sat motionless as the tiny guards gathered around.

“There. See, I remember to feed my pets. Can't let somepony starve inside my mirror now, can I?” Just think of the smell.

Celestia looked to the cage, her face still sombre and disinterested. She had long since given up on escaping. Luna had given up just as quickly. However, unlike the older sister, the Princess of the Night hadn't taken up such a dejected stance on the situation.

“You have given them fruit,” she stated. Somewhere, very far away, clapping could be heard. “You said natural fare was boring and predictable.”

“Well, it is. Things from plants are always the same! You'd think oranges would have at least tried to change in the last few thousand years, right? So I changed them myself!”

One of the guards braved the first bites, ignoring the giant orange at the sound of Discord's words. He slowly went for the apple instead. He struggled to actually grab the skin, gnawing at the thick skin in the hopes this would be a meal they could actually eat.

The last 'meal' they had been offered was dubious at best. Discord claimed it to be ice cream, but the guards didn't trust his word when it started to move around their cage demanding hugs.

The guard bit down, and chewed. The others waited behind, but rather than what they were expecting, the pony looked more confused than disgusted. He didn't gag, or spit out the food. He instead chewed it some more, tilting his head to the sides.

“It tastes like…blueberry shortcake?”

“See? What sort of Lord of Chaos would I be if I didn't go against character and feed my prisoners cake flavoured fruit every once and a while?” Discord nodded at his fine work. Oh, how very fine it was. “Now, how about you, arch-nemesis Celestia?”

“Are you having fun, Discord?” she asked.

He thought about the question for a moment, slipping into the mirror with them. While on the outside it had a fine golden border, inside the prison it just floated there: an empty, oval window into the real word.

“I think so. Maybe?” he attempted, though even he couldn’t bring himself to believe it. “Not as much as I could be, if I’m being quite honest. You bring up a fabulous point, Celestia!”

The white alicorn suddenly readied to speak again, losing out her plead as Discord vanished from the world of the mirror and back into the throne room. His form was still visible through the glass and a second later a small, gilded chest fell through. It hit the floor with a clatter as the contents fell free.

It was a collection of golden necklaces.

Twilight looked down at them, levitating the Element of Kindness into the air. She then turned her attention back to Discord.

But he was too busy to notice. He was thinking of what to do next. Celestia was right. She usually was when it came to…well, many subjects.

Was he enjoying freedom? Undoubtedly.

Was he having as much fun as he could possibly have ever in the whole history of forever and ever? Quite possibly...not.

Could he do better?

Oh yes.

“I think I've seen enough of this castle. Every evil tyrant and their swarm have tried to conquer this dusty old place.” It was cliché. Practically a trope for Equestria in and of itself.

So he moved somewhere else. He closed his eyes, sighing contently as he opened them again. He’d left the confines of the dusty old castle and found himself, quite rightly, on the deck of Hector Barbossa’s pirate ship.

It was black, piratey as the pirateiest thing one could imagine and very much in need of some good old fashioned elbow grease. Discord set a few tins of it down as he realised there was something quite prominent missing from his last visit.

Namely, there was a large hole where he distinctly remembered creating a cabin for the captain. The pirate had been very particular about the silly thing. It had gotten to the point where Discord just pulled out an old memory or two from the man himself and set it down.

He didn't really want to waste his time making an entire ship for a pirate when there was pillaging to be done!

Precious pillaging!

The cloned pirates still onboard just stared on as Discord surveyed their ship. With a minor click of his tail against the deck, the entire ship buzzed with energy until every last nail and board vibrated into life. The wood moved and churned as the broken vessel repaired itself. Spare parts jigged their way up from below deck and brooms danced their way around the ship to clean away dust and debris.

“Hmm...,” Discord said, peering at his handy work. “Maybe it needs to be bigger?”

His will be done, the ship grew. The crew on board just stared around. Not in awe, or in any sort of confusion. They just watched their ship grow larger as if it was the most natural thing in the world.

A smack on the glass of the mirror brought Discord away from his new project. Twilight Sparkle was forcing her hind legs into the glass, hardly forcing a crack to appear. Not to mention each hit was followed by a booty toot or a squelch.

“You know, I thought a pony like you would think better of me than to just assume I put a bit of glass in between you and your freedom. If anything, it’s rather insulting to your princess and the dragon if you think they didn’t already try it.”

“You won't get away with this,” she muttered.

“Perhaps not,” he admitted. Painfully.

Confidently! He meant confidently. “Though I think I've got a pretty good chance of it this time.”

Turning back to the ship, Discord looked out to the pirates who were now surrounding him. They all looked up, arms at their sides and brows creased with despicable smiles stretching across their faces. Every one of them the same, every one of them identical. In the same clothes, holding the same weapons. The same hair and the same eyes.

It was all the same.

And it was awful.

“Right,” Discord proudly proclaimed, a smile of his own curling against his lips. He eagerly rubbed his paw and claw together in glee. The copies of Barbossa began to glow bright until their very shapes began to blur and shift. “First things first! I think it’s about time I gave all of you a reboot.”

Just Good Business

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 21
Just Good Business

Barbossa spared a moment to glance around at Canterlot as his mismatched entourage moved onward. Despite their earlier fears of being set upon by hordes of – well, himself – there weren't any such duplicates to be seen. The streets were disturbingly quiet, spare for only the most outlandishly inappropriate sounds in the moments that Discord felt so inclined.

Or perhaps in the moments he didn’t? That would certainly be the more chaotic of the two.

The distinctly decrepit nature of the streets gave a good idea as to why it was so empty: either a group of rogues had already ransacked the place clean or a sudden hurricane had gone by completely unnoticed.

Though with Discord at the helm, Barbossa supposed both outcomes were equally as likely. If the beast could manipulate the universe with the mere flex of his wrist, then surely a storm or two were not out of the question.

“How awful...” Rarity suddenly said through the quiet, her tone low and sombre. “There's nothing left…”

She was mostly correct. Windows were smashed in and rags littered the street along with anything else the pirates had little desire or use for. They were likely things Barbossa himself wouldn't have found much interest in. The casual clothes and knick-knacks lying around confirmed as much; they weren't that strange or intriguing. They were just everyday items.

Rubbish.

“There be plenty left,” Barbossa mumbled, though he made sure Rarity could hear him. “Just nothin' fine nor fancy. Enough te keep ye all goin'.”

Rarity didn’t seem quite sure whether he was being serious or not, though it seemed that she couldn’t argue with his logic in the end. Even she had to have seen that it did all look a lot worse than it actually was.

“At least there's no more Barbossas,” Pintel said.

Barbossa growled at that. “I wouldn't take that as a blessin'. They should be everywhere.”

Barbossa wandered at the front as the others followed on behind. The ponies hadn't spoken an awful lot since their trek had begun, but the captain wasn't complaining. He had other things on his mind; his leg still hadn't healed as well as he would have liked and his knee shifted uncomfortably with each uneven step he took.

If he had to be picky, his hips didn't feel quite right either but it was far from painful. It was a nuisance more than anything else.

“We should use the time to plan ahead then,” Rarity said with a touch of finality. The ponies nodded along with her. “I trust Twilight with my life but if her plan hasn't worked out then we need to do whatever we can to help.”

Barbossa didn't say anything, the gears in his mind already turning. He only listened.

☠

The ponies nodded again with smiles on. Rarity looked to the captain for his approval but it never came. He kept walking, his mind on other matters. Rarity was about to continue her pep talk regardless when Rainbow interjected.

“That would be good if we actually had a way to help. How are we supposed to stop Discord if we don't have the Elements of Harmony?”

“I...I admit that is an issue,” Rarity conceded. “But that doesn't mean we have an excuse to sit on our behinds and do nothing while Discord has his way with the world.”

Though, she admitted, it did leave them without many open options. Their only experience with Discord was their previous encounter and Princess Celestia had given little to no indication that there was any other realistic way to deal with him other than sealing him in stone. Even if there was – of which there was certainly no guarantee, the princess was apparently a bit too preoccupied at the moment to tell anypony about it.

Twilight's lack of a return certainly didn't help matters. If they had gotten something out of her absence then it would have been more than worthwhile. But they hadn't. They'd also lost her in the process, which didn't exactly do them any favours.

She voiced as much and the ponies around her weren’t quite sure how to respond.

It was times like this that Twilight often came up with a miraculous conclusion to the events they were suffering through. Some spell or riddle they'd overlooked. A hidden answer to a question they hadn't considered to ask in quite the right way.

But then, it had never just been about Twilight. It had been about all of them. Their friendship was the one thing that kept them all moving forward. They were stronger together than they ever were apart, even if one of their friends was missing in action.

“We can still pull through this. I'm not quite sure how right now, but if we work together on this then something is sure to occur to us.” Rarity turned back to her friends. “We've pulled through before when everything has seemed lost.”

“Yeah!” Pinkie chimed in. “We beat Discord's scaly butt last time!”

“We can totally do it again!” Rainbow added.

“And I wish ye all the best of luck in yer endeavours.”

Rarity's smile swiftly faded as she turned her eyes back to the pirate. He was wandering further away from the group, his two human cohorts in tow and the tiny monkey sat firmly on his shoulder.

“W-what was that?” Surely, she had misheard.

The man seemed to sigh as he came to a halt. He turned. “While I admire yer endurance and yer love of teamwork, it doesn’t quite fit me own rationale.”

The ponies moved for him, more out of desperation than anything else. Rarity couldn't help but notice the creases lining her friends’ faces. Even Fluttershy, despite her already drab and scratched appearance, looked less composed than she had been moments before.

“What are ya'll talkin' about? What rationale?”

“Rationale, Miss Applejack: a set of reasons or a logical basis for course o' action. Or belief,” he added, a smug resting on his lips. “And right now, I don't believe yer own course of action quite fits me own idea of logical.”

He turned away again and motioned for his men to follow, which they did. He even seemed to make a show of the action. The ponies stood on the cobbled streets for a few moments before they truly grasped what he was implying.

Applejack called out and ran up to him before she cantered along at his side.

“I know what rationale means!” She hadn't exactly, but she had certainly understood the implications of the word. Her lexicon may not have been as large as Twilight’s but that didn’t mean she was stupid. She knew the word lexicon, for a start. “And where do ya’ll think you're goin'?”

“Home, o' course!” He yelled loud and proud out into the open air, his glare aimed down at her. “Why should I stay here and fight yer battles when I've got me own needin' me undivided attention? The only thing ye had goin' in yer favour was offerin' me a way back to me own world.”

Applejack wasn't too sure she liked where he was going with this.

“But as ye can see,” he waved his hand in Pintel and Ragetti's general direction, “I already have that. Moreover, why should I risk me own life, as well as two of me best men when there are creatures here more equipped than I am te deal with it?” He flapped his hands quickly through the air. “In case ye hadn't noticed, I can't fly.”

“Or cast any magical spells,” Pintel added.

Barbossa nodded, slyly smiling. As if there was a joke going around that only he understood. “Aye. Nor use magic.”

“Neither can me or Pinkie! And we manage just fine!”

“And what exactly have ye done to solve the current crisis at 'hoof'?” He tilted his head lower with the last word. He seemed determined to make as big a show of his betrayal as possible. That hurt all the more. “Last I checked, ye were strugglin' as much as the others! If ponies with magic and the world’s weather at their disposal can't stop a rampant God, then what hope do we, poor, impoverished pirates have?”

The others had fully caught up, though they fumbled over any actual response they could have given. A part of them wondered why they wanted him to stay, but deep down they knew the likely reason; as much as had happened between them and the pirate, they had begun to trust him.

They thought they had all become something close to friends.

“Go on, I'm waitin'. What do we,” he pressed a hand to his chest and motioned to his crew and pet monkey, “mere mortal kind have te offer that ye cannot?”

Rarity was the one who marched forward. It was infuriating that now was the time she truly realised just how much taller he really was than her. She had to balance on the tips of her hooves to get anywhere near his face.

He leaned down, placing his hands on his knees and narrowing his eye with a grin. If there was such a comparison, she would liken it to an adult talking down to a child. Or princess Celestia putting a chancer in his place.

She ignored both comparisons, sucking up her confidence.

“Teamwork,” she stated, absolutely. “You obviously know a lot about that. Any captain worth his salt should. We all have our own talents and specialities, and anything we can add to an effort against Discord is a step in the right direction.”

The pirate seemed to consider her words for a moment before he straightened his back and loomed over her once more. He looked over his nose towards the others before moving his attention back to Rarity.

“Yer goin' up against a God, Miss Rarity; fine linen and stitchin' isn't goin' te go a long way. No amount of friendship or teamwork is goin' te change that. Ye have no surprises. No backup. No fail safe! If ye had ye would have announced it a long time ago.” He seemed to suck up every ounce of his own confidence. “I can't see ye gettin' anywhere with yer battle any time soon. Not with what ye have now.” He creased his brow before twisting his lips into a smirk. “And I have a meetin’ te keep.”

He turned away again. It was only then that Rarity saw he was heading towards the castle at the edge of the city.

“So, what?” Rainbow called out to him. “You're just leaving us here?!”

Barbossa didn't turn to face Rainbow, nor did he give any confirmation that he'd actually heard her. At barely a few metres away, that was unlikely. Rarity could swear she saw a smile gracing his lips as her turned, however.

This only made Rainbow louder.

“This… t-this is all your fault!” her voice came out distressed, unsure of itself. She glided through the air and her hooves hit heavy onto the ground in front of him. She inwardly chided herself for such a harsh landing, and winced when she did. “If you hadn't freed Discord from the statue-”

“Oh, I'm sorry, Rainbow. Next time I'm in Pony Town I'll be sure te avoid goin' into the castle I was invited to by yer ruler – abidin' by yer own wishes, I might add – te be on me way home.”

He spoke calmly, albeit under a thin layer of irritation. It was as if he'd always known how to reply to her accusation. He seemed to remember something, suddenly, His voice grew louder. “I'll also be sure te not excite the God o' Chaos that I was somehow supposed to know lay trapped and waiting inside a statue that I had no idea actually existed!”

He moved around her and kept on his way. Despite herself, even Rainbow had to admit he had a point. She didn't really have much of an argument against him.

He was right.

She doubted that she ever believed otherwise, if she was honest. Not really. And she felt awful for grasping at straws the way she was. She just wanted an easy answer.

A way out of all of this. And end to their terrible story.

Fluttershy was the last to try “Y-you would be hero!” she cried. The others stared at her with puzzled expressions but they all soon cottoned on to her line of thinking.

“Of course you would,” Rarity continued. A part of her was upset she'd resorted to such tactics, but it hardly mattered anymore. “You could repay us for our hospitality and become a hero in the process. You'd be remembered for centuries; others certainly have for much less.”

Barbossa didn't stop walking. “If we won yer battle, o' course.”

“Well, y-yes, of course, b-”

“And even then, what becomes o' me fame? What do I gain from being famous in this world and still little more than a common stranger in me own by comparison?”

Rarity struggled for a moment. “You will gain happiness in the knowledge that you helped those who were in need. That will be your reward.”

He practically burst out laughing. Uproariously and downright condescending. “I'm a pirate, Miss Rarity. I live for creating unhappiness if it gains me own gains.” The little unicorn's ears fell then; she'd expected such a reaction, but not hoped for it. “Care te amend yer reasonin’s?”

For a moment she wanted to. The cogs in her mind turned and rattled as she tried to find a reason for him to stay. A real reason that would convince him to stay, at least.

Nothing came to her that she could honestly see working. The pirates offered numbers and members of a team but…what else? And what did they, the ponies offer? What did any of them actually offer in terms of a strong offence? Or even a defence against Discord…

Barbossa raised a hand in the air, waving to the ponies behind him. His pace kept even and the two humans at his sides didn't so much as turn back as they wandered away. Both of them looked about as confused as the ponies were. The monkey in his shoulder was calm and silent, comfortable with his master.

“In that case, I once again bid ye good-” More words were on the verge of being said, but Barbossa was stopped as a colossal shadow loomed over the road. He raised his head expectantly at the new arrival, smiling snidely.

The man eagerly turned on his heel and the ponies followed to see Discord behind them, blocking sight of the sun. A smug smile was resting on his beastly maw. Discord wasn’t anywhere near large enough to cast the shadow that now coveted the land but everyone did their best to ignore it. It was almost normal, given what Discord was capable of.

“And a very fond farewell to you too, Captain.” A banner appeared on high from behind the clouds stating as much. It fizzed and popped with the sound of fireworks. “It has been a most wonderful experience getting to know you. We should meet up for a coffee one day.”

The ponies took a very brief step back, staring up at the draconequus. Pintel and Ragetti watched in awe as Discord moved, their mouths falling agape with every motion of his near-serpentine body. He just floated there as he always did, but their eyes were captivated by the logical fallacy that was his every movement. Illogical, but factually present.

Rarity was glad she wasn’t in their position. She, at least, had seen the monster at work before.
“But you know, I suppose this is for the best,” Discord slowly added. “Your moment in the spotlight appears to be ending.”

And with that, the entire world began to rumble beneath their hooves.

☠

Barbossa looked to the sky as the colours and bright hues swirled and clung into a sheer dark mass of clouds, huddling together over the city. Crackles of green lightning struck down from the inky darkness backed by a laughter born from the buzzing electricity itself.

If Barbossa was being honest, he found the whole ordeal rather unsettling.

Specks of sand flicked at Barbossa’s face and it began to blow from all sides. As he blinked away the itchiness it began to form into heaps. It coated the ground, a beach-side city came into being, caught against a sea that didn't exist. Palm trees burst angrily from beneath the cobblestones and grew to full height, then even taller still.

They twisted and gnarled towards the sky, stretching on forever as coconuts the size of carriages fell to the ground in their wake. They hit the ground and cracked. Eels and octopi and fish and creatures Barbossa did not recognise began to swim through the stone en masse.

“Am I close? Is this what the rest of your world looks like, Captain?” Discord asked, snapping several wooden ships into the air and letting them crash to the streets below. Shipwrecked on land without a single sea in sight. The sharks began to fly. “If it is, I’m not sure I’m too fond. It has the energy but the colour scheme is just so droll!”

“It isn't,” Barbossa begrudgingly answered.

“Hmm, maybe I just need to do a little more research on the matter.” Crashing waves sounded from all sides, yet Barbossa still couldn't see any water. Or smell the salt. Illusions of the mind, he hazarded. “Who knows, we might be able to teach each other a thing or two in the process.”

Discord leaned right down towards the captain, smiling. Barbossa calmly took a step back.
“I would have thought that a monster brought down by a herd of little horses wouldn’t be quite so high and mighty.”

Discord adopted a confident smirk. “Well, that was in the past. Very, very far back in the past. I think you’ll find that I took some precautions this time.”

“That so? I weren’t aware Gods had precautions te take.”

“Maybe in your world, but we do things differently here. I took the one thing that the ponies could use against me and locked it away. Really, that should have been the first thing on my list when I got free last time.” Discord was on a bed, dressed in pyjamas. “I just got lazy, I suppose.”

“Seems like the ponies would have somethin’ in their stores for beasts like you.” Perhaps they did. It would certainly make his plan easier. Maybe…

“Oh, they really don’t.” Discord couldn’t help but laugh. Barbossa let the idea go. “Believe me, Celestia doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to this sort of thing. If she can’t lock you in Tartarus or send you away with a gift basket full of smiles and sunshine then she barely has anything left to fall back on. She likes to plan ahead. But you weren’t expected, were you?”

Barbossa didn’t give the draconequus a response worth enjoying. He merely took another step back, calmly.

“I'm growin' tired o' all yer games, Discord.” Now confidently. “Ain't too fond of yer manner, either.”
“And what's wrong with my manner?”

“Yer a bastard.”

Discord only huffed in response and crossed his arms over his chest.

“Look, if you don't like how I do things here then you know where the door is.” As if to emphasise the point, several story-high arrows emblazoned with lights and flashing bulbs pointed down from the sky towards the base of Canterlot Castle.

The briefest spark of a smile formed on Barbossa's lips.

Things were going well.

“Quite frankly, I think we'd all be a lot happier if you got on your merry way. You're really bringing down the mood around here.”

Rainbow marched forward a step, just about failing to hide her limp. “If anyone's bringing down the mood around here's it's y-” the mare couldn't finish. A carrot cheesecake had, by sheer coincidence and certainly nothing more, flown into her mouth. The force flung her back an inch as she landed on her behind.

Discord smiled at the result. Barbossa had to admit the silence was welcome, regardless of how it was dealt with.

“Like I said, you're a mood bringer downer.”

A suitcase and duffel bag found their way into Barbossa's hands. He struggled with the weight as a cigar was placed neatly onto his lips.

“And you do want to go home, don’t you?” Discord asked, though it was far closer to a statement than an actual question. “To sail the piratey seas, be with your own kind and what not. It's rather fortunate you have a way back, isn't it?

The palm trees began changing colour, patterns and shape. Some stopped being palm trees altogether and shifted through the ground until a botanical pathway lead through a large portion of the city.

Buildings tiptoed out of the way with much complaining and verbal profanity until everything settled into a new normality.

It was only then that Discord seemed to really notice that there was two new humans present in his company.

“Oh, my! How rude of me! Rarity, why didn't you say we had guests?”

The white mare only stood there, somewhat caught that her name had even been said.

“The pleasure is all mine, little humans.” Discord reached forwards and shook their hands with both paw and claw at the same time. Barbossa chose to ignore the fact that two Discord's were present – yet, somehow not present at the same time in order to do so. “I am Discord. I'm sure your captain has told you all about me.”

The two men didn't move. Their eyes were wide open and Ragetti's false eye was aimed straight ahead. They mumbled what could have been called an attempt at gibberish, but even they weren't too sure.
Discord's face suddenly became less giddy. He gave Pintel and Ragetti a once over, squirming through the air looking down at them from every angle he possibly good – and then a few more just for good measure. The two men stood frozen on the spot the entire time, their eyes following the serpentine body looking back at them.

Finally, he gave them a quick sniff before twitching his nose and tossing it far beyond the horizon. His gaze lingered on Ragetti for a moment longer before they grew bored. “Yes…well, I'm glad one of you was interesting, anyway. Twilight gave him a bath, too.”

A suitcase appeared in Pintel's hand too, followed by a folded scroll in Ragetti's. Discord moved back to the air, looking over the horizon and the things forming in every direction.

Ragetti slowly unrolled the scroll, leaning further back the more it revealed. In the end, it only held a map. A bright red spot marked with the words “Ye Be-eth Hereth!” within a maze of thin black lines. Barbossa took a gander himself.

“A m-map?” Ragetti managed to ask.

“Oh, no need to thank me.” Discord waved the words away. They drifted calmly away from him. “I know you want to get on your way, so I took the liberty of making the trip easier for you. Right down to the room number!”

It was true. Away from the lines and scratches that made up the streets, there was a separate map connected at the side with floors and rooms marked instead. A single room was marked with a red cross in one of them.

There also appeared to be several dozen restaurant recommendation. There was also a good winery not far from their current location.

“Hardly yer usual modus operandi,” or so Barbossa assumed. It was how he wanted things, but it was too easy. Far, far too easy.

But then again…

“I'll say,” Applejack interjected. It appeared that the ponies had finally had their backbones tightened as they made their way towards Discord. Rainbow was still fighting her way through the cheesecake that only seemed to grow the more she struggled against it. “What have ya'll done with Twilight and the Princesses?!”

Even Pinkie marched forward with a glare set in her features. Barbossa thought it slightly unnerving to see the bubbly mare anything but happy.

He made a note to remedy that as soon as possible, lest he regret it.

“Oh, nothing. In fact, they're having tea on the pirate ship. Your little dragon friend is there too. I do look after my guests, you know.”

The ponies didn't change their expression, none too convinced.

“Honestly, you ponies are far too quick to judge me. When I left, Twilight Sparkle was relaxing with a very nice glass of green tea. She's even playing a game of chess with Celestia herself.”

☠

Twilight sat there, unflinching as the glass of green tea occasionally looked over at her. It sat on the chair to her left, mulling over the chessboard that she and Celestia had no intent on actually using. The pieces were set about as normal, with each of her friends acting as one of the pieces.

She was the white side, while Celestia sat behind the black pieces.

“It could really go either way at this point,” the glass of green tea said. “It really is quite exciting.”

Celestia was much the same; rather unsure how to act around a glass of tea. It wasn't even a regular glass. It was pony-esque in shape and size, complete with eyes and teeth. All made of glass but hollow inside. Green tea was sloshing around in lieu of any of the usual internal organs a pony might have.
Steam came from the mouth every time it spoke. The eyes were empty and glazed.

“I can’t wait to see who moves first,” the glass said, it’s motions growing excited. “This could be the game of the century!”

☠

“See? You really shouldn't worry yourselves.”

Not quite sure what they were meant to be seeing, Barbossa failed to give Discord any attention at all and continued his march towards the castle. Pintel and Ragetti stood in a dumb stupor, unsure of what to do. They looked between Discord and the ponies before going with the sanest thing they knew.

Catching up with Barbossa, the two men wandered along by his side as Discord spoke again.

“Yes, that's right. Walks away, now. We don't want you here anyway! Right gang?” He looked down to the ponies for reassurance, but they did nothing but glare up at him. Discord merely shrugged his shoulders. “Either way, I do believe I have more important things do.”

Rain began to drip from the sky, wetting the sand already scattered over every inch of available ground. It became wet and stiff, not unlike a beach when the tide came in. Colours spread as more and more droplets scattered over the ground.

The sand became a layer of colour over the streets. A dirty rainbow over the city.

“That's better,” Discord decided, wiping his paw and claw together. “Good luck with your plight, heroes. I know it’s all been rather slow going lately – and I am very sorry about that. Truly, I am. But I assure you, I have the most exciting things planned for this place!”

Without even a hint of smoke or illusion, Discord was gone from sight. His massive form reappeared above the pirate ship, though the ponies hardly cared at this point. The meeting could have been useful, or worthwhile. It could have given them something to work with.

But it hadn't.

Rarity looked back to Barbossa, once again marching up to him as the group followed. The map Discord had supplied was unrolled in his hands as he gave it a stern looking over.

“Ye remember the way te where ye came from?” he asked Pintel.

A short moment of thought passed before Pintel replied, “A-aye, I think so. We weren't walkin' through many turns.”

“We'll be ignorin' his map, then.” It was folded away into Barbossa's coat. Jack the monkey barely shifted as he did so. He hadn’t done much as of late.

The captain took notice of the ponies wandering up behind him, their hooves shifting the coloured sand at his feet. He heard them stop, but he didn't offer them the same pleasure.

“You're really just going to leave?” Fluttershy asked.

Then he did stop, but only for a moment. A second passed, and then another. One more and he gave a curt nod before moving back on his way.

“Why?” she continued.

“I have me reasons, Miss Fluttershy.”

He looked in the direction of the castle, eyeing the very clear path that lead straight to it. He then turned up to the sky and watched Discord work his magic on whatever distorted project he’d found to amuse himself with.

Much to his pleasure, the draconequus was seemingly taken with something on-board the ship. Sparks and plumes of colour came and went from reality as the almighty child played with his dolls.

“And yer assumin’,” he added, quieter than he had spoken before. “Wrongly, I might add.”

“Assuming what?” Rarity asked.

He didn’t answer but he continued his walk towards the castle. He vaguely motioned for Pintel and Ragetti to follow on next to him. Several strides were taken before he peered back at his entourage of ponies and slyly beckoned them to follow as well.

With a mixed shift in emotion and a lack of anything else to do with their time, the ponies wandered behind him.

When they reached the innards of Canterlot Castle, Barbossa made sure that Pintel and Ragetti were the ones to lead. He followed them in silence for the most part, mumbling under his breath with the occasional glance towards the space that Discord might still reside in.

At least, towards the location he hoped Discord still presided.

“What can’t Discord do?” Barbossa eventually asked through the silence.

Rarity came out of a stupor, surprised that words had been spoken at all. Frankly, she had wondered why the man had beckoned them to follow. He hardly seemed inclined to help them anymore. He seemed set on the opposite.

“I have no idea,” Rarity responded, tiredly. “He can do anything he wants, whenever he wants. Or so he says. I’m not sure we’ve seen anything that contradicts his little boast.”

“Is he all seein’?” he tried, hopeful. “All knowin’?”

Rarity actually had an answer for that, it seemed. “No! No, Twilight said he isn’t. She used that to her advantage when she snuck into the Castle.” That appeared to have failed miserably, but that wasn’t quite the point.

“So if he thinks I’m leavin’ te never return, then there ain’t nothin’ to tell him otherwise?”

All the ponies stopped there. They were all very careful to pick their next words. Applejack even chanced a glance out of the window to the world outside. Discord was still very much preoccupied.

When the ponies looked to him next, they did not look happy, nor did they seem to appreciate his second change of heart. But then, neither did they look especially angry. There was something else in there that he definitely recognised, however.

Hope.

“So…wait, are you now telling us that everything you said back there was fake?” Rainbow asked, her jaw falling open. “Dude! Choose a side alread-”

“Will he be any the wiser?” Barbossa reiterated, ignoring the question.

Sides didn’t matter, Barbossa had decided. He was always ready to play for the winning team if it meant he could get his way. That was the way the world worked, and he was very willing to play the game. If upsetting the ponies meant he was closer to his goal, then so be it.

If anything, upsetting the ponies would leave him in Discord’s good graces. It was fortunate, too, that Discord was growing bored with him. That wasn’t something he had foreseen. Regardless, some thing were just more important than keeping people happy.

Revenge was high among them.

“Not if we’re all super, duper careful,” Pinkie said with a dark gleam in her eye.

“In that case, I believe we mere pirates may have somethin’ te offer ye after all.”

Moonlight Serenade

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Chapter 22
Moonlight Serenade

Things were not going well, Twilight Sparkle had finally decided. It had taken her a while to truly accept this fact but, yes, the day had not gone entirely how she had expected. On the contrary, actually; the day had gone rather similarly to how she imagined a very terrible day to go.

This particular day also showed very little signs of improving. The current state of her surroundings did nothing to alleviate that belief.
The throne room of Canterlot Castle had never quite seemed so dire. There wasn’t exactly anything wrong with the duplicate in which she was imprisoned, for the most part. Spare for it being a facsimile of the real deal, of course. But there were no windows, no doors. In a room that usually held so much avenue for light and the endless sky through the glass ceiling above, the dim shade that now clung to every surface was truly alien to her.

It simply made the place completely unlike itself, utterly different to what it was designed to be. The royal throne Room was supposed to be open and welcoming, a link between the royalty of Equestria and the world outside. A neutral ground where the common pony could meet with the princesses.

The only remaining view into Equestria was through Discord’s ‘mirror’. A false window that saw only whatever Discord wanted them to see. And what she saw was anarchy. A distorted rendition of Pony Piracy created by Discord himself.

And she couldn't do anything about it.

“I’ve messed up, haven’t I?” Twilight eventually murmured, not quite sure who she was asking. “I’ve missed my chance to get the Elements back. And I've probably made it harder for the others to do anything at all...”

“I wouldn’t say that, Twilight,” Celestia calmly replied. “You had very little you could do, so you chose the most logical way forward; find the Elements of Harmony to bring down Discord. You knew you needed them to succeed and you took your chance to get them.”

“I didn’t get them though.” Well, she did. Technically. Just not in a way that she could use them. “Not in time.”

“That is true. But since you haven’t returned from the castle, what do you suppose your friends will assume has happened?”

Twilight thought on the question, searching for some hidden meaning. “That...I failed?”

“And?”

“And that we...don’t have access to Elements?”

Celestia smiled knowingly in response. “Not returning gives them reason to assume that they need another way to deal with Discord this time around. Though far from a victory, it is still a step forwards.”

“It’s not much of a step forwards though, is it?” Spike asked, waving his claw casually as he rested his heads against Celestia’s barrel. “I mean, we’re still stuck in here. And they’re still out there without anything that can actually help.”

Celestia gently nudged her leg into the little dragon, brushing him off as she got to her hooves. Spike’s only response was to grumble under his breath and sit up straight on the tiled floor.

“Help can come from the most unlikely of places, Spike. Now is one of the times to hold onto that belief.”

“But where are we going to get help?” Spike asked casually, his tone less disgruntled than before. It was genuinely curious. “Discord’s, like, the most powerful thing in Equestria right now. He doesn’t exactly have many weak points.”

“Maybe he will catch himself some horrid disease?” Luna suggested.

The others merely looked back at her, their eyebrows in various states of ascension. The Lunar Princess shrunk back ever so slightly, clicking her tongue against her teeth.

“It was merely an observation. He could catch something and grow weary from illness,” she said, her eyes narrowing as she slammed her dainty hoof against the floor. “And then we strike down with a mighty hoof!”

“As favourable as that would, Sister, I doubt waiting for Discord to catch a cold is a viable course of action.”

“But it is a course of action we could take, is it not? We are with few of them.”

Celestia seemed to think on this for several moments before she nodded. “Duly noted. However, I’m in doubts as to whether we should rely on such a tactic.”

Luna conceded there, nodding.

“Admittedly, I am at odds as to what we should do from here on out,” Celestia added, her ears flatter than before. “From inside this mirror, we can only wait for something to change in our favour.”

Twilight frowned at the revelation. It wasn’t so much a surprise, really. It was simply an acknowledgement she rather wished hadn’t come to pass. Celestia was the one pony she usually counted on when times were at their worst. The Princess had certainly helped Twilight deal with several tough situations in the past.

But here they were, trapped without a way to aid the cause and Celestia had readily admitted to it. And it was difficult to think about. Her friends were all likely trying their best on the outside and she was stuck inside a magic mirror.
A small laugh courtesy of Spike drew her attention away from her inner turmoil.

“What’s so funny?” Twilight asked, curious.

The little dragon settled down before answering. “I just realised that I’m still out of the loop,” he joked. “I’m usually stuck in the library not being much help. Now I’m stuck in here not being much help, even though I'm part of the action.”

Twilight cracked a weak smile at that. She wasn’t quite sure why Spike found it so funny but she could see the logic in his thinking.

Shaking away the only mirth she’d received in the last few hours, Twilight glanced towards the abandoned chest inside the mostly empty throne room. The Element of Laughter lay on the floor several hoof-lengths away. It seemed oddly lonely and melancholy without Pinkie wearing it around her neck.

She hadn’t even searched through the chest but something inside told her that the other pieces were there. Something just felt right in that chest.

It all felt rather unfair, in a very Discord move; they readily had the Elements of Harmony. They had all of them, to the point they had been handed over in a pristine, little chest. Twilight and her friends just couldn’t get any use out of them.

They even had the entirety of the royal guard on their side. Simply put, a very large amount of ponies willing to fight against Discord. Too bad they were now barely the size of new-born hamsters and about as useful when it came to getting anything done.

Twilight waved gingerly towards the cage. There was no real response; she’d learned that it was best to leave the tiny soldiers to their own devices. Most of them were getting a tad emotional and the rest were trying to eat away their issues by way of the relatively gigantic cake that had been unceremoniously dropped into their cage.

She wasn’t entirely sure where Shining Armour stood amidst those two categories, but the brief talk they’d had when she first arrived into the mirror implied he was possibly moving towards the former. He'd found it hard to revive morale after their previous capture ended with them being thrown back into a cage.

As adorable as they all were, she could see their issue. They were being held back by a cage designed for pets. Hardly a great confidence boost. Even if the guards were their normal size, they'd be about as useful as everything else inside the mirror. Which was ‘not very’.

Her musings were broken with the entrance of Discord himself into their faux throne room. There was no real fanfare or announcement of his arrival. One second there was nothing, and the next there was a fully stocked bar against one of the far walls. He stood behind it with cocktail shaker and a flawless white suit over his mismatched body.

“I don’t suppose I could offer any of you fine mares a drink?” he asked, somehow pouring a martini glass into the shaker with the rest of the sordid concoction. “On the house, of course. It would be dreadfully unfair of me to ask for bits in your current situation.”

Twilight just stormed straight up to the bar. She forced her hooves right onto the wooden counter once she arrived.

Discord only peered down, still shaking the shaker.

“You really do think you’re being funny, don’t you?”

“Well, I do try. Though, in all honesty, I've had a lot of time to practise,” he admitted, pouring three glasses from the container. Not into glasses; he quite literally poured three filled glass from nothing. “Despair in the departure lounge, Twilight Sparkle?”

“What?”

“The drink; Despair in the Departure Lounge. Lemon, Apple. A dash of Zebraska! You simply must try it.”

Twilight rolled her eyes and moved down from the counter. Luna and Celestia made their own way over, their own faces as still and displeased as Twilight’s. Discord offered each a drink as they approached, only for Luna to knock all three of them away.

Discord watched placidly as the drinks shattered against the tiles and the glasses splashed over the floor.

“That was hardly sporting.”

“And locking us inside this accursed space is fair game?” Luna asked back.

Discord stroked thoughtfully at his beard. The thing purred eagerly under his touch.

“Touché, Lulu. However, I deemed it the lesser of two evils. The ‘big evil’ being that you would take most of the fun out of this whole thing,” he said, and with a click of his hooves the bar was gone. “But being trapped in stone twice using the exact same tactic forced my claw somewhat, I’m afraid. Seriously, you have no idea how bad that was to see in hindsight.

“By the way, what do you think of my new outfit?” He spun on the spot, an orange and pink buccaneer outfit adorning his body. It hadn’t been there before. Or ever. It came complete with a hat and matching eye-patch. “I thought I’d try and blend in with your new friend. This century’s theme is ‘pirate’, by the way. If only you were dressed for it! If you ask nicely, I could perhaps have you fitted for a jacket and-”

“I don’t really care about your fashion choices, Discord,” Twilight butted in. “I just don’t see why we need to be stuck in here. You have the Elements; what point is there in keeping us captured?”

To his credit, Discord seemed to think on the matter. “You raise an interesting point, Twilight Sparkle. But that leaves me at a crumby juncture: keeping you here means you miss out on all the fun, yet if I let you three go then the fun and games might come to an end altogether. You might have some fabulous friendship…” he mumbled, grasping at the empty air, “thing to use against me.”
Twilight felt her face drop then. Goading him could have worked, she thought. He might have gone on a whim and let her out.
He spoke again before she could add anything else.

“So why risk losing the game when I can just take away all of your cards?”

☠

Shouldering the wood one last time, Barbossa and Pintel fell forward with the door to reveal a broken room. Just as it had been left, it very much befitted the style of any princess, all clean beige paint and hanging ornaments against the walls. Whether it was normal for the room or not, though, all signs of elegance ended there.

Tables were overturned, books littered the floor in torn-up tatters. Equipment that had once been hung alongside the drapes was abandoned on the ground. They were perhaps in disrepair, dented and tarnished, but Barbossa could not rightly tell.

But the distinct abnormality that had been promised was still very much present at the centre of the room.

“Told ya!” Pintel cheered. “This is the place!”

Just like his men had said, there was a wavering light at the centre of the room. Almost like a heavy moonlight shimmering against clear open waters. Barbossa could almost imagine it as the sight fish were welcomed to every time they looked up towards the whole new world living just above the surface.

He took careful steps towards the light as his two cohorts shuffled along eagerly behind, followed closely by the ponies. Jack, while quiet, grew steadily more excited, shifting about the floor at his master’s feet.

Mere feet away from the portal, Barbossa reached out his hand. He let his skin feel the warmth the light brought to the relative darkness of the room. He was sure he could hear queer sounds from beyond; strange, high-pitched sounds that he couldn’t place, but sounds just the same.

He could practically see his world falling back into place around him, making way for some logic and resemblance of normality.

Some sanity.

But at the last moment he clenched his fist shut, as if it would somehow hold the moment in his grasp forever. His nails dig into the flesh as he refused to give in to the desire and, with effort, pulled his hand back and came to a definite stop.

Pintel and Ragetti did not seem to have the same desire. Barbossa held out the other hand to stop them in place. Both men immediately ceased their gait, but Pintel still found it in himself to raise an ill-timed opinion.

Barbossa ignored him completely.

“Mister Ragetti,” Barbossa instead said. He opened a waiting palm to the man. “I’ll be havin’ that you-know-what back now, if ye please.”
Ragetti shuffled on his feet, glancing between the portal and his captain as his sweaty hands rubbed against one another. The ponies looked on, curious, but without a single word between them.

“I, uh, kept it safe and all. Just like you said!”

“Aye, so it seems. But I’ll be needin’ it back.”

Ragetti complied, digging at the right side of his face until the wooden orb came free from his eye socket. Rarity practically wretched onto the floor and Fluttershy rushed to hold her friend’s mane back. Just in case.

Barbossa did his utmost to hold back a smirk. She really was like an uppity noble.

Ragetti rubbed the wooden ball against his grubby shirt and meagrely handed it over to his captain.

Smiling at it, Barbossa then looked around the room. Ideas and suggestions flickered through his head. Whispers of ideas that, perhaps, he could consider possibly putting into action at some point in the near future.

As always, he briefly wondered how much Jack actually planned ahead in his escapades. Or if smarmy bastard even planned ahead at all.
He looked past his men and even wondered at Pinkie for a moment before looking back to his monkey. The better of the two Jacks, in his opinion. In most opinions.

Choices…

So many situations in which it could all go horribly, horribly wrong.

In the end, his eyes landed firmly on Applejack. The third of the Jacks, he supposed. He wandered over and, much to her evident displeasure, held out the eye to her.

“Hide this,” he said, his voice steady. Razor sharp and filled with as much importance as he could impart to a talking pony in a fine hat. “Do not lose it. Yer world’s surely at stake if ye do.”

He didn't know how much standing he had with them any more. After all, he lied to and displeased them practically on the hour. But they had a common goal and the farmer recognised this enough to simply nod and take the eye from him.

She promptly hid it beneath her hat.

He threw her a new look. One that was more than slightly less impressed. “And yer hat’s safe, is it?”

“I won't lose it,” she confirmed. The gaze she returned was as sure as his own. “Not if it'll help my friends.”

Barbossa nodded in response. Despite his calm demeanour, his fellow pirates seemed intent on giving him doubting looks.

“Didn’t we… uh, need that?” Pintel meekly asked. “Cap’n?”

“I’m not denyin’ that we do,” Barbossa replied. “Last I checked it weren’t in yer description te question me authority. Or are ye suggestin’ I’m goin’ senile in me old age?”

Both men swiftly shook their heads.

“Correct answer,” he confirmed with sly smile. “Besides, we ain’t leavin’. Applejack can be trusted for the mean time.”

“We…” Pintel mumbled. “We ain’t going home?”

Barbossa merely stared back in surprise, as if any of his potential answers weren’t so blindingly obvious. “No. No, of course not! Not till Discord gets what’s comin’ te him. And somethin’ is surely comin’ his way.” A rough laugh escaped is throat. “I may not know how te kill a god like Discord, but I do know how to ruin him.”

With that, Barbossa moved back to the portal. He had no earthly idea what he was looking for inside, or if there was anything worth finding, but he did it anyway. If Jack could use casual sight to further his plans and keep them changing, then he could certainly try as well.

“How long did ye say ye were in the Locker?”

“Uh…” Pintel and Ragetti shared an uneasy look. After a brief few seconds of inherent muttering, Ragetti turned back to his captain. “Two hours, we’d say?” They compared looks and both shrugged. “Maybe. At the most, o’ course.”

“And I’ve been here a week,” Barbossa replied. He slid his tongue over his teeth as he closed his eyes and tapped his fingers against one another. “That’s a hundred and sixty-eight odd hours here…for your two hours there. That’s eighty-four hours for every one hour. Which means-”

“You want to divide that by six!” Pinkie suddenly squealed. “Then it’s just fourteen hours in Equestria for every ten minutes over there, which is waaaay easier to remember.” She pursed her lips and tapped a hoof against the floor. Then again. “Or an hour and twenty-four minutes for every one minute, I guess. Or forty-two minutes for every thirty seconds…”

Even Barbossa found himself caught off-guard in the ensuing silence. Rarity, he might have expected mathematics from. Being a seamstress, it would be a very practical part of her livelihood.

But Pinkie? He’d barely seen her do anything remotely impressive.

“-would be twenty-one minutes for every fifteen seconds, fourteen minutes for every ten minutes, a minute and twenty-four seconds for every second-”

Then again, the mare was a baker. And smarter than she seemed, to boot. She was making his head hurt now, and that was coming from a man who had a grasp on how most numbers known to England actually worked.

“-we could try, but then that’s just getting silly. So fourteen hours for every ten minutes it is!”

Barbossa bowed his head with a wide smile, regardless. Pinkie was right. It was simple, mostly; for every ten minutes that pass by in the Locker, near enough fourteen hours go by on his end.

Probably. More or less, by his calculation at the very least. And by Pinkie’s too, if her logic was sound. The two other pirates stared back with absolutely nothing close to understanding upon their faces.

“And that…means?” Ragetti began.

“It means,” Barbossa goaded. “That we have a basis for time! We fell off the world at the same moment. Our ship went over and I came here. Yet you lot wound up in the Locker. Either that portal is broken and it don’t matter what we work out, or there's a pattern.” He looked towards the portal. “And we might’ve just found it.”

Neither man could even begin to pick apart that logic. Not that they wanted to go against Barbossa – which they didn’t. And never would, if anyone asked – but they were no closer to knowing how to read, let alone add up the hours in the day and work ‘mathematics’ from them. A few hours at a time was their lot.

Barbossa and the ponies could have made the whole thing up for all they knew. They wouldn’t put it past him and they didn’t even want to get started on the ponies.

“Ye haven’t said why we’re stayin’ here though,” Pintel meekly spoke up. His resolve shrivelled beneath Barbossa’s stare. “Pardon the words Cap’n, honestly now, but ye wanted to leave yersel’ not even an hour ago.”

“If we leave we’d be leavin’ Discord te go on his merry way! I don’t know if ye can stand te have yer mind and brain muddled beyond all recognition but I for one will not stand by as the likes of him deal a sordid hand to the likes of me! And what good men would we be if we didn’t deal with the beast when we had the means to do so? So nice and ready just beyond our personal portal, too.”

“What ‘means to do so’ is that?” Rarity asked. “You haven't explained anything.”

Barbossa turned back to her. He addressed them all as a group, human and pony alike.

“Ye’ll find out when ye need te know,” he briefly scolded. Conversation over. “Now! We have ten minutes te get our hides through that portal, find our men, get Tia Dalma and drag her back through here.”

It was clear on the ponies’ faces that they had questions, but Barbossa carried on regardless. He wandered over to them, eyeing each of them carefully. He spent an especially long time on Rainbow and Rarity.

“I’ll be needin’ one o’ ye te join us,” he announced. “As beloved and cherished by all as we are, I doubt there’ll be many men believin’ us if we make claim of what’s happened here.” Not to mention Tia Dalma. But, then again, you could never tell with her. She might have foreseen all of this.

God damn her to all Hell and back if she had.

“And why were you looking at us?” Rainbow asked, standing closer to Rarity.

“Because, Rainbow, Miss Rarity looks very much like somethin’ we’d see in a fairy-tale. You don’t look like you come from anythin’ a sane man would imagine at all.” He pattered her roughly on the head. “Both could go a long way to further yer cause.”

Rarity motioned towards him with a pained smile. “And our cause is…?”

She was ignored.

They were all a valid option, if he was being honest. None of them looked remotely like a real horse. None of them would pass for anything ‘normal’ if looked at by even the drunkest idiot. But Rarity’s likeness to mythical unicorn could prove useful.

Rainbow would just prove that he wasn’t insane.

“Oh!” Pinkie was very suddenly up in his face. “Take me! Please, I’ve barely done anything with you.”

And then there was Pinkie Pie.

Pinkie would just drive the other men insane before he got a word in edgeways. But then again… she was offering. The other two hardly seemed inclined. And Pinkie Pie did have-

He was suddenly aware that the pink mare was still talking. He was very glad he had somehow missed this fact.

“-pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease” She took in a deep breath. He was reminded of a fishing begging for water. “Pleasepleasewithcherriesonto -”

He grabbed her muzzle and he swore to God Himself that he'd never let go of the blasted thing if he could.

“Aye,” he said, his mouth strained. “If ye shut up long enough te get there.”

She sat on the ground, wiped her hoof across her faced and mimed something ludicrously complicated that Barbossa had no idea where to begin with.

He turned to Applejack.

“She’s zippin’ her mouth shut and throwin’ away the key,” she said, tiredly. Barbossa supposed she had explained this to others before him. “Then hidin’ the key somewhere.”

That was good, he supposed.

He turned back to Pintel and Ragetti. Things were finally going his way. At least, as far as his current plan had been thought out. He had a team at his command, too. His men were ready and willing to obey him without question.

So were the ponies, mind you. To a lesser degree, but still.

“How we goin’ te get Tia Dalma through ‘ere?” Pintel asked. “She ain’t a very nice lady.”

Barbossa put a hand on Pintel’s shoulder. “It just so happens that a grave misfortune befell me durin’ me stay here. A naughty pony ran off with yer nephew’s wooden eye and we’ll be needin’ her magic help on gettin’ it back safe and sound.”

“What you on about? You just told the pony to hide the bloody the-”

There was a brief click. Before Pintel could even finish, Barbossa was holding a pistol loosely to the lesser man’s chest. The entire room drew quiet.

The good captain pursed his lips and looked to Pintel with a thickly worn frown.

“Are ye sure o’ that Pintel?” he asked, waving the flintlock. “Ye be lookin’ a mite confused there. Surely ye saw the thievin’ pony steal your nephew’s eye.” He pointed to Applejack.

“Hey!” Applejack yelled.

Barbossa waved her to be quiet. Pintel visibly gulped along with his nephew. Suddenly, he wasn’t quite sure what he had saw. Lots of things had happened since he'd arrived.

How was he meant to know what was real and what wasn’t?

“N-now that ye mention it…”

“Good man,” Barbossa awarded as he calmly stored away his pistol.

“Looks like we’re set then,” he said, looking around. He motioned to his men and Pinkie Pie. “You three will be stickin’ wi’ me. We need te be fast and we ain’t got time dawdle. That means you, Pinkie.”

Pinkie saluted.

“You still haven’t told us what you’re doing!” Rarity exclaimed. She stomped right up to him, trying to be as tall as her stature allowed.

“And ye shouldn’t be told until we’re back,” he explained. “As much of an arse as ye think I am, it’s for good reason; the least we can have Discord figurin’ out, the better. Ye said so yersel’; there ain’t nothin’ any of ye can do. All because the bastard prepared himsel’. And if he can do that te the Elements o’ Harmony then he can do that to whatever I have planned.”

“Well…” She simmered, for a moment. he had a retort ready, of course. She was the most likely to go against him in any given situation. next to Rainbow. And most of the other ponies he knew.

Finally, she seemed to accept the logic presented. She nodded to him.

No rebuttal needed.

Then she suddenly seemed to remember the maths that Pinkie had worked out for him earlier. “Wait. Wait, a minute. Are you telling me you’re going to be gone for half a day?”

“O’ course not. We’ll be gone ten minutes. Ye’ll be the ones who see us gone fer half a day,” he said, grinning. “But believe me when I say we have someone in the Locker who could bring Discord down te level ye can handle. Ye won't be needin’ the Elements, ye wouldn't be needin’ yer princesses. Ye could just lock him away through any old door and toss the key.”

Rarity’s eyes widened at the prospect. Applejack and Rainbow couldn’t help but do the same. It was all they had, at this point.

But it was something new. Something horrendously promising. Her face, while unsure, held something brighter and Barbossa knew it would be enough to pull them along. Fluttershy seemed especially elated by his idea.

Or perhaps she was just glad he was stabbing them all in the back? Both were entirely plausible.

“And you really think this will work?” Rainbow asked. “This… whatever it is? Tia Dalma?”

“Best chance I see. And since ye have nothin’ else, I can’t see the shot worth forgettin’,” he replied. With a sense of finality, he motioned for Pinkie, Pintel and Ragetti to come towards him. “Just be back here in fourteen hours. Or stay nearby." He didn't really care which. "I ain't sure what else we’ll need so gather any ponies ye can. Amass yerselves. Build an army if ye have to. Just be ready to have some magic on yer side.”

The four ponies took a step away and nodded.

And with that, Barbossa ushered his group towards the portal. He stuck close to them, until all were constantly touching. Then all five of them – Pinkie, pet monkey and all – vanished into the wavering light.

Tia Dalma

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 23
Tia Dalma

Sand.

There was sand, pure and untarnished. Guarded by an endless blue horizon that stretched out to every conceivable corner of reality. To all intents and purposes, an inescapable prison free from walls and blockade. For without walls, how can one truly escape?

Salt should rightly have been thick in the air, smothering his senses and tainting the surroundings so that nothing escaped its wrath. But there was no salt. There was no mortal breeze from out beyond the horizon to play against his skin, yet the water eased in and out of flow. The world was completely still, practically a painting given perfect depth, yet it also lived with an eerily approximation of the real world. Like an expert thespian.

It was a real place… but also not.

Even if Discord hadn’t wrought this horrid curse back upon him, Barbossa doubted he the world would have felt any different against is skin.

Speaking of the world, Barbossa pondered the surf as it wet the dry sands before retreating back into a vast, limitless collection of water. Waves pushed at the shore, despite none being visible at the farthest point he could see and a lack of wind to push it. The horizon was steady. Not quite the sea he was used to. Not quite a sea at all, in fact.

But a soothing sight nonetheless.

Closing his eyes, Barbossa took in a long, deep breath. He savoured the air as it entered his lungs and held it there. Air, despite the empty wind. Tasteless.

Another anomaly.

He wasn't in Equestria anymore. Of that much, he was completely certain. Even without his prior knowledge, there would be no mistaking it. This place even looked different, felt different. Sights were calmer, less taxing on his eyes.

After a week of the pony world, he had almost forgotten that which he knew was not so blindingly bright and colourful.

“Thank God,” he sighed.

Thank God!

Thank him and every other blasted deity that poked and prodded at the mortal world. He’d swear to the lot of them right then and there, if he could. He would say many a blasted thing to their miserable faces.

Still…

Thank the lot of them.

Barbossa let his long breath go and his mind reeled back into the moment. Barely a dozen seconds or so had passed by, but that was more than he should have allowed himself. There were more important tasks at hand.

He straitened his shoulders, allowing his trusted pet to accommodate himself. Jack the monkey seemed to neither care about nor mind their current predicament. The lack of anything natural did not concern him.

So long as the furry menace had a place to sit.

"Right. You two,” Barbossa finally ordered. “Tia Dalma. Take us to her.”

Pintel and Ragetti did as they were told. With the little time they had to spare and the urge of Barbossa at their backs, they were smart to do so. If they had even half as much sense as their captain, they would want the entire ordeal sorted away as quickly as possible and to leave the pony lands as far behind them as they possibly could.

Maybe they could all remember it as nothing more than a brief fever dream. A drunken memory within a grander tale.

With Pinkie Pie hopping merrily along mere steps behind them, the hope was a far-fetched one. Hopeful, but unlikely.

“This place looks weird,” she casually said, as one might have noted an ugly dress. “What’s wrong with the sky?”

It was a barely-blue, more of a grey. Wisps of equally grey cloud held their place, not moving for as long as Barbossa concentrated them. Then again, he was currently walking. It did not seem worth thinking about.

“There’s a surf, but no wind,” he answered. His boots fell heavy into the sand as the footing beneath took a steep incline. A dune lay before him. It was not insurmountable, at any rate. “Clouds, but barely a sky. Water and nary a sea. Only the dead dwell here, Pinkie Pie.”

“So… this really is an afterlife? A real one?”

“That’s my hope. Elseways, we’ve taken a very wrong turn somewhere along the way.”

“You were tied up in Twilight’s library. That’s a pretty big detour from the land of the dead.”

Ponyville was indeed a very wrong turn. On several levels.

At this stage, Barbossa didn’t wish to suppose how else this journey for Jack could go wrong. Maybe Pinkie would be joining him forever, stranded on this side of the portal and unable to return to her home. Or perhaps the King of England and Princess Celestia might abscond, ruling over the world with hugs and kisses. The English flag would be rewritten pink with wee hearts.

It made more sense than half the rubbish he had been forced into.

☠

Tick tock. Tick tock.

Tick tock.

Tick.

Tock.

There were no clocks within his reach, pocket or otherwise, yet William Turner felt the weight of each second that passed all the same.

To pass the time, he anxiously flexed the already tight skin of his knuckles, watching the flesh grow taught and thin, right until he could see the white of his bones beneath. Then he let all the pressure go and began it all over again.

It had begun as a relief, of sorts: a way to vent the uneasy pressure inside his chest. A few hours at most they had spent inside the Locker, certainly. But it was never meant to be a place where you relaxed. It was not a place where you were meant to be. To be in this place meant you no longer were.

It was reserved solely for those in need of punishment, a dreary Hell for those who displeased Davy Jones.

But, eventually, Will had made some sort of sick little game of it. How tight could he make his knuckles go before… well, he wasn’t quite sure what would happen afterwards. He hadn’t really thought the rules of the game through that well, or how he would actually enforce them.

At most, he was pretending that he could turn his skin invisible. He wished there was something more he could say for his actions.

There was not.

Will Turner was sat in Davy Jones’ Locker, amongst the least active crew he had ever been a part of, pretending he could turn his skin invisible.

…

He swiftly realised that those were the ramblings of a mad man and he wondered if the Locker was truly as eerily calm as it first appeared. Were the others thinking these thoughts? Was he going mad? He didn't know one could go mad in only a few hours.

Perhaps in this place, time did not matter.

Unsure of what to really feel through his boredom, Will raised his head to look down the remainder of the ghostly coastline. While the dry air seemed all calm at first, it was not long before he noticed activity in the distance. A dune was shifting its sand.

And from the top appeared Pintel and Ragetti. They scurried up and over like hot-footed rats as Barbossa hauled himself up behind them.

…Barbossa?

Barbossa...

“Barbossa!” Will was yelling before he realised he actually had something worth yelling about. “It’s Barbossa!” He got to his feet and pointed directly to his prize.

The old captain walked with a distinct purpose, monkey on shoulder and each step firm on the sand as his stride continued. Very much unlike the other two, the bumbling beggars they were.

To Will’s surprise, these three missing men were not the most immediate figure that his eyes focused on. After they rose from beyond the dune, something else followed on behind.

It was a horse. A small, pink horse.

With frizzy hair.

And… giant eyes.

Bobbing up just behind the captain, it held itself upright for mere seconds before it then slid the rest of the way down the dune, tumbling into the sand and laughing all the while.

… Did the others see the horse?

They could surely see the pink horse.

A weary glance to the men and women around him seemed to suggest as much, as ill prepared for any arrival as all seemed. Or maybe Barbossa simply was that much of a surprise?

He hoped to God they saw the horse.

“Do you see the horse?” Will eventually asked.

Mumbled affirmatives and, as Will recognised, several variations on the Chinese word for ‘yes’ suggested that Will was not quite insane. Not yet.

A whispered, “她太可愛了...” from a solitary pirate was entirely lost on Will.

“Good. That’s good,” he agreed. With himself.

With whatever the Chinese man had said.

With whatever mattered at all. The sheer fact that he wasn't mad was also a cause for concern, mind you, but they were beyond that dubious point of no return. It wouldn’t do to dwell.

It wasn’t long before Will found his restless feet running towards Barbossa. And his new horse.

Now, this man had tried to kill him in the past. Will had also tried to kill him, once or twice. He had even succeeded, in a roundabout way. There was something to be said for a man that went missing on a voyage to Davy Jones’ Locker, however. Something… almost commendable, if you should manage to find your way back. A camaraderie that couldn’t be ignored, as silly as it might sound to an outsider.

The action was rendered all the more ridiculous when the good captain promptly ignored Will and made his merry way through the crowd and out towards Tia Dalma instead.

Pintel and Ragetti followed on behind.

All three of them were utterly unperturbed by the little pink horse.

☠

Dirty hands from within the crowd reached down for their pistols. Some for their swords. A scant few to check for a heat at their heads.

Barbossa’s voice fired off first, regardless.

“Shoot the pink pony and I'll gut yer brain out through yer nostrils.” He took pause. “With a fork.”

All but one pirate put their hands down. Unsurprisingly, it was one of the Chinese pirates. To his credit, he looked to be the sort of man that would aim his pistol at a beached jellyfish if he felt so inclined that it still had the possibility of stinging him.

Barbossa simply pulled out his own gun and shot once in the man’s direction. A distinct plume of sand exploded directly to his right.

“Let me rephrase;” he began. His vice growing deeper, more concerned with the inaction. “Shoot Pinkie Pie and our agreement will be void. And I don't mean I'll be droppin’ yer favour: I mean we’ll all be damned here for all eternity whether I shoot a new orifice through your skull or not!”

The man gave pause, but his countrymen were quick to pull his pistol away and slap the back of his head. It was clear to be seen that not all the Chinese pirates were idiots. Most of the idiots had died several weeks ago.

“That was a little mean,” Pinkie voiced.

“My world, Pinkie. My rules.”

“But… I mean, technically, this isn’t your world-”

Barbossa threw Pinkie a sharp look, the sort of look that implied something “a little mean’ would occur if she didn’t let him do his duty. Just to make sure that she got the message, he hissed “Now is not the time, Pinkie Pie.”

Pinkie sucked her lips into her mouth before loudly popping them, avoiding all the eye-contact she could. “Right. Business.”

His focus returning, Barbossa instead turned to his goal.

“Tia Dalma!” he called, flowing into an elegant bow. Jack scrambled from his perch and slinked away into the sand, his attention caught by crabs that were not crabs. “Your presence warms the cobbles of me blackened heart. But I’m afraid that’s all the time we have for pleasantries today.”

If she was surprised by his reappearance, his manner or his words then she gave no clear indication. She looked at him with a neutral expression, displaying neither a sadness or a joy to see him.

“A pleasant surprise to see you, too. Tell me,” she added, her accent as thick as ever. Of course, it wouldn’t have changed; he’d barely been gone a few hours from her perspective. If that. “Did you enjoy your journey, Barbossa?”

Barbossa felt his jaw clench, despite himself. Her tone was level, yet there was something in there that unsettled his nerves. Perhaps it was her slight smile or the knowing in her voice that maybe, just maybe, she had planned his whole ordeal from the start.

She would not be smiling at the situation for long, if that was the case.

He rose to his full height and almost went to reset his hat, driven by impulse and times gone by. But he still had no hat.

Sadly.

“Am I te take that ye know somethin’ about my little journey that I do not?”

“Fate has its hand in many matters, not all of which can be seen at any one time.” A smile, a crawled onto her lips. “But… I do admit I had my suspicions on the whereabouts of you, our good captain.”

“And before we went over the edge of the world?” Barbossa asked, an edge to his own tone.

Tia Dalma smiled once more, irking that heat that was already gathering in the back of his head. Something else occurred before his anger could take hold. Something pink.

“You’re a girl!”

Pinkie was right up to Tia Dalma, one hood already forced into her hand. There was shaking and smiling and a long ramble of words that, Barbossa only assumed, could be pleasantries spoken at such a pace that only Pinkie could ever hope to achieve it.

“-and you’re so tall and pretty and brown! Hector said humans didn’t come in different colours. That sounded so boring and, as he will surely tell you, I do not do boring. No honey, I do not! It would be such a shame if you only came in one colour and not other colours like blue and purple and yellow and orange and white and all the other colours that my best friends are.” Her mind seemed to reel back to the current, important objective. “You’re, uh, the Tea… Dalai Llama, right? Hector told us we were-”

Pinkie’s eyes just so happened to fall on another woman. All intended speech ground to halt and her jaw about disjointed in smile.

There was a squee and running and another round of hugs.

“You’re a girl too!”

With Pinkie Pie distracted with, of all things, Elizabeth Swann, Barbossa chose his moment. He doubted he would get much chance to talk if Pinkie so much as turned around in his direction.

“That’s Pinkie Pie,” he explained. Pinkie required explanation. “She’s a magic talkin’ horse. She likes parties.”

There was a stunned silence in the moments after. Barbossa was pleased for the result, more so than he would have been if the Chinese had caused a fuss or an idiot had fired openly. If England could eat horse and China could eats dogs, he didn’t hold much light to Pinkie’s chances.

Then again, she looked a little too… sickly for his taste. He reminded her of thick icing and bloated cake.

“And she has defeated Gods on the odd occasion. Or so I’m told. She hails from a magical land. A lot of miraculous things are goin’ in the pony lands. Rivers made from rainbows and magical tattoos that appear when you sing,” he looked to Tia Dalma. His face fell. “Where I’ve been stranded for the last week.” His face fell further.

“That’s seems a long time,” she quickly teased. Her spreading smile from before returning in full force. “You haven’t been gone all that long.”

He was going to kill her.

“Time is different there; moves faster.” Somehow.

Speaking of time, they were very much wasting it. Barbossa cast a brief glance over everyone present, eyeing each man (and the few women) for their potential uses. Many weren’t worth the energy it took to shift his neck, mind, but he had little to work with as it was.

Not to mention his other goals. Revenge or not, he wanted a clean sweep once he was finished. No more issues, no more ‘detours’.

Which, of course, was all well and likely if his plan continued ahead as it did.

If all went as planned…

“Me and Lizzie are friends now.”

Pinkie was back, it seemed. A brief glance towards Elizabeth implied that the poor woman had no idea what was going on. Her eyes followed Pinkie like one would follow a flying pig. Which was absolutely perfect.

Now he’d be the sane one.

That said, he snapped his fingers towards Pinkie and pointed to the ground next to his feet. She promptly jumped over and sat down.

“Time fer games is over, Pinkie.”

She giggled in response. “You sound like Twilight.”

Amazing.

Of all the things that were wrong with him…

But it was well beyond time to move on. His point had been proven; he was sane.

“And to prove that I’m not mad, I brought a horse back with me! Look at her, all pink and...” Was there much else to say about her that he hadn’t already? Pink. Parties. Cake? “But I’m afraid I have rather more pressing matters to talk of.”

“Aye,” Pintel agreed. “There’s a hell of a lot of stuff going on back there. There’s an army of barbossas. Copied men by the hundreds.”

Ragetti was in there just as quick. “And cows floating in the sky!”

“Flying pirate ships!”

“Unicorns!”

“A snake-goat-lizard god! What clicks his fingers and summons gold from the sky!

Almost every single person within earshot eased necks, ever so slightly, to stare back the way Barbossa had come from.

Tia Dalma was the only one not so inclined. She instead kneeled forward, looking into Pinkie’s eyes.

She weaved a hand through Pinkie’s mane, easing her thumb behind the mare’s ears and whispering in the way that Tia Dalma did. Spare for the feel and sight, Pinkie Pie might as well have been a little stone crab for all the difference with which the witch treated them both.

Not that Pinkie seemed to care. The miraculous invention of hands scratching at her ear was seemingly enough to placate her excitement.

Barbossa cleared his throat. “I’m rather afraid something dear was stolen durin’ me brief imprisonment. A false eye, as it happens.”

Tia Dalma was very suddenly inclined, glaring into him. Her hand came quickly away from Pinkie, clenching and writhing as if burned. Much like in days gone by, during the long voyage through the ice and cold, Barbossa saw something horrible and broken inside the woman’s eyes.

Something broiling and visceral and hot like Hell’s fire. It was in these moments that he remembered, truly remembered, that she was no mere witch with simple spells and tricks.

She was God.

Vengeful and trapped.

“Explain yourself.”

Barbossa was quick to find his wit, as far down his trousers as Tia Dalma had just sent it. “A God, of sorts. The very same that that Pintel spoke of; a beastly and twisted mess by the name of Discord. Head of a goat and body of a snake.”

“Arm of a lion,” Pintel interjected.

“Lizard leg.

“Bat wings.”

As irritating as they could be, they offered good commentary. Barbossa motioned in their direction. “All true. Every word of-”

A beastly slap to the face was all he got for his trouble. It stung more than it rightly should have. Still, Barbossa kept his balance. Barely.

Resisting the urge to swing back, for the trouble it was likely to get him in, he held his ground and got back to his full height. He ran his fingers across his cheek once more before deciding that, no, it wasn’t going to help ease the sting.

“I’ll choose te ignore that.”

“You have doomed me. And the rest!”

“It’s entirely out of me hands! Why else would I come here with the intention of going back?”

“Your claims might hold some truth, if you were not known for your drive.”

She was not a stupid God.

“Be that as it may, we have no time to stand about here dawdling and sharing pleasantries. Time moves faster in the pony world, meaning the longer we stand here, the less chance we have of ever seeing your precious artefact ever again.”

“And you want help?” she asked. “From your friends?”

Friends. She did not need to use that word. Yet, she did.

His suspicions only grew.

“We are in dire need of some magic. The likes of which only you can provide. I have a band of merry mares on the other side of the portal, ready and waiting te bring Discord down. If only you could provide the final push.”

Whether his words had any real effect, Barbossa could not tell in that moment. Tia Dalma continued to stare, unwavering in her vile hatred. Her eyes went from Barbossa, to Pintel to Ragetti. He could see her thinking, going over each detail he had given freely.

Of course, it was the details not given that would be coursing through her mind. Whether she believed him or not, she would need to assist him.

Having her trust would leave him with a higher chance of staying alive, however.

“My friends are in a lot of trouble,” Pinkie blurted out.

This garnered Tia Dalma’s full attention. “Discord is breaking everything and we need a lot of help.” Pinkie’s eyes grew wide and wet. “Please? A lot of ponies are going to get hurt if we don’t do something.”

“D’aaaw,” came from somewhere within the crowd of pirates. It was followed swiftly by whacks and swearing as the others told him to be quiet.

Even one of the Chinese pirates hissed a quick, “吁!"

Still, Tia Dalma did not speak. In the quiet, instead, came young William. He moved very much around Pinkie, yet forced his way into the conversation all the same.

“Are you telling me that we ventured through the coldest waters on the Earth, sailed past the end of all ends and fell off the edge and plummeted down to Davy Jones’ Locker only for you to lose something in yet another impossible realm that you said we specifically could not afford to lose?”

Pintel and Ragetti nodded casually, both muttering, “That’s about it, yeah.”

“And then he set free Discord, because we totally dealt with him a few months ago, except it won’t have been a few months ago for you, more like a few days ago but yeah, Hector accidentally set Discord free and he’s a super bad guy that can turn the universe into jelly, create life from the jelly and make it attack you before he clicks his fingers and starts everything from scratch but makes sure you’re alive to see it all happen again.”

“I know I said it before,” Pintel piped up again, “But I’d really like te mention again that there’s an army made out of Barbossa laying siege to an entire city of all th’ pretty little horses.”

“It’s quite terrifying, in all honesty,” Ragetti finished.

“You’re all mad,” Will decided.

“I get that a lot,” Pinkie replied. “But my doctor says I’m safe for society.”

Taking in a new deep breath, one that was considerably less calm than the last, Barbossa snapped his fingers frantically in the air. Attention was hooked and faces with varying degrees of displeasure were sent his way.

“Time. Time! We don’t have time for this!”

God only knew how much time they had wasted already.

Something occurred to Barbossa.

“Pinkie, how long have we been here? Te the second.”

“Six minutes and fourteen seconds,” she replied, casually, without missing so much as a beat. “Fifteen.” She tilted her head to one side. “Sixteen.” Then the other. “Seventeen.”

Well. How about that?

Insane or not, that was a very useful skill. Barbossa found himself genuinely impressed. But that was by the by. He turned was again to face Tia Dalma.

“Regardless of the situation, the piece of eight is gone. An entire world is in danger of being destroyed and there is a monster I want castrated as the cause of both. The only solution I see left is to seal him away the same way you were, all those years ago. To strip him if his godlike powers and leave him empty…”

“I can’t do that by meself,” he hollowly finished. “We need magic. We need powerful magic and I’m afraid you are the only option open. You know full well I wouldn’t risk askin’ otherwise.”

That was very much true. Given that he only breathed thanks to the magic locked under Tia Dalma’s skin, there was nothing that he did not owe the woman. For all he thought himself to be a pirate, it was nought compared to the power that Tia Dalma had over him. If she so wished, he would crumble to dust at her command.

The click of her fingers. Dust.

Dead.

Yet, she looked over him. Or rather, she looked through him. Towards something that only she could see. Whether it was the glint in his eye or the deepest secrets of his mind he was none the wiser. But he stood there and waited, watching.

There was so much at stake. If his foolhardy plan failed him now-

“Just as my freedom drives me, there be somethin’ that drives you,” Tia Dalma began. Her lips twisted to reveal bottom teeth, almost in the shape of a smile. “What is that?”

The trouble was, Barbossa could not decipher it to be honest or not.

“The noble cause,” Hector replied with a smile of his own.

“The noble cause of dredging your pride up from the bottom of the ocean?”

He rested a hand on chest, wounded. “From me? No! No, o’ course not. To save the innocent and defeat the beastly dragon. Like all heroes.”

“You see yourself as the hero of this story, Captain Barbossa?”

“I see meself as the hero of all stories.”

“Then you will have no problems leading the charge.”

With that, Tia Dalma simply began to walk. Her steps were precise, slow and comfortably within the same prints left by Barbossa as he himself had wandered down the shore towards her. It took that moment to register in Barbossa’s head what was going on.

“So, we have an accord?”

“My motivation relies on the retrieval of your lost toy. And you desire an end to this story.”

It seems, in all the talk of dragons and stories that William Turner had finally had his fill. His voice boomed through the silent bay. “We’re all going to end up as stories if we stay here any longer. We have waited for Jack. We have waited for you and even that time has felt far too long. We cannot stay here.”

“Aye, ye can!” Barbossa roared back, now a dragon all his own. “I did not spend a whole week being tortured by little horses and dragons and unicorns te come back to you miserable cretins losing yer legs over waiting on a sandy beach!”

“You’re mad!”

“O’ course I’m mad. I am livid, William Turner. I brought ye a talkin' horse! What more do ye want?”

He motioned to Pinkie. Pinkie meekly waved.

To that, Will was astoundingly silent. So he should be, presented with a talking bloody horse.

“We came te this damned place for Jack. You are waiting in this damned place for Jack and I am going to kill a dragon horse.”

“You’re going to kill a dragon,” Will asked, visibly astounded that the conversation was even happening at all. “All by your lonesome?”

“Of course not! I have unicorns. And a witch.”

Will, to his credit, took in a deep breath. He closed his eyes, rubbing the palms of his hands into the sockets and let out that same breath. He dared to look up the sky, seemingly finding solace in the vast emptiness that it presented.

“There is no other choice in this matter?”

“None.”

“Then we shall venture with you.”

That… had not been quite part of Barbossa’s plan.

The thought had crossed his mind; why not fetch more for the battle ahead than just Tia Dalma? He had a veritable army of expendables to hand. He had little to no obligation with the Chinese men, after all. And those amongst his own crew that were valuable could put up the fight when required. They had done so on countless occasions.

Convincing them to fight Discord was another matter entirely. It had broken bonds to get them into Davy Jones’ Locker. His boots were treading the thinnest of ice.

Or so he had thought.

“If we are to be stranded then we are better keeping to task. If- if time moves faster in this other place, then we are wasting no more time than simply sitting here.”

Half the men could wait for Jack. The other half could venture with him, adding to the numbers against Discord.

“That,” Will continued, “and I don’t trust you to succeed on your own.”

Bastard.

Tia Dalma kept walking, yet she spoke loudly. “Then you have a choice; stay here and have the chance to be free or venture and risk your chance to be lost. There are no certainties in the place where Barbossa has wandered. Which do you desire?”

Barbossa looked around to see the words of Tia Dalma having a far greater impact than his own. Whereas before there might have been the possibility of an army raising at his word, her dictation was all the more damning.

Yet, three distinct figures teetered on the verge of decision above all the others; William, Elizabeth and Gibbs.

“I haven’t the time te explain everything. Time is against us in the most literal sense it can be. Ye either stay here and wait fer Jack or come and battle a beast the likes that human kind has nary imagined te battle before.”

That seemed to make quick work of Gibbs. “I think I’ll stay,” he said, nodding at his own wise decision. “I came here for Jack, so it’d be a waste to leave now. I mean, someone should surely wait for him, shouldn’t they?”

Barbossa feigned a smile but nodded. Coming or not, it solved an issue; one more down.

William and Elizabeth were the more pressing of matters, however. Despite his long week of servitude under Twilight the purple pony, these two were still ploughing through their lover’s quarrel. If there was anything the situation could do without for now, it would be that.

Will stepped forward for a moment, leaning more towards Pinkie than anyone else. “Were you exaggerating? About those monsters?”

“Oh, no! Not at all. Discord sucks super hard. Before my friends and I defeated Discord the last time, he brainwashed all my friends into twisted husks of their former selves. The world was thrust in a cacophony of chaotic madness the likes your brains can scarcely imagine for even a moment because, if you do, you will fall so deep into madness that you may never leave that dark place. Ever. Again. We were nothing more than twisted puppets caught in the strings that Discord controls, dancing to his twisted tune. Myths are told of him turning the sun inside-out, reversing the flow of light so that only darkness fell upon the-”

Barbossa decided enough was probably enough. “We need a particular brand of magic for the issue at hand. Or hoof. But able bodies do not go amiss.”

Despite all words spoken, Will seems focused on Elizabeth. She stood somewhat silent in the group, listening but numb enough to simply be fine with that. Will’s face softened at the sight and Barbossa supposed that the man still had all his focus on one issue in particular.

“Then… I shall also stay.” Will brought his focus back to Barbossa. “Someone must meet with Jack.”

So they must.

Though… perhaps those that were to make the trip did not have to do so immediately. There was the time difference itself to think about. More variables that could spectacularly wrong.

… Or right, if one twisted them the correct way.

“How long has our time run down now, Pinkie?”

“Eleven minutes, I think?” She thought? “I kinda stopped counting. Numbers get a little repetitive after you hit ten minutes.”

Right. Of course they did. Clearly, Barbossa’s displeasure showed.

Pinkie’s ears wilted. “So… home-time?”

A strange turn of phrase, but… maybe not. Something else came to mind. Something that might prove valuable in the long run. Or detrimental, depending on how things played out. He would only know in hindsight.

“No,” he finally answered. “Not fer you, Pinkie.”

For the first time since arriving in the Locker, her senses seemed to hit on something more akin to rational thought. Her eyes narrowed. “What does that mean?”

“It means I have another task for you. An important task. It shan’t take ye long.” He felt himself smile. “Only two minutes.”

☠

Pushing through the portal and landing back in Equestria once more, Barbossa and his pet monkey were met with a sight that all but left him breathless. A dreadful sight that, in a moment of weakness, he might admit to fearing outright more than death itself.

A rather underwhelming group of dishevelled ponies. Unicorns, especially. So bad his life had become that unicorns had become an underwhelming sight.

That is not to say there were only unicorns; Fluttershy, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were at the forefront of the crowd, with Rarity at their side. They stood ahead at his entrance, expectant as the alien ponies moved back. The reactions varied between, but the chieftain among them was something akin to fear. Fear of his self or of whatever unknown danger his entrance posed, he could not say.

Either way it was going to be a problem.

On top of all that, one particular mare seemed to have a problem with him. A white mare, not unlike Rarity, but with more a boyish look about her. A blindingly blue mane, riddled with streaks of another blue all the way through it.

And ridiculous looking spectacles. Deep purple that would surely make it harder for the wearer to see at all.

“You stole my speaker,” she stated.

Barbossa was quick to give a dry, tired retort. “I have nary an idea of who ye are. Nor what a speaker is. Elseways, I am not the guilty party in this venture and we haven’t the time te argue over the matter of who is and why.”

“There’s plenty of you outside.”

“Aye, and yer still here. That means we have the same goal.”

The mare’s brow furrowed in frustration. “I’m here to help.”

“Me too.”

Barbossa stared her down for as long as she did the same to him. Others around the room seemed inclined to let the mare take the lead in whatever coup was planned. That is, before a saner pony stood between them.

“It’s cool, he’s chill. Mostly.”

Rainbow should never be the safe option in any given situation. But the times, they were harsh. Barbossa could only yield.

There were others in the room who required more attention.

As ready as they had seemed for a return venture, Pintel and Ragetti yielded under the gaze of the little horses staring up at them. Not so much were they filled with fear, as they were dread anxiety. A discomfort that came with crashing a party in which someone of your ilk was not invited. To say they did not belong was an understatement, even amongst the humans stood in the hall.

Tia Dalma stood at Barbossa’s side, nary a care over the situation in which she found herself. The ponies were before her in all their garish colours and magical finery, yet she looked upon them as she would any natural phenomena. Men, the sea. The craggy crabs she plucked from the Locker’s dusty sand.

The ponies were expected, Barbossa gathered that much. However much she knew, they were not surprising to Tia Dalma.

Or Calypso, as he reminded himself. There was little point in calling her anything else. Not now.

Rarity was quick to focus on this, as were Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash and Applejack. After the promise of victory, what else would you focus on but the offered exit?

“Where have you been? We’ve been here for, like, four hours,” Rainbow eventually voiced. Not quite irritated, but something in there was not pleased. Barbossa could not ignore the mare as she peered around him looking for something.

Or somepony. He would need to explain that to them later.

“Time got away from us, I must admit. But we’re here now.”

Whether there had been an explanation prior to his arrival or not, Barbossa saw fit to get introductions underway. Out of the way. Explanations could come after the important information.

“Ponies and gentlemen of Equestria, I give to you the Goddess of the Broiling Sea; Calypso! A being so divine and brutal in her nature that pirates of the distant past saw fit to trap her in a mortal body, separated from the vast degree of her elemental magic and enslaved to a life of-”

Calypso, in all ways that she could, dropped all pretence of friendship and camaraderie. Her features fell dark and lightning burned at the space behind her eyes.

Barbossa swallowed. Hard.

Then continued as best as his nerves allowed.

“She is a trapped flower, unfairly imprisoned. And she will aid us in plucking Discord from his garden and locking him away instead.” Like the overgrown weed that he was.

There was jubilation, the odd smile. Positivity arose from the ponies, both from those who knew Barbossa personally and those who did not. Even the electric blue maned mare from before was looking to him with something less like disgust.

A bright sun was rising on the horizon of their world. They could see it, now. After so long. So could Barbossa.

Darkness returned when something fierce grabbed a hold of his wrist. Calypso’s voice came quiet, like a spider beneath grass. “Surely you do not think me under your thumb, Barbossa?”

“N-not at all, Calypso. Nothin’ of the sort, I assure ye.”

“Then what reason do I have to assist? I shall find the talisman on my own.”

“Discord has it. I would think that te deal with him would also deal with your problem in an equal manner. And to do so for th’ good of these wee ponies, here.”

“Is that why you have returned? For the good of these ponies?”

“I have many reason to be here, Calypso. For the good of this world, and the good of my own.”

She looked out towards the ponies with a happy indifference. Letting them know she was an ally, but nothing more. “Then the ponies of this place and the pirates in the other will not be bothered by any truths I have to tell?”

To his credit, Barbossa’ composure not waver. His stutter from before was swallowed and the walls reworked. “There are no further truths to tell.”

“I am no fool, Barbossa.”

The hand on his wrist grew tighter, something distinctly wrong spreading up his arm. Something that was not his arm, not living and breathing and fresh meat filled with life.

It put the fear of death in him, letting it spread like foul damp through his veins. “If I did not feel your being here had purpose, there would be nothing left of you. You would be white dust, on the beach, clotting the space between the toes of dirty men and beggars.”

Thank the Gods that organised destiny.

“I am aware of our circumstances, aye.”

“You did not lose the talisman. I have seen your mind at work; you are not a man who easily loses what he wants kept.”

“Then what do you propose transpired?”

“That you were perhaps the one to choose that it was lost.”

“If that were indeed the case, to which I cannot divulge, then I am very lucky te have ye by me side at all.”

There was no obvious reply, spare for the silence that followed. Her eyes bore into his, searching far beyond the mere layers of his skin. If she so wished, he had no doubt that his previous state of death could be adequately returned. If not by a simple broken neck, then certainly by the mere wave of her hand. It took only touch to deaden his hand.

How little more for death outright? A mere flick of the wrist.

Which, as it happens, is likely how she would also break his neck.

In truth, he was not certain as to whether Calypso knew the full state of the current situation. She had an inkling at least, that was very much certain. But to what extent did she know? And for long had the information been privy to her?

He knew full well that everything could have backfired. That was his life, as of late.

His wrist was finally freed from her grasp. With it, complete life was restored. Fresh, thriving life. But with it a cost, of sorts. “I might instead request the piece of eights return,” Calypso stated. “So that we might leave.”

“Then at least know what stands te be lost if we do.”

He motions quick to the ponies, catching not only Calypso’s immediate attention but theirs as well. Chatter continues under his voice, for brief moments. “This place was peaceful when I arrived. Sickeningly so, I might add. A shared utopia where the sun, moon and stars are kept in careful check and not a life goes uncared for. Where the sun and moon themselves are mothers to children wandering the world below. Look at what has become of those children.”

He waved to Fluttershy, the broken caretaker with shackle sores and a shaved head, kept in slavery whilst her captor was none the wiser.

To Rainbow Dash, bloody from battle and injured by men she should never have had the misfortune to meet. A mare that would get killed trying to protect those she cared for.

To all the other ponies gathered around the room, each with injuries blotting their forms, both minor and otherwise. Burns and scrapes and cuts and bruises, hoof to head and back again. Colourful creatures, once pristine and carefully cared for were thick with the grime of harsh days and nights without rest.

“All of this, everything you see, is not the work of nature untamed or chance. It is the work of a vengeful creature. You held within your mighty palm the unbridled fury of the sea, toiling the men that sailed it to your say so. You gave no heed to one life over the other because that is as nature should be. It is an order you kept. Discord chews on that order and leaves the lands untamed and unpredictable for those who dwell within the scraps that remain. Life is not a fair game, but he does not keep to the rules.”

“That is why I require your help; to capture a monstrous God that the Brethren Court of old thought you to be. They imprisoned you to gain a freedom they did not require. Without your magic there will never a freedom for this world ever again.”

There is once again silence around Barbossa, though the dread from his previous experience was utterly gone. In its place were eager eyes staring up at him from below, each pony reborn with a new outlook in their complexion.

“That was very poetic,” chimed Rarity.

Barbossa was quick to wave the thought aside. Despite this, Calypso seemed to agree. That didn’t worry Barbossa so much as the kind smile sliding across her lips. For Calypso did not work with kind smiles.

“Quite the hero, indeed,” she said. “If it is truly the future of this place that tugs at your heart then by all means, shake my hand. I shall agree to assist.”

The smile didn’t seem so hefty a thing to worry about any more.

“We have already agreed on many things.”

“Call it a show of good faith,” she replied. “The piece returned, and this world saved, for my assistance, Captain Barbossa.”

Against all his best judgements, he took her hand in his.

That pull of death returned, yanking at every facet of his being.

It spread like a virus up his arms, pouring out over him as it reached his shoulder until the burning breath of death consumed him whole. Without the power of the moon, the curse was on him once more, in full show for all to see.

No… not the curse.

Death was upon him, sickly and empty. The connections of his muscles were growing weak and his skin felt home to insects and parasites. Water held down his clothes, a weak took to his skin. All at once he felt breathless for air and drowning, buried beyond in sand. Caught beneath the waves. Blood roared through his ears with an empty wind, left behind when everything else has wasted away. Dead and dying in equal measure, his brain could not separate the two.

Life seeped away from him. With it, the roar of wind vanished to reveal an eternal silence.

“Let our pact be binding. Broken glass needs only the slightest pressure before it shatters. Discord has run something sharp through your surface.”

That silence was a promise. Literal or not, a pact had been agreed upon.

“Do not make me force my hand against the cracks.”

“The bargain shall be kept,” Barbossa replied, not so subtly trying to pull his hand back.

“To what do you swear it.”

“On me honour.”

“You are a pirate; there is none to speak off. Perhaps I can offer intensive?”

Still holding his hand, she took a step towards him, all but forcing Barbossa to take several back himself. The twisted dance continued until he found himself at a window, only barely within the light that poured from outside. Moonlight.

He waited.

Nothing happened. He did not change.

Calypso released his hand, letting him take in the surprise only for his form to decay in the mere moments it took for their skin to lose contact. The curse… hesitated. An animal scared by a threat made to it, perhaps. But hesitation all the same.

“Cracks can be mended. This ‘Discord’ is a lazy thing. Messy. Vile. I can fix you, Barbossa. Even as I am now, I can mend your cracks.”

Assuming he could not force Discord into fixing it himself. Which, in all honesty, he had yet to plan.”

“Now it seems we both have leverage.” Was not the best thing to hear when dealing with a God. Not that he had all that much leverage to work with. Still…

He moved out from the light. “It is ridiculous to threaten me with terms when I have the upper hand.”

“I knew your story to be a lie. I knew the piece to be stored away. I assumed I would find it, if not for the stench of magic everywhere in this pretty place. You have hidden it to drive me here for whatever reasons you deem fit to claim. If it is not returned, you will not get far.”

“I will neither deny or confirm to the notion that your precious eye was hidden away. There are fates at work far larger than merely the two of us so perhaps we shall agree to the terms as set and not question them further? I shall agree to your terms and prize whilst ye agree to mine.”

If she had killed him then and there, there would be little surprise. If she had attacked him, in some form that he could imagine or not, it would have been on his list of expectations.

For her to smile sent the blood rushing from his skin. “By all means. I am a patient woman, Barbossa. I have all the time I require.”

“Good,” he said. Very much despite himself.

He had all the time in the world. There was always plenty of time.

It was the issue of there only being one chance that worried him.

☠

“So... you want to do a weird human ritual, suck Discord into it and put all of his magic into nine pieces of whatever-we-can-find and then burn it all in a bowl?” Rainbow asked.

Not the most eloquent way to put the incantation, nor the most factual but, “Aye,” he replied. “More or less.”

"And Pinkie will help?"

"I sure hope so."

Calypso sat on the step alongside the portal, legs elegantly crossed to provide comfort whilst everyone else present sat on the floor below. Even to Barbossa, a man who could not be called short under very many circumstances, felt infinitely small with his part as an audience comprised of ponies, a monkey and two Englishmen with nary a thought between them.

He imagined this might be what a fancy school feels like.

Calypso spoke up, her hand draped carefully over Jack the monkey. Unlike most outsiders, the little creature sat comfortably in her care. “You require nine items in which to route the magic you wish to contain. More importantly than any of that, you need a piece of the self; something physical to draw the magic in the first place.”

“What was taken from you?” Ragetti asked.

There was a moment before a response actually came. A pregnant pause that seemed wholly uncomfortable to even say, but Calypso did bring an answer.

“A lock of my hair.” Her features darkened at the notion these words had any reason to exists at all. “I do not know how. But I will find them and make them pay in kind. When I am whole once again.”

Then she would find it painful, Barbossa supposed. Given that Jones was the one directly responsible for her entrapment.

But that was for a later day. The here and now was most important and, just like the Brethren Court of old, there was a new task.

“Right, everyone!” Barbossa announced. “Empty yer pockets.”

Pintel and Ragetti were quick to do so, filled with wisdom enough to know what was being implied; they needed nine items to make the spell work, after all. The less time they needed to spend gathering said items, the better.

The ponies, while likely all the wiser for not being Pintel and Ragetti, paused slightly. “We don’t have pockets,” said a blue stallion.

“I don’t ask where ye keep yer personal affairs. If ye want Discord gone, we need items to pour his magic into. Said items have to come from somewhere.”

That said, Barbossa found his own pockets somewhat lacking in interesting items. Anything would work; playing cards, a toy from a child. Coins or baubles. Bigger items, if they wished. For their own ends and more, however, portability was currently key.

But neither did you want something so ridiculously small and insignificant. To lose them posed a whole new risk.

If they needed a piece of Discord, then they couldn’t afford to carry huge items around. Or risk losing anything before the ritual was complete.

He pulled out his old pocket watch. Bereft of cogs and gears, sure, but it was still a pocket watch. “I have an old watch.”

That was one. Looking around the room, Barbossa saw a variety of items and wares. Instruments of science, or magic he supposed. The ponies were quick to latch onto this fact.

“I have some tweezers!”

“Scissors!”

“I don’t know what this is for!”

It quickly came together. Even Rainbow got in on the action. “I have this bullet that Twilight took out of my leg?”

It was a tad small. Easily lost. But if Rainbow was anything like himself, then the idea of using it against the ones who had hurt her would be a thing most pleasant.

Sure, why not?

When it came down to it, nine items were laid out over a table top. Most Barbossa recognised as tools. The others were his dead pocket watch, Rainbow’s bullet, the purple spectacles the white mare had been wearing. Plenty enough and a few more besides to make the spell complete.

And wouldn’t you know it? The portal room filled with scientific instruments and magical knick-knacks also had a bowl.

Life was starting to look grand.

Until Calypso offered reality. “You still need a piece of Discord. A tooth, his hair. Anything. The items need to know the magic they will be taking.”

That was truly going to be the ultimate task.

Barbossa took a new, careful look around the room. Plans needed to be planned and to do so, he needed to know what he had to work with.

Twilight had told him about cutie marks; they represented the greatest talent of a pony. With that in mind, he took note of the ponies around the room; cakes, pencils and other mundane items marked their flanks. As far as he could tell, the majority were musicians, painters and common workers.

Ponies of the people.

Ponies of the people?

Even the white mare form before, the one who seemed to have the most fire in her belly, only had a mere musical note on her behind. There were no soldiers or mighty wizards here.

Wandering over to Rarity’s side, he was at least pleased the ever powerful ‘Elements of harmony’ were amongst his allies. That counted for something, he supposed. “Ye couldn’t have found a few blacksmiths or butchers?”

Rarity scoffed. Or tutted; Barbossa was not sure which was a more appropriate word. “We do not have many butchers in Equestria to begin with, I’ll have you know. Between avoiding trouble and finding ponies actually willing to fight with you, this is the best we could do in the time allotted.”

That was a fair reason, he supposed.

“Besides,” Rainbow offered. “If all we need to do is rip out his mane or knock out a tooth then we’re all we need!

Barbossa was hopeful on that being true. Given the time limit he had set Pinkie, he was almost inclined to agree.

Time was growing short, however. Not to the degree that it had been during his trip to the Locker but a new time limit had been imposed. Self-imposed. He needed to keep to that limit if there was any hope of keeping the odds in their favour.

So long as Pinkie kept to her task.

☠

Fifteen.

Sixteen.

Pinkie Pie counted the seconds by in perfect time, jumping evenly between each moment as it ticked by in her mind.

Every human in Davy Jones’ Locker moved at her command, shoved into place by her hooves, arranged on the sand like fabric dolls on a child’s bedroom floor.

This was going to be the best day. She could just feel it.

Seventeen.

Eighteen.

In-between

Twenty!

☠

Despite that time limit, things needed to be set in motion. They needed to plan ahead and send their forces into whatever direction they were best required.

With everything explained by his word, that was coming to pass. Rainbow and Rarity were giving individual talks to each pony, brief in nature but to the point; use the skills they were best at to help the cause. ‘Vinyl Scratch’, as the other white unicorn was known, was to use her music. The painter pony was to distract Discord, or perhaps even amuse him. The gardener was to manipulate the plants.

It was a part of the operation he wasn’t too well-versed in. As loathe as he was to admit, the ponies themselves were better deciding how best to use their magic. More so when it came to the Elements of Harmony, all of whom had dealt with Discord before.

There were warnings spread, of not to let Discord touch your head, not to listen to anyone or anything that seemed out of place.

Touching, Barbossa certainly understood. Damn that magic bastard.

Even Fluttershy, as quiet as she had been, was moving around and giving advice. Telling ponies how best to ignore him or how they might get near him with their abilities.

It was all coming together. The final chapter of this epic tale was underway.

It was then that he caught sight of Calypso once more. She was standing, her eyes shifting ever so much towards Applejack. The farm pony was doing nothing in particular that should have stood out from the others; she was assisting, advising.

Given what Barbossa had asked her to hide under her hat, he supposed the reason for her catching Calypso’s attention was not related to herself at all.

When Barbossa drifted his sights back towards Calypso, she was very suddenly stood right at his side. There was also very sudden hand around his wrist.

“Remember. Glass can shatter, Barbossa,” she said. Her grip popped the joints in his wrist. “Do not make me push.”

“I have no reason to aggravate, Calypso. We are consenting partners in agreement.”

“I can smell it. On her,” she whispered, looking to Applejack. “I am sure of it.”

“Surely not. She is the Spirit of Honesty, I am told. Would be very unlike her to steal.”

“Perhaps you do not know these ponies well enough.”

“Believe you me, I know them well enough. If it were to be the case that honest Applejack had stolen the piece of eight, I am surer still that it will be returned upon our victory against Discord. Even more so if it was granted to her care for safe keepin’.”

Calypso moved closer, her nose almost touching his. The heat of her breath flared against his old skin and, for a single moment, he could swear that it burned. “You are playing a black game, Barbossa. Do you so wish to leave the land of the living so soon after being brought back? How high do you hold your greed that it might be worth your ultimate demise should you fail?”

Whether she meant by Discord’s hand, or her own, he could not say. Equally, he feared that both could play an equal part.

“I won’t fail. Especially not against something the likes of Discord. I am not a man to be crossed. I will not let him get away with what he did.”

Calypso looked deep into his eyes, searching. For what, he couldn’t fathom but she seemed to find it. Her lips stretched into a dark smile and she released his wrist.

“I do wonder what truly compels you.”

As she took her steps back, Barbossa couldn’t help but notice that several eyes were also on him. Fluttershy and Rarity the prime offenders. The latter of which are both smiling.

His throat was quickly cleared, and his resolve restored. “I am compelled by giving that vile serpent what he deserves for breaking me. He may be a monster. He may even be a god. But if an insect can steal blood from a creature the likes of man, then we can do the same.”

He drew out his sword from his side, pointing it straight for the door. Their goal was ahead. They would reach it.

By God, they would reach it and rip out its boons.

“We need only swarm.”

The Dying Gull

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 24
The Dying Gull

“Now… how best to improve you?”

Discord held in his paw a classic, mint condition Captain Hector Barbossa™, complete with sword swinging action and a variety of colourful phrases should you pull the right strings. Fresh out of the box too, as any good toy should be. As a series one, mint condition Captain Hector Barbossa™ however, it was just that; first in a series of many that came after. Mundane. It did not have all the extra features that came with the relevant upgrades.

For anyone with even the tiniest glimmer of imagination, it was a shamble.

It was hardly worth the trademark, really.

Two legs? Two? How many creatures in all of Equestria had only two legs? And how many of those had anything close to a starring role? Two legs did not a main character make.

This Captain Hector Barbossa™, complete with sword swinging action and a variety of colourful phrases should you pull the right strings needed to have some punch. It needed oodles of bounce, pizazz. It needed-

“Springs!” Discord proudly proclaimed.

Within a single instant, the Captain Hector Barbossa™ that formerly came complete with sword swinging action and a variety of colourful phrases should you pull the right strings had no legs. Instead, a singular large spring crafted from coiled metal came into existence beneath his coat. A novelty pair of boxing gloves grew out from his hands, much too big a size for their intended user.

In all fairness though, the gloves were mostly aesthetic. Toys weren’t meant to be designed with realism in mind. That was just common sense.

“There you go, my little friend,” Discord cheerfully added as he dropped the series seventeen Captain Knockback Barbossa™ with spring loaded knock-back action from his paw. It fell fast from Discord, falling until it collided hard with the ground below. “Be free. Be merry!”

Before it snapped straight back up again.

Then going straight back down.

Then up again!

Discord sighed the sort of sigh you only found yourself sighing at the end of a job well done. Those sighs best saved for the end of a working day at a job you especially enjoyed. Leaning back into his throne for the briefest of moments, he took in the air around him. He breathed it in deep.

Seconds before the complete lack of oxygen in the air began to bother those who actually needed to use it, old fashioned as it was, he let it all go.

“Right, next!”

He leaned over his throne, reaching down to nowhere in particular and plucked out a barbossa from wherever it had been previously. It might have been near, it might have been far. It may have been in the middle of something very important, such as tax returns or the birth of his first child.

Regardless, he was in Discord’s claw now and it seemed nary the least bit bothered by this fact.

“I’m thinking… tentacles!”

His will be done, the barbossa had tentacles for arms. For legs.

Most importantly, for his head. The hat that had formerly sat proudly atop the barbossa’s head fell free without a true head to sit on, flipping off to the side as the tentacle squirmed this way and that... but Discord let it go.

Small sacrifices.

He pursed his lips and focused on the body on front of him, “I like it, but I don’t love it. There’s something… missing here.”

The thing that had once been a classic Captain Hector Barbossa™ gurgled, a further three tentacles slipping out from beneath the confines of his jacket. Slime trickled from where a mouth might have been, spluttering incomprehensible words.

Discord agreed. “Of course! You’re absolutely right. How silly of me.”

With a snap of his paw, the bottom-most tentacles were replaced by the form of a fully-grown tiger. Purple, of course. Discord set this new series eighteen Captain Tentigal Barbossa™ down as it took its first tiger-steps, balancing itself with its steadily growing number of tentacles.

It gurgled a new, joyous gurgle before pouncing off into the distance.

Against his better judgement, Discord shed a tear. It formed the exact shape of a shed on the edge of his claw before her tore it in half and let the pieces float away in the wind.

“They grow up so fast.”

As such, the next barbossa he reached down for was made bigger. Larger. Massive, even. It stood at eight stories tall, a mountain of a man.

With a snap of his talons the Barbossa was made from solid granite, his insides littered with gorgeous geodes for the lucky pony who could defeat it in glorious combat. Being made from stone, however, the barbossa did not move and, as such, merely stayed in place.

It tried to walk, but said walking broke it in far too many places than anyone would care to count. Crunching, grinding rock fell together until the whole mess of a monster fell harshly into the grass below in a colourful mess of glittering light and grey.

“Perhaps a more flexible material, next time,” Discord glumly mused. “Taffy, I think. Oh, or maybe-”

A slight whistle shifted through the wind. Only just loud enough for Discord to hear and quite possibly too quiet for anything not as sublime as him to hear it.

The sheer flow of amazing ideas quickly halted. With his almighty brain centred on this one, new found anomaly in his ever-changing world, Discord took a single step to his right.

Mere atoms separated his own body from that of Rainbow Dash as she roared past him, pulling with her the full force of the almighty wind.

Despite seemingly missing her target, she swerved elegantly in the air before she turned to face Discord and began her assault once more. In mere moments she would make contact with Discord.

Quite rightly, he turned his back to her and hmphed.

The wind grew cold. Water crystallised. Rainbow felt the heat in her body gathered from her flight vanished as ice formed over her wings, coming over her in flakes and scales until she simply fell to the ground. Despite her best protests, her body couldn’t move.

Frozen in a growing layer of ice, she managed to look up at Discord.

Talk about the cold shoulder.

Despite the rather deserved chilly reception, Discord leaned casually onto her form. Pulling out a can, he promptly sprayed her with it.

“Ugh, I do not understand how the locals can stand the wildlife around here.” Despite the green hue to the spray, it dyed the ice crystals a deep colour that wasn’t really a colour. The sort of impossible colour that hurt your eyes because, well, it was impossible. “There’s Pegasi buzzing everywhere around this place.” He sprayed her a second time. “It’s a tad unhygienic.”

Speaking of the locals, Discord could only marvel at how good a deed he had done for Equestria. The local barbossa population had been on the verge of extinction when had been freed. It was sad to think that only one had been left a few days ago. Now look at them!

They were a staple species.

Plenty of variation in there too, so you knew they were going to survive for a few hundred years at least. If ponies could last as long with only a few variants, then just think how long the barbossas were going to be around!

They couldn’t exactly breed but with the pirate ships supplying a steady influx of new-borns then it all amounted to the same thing.

More or less.

...

“But let’s get back to you, Rainbow Dash.”

Without the cold shoulder to keep her suitably chilled, it wasn’t all that surprising to see her up and about. Her mane dripped wet with flaking frost that continued to persist against her coat. The water glistened in the midnight sunshine.

“I don’t suppose that panned out quite as well for you as you expected.”

Rainbow scoffed. “You don’t know what I was planning.”

“Well, from the looks of it you tried to connect your little old hoof with my little old face.

“Little hoof? You think I can’t pack a punch?” she replied, wincing slightly on her back leg. From what Discord could tell, she’d either had a rather nasty run in with a series one barbossa or… well, no. That was the only likely scenario. “It took you long enough to notice me.”

“But I did notice you. There was very little hitting involved.” None, in fact.

“If I got a good swing, I bet I could hit you into next week.”

That deserved a good laugh. Discord allowed the laughter to utterly wash over and consume him as he fell onto his back, clutching his side. “Me? You think you could hurt me? Grand Chaos Meister Discord?”

“Totally”

“Okay. Okay, I’ll bite.” He wiped away another tear, this one not shaped like a shed. “This should be good.” He pulled at the wind and let it materialise into a blindfold. Wrapping it around his eyes, he stood tall with his arms crossed over his chest. “Let’s go then. Give me your best shot.”

It was at this precise moment that a slightly smaller than average Black Pearl marooned itself straight into Discord’s face.

☠

Splinter. Crunch. Rarity watched in awe as the bow of the ship connected with Discord’s face and didn’t even attempt to stop.

The wooden structure compacted in on itself as it scraped against the discouragingly hard whites of Discord’s teeth. Yet, all the motion succeeded in do was pushing him down; both ship and monster crashed to the ground, the latter forced into the crumbling earth by the former.

Dust and blue grass and the scent of whispering pineapples rose into the air until all things settled. For a brief moment, all was quiet in the Royal Gardens.

At least, as quiet as the world under Discord’s rule could have been.

Up on deck stood many things. Barbossa and his humans stood taller than all others, holding firm at the ships wheel. Ponies struggled on deck, halfway between the uncomfortable floor and their hooves.

While the plan had certainly been to fly the ship into Discord, his face had never been a definite target. Nor had Rarity supposed Discord would pose quite so solid an obstruction to a pirate ship.

All things considered, he was a denser beast than his skinny frame suggested. He should have gone down like a damp old sock.

Then again… Discord.

Rarity contemplated moving in that lone moment. Running over to the carnage and rummaging around for anything she could find that would prove successful to their mission. A sheared eyebrow, perhaps? A broken feather if she was so lucky. She doubted she would get her chance at a tooth, given how little effect a whole pirate ship had on his entire body.

That said, the chance to buck out that insufferably large tooth from Discord jaw would satisfy her on many spiritual levels.

Ponies peered over the edge of the ship, seemingly at the edge of wonder whether there was any battle to fight at this point. How lucky it would be just to find Discord squished beneath a boat they had stolen. From her lowly position on the ground, Rarity could just about make out Barbossa and Fluttershy at the wheel. Neither was quite so steady on their legs, but they were just as curious.

But the moment in which Rarity contemplated all these things was just that; a moment. It was gone as quickly as it had come, and this end was announced by an especially tired grimace.

A claw eased its way up from underneath the pirate ship.

“Okay, that? That was a good one,” it said, yapping up and down like a griffon’s talon forming a mouth and throwing a voice. “Pirate ship to the face? Priceless. If I ever get around to creating a museum, you can bet your cutie marks this will going right in there.”

Speech done, the claw stretched back until the tip of one finger tapped against the hull of the ship. Without celebration, or any effect worthy of such magic, the ship began to drastically shrink in size.

Those on top of the ship were not, however. As every nail, splinter and speck of dirt began to grow smaller by the second, you might perhaps have supposed that those on board were in fact getting bigger. One grew smaller as the other did not.

Then Discord simply stood up, the shrinking ship held in his grasp. Even he seemed to grow larger as the ship grew small. Except he did not.

He actually did. Discord grew in size as the ship grew small, holding the blasted thing as one might a foal’s toy. A large toy, granted but a toy all the same.

“But I’m rather afraid that little stunt is going to be hard to repeat when I’m bigger than all of the ships.”

As if emphasise, he held the ship to his face, looking down the bow to all the occupants within. This did not seem to bother Hector in the slightest.

Just as the ship became slightly too small and slightly too crowded for being so small, he pulled out his sword. He raised it high.

“Now!”

All at once, several ponies pushed hard with their hind legs and leapt free from the ship. They all stuck their landings, grasping and biting and pulling at Discord. At his fur, his feathers and his scales, clinging to him like hungry toddlers.

On the ground, Rarity watched as a dozen or so more ponies clambered up Discord’s legs, jumping up from the ground and around his neck. His arms. All those horrible little places that foals tried to grab when you were too big for them.

Much like children, they bit at him. Pulling at his mane and yanking at the feathers of his wings. It likely made for an altogether irritating experience. Rarity certainly hoped so; with an almighty leap from the grass beneath her, she bit her teeth down hard onto the fur of his leg.

“Aah! Eeeh!” Discord squealed. “What are you doing?!” There was another pull at his mane. Reaching up, he took hold of a little blue pony and tossed her to the side. “I was joking about the insect thing. It was a joke! Why do you ponies always take things too far?”

Sadly, Rarity was promptly yanked off his leg as well. Discord held up her hind leg with his talon, stared blankly into her before dropping her unceremoniously to the ground beneath him. Even sadder a fact was that this continued.

Seconds ticked by and as Discord plucked ponies from his body, it became increasingly obvious that their attack was not going to go as well as had been hoped.

Not at all.

Discord simply floated there with a bored look plastered on his face. Or rather, it had been plastered. His face was so long with boredom that it had begun to drip from his chin.

Less like a parent with children, he was now a toffee apple covered in flies. A very bored apple.

Barbossa had said to swarm but Rarity feared that to do so literally was not saving them any effort. To Discord, they might as well be flies.

If anypony – anybody, she should say – was truly close to stealing something from Discord then it wasn’t announced. Or implied. Just more ponies being pulled from Discord as he, quite hurriedly, continued to pull at each living thing that tried to crawl up him.

Vinyl was thrown into a throne.

Fluttershy was bowled into a bowl.

Ragetti was tossed into a salad.

Several other were taken and flicked into an equally entertaining situation, at least when spelled out in one’s head. That was until even Discord seemed to find the entire ordeal as boring as it sounded, pulling the same ponies from his body again and again and again-

“Ugh! Fine!” His hands went up in the air in exasperation, devoid of humour or novel effect. “You want to act like little pests?” His hands came back down, and, with a distinct popping sound, he was gone. Those formerly attached to him held in space for the briefest of moments before they fell hard to the ground.

There was no further popping but Discord was already back at the pirate ship, holding it firmly within his grasp.

He tipped the whole thing upside down.

Barbossa’s fell out from within, all of them uniform in size and shape; no taller than a pony and definitely not to the scale they had been in previous encounters. Rarity was sure she might have called the situation cute, had they not been duplicates of Hector. Or involved within the current situation at all.

With the clones constantly birthing from the ships, one new man for each removed, it seemed simple enough to just lock them inside. With them all inside, the ship was free to control. Discord tipping the entire thing upside-down instead resolved it into a factory.

“Let’s add some more pests into the mix!”

Barbossas stood up by the dozens, more still tumbling from the ever-shrinking pirate ship. At some point prior, Discord had stopped even holding it; it shook up and down all on its own. Getting ever smaller, spitting out teenier and tinier pirates. The thought of utterly miniscule pirates getting caught in her mane or worse, small enough to hide within her coat gave rise to a shiver so repulsive that Rarity decided to rethink every other moment of disgust she had ever felt in her life.

Discord flicked at a few of them and insectoid wings sprouted from within their jackets. Antennae sprouted from their heads as some were overcome with stripes and other a carapace. “See those little ponies,” he said, motioning to the group. “They’re on your patch. They want all of your treasure. You’re not going to take that, are you?”

It seemed they were not.

The barbossas fluttered into the air, inelegant moths more so than any sort of butterfly. One pulled out a sword, its hand already as black as any beetle Rarity had ever seen. The shell grew upon and over the face. Soon even the hats were consumed, a part of the body.

The bugbossa let out an unholy screech, shifting into uneasy flight as every other variation followed on behind. Very suddenly, getting to Discord was much harder than it once was.

The Lord of Chaos seemed to relax into himself, reclining into the air as he watched his little fantasy play out. Barbossas stormed forward, swiping at Rarity with quick little swishes of their blades. In growing small, however, they became bearable, almost incidental. No longer did they loom overhead with an advantage of height. Now they were no better or worse than a clumsy pegasus with a sword held in their jaw.

Especially when Rarity managed to kick one very firmly in the face.

One barbossa was easy enough to deal with, assuming you knew how to tolerate it. Several more ganging up on you proved to be a slight bigger problem. Steps back, jumps to the side. Blasts of mundane magic to push back. It was all that could be done without a weapon at hoof, yet Rarity found herself accomplished in not getting hit.

As loathe as she was to admit and despite the sheer scope of her past adventures, doing merry battle with pirates was not something that came to her easily. Her fighting prowess was limited, certainly less than the likes of Applejack or Rainbow Dash.

Other ponies that Rarity supposed were better suited to physicality served better in battle. The bakers tossed pies whilst Rainbow continued her aerial assaults, coming down fast on enemies before rising back up into the air.

No pony held a candle to Hector Barbossa.

Hector Barbossa flourished on the battlefield. Whilst the clones may not have been his exact equal in the past, now he treated them as something undoubtedly less; mere cockroaches crushed beneath his boot. Not literally, of course. Spare for the odd tiny bugbossa that did indeed push its luck that little bit too far.

The ease with which he dominated them in a fight was clear. They were imperfect copies. Similar in method but certainly not in practise.

At least, that was the case for the more mundane barbossas. Rarity wished they were all that needed to be dealt with.

Winged barbossas would holler and swoop from above, stabbing quickly as they passed until they went back up into the air.

A monstrous amalgamation of tentacles and tiger-parts lurched over most other combatants, striking with limbs that stretched with an unnatural squelch.

Relics of something massive groaned loudly from the ground, shifting inches at a time when someone dared to wander past. The giant, stone Barbossa that Discord had crafted before did not do much to fight but it proved a hazard for those who did not watch where they stepped.

Creatures with claws and heads for hands. Heads for hands and springs for legs. The sheer variety more than made up for imperfect strategy and Rarity did not know where the battle would ultimately lead. Ponies were managing to fight back a small army and Barbossa himself dealt with the tougher foes. Both of those events did nothing to further their end goal.

Hector, for the flaws Rarity saw in him, seemed to think on this as well. A pirate made from flowers and glass shattered under the pinpoint pressure of his blade and without losing a second, Barbossa shifted on his heels. “Fire!”

His pistol fired. As belated as the reaction to his command was, several ponies launched an attack at Discord of their own. Pies and paint and wafts of magical aura fired alongside two more shots from Pintel and Ragetti.

Rarity could see to her immense dissatisfaction that Discord considered these attacks irritants. At best.

She couldn’t see where the bullets disappeared to but anything else remotely physically either avoided Discord complete or turned to… mist? Candy floss?

It didn’t matter.

Irritants often required the irritated deal with them directly.

In the past, Discord had said to Celestia that he never turned ponies to stone. That much was clear to Rarity, now that something closer to a full assault against him was beginning. In her mind, if she had such colossal power at her the tips of her claws, she would do just that; immobilise and stop her enemies in their tracks. She would make everything so easy, simple.

She would utterly destroy the mere mortals before there was any chance of retaliation.

Retaliation meant action, however. This seemed to be the aspect of battle Discord took the most enjoyment from.

Baker pony, for Rarity had not the time to truly catch her name, launched another pie through the air. It spun through the air like a Frisbee gone mad. Discord managed to catch it perfectly. “Oh, pie! I love pi!” he proclaimed before launching three more back in its place. Then another. Then four more. “One! Five!”

Discord did not live to cause pain.

He caused the chaos he did because he enjoyed the reaction, no more or less than every petulant school bully than Rarity had ever come across during her life.

Something very suddenly sheared into her side, dipping into her flesh by the tiniest of measurements before reflexes pulled her away. The very tip of a tiny sword claimed drops of her blood as a barbossa no higher than her thigh attempted to jump onto her back. When it only seemed like it would succeed, she bucked her hind legs and sent the little thug flying.

She watched it land near the true Hector Barbossa. His own assault continued amidst the carnage as the occasional swipe of his sword was accompanied by the boom of pistol fire. Between that and refilling the shots, his viciousness never wavered.

In the meantime, several single ponies had fled from the battle. Not surprising, she supposed, given their enemy. Applejack, Rainbow and even Fluttershy stayed nearby doing their own for the cause.

Rainbow dived for one more attack on Discord’s head before she was stopped in her tracks. All motion and sense of physics ceased as Discord simply grabbed her head and pulled her out of her dive.

“You’ve been trying that a lot,” Discord said.

“And I’ll keep trying until it works!”

“I couldn’t convince you to just stop?”

“No!”

“Suit yourself.”

Suddenly decked out in a grey, three-piece suit – one that Rarity sorely had to admit had a gorgeous, spectral trim – Rainbow continued her assault… completely being rebounded by Discord at each turn.

Without any creatures in the air to get at him, Rainbow became his only obstacle. One he seemed all too pleased to swat and flick away. If nothing else however, Rainbow was persistent. Even in the face of direct failure.

His request, it seemed for now, would go denied.

All remaining fighters had about as much effect as the baker and Rainbow Dash. Their attacks were dissolved into puns at best or complete failures at worst. Each direct hit they might achieve in battle turned into nothing more than a light joke.

At least, that was the case when one considered them separate assaults. Together, each joke came just that little bit too fast. Each new projectile too soon. A bad comedy routine more than anything else.

Bucking a Barbossa decked out in a cowpony outfit to the side, she watched as Barbossa fired his next shot. He raised his pistol moments after, calling to the crowds. “Keep up the assault! Show him no quarter!”

“You call this an assault?” Discord guffawed, shifting quickly as something flew past him. Taking a bullet out of the air, he gave it a harsh shake until it began raining down an immense quantity of speckled black power. “Let’s see how you like my apepper!”

Each punchline came at the deficit of another. One joke needed sacrificing if he was to make one at all.

Discord growled as a pie splatted against his side. Pulling his eyes from Barbossa, he lifted the baked good and merely threw it back. “Do you mind? I am talking to the pirate!” With a snap, the baker pony was no more a baker pony but a baker rat. “Pie rat! Now just-”

A blast of rocks courtesy of Rarity herself this time. A futile attack, she would admit. But an attack all the same.

“You are really starting to get on my-”

A bullet went through his torso and clean out through the other side. Literally clean; no blood or gore to speak of.

Or pain, it seemed.

Barbossa was again the centre of Discord’s attention.

“Do you really need to continue with this?” Discord flicked away Rainbow as she dived for him once more. “I thought you went home? We resolved your part of the story!”

“My story is not finished. Not so long as you still stand.”

Rubbing his claw and paw into the sockets of his eyes, Discord let out a long, undignified groan of dismay. “I can’t stand any more of this. And I’m sitting down! You want to be a thorn in my side?” he lowered himself right down to eye-level with Barbossa, his entire head in line with Barbossa's height. “Fine. You can be a thorn.”

To his credit, Barbossa went for Discord’s beard. Discord removed it as the sword came in and replaced it when the blade has passed.

“Let’s bring out the clippers!”

There was another snap of Discord’s claw, louder than the previous snaps. An eager snap that was utterly excited to be snapped.

Behind Barbossa, a large, misshapen stone statue fell into the dirt. Far enough away that no one could have been caught beneath it… but close enough for the pirate to wonder if he might have been.

When Barbossa turned to see the statue of the creature that had once been the Moonlight’s Torment, his jaw went slack, and his burrow grew a muddled frown. “What?”

☠

Unrecognisable though the creature was, the appearance with hard to argue against. Before Barbossa sat a statue, haphazardly placed upon the ground.

It stood as if already a part of their battle, one arm raised with a heavy mace within its mighty grasp. Where the head of a man had once been, a monstrous angler fish now roared silently back, blistered with an age spent beneath the sea. Tattered clothes, worn boots and a tiredness that could only come from a servitude no mortal was fit to serve.

Part of the ship.

Part of the crew.

It was such a common sight now, so memorable that Barbossa felt almost dizzy at the sight of it. However familiar a sight it might have been was only outclassed by how much it did not belong in Equestria.

For his own sanity or the ponies both, Davy Jones did not need presence there.

“Rarity?” he asked, unsure to her exact position, but knowing fully she was nearby. “I’ve enough questions te ask but not the time fer answers. What is this doing here?”

“Now, I know this looks bad,” she began. He had to agree. “But-”

Rubbing his paw and claw together once more, Discord let a static charge gather before he daintily pressed a finger to the forehead of the crewman.

All at once, the stone chipped away. Sacred light leaked from within, forming cracks that seemed to grow outward like a flowering flame.

Then all at the once the thing moved.

The mace continued whatever path it had originally been swung upon and the spiked ball carved into the ground.

“Short answer!” Barbossa urged.

“Celestia said she turned him to stone a thousand years ago because he ate ponies and was too scared to go back where he came from!”

“Perfect!” Barbossa swore, taking an eager step back as the creature swing his mace out in an unsteady circle. A moment later and his chest might have become as mangled as his state of mind. “Just. Bloody. Perfect!”

What else? Davy Jones himself was the estranged brother of Discord? Celestia owned popular tavern on the bays of Tortuga? Was God going to turn up?

The baby Jesus?

His entire week had been one ill-timed joke after another and returning to Equestria was becoming a larger pain in his arse the longer he experienced it.

A self-inflicted pain in the arse, granted. But a royal pain all the same!

Discord all but forgotten for the time being, Barbossa waited with baited breath as the next move was decided. A new foe meant a new strategy. A new strategy meant new information was required.

With the length of the mace that had struck the ground, he didn’t fancy the chances the back of his head had against it. Curse or no curse, his head would do him no favours if it was scrambled against a spiked clod of metal.

Rage had faded from the crewman, however. In the moments since his attack had landed, the features had softened to a confused state, almost struggling. Barbossa was reminded of a child lost in a crowd, wary of strangers and searching for its mother.

“Celestia?” it asked, turning on the spot. Despite a size comparable to Barbossa himself, the footsteps were heavy and with effort. “Celestia!” Its voice broken. “Do not test me!”

It turned back to face Barbossa, and the confusion was, too, gone. Anything childlike was lost to the face of a man that had long since lost the last of his human kindness. The eye of an angler fish was black, faded like glass.

The human eye found Discord’s, as high as it was behind Barbossa. “Where is Celestia?!”

“Now, I understand that you’ve been out of commission for a while,” Discord began, nonchalant, “but you will be very glad to hear that she’s no longer in charge around here.”

Sure to keep an eye on both of his enemies, Barbossa angled his head to see Discord once more. The beast was resting on some throne, satanic and grey with horns. He sat like a greedy king, legs crossed and eyes looming down upon all below. His paw waved idly at his side, summoning the magical mirror to move closer.

From within, Barbossa could see Celestia and Twilight. The crewman was likely no different.

“And unlike Princess Celestia, I would be more than glad to let you stay in Equestria. Forever, if you so desired.” His paw and claw balanced into a neat triangle. “Just get rid of that pirate right there and we’ll call it even.”

Barbossa quickly met eyes with the crewman. The crewman stared into him, as if he was the brightest star. “Are you real?” he asked.

The question caught Barbossa off-guard, but he answered all the same. “A-aye, real as can be.”

It reached out to touch his face, but Barbossa took a step back. “What is your name?” it asked. He asked. Barbossa could no longer tell.

Yet, he still replied. “Hector Barossa.” Eggshells. Delicate eggshells. “Ye?”

Broken eggshells, it seemed. The creature struggled, concentrating harder than any man should for such a simple question. “I… I have a na- had. A name. I had a name. Once. Or somewhere. Somewhere, before the water. Before I…”

Discord seemed eager to chime in. “In recent chats, Celestia called you the Moonlight’s Torment. A little harsh, given all you’ve been through. Wouldn’t you say?”

The Torment took a step towards Barbossa, hand reaching back out. “If I kill you, I can stay?”

Barbossa backed away once more.

“I-”

“I can’t go back. I can’t,” it whined… roared. “I’m free, here. Part- everything is beautiful.” Barbossa could not honestly tell. It was a broken thing, tormented by that which Barbossa hoped would never torment him. “Part of the crew...”

More steps back. “Now wait a minute, yer missin’ important details of-”

It swung the mace and it once again landed far too close for comfort. “I will not go back!”

And another.

“I’m not making ye go back, ye simple fool. Stay here; I insist! Make yersel’ at home.” The mace once more landed close to home, cracking the dirt to reveal creamed cheese to be lurking beneath. “Live in th’ forest with the ducks and mice. It’s a rare treat.” Carefully, Barbossa raised his hands in the air. “Killin’ me won’t make it happen any faster. Just settle down. We can talk about-”

The Torment turned to Discord. “If I kill him, I can stay?”

“I find killing to be a tad excessive.” Discord clapped. The sun shot down beyond the horizon… and the moon shot up faster than Barbossa would ever believe unless he had seen it. “Break his legs.” Moonlight bathed the land in totality, regardless of natural shade and where shadows ought to be cast. “He won’t feel a thing.”

With that it raised the mace back into the air and began to swing once more. “Then I will stay!”

Without enough of a warning to move in one direction over another, the mace came in from the right and hit with its fullest force against is chest. True to the word, he did not feel any pain. That was not a surprise at this point.

The surprise was how far back he was thrown back.

Opening his drying eyes, his skin well enough decomposed from the moonlight, Barbossa had at least a little longer to recognise that the crewman was now charging towards him.

Hole in his chest be damned, he stood up and began to run.

Contrary to his fears, his body stayed together. Whatever remained of his chest stayed suitably in his chest and for that he was relieved, the slack chunks of his ribcage and innards notwithstanding. With several feet on his opponent, Barbossa turned to attack.

Sadly, he realised his sword was quite far away, laying on the ground where he had first been hit. His pistol was currently empty.

To make matters all the worse, Discord was smiling at his from his throne, waving gallantly. The Moonlight’s Torment was now, impossibly (yet also entirely possible given the circumstances) twice the size it had been. The hunched man now appeared a hulking beast, a mace the size of Barbossa’s head.

“I will stay!” it roared.

“Bugger.”

☠

Pintel did not like ponies. They hadn’t help him when he had been tied up.

Pintel did not like the new barbossas. They hadn’t helped much by being the ones to tie him up.

Out of the two, he appeared to not be on the winning side. The ponies knew magic, were magic. It was as insane a picture as any drawing a child could conjure up on the floor of their home. But the ponies were not fighters. They were certainly not pirates.

Ragetti and he were also not the best pirates, granted. But they were faring a lot better against the barbossa army.

They had known since before this battle that the copies were not nearly as proficient with a sword as the true captain. They were clumsy, rash and quick to swipe without seeing where the blade would actually land. This left them open to easy attacks, especially around the gut and below the waist. Even the clones that were smaller than the average man, and those even smaller still, could be beaten with a similar tactic.

It was not those barbossas that posed a problem, however. It was… the queerer ones.

Some had beetle wings; they were awkward. You could swipe at the same places you could any barbossa, yet the advantage of verticality and sheer flight set you at a disadvantage. That they could simply swoop down, slash and go back into the air again proved difficult to counter.

One was made from rock; that was awkward. It was scattered along the ground, in a hundred pieces that would roll around and ram into your foot so that you might fall over. This misstep then gave a chance for the beetle barbossas to get another hit in.

Attacking a rock with a sword wasn’t exactly a boon of an idea either, assuming you wished to keep the sword.

One was half tiger and half squid; that one just made Pintel insides squirm.

The beast Discord, for all they were trying to get at him, was hardly a part of the fight at all; he sat upon his demonic throne as if everything below was a merry game. Not since the battle’s start had anyone even been close to him.

Ragetti was not doing much better, battling against as many foes as Pintel without reprieve.

The white pony with the blazing blue mane – something Scratch? – stood low to his side, screaming into a small device that blasted the sounds from a contraption on her back. It did not do much to harm but sent very loud sounds towards them. The kind of sounds so loud that your ears began to ache. These guided sound attacks disorientated those in the way, allowing others to attack.

That was as far as anyone was getting. Pintel caught eyes with his nephew and both seemed to share the exact same thought.

“No worries!” Pintel wheezed, his old lungs getting the better of him. He thrust his sword into the chest of a cat barbossa with twelve eyes. “Captain’s gotta be making some headway.”

A glance towards Barbossa confirmed that he was not.

For some reason that Pintel could not comprehend, a member of Davy Jones’ crew was doing battle with the good Captain. It stood as tall as two men, a brutish thing with the head of a fish that Pintel knew to exist but without a name he could place. This creature was chasing Barbossa through the battlefield, taking down individual copies as it passed without so much as a glance in their direction.

If not for the voracity with which it followed the real Barbossa, Pintel would assume it an ally.

But as it swung again and caught Barbossa by the legs, it could be guessed that it was very much not an ally. With that, Pintel fired his pistol towards it.

It caught the creature in the head. Dead centre.

Perfect. The best shot Pintel would likely make from now until the day he died. Most likely from an equally as grand shot… courtesy of someone else.

The shot was made especially perfect now that the creature was staring straight at him. Despite the distance, the large size offered a very clear look into the monster’s very human eye.

“Why?! Leave-”

The distraction was long enough for Barbossa to reach out to the ground around him and a sword that should rightly have been called a dagger, given its small size. Barbossa plunged it deep into the monster’s thigh.

The crewman roared, falling to one knee and dropping the heavy mace.

Barbossa went in for another strike, the tides turning-

As the beast grasped Barbossa’s jacket in its mighty hand and tossed him away. If not for the sad state of affairs, it might have almost been comical.

Leaving the mace on the ground, the monster reach around its back, into the baggy clothing it wore and pulled out something not unlike a pistol. It took Pintel several seconds to place the weapon before it fired.

“Harpoon!” he cried.

A splayed spike shot out towards him, hitting several copies in the process before it finally ran its course. It was followed by a thin chain, one that rattled with each movement sacrificed to it.

The shot fulfilled, the crewman raised the weapon and the chain began to reverse.

Barbossa sat glumly with his tiny sword, eyes fixed upon the mighty harpoon. In that moment, Pintel swore he could see nothing but sheer inferiority in his captain’s face.

“There we go!” Discord cried, voice louder than it rightly should have been at such a casual tone. “Isn’t this nice? I daresay everything has worked out for the better,” he added, turning to face the magical mirror.

Pintel begged to differ, but he was busy enough with more pressing matters as it was.

Discord caught Pintel looking.

The draconequus simply shrugged. “Look at me like that all you want. You all put in a lot of effort; really, the costumes were great and production value was marvellous. But it was a very poor show as far as payback is concerned. At least Twilight Sparkle and her friends had the Elements of Harmony last time.” Pintel was not sure if he was meant to know those words, as magical as they sounded. “You don’t quite live up to their standard. I mean, what do you have?”

“Something way better!”

Both Pintel and Discord followed the shrill voice. Their eyes landed on Pinkie Pie, poised triumphantly at the entrance to the very royal gardens in which they stood. She wore a blue bandana around her head and an intense look within her eyes.

☠

“You want me to wait here for two minutes?”

“Aye. Exactly two minutes. We have a hard battle coming up, no matter what needs to be done. And I would very much like to have a second plan in reserve should we fail.”

This got her excited. “I’m plan B! Does this make me first mate?”

… Sure. Why not? “Indeed, it does. There’s not a pony in this whole world I trust more.”

“Yay! Two minutes; I can wait here for two minutes.”

“Ye need to do more than wait. When the two minutes are up, and I know ye can count that down inside yer head, yer going bring some of my… friends into Equestria.”

“Won’t that mess up the space-time continuum or something? Like, if time is different than it is there then everyone is going to get there, like, several minutes apart-”

“Aye, well, it seems if we’re all joined together, it all happens neatly as can be. That’s yer important part of the mission; get everyone through at the same time.” Somehow. Pinkie was impossible at the best of time.

Hopefully she was equally as so during the worst of them.

“Does it still count if I bring them in through the medium of song and dance?”

… Sure. Again, why the hell not? “Ye can do whatever ye want wi’ the crew. Just so long as you can do it. Ye up te the challenge?”

“Aye aye, Captain!”

…

One hundred and two.

One hundred and three.

We’re so close!

One hundred and four! One hundred and five!

A hundred and a five, six, seven, eight!

With that, Pinkie Pie blew a whistle. On the tone of that whistle, under direct order from the mare herself at the threat of death or something super-seriously-scary and horrible, each pirate gripped their arms tight around each other, all stood in a perfect line.

At Pinkie Pie’s command, they began to dance. The once fearsome bunch of humans was swiftly reduced to a skipping line of puppets at Pinkie’s beck and call.

She loved every moment. She loved those moments so much that when the clock inside her head hit exactly one hundred and twenty seconds, she led the first of the dancing pirates through the portal.

Lou, Lou skip to my Lou,
Doing what the Captain said to do!
Skipping in line ‘till we all go through,
Skip to my Lou my darling!

As great as she was at organisation, Pinkie was not one for explanations. Near the back of the line, skipping between two of his comrades, one of the Chinese pirates had no earthly idea what was going on.

“我們為什麼跳舞？”

☠

“Party pony Pinkie Pie’s prancing posse of precarious pistol pointing pirates!”

There were no prancing pirates to be seen but from behind Pinkie Pie came a storm of humans, all garbed in the drab greys and browns that Rarity had come to expect from friends of Captain Hector Barbossa. Also, in line with what she expected of people who knew Hector Barbossa, were weapons.

Plenty of weapons. They absolutely stormed through the copious amount of captain copies.

“No! No, no don’t you dare!” Discord yelled. He rose, looming up over his throne. “Go back to where you came from or so help me-”

Several shots fired towards him. All passed through, leaving a hole or not but the draconequus seemed surprised that it had happened at all. That somepony or something had once again dared to act over him.

“You know what, fine!” You want more pirates?”

He reached out to the battlefield, grasping at the air. All at once, the clones seemed to… shake. Shift and grow blurry until each one pirate had split harshly into two. Each half then grew a new half to complete each whole.

“Take them!”

What had been a battle before… well, it was now something all the more hectic. People danced all around, swinging their weapons this way and that as tiny explosions surrounded the Royal Gardens. Copies went down with each one, sometimes a pony or a person disappeared amid the smaller fights taking place all around.

Everything was movement and noise.

Barbossa himself, he was useful with a sword. His two bumbling cohorts… less so, to put it kindly. But even they could handle the clones without too much of a bother if given enough of a chance to do so.

When multiplied by the sheer numbers the new humans brought, the copies did not stand a chance.

Copies they were; inferior duplicates without the effort that went into the original. Each of the pirates, for however many years old they were and whatever their lives had beheld, managed to take them down.

Casualties were bound to have occurred. Rarity was sure there would be mourning and sadness for them in the minutes after everything had grown to a calm but, selfish as it might have been, she could not find it in herself to focus on that moment yet.

The tide was shifting and in their favour.

☠

Barbossa found laughter digging itself up from his throat. Once began, he couldn’t stop it. He doubted he’d ever feel so pleased to hear Pinkie Pie’s shrill, little voice.

“Party time!” he roared, pulling himself up from the ground.

Pushing himself back onto his feet, he was faced with a spiralling chain missing his face by mere inches. The harpoon and chain rattled past his head, loading into a tree somewhere behind.

The Torment limped towards him, still reeling from the sword stabbed into his leg. He seemed wholly unbothered by the shrinking bullet wound to his head, however.

“-th’ ship. Part of… part of the ship’s crew, part of the ship-“

Broken had not been the correct word, Barbossa realised. A broken man sat alone on the street, devoid of home and family. A broken man prayed to the Lord and his Church in the hopes of salvation, willing for any and all help to come his way.

“I want to stay.”

This creature that had once been a part of Jones’ crew was an altogether sadder beast.

But no less dangerous.

“Ye ready te talk?” he asked, wary.

The harpoon began to retract, tightening for a mere moment before it burst free, littering splinters all around Barbossa’s feet.

“I can see ye must have been a pirate of considerable repute; why else would ye be so adept wi’ weapons and blind te magic.”

No answer. The harpoon arrived back in the Torment’s hands.

“Why don’t ye just run away?” he tried. It was a reasonable thought. He hoped. “Discord doesn’t care. He doesn’t hold anything over ye. Celestia is imprisoned for God’s sake-”

With one final shot, the gun fired. The harpoon shot clean through Barbossa’s stomach, lodging well into the ground behind him. The chain followed, rattling through until it eventually founding itself hanging by the hole in his body.

In the moonlight, he could feel no pain. But he could remember the pain of being shot through the heart. If they compared at all, he would be glad for this injury to heal over.

“Celestia is imprisoned…” the beast repeated. “She is gone?”

Finally! It wasn’t as dull as Barbossa had supposed.

“Dead and buried, by all accounts!” For now. “Discord is the Lord of this land now. And believe me, he does not give a single flying feather over whether ye stay here or not.”

Pain or no, a chain pierced through his chest was very much an inconvenience. As he moved to run once more, he felt it pull his body back into place. Tugging out it from within his chest, he felt the harpoon itself free from the ground.

If only he could as skilfully remove the rest of it.

Talking seemed as good a distraction as any. “I am but a simple man, as keen to see Jones dead as you surely do. Help us defeat Discord and yer freedom is all but assured.”

“Celestia cannot hurt me.”

“Not at all!”

“But to kill Discord… is to kill her jailer.”

Ah. Slight oversight. “Believe me, she will-”

“She will do terrible things,” it said. “She will hunt me down. I have heard the stories.”

Barbossa didn’t rightly care. This was a land with as long as history as England and its mighty Empire. So what if there were stories? Everywhere had stories! No rightful ruler could ever rule for thousands of years without having stories!

“She will make me leave.”

Well, Barbossa supposed that was a likely outcome, now that they had a way home for him to return home. But he wasn’t going to mention that. He kept pulling at the chain.

“I am on the best of terms with the princess. She owes me many a favour and ye can rest assured that I will speak for ye. I shall find ye a home! Somewhere neither she nor Jones can touch ye.”

But the Torment seemed neither inclined to listen or with the sanity enough to comprehend such an offer. Barbossa was picked up by the lapels of his coat and brought to eye-level. It flicked a mechanism on the gun, reeling in the chain as it had done before and pulling him closer.

And closer.

Until the harpoon pulled into his back and dragged him closer still.

Too close, in fact. Chest to chest, the Torment was a giant. As the harpoon was yanked free from Barbossa’s body, his jacket was once again gripped tight by giant hands, his legs left dangling.

“I will stay here.” Its breath was as putrid as its face. A sordid mix of the sea and the dead from within it. “I will be happy! I will-”

So Barbossa kicked the creature right in the boons.

Hard.

The monster was not so happy after that. It yelped in a gurgled agony, somehow more broken that it was only moments before. It dropped Barbossa before falling dizzily to its knees.

Standing up, Barbossa simply found himself nodding. “I’m… glad that worked.”

More importantly, he now had access to a very large harpoon gun.

Wary of the Torment as it squirmed on the floor, Barbossa lifted the weapon. His arms struggled to hold it evenly as he gave the thing a once over.

Nothing more than an augmented crossbow, truth be told. Heavy, stable enough to fire a shot. The chain was thin, wrapped around a tight barrel but surely not infinite. Range. Enough range to reach Pintel, more than several lengths away.

Eying up Discord, Barbossa cradled the harpoon gun in both arms and fell into a run.

Chaos had lessened in the most recent minutes and he used that to his advantage. No longer was his every step marred by a copy getting in his way or a monster with sights sets on his legs. Or stomach, as it were.

Now, he was ready.

Before even he had time to consider what his actions would achieve, or the repercussion they might have, Barbossa pulled the gun from his back and aimed to straight for Discord’s head.

“Right, you miserable cretin…” he whispered, searching. Aiming.

Discord was distracted, looming over his creations with the frustration of a child that could not get a clockwork toy to work properly. The beast swatted away bullets and ponies and pies. As powerful as he was, his limited attention remained an important factor. Alone or in a group, he could strike you down.

But if Discord wanted something to remain within his definition of entertaining, as many as possible needed individual attention.

Barbossa fired.

Discord caught it between his paw. Inches from his eyes but caught all the same

“Yes,” Discord drolly stated, “because I didn’t see you lugging around the big harpoon or hear you firing it.”

He then pulled on the chain, yanking the weapon from Barbossa’s hands.

Still flicking and swatting at pests beneath him, Discord snapped the harpoon entirely, somehow leaving neatly tied ribbon in its wake. “Oh, dearie me. You finally got a shiny new weapon and you wasted your shot,” he added with a smugness that became all the sweeter in the seconds after.

For the umpteenth time in so few minutes, Rainbow came charging back down on Discord’s head. All time seemed to slow as Barbossa saw Rainbow’s hoof connect with Discord’s cheek, forcing his entire form into the grass beneath.

“He didn’t waste it!”

And if the surge of bodies scurrying over Discord before had been a swarm then this new attack was something all the more frantic. Ponies and people both were jumping hold, climbing and pulled on his hair and feathers. Several of the Chinese men were quick, orchestrating a small team onto his back whilst Pintel hugged at Discord’s side like a weening infant.

Words were shared between both groups, but the resulting din amounted to nothing more than a cacophony of pure noise. Friends shouting advice and comrades screaming orders, both became the same.

Except for Marty.

Marty was by far the shortest member of Barbossa’s crew. As the only dwarf pirate, this was not a surprise in the slightest. It was all the more impressive, then, that he was kicking Discord in the eyes and pulling at his eyebrows. He was the first ‘pest’ to be grabbed by Discord the moment senses seemed to return to him. Marty was left begging a short lived, “Wait, wait! No no no no-”, before getting flicked lazily to the side.

Ponies and people were pulled off with each new second that past, yelping and screaming as they did so. Attempts were made to climb back on but that only seemed to push Discord harder as more pirates were flung to further corner of the Royal Garden.

Discord then blow on the thumb of his claw. Several spouts appeared around his body and blasts of steam forced unfortunate souls away. One such Chinese pirate was left muttering “羽毛？...” before the steam cleared from his head. “我有一個羽毛!”

“That. Is. It!”

Then everything went bright.

Then… a little less bright. Then bright again, as reality came back and flashing lights erupted all over the skyline. The moon was no longer a moon. Nor was it a sun; it was now a broken ball of fragmented mirrors reflecting… what should have been the sun.

Discord was sporting a sizable afro and a white suit. He was evidently not wearing all the creatures he had been wearing before.

A sizable area around Discord had been cleared, now home to a large square platform decorated with ever changing lights in every different colour. Another pair of those… black spectacles was covering his eyes too. He danced a dance that Barbossa had never seen danced before, swinging his hips whilst pointing up in the air and down to the ground.

Barbossa confused.

Barbossa was frustrated.

Barbossa was done. He wanted an end to this-

“I got some hair!” Pintel screamed. Just… just a little bit too loudly.

The tubby pirate seemed to become aware of this fact all on his own as Discord left his garishly bright fever dream behind and zeroed in. The vile beast squirmed in the air above Pintel, a wild water snake spying a drowning fly.

“That you do; well done,” Discord congratulated. He fell in closer, snout barely a moment from Pintel’s as he gracefully picked the hairs from the poor man’s hand. “Ah, how nice. For me? You shouldn’t have.” He ate them. “But why would you want a little thing like this?” Discord then seemed to think a moment longer, his eyes shifting curiously to everybody else strewn about the ground. “And so desperately.”

Barbossa would curse Pintel to high heaven and back if he had not already run out of time. The groups of ponies and pirates were getting back to their feet, attempting once again to get close to Discord, but the beast was having none of it. He rose higher into the air, beyond the reach of everyone spare Rainbow Dash.

And as Discord floated there, Barbossa could see ideas forming behind those wild yellow eyes. Connections were being made and precautions were soon going to be underway.

Pintel might have cost them everything.

Barbossa was having none of that. Not this day, or any other.

But what the hell was he meant to do?

He scanned the area, frantically eyeing everyone and everything that could possibly be off use. Jack the monkey was slapping a tiny Barbossa, completely indifferent to the tensions hanging over the gardens. Rarity was stock still, as were Fluttershy and Applejack. Rainbow, growling. Pinkie Pie… scared. Too still for her own good.

His pirates weren’t much better. Most were sitting, dumbstruck like the buffoons they were. Many Chinese men well already retreating towards the castle in a scared rush and many ponies were following suit. The numbers were breaking-

Breaking.

Pulling out his pistol once more and loading it as quickly as he had ever in his life, Barbossa stood abruptly to his feet, ran several steps before firing a single shot towards the magic mirror. He waited eagerly for the satisfying shatter or shining glass, but it never came. Which seemed about right for magic glass, he supposed.

There was a crack, make no mistake about that. But a crack so short-lived that it may as well have been a pebble falling into quiet water. Nonetheless, the ordeal was enough to catch the attention of Discord.

That attention quickly spun into a dawn of understanding.

“Oh. Oh, I see.”

Barbossa took half a step, prepping to refill his pistol but Discord was already upon him. The weapon was grabbed from his hand and forcibly mutated into a rotten banana.

Barbossa attempted a punch, but in return found his body drenched in a mixture of fruity liquids and alcohol before the lapels of his coat were grabbed by an angry talon.

“No, you can’t break the glass,” Discord said, lifting Barbossa into the air. “And no, I’m afraid your distraction didn’t work out very well either.”

The ponies remaining were stepping up, galloping towards Discord and pirates of varying degrees of intellect were firing pistols towards Discord. A couple of them even aiming for the mirror.

That same dissatisfaction with life from before reared itself onto Discord’s face.

Bubbles swiftly materialised around the pair, blasting outwards into the gardens and forcing each and every one of those attackers back to the ground. Devoid of comic-timing or any particularly dubious effects, Barbossa swallowed the gathering panic at the back of his throat.

“You should have just left with your little friends, you know” Discord sighed. “Everything was perfect. I had Equestria. I was even kind enough to let you go home. We both had everything we ever wanted out of this place. All coming back has done is give the ponies false hope and I don’t think that’s very nice of you.”

“I wouldn’t call leaving me cursed te be a very profound kindness.”

“Oh, you should have said.”

With his lion paw, Discord merely prodded at Barbossa heart, pulling away something close to a black mist before it simply stopped being. Evaporated by the wind.

In what was surely not a coincidence, the moon suddenly came into full view and bathed Barbossa in its light. He breathed a sigh as his body refused to change. Even more so when there was no pain from any injury beneath his shirt.

The sigh dropped into his shoes as he looked up into the bright, burning eyes of Discord.

“Now I have a chance to fill you with something much, much worse.”

Struggling did not help. Despite holding onto his jacket, Discord’s grip seemed to render the coat hard as steel.

“How about… a toad? Or a flea. A harmless little flea. It would be a terrible shame if one of your new pony friends stepped on you or swatted at you with their tails.”

Same with the trousers. His undershirt. He could not move a muscle for his clothes and as he began to smell of strawberry, a grim look at his possible future swelled within him. Torture most foul and left to the hands of a madman with reality under is paw.

Plus, he really didn’t want to smell like strawberries for the rest of his mortal life

“You know, I don’t really understand what you hoped to achieve. I think we’ll just hit the randomize button, don’t you? Make it a surprise for all of us.”

Discord snapped his paw. Barbosa clenched his eyes shut.

…Nothing happened.

Risking that whatever he saw could well be his eternal torment come to life, Barbossa only saw Discord, in the same position as before. Holding him in place.

His eyes, though. The beast looked sick.

“Barbossa!”

With movement enough to just about swivel his neck, Barbossa saw Tia Dalma. She stood under one of the many arches of the castle, alongside several of the ponies he had seen fleeing earlier. As well as a few of the Chinese pirates that had been with them.

The next thing Barbossa knew, he was falling to the ground. Along with Discord himself.

Before he could even begin to decide which swears were best fitting for the occasion, he was relieved to feel a weight beneath as Rainbow caught him before the ground did. His descent slowed until his entire body, metal clothes and all were dropped onto the grass.

Discord, however, fell slack like a piece of thick rope. His head hit the ground with a dead thud as his body and tail caught up to him. The draconequus tiredly pushed himself, blinking away the grog and searching the ground around him for…something. Seeming the entire time ready to wretch out his own lungs-

A vibrant flash of tartan light erupted from within his throat. The energy hit the grass, turning it to diamond and cheese and ice before splashing up into the air at delirious speed.

It all ended at Calypso, pouring and zapping into the nine items gathered.

With a casualness that defied the situation, Calypso dropped the bowl to the ground. Like a magnet glued to metal, everything refused to part as the items vibrated like insect wings against one another.

Discord cracked his neck, attempting to the force the flow of horrid light to his own will. “Wha- No! You can’t-” He raised his claw out towards the bowl, pull at it through the air.

Discord screamed as the fire only burned brighter, forcing more light from his body. Out of denial, or perhaps pure desperation, the draconequus tried once more.

His body was forcibly flung back against the wall of Canterlot Castle as even more essence was simply yanked from his being. What this ‘light’ was, Barbossa could only guess. But he assumed… magic. Raw cosmic phenomenal power and the magic that made Discord who he was.

The world around them crackled along with Discord. Clouds burst in the sky, dissipating from colourful abominations into white puffs before vanishing entirely in the breeze. Copies of Barbossa shivered into mere blurs of colour until they reverted to… well himself. Extra limbs vanished, eldritched powers crumbled away.

Barbossa’s own clothes once again feel like cloth.

Hills became green, yet some did not. Patterns and frivolity from the landscape and buildings and roads reclaimed some semblance of normality… yet some did not. The effect seemed random to Barbossa, as adverse to correlation as Discord himself. Whole patches of the sky become beautiful and blue whilst others had whole squares and broken shapes remain as they were.

Pirate ships falls from the sky, crushing whatever lay waiting beneath them. Some didn’t fall at all. Some bounced.

The glass of the magic mirror simply vanished, leaving only a floating frame with a faux world inside.

Everything came to a stop. The nine pieces of eight sit calmly inside the bowl, no worse for wear and holding no hint to the power they now contain.

All was silent, save for the heavy breathing from Discord. His eyes are glazed over, only vaguely aware of the world all around him. As if he were now blind, or deaf. A sense lost to him.

In a flash of panic, Discord snapped his talons.

Barbossa waited.

Nothing happened. Not even the pieces of eight reacted to him now.

Discord was bound.

In the moments after, Celestia’s hoof attempted to tap at the empty air outside the mirror before she peeked her head out of the opening. Her horn aglow, she seemingly began shifting around the frame before heaving a worried frown. “We might have to build around this…”

The mass panic over, Barbossa looked down at what had once been an overly ripe banana. His pistol was back normal as well. He picked it up.

Finishing where he left off, he completed his ritual and prepared the pistol to fire.

He fires once into Discord’s torso.

The scream the rang through the air was an odd one. Barbossa would have more readily said it was a fright of surprise more than that of physical pain, but he would take it. As before, the bullet passed all the way through.

Unlike before, however, there was something not unlike blood in the aftermath. It seeped slowly, like tar and had no single colour that Barbossa could truly perceive. A rainbow that changed with each perception.

But it was there, and it represented something important.

“Wha-” Discord prodded at the space the bullet had been, his teeth seething. The liquid that wasn’t-quite blood lingered on his paw. “Is… is this what pain feels like? How can you be born with this inside your bodies?!”

With some careful steps forward, Barbossa refills his pistol again.

“Wait!” Discord suddenly yelped “Wait, don’t you dare!”

Barbossa fired again.

The reaction was much the same, the bullet chipping at the wall behind Discord and leaving a very real injury in its wake. Barbossa eyed a lonely sword on the ground as he passed it by.

He picked it up and swiped freely at the beast.

The hit was parried by Discord’s talons. Apparently, they were at least as strong as the steel of a sword. Stronger, most likely. Or maybe his powers remained in there, buried deep down. Much like Calypso’s own magic, he supposed.

The second swipe was also parried as Discord attempted to grab at the sword. But the third strike back revealed the strength to be no more than that. The draconequus had no skill at fighting back against a blade.

And thus, Barbossa held his blade up to Discord’s throat.

There was a new scream, then. Not from Discord, though.

From Fluttershy. “Stop! Please!”

“Give me a good reason and I might agree,” Barbossa replied swiftly. “If Discord did not stop when asked, then why should I?”

He pushes down. That liquid began to seep, ever so slightly. The wounds from before had already begun to heal over and Barbossa wondered how long he could stretch out this torture.

Discord himself seemed to have lost all his previous vim and vigoro. No theatrics. No jokes or quips. An unmoving dread took over him, leaving him as good as trapped in stone. So scared of a single false move.

“Because you’re nice!” Fluttershy pleaded back. “You are better than this.” Debatable, Barbossa thought. He would certainly enjoy every moment of this. “You can say you came back for revenge all you want, but I know there was more to it than just that. You can’t hide how you feel, Hector. You saw something wrong and you wanted to make things right.”

“I agree,” Rarity stated. “We have been through Tartarus and back and you have shown us that we were wrong. You are not a monster.” She motioned to the shambling barbossas still roaming the odds speck of land. “Those things that Discord made, they are monsters. I cannot deny that you want this.” Good to see they were not entirely naïve. “But you’re better than that.”

Or so they claimed. Were they correct?

… Barbossa did not feel the desire to answer.

From the outskirts of his vision, Twilight Sparkle readied to just step forward. To stop him, no doubt. Tell him off for breaking the rules. But Celestia was quick to raise a hoof in front of her, merely shaking her head with some words shared he could not hear. Something about ‘his choice’ this or ‘friendship’ that, he mused.

He continued to muse.

“They’re right,” Barbossa decided “I very much want this. I would enjoy every last minute of seein' you gutted and made into carpet.” He almost pushed the blade right through Discord’s flesh.

Almost.

“But yer no longer the god you once were. Yer not even a god. Yer a pet that can be held beneath an’ iron lock and key.”

Barbossa raised his sword and struck down one final time. The blade embedded into the ground.

“That’s a worser fate that any death I could provide.”

And Over Again

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Over the Edge and Over Again: Chapter 25
And Over Again

Homeward bound, yet again.

More or less. With time flowing differently between Equestria and the Locker, there was now a chance to breathe. Time to take everything in. Accept the wins and losses that had occurred during that intense, final battle.

Time to gather as many jewels as he could. If even one made it to a vendor in London, Barbossa would be set for many months to come. Years, even.

The same could have been said for everyone else, assuming they had been told about the extreme time difference in great detail. Or assuming they were not in such a desperate rush to leave this magical place.

“Such a shame,” Barbossa sighed, eyeing a particularly clean emerald. A much finer cut than the stones he had received from Spike’s larder, too. “More for me.” He passed one to Jack the monkey. “And you, ‘course.”

In fairness, he could not blame them. The battle with Discord had been a sordid ordeal, all things told. After Discord was secured by Celestia and Luna, everyone wished to return to whence they came. They did not wish to mingle. They did not wish to see what else was hiding behind the pretty colours and talking animals. They did not wish to miss their ship.

Ultimately, they didn’t want to miss their chance at getting home.

As an unwillingly occupant of Equestria for a week, however, Barbossa had more than a little faith in his ability to stay a few more. The others could have stayed for days, collecting gold and jewels to their hearts content. He had stayed for a couple of days doing exactly that.

Again, such a shame.

A choice few of his crew had stayed behind, however. Pintel and Ragetti were behaving much in the same manner as he was; filling their coffers with anything small enough to fit in their pockets. As little as he sometimes thought of them, they had more than proved their worth in the ponylands. Why not let them have their reward?

Then there was Calypso.

“And they cannot be damaged?” Luna asked, levitating a singular piece of eight into the air; a purple pair of spectacles.

“Not by mortal hands,” Calypso replied. There was a slight grate to her voice, as if she had more to add on the subject. But she didn’t. “Or hooves. Only a loved one may free his powers, if he should ever find such a thing.”

Luna nodded in understanding. “We shall keep them safe. Though if only a loved one can return Discord’s power, I do not see much of the need.”

Watching the conversation drift horridly close to home, Barbossa cleared his throat. He returned his new gemstone to his pocket to join all of the others. He would likely lose a few, he was sure. Who knew what would happen between now and his next port.

That was the best reason to take as much as he could carry.

“On that topic, I do believe we have a deity of our own to set free,” he said with a too-eager smile.

Calypso stared into him, perhaps further than he could hope to imagine before she let the moment go. He was glad of it. To tell her that the same monster she loves is the very one who betrayed her… it would break. She might then decide to break him.

Barbossa would not be the one to tell her. He very much valued his life and that reveal would make him heavier than the thin ice upon which he skated.

In the previous days, the room that held the portal to Davy Jones’ Locker had been cleared of debris and refuse, cleaned to the sheen that Barbossa expected of a scientist. Or, at the very least, the sort of scientist Luna described herself to be.

There were no more monsters. No more dangers hiding away.

No more need to stay in Equestria.

“You’re still sure you definitely want to leave, Barby?” Pinkie asked him, for umpteenth time. “We’ve only just become besties.”

“Aye. Pretty sure,” Barbossa replied.

Pinkie Pie would soon enough be braiding his hair if he stayed.

“We thought as much,” Rarity added.

Barbossa peered back towards the door of the portal room, seeing the last of his ‘team’ entering the laboratory. Along with the princesses and Spike, now even the infamous Elements of Harmony were here to see him off.

As well as three very excitable young fillies.

The previous few days had been relaxed, for lack of a better term. Cleaning up loose ends and dealing with personal matters that paled in comparison to dealing with Discord. Ponies had returned home to check on friends and families. Repairs country-wide were on the rise, or so Barbossa was told. The land was setting itself up for recovery.

But now that too was over. All that remained was the final curtain call.

Fluttershy nodded in agreement with her friends, sporting a rather uncanny wig over her sheered mane. Seemingly, it was a hassle using magic to regrow their manes, which seemed utterly simple compared to the other modes of magic had at their disposal. Yet another oddity he could leave behind. “We really do appreciate everything you have done for us.”

“Indeed,” Celestia added. “Your name will be written in our history books. You may not be here to see the words written but know that many generations will be taught your name in school.”

As much as he had put down the suggestion of being remembered whilst under Discord’s control… the idea hit an often-forgotten place in his heart. To know that children in the future would speak of his name, it was an experience he would hold close to him.

If only just to boost his own ego. If anything, it would do good to know that his name would live beyond his body.

In a land of pretty ponies, but still.

It was then that, at Rarity’s insistence, Sweetie Belle stepped forward with a small package wrapped in gaudy paper. It featured a poorly tied bow made from string. Scootaloo and Applebloom were, as ever, at her side.

“We made you something. W-well, Applebloom made you something. But it’s from all of us! I wanted to thank you for helping with my cutie mark.”

“And fer gettin’ Discord,” Applebloom added.

Then Scootaloo. “And saving the world. Everyone gets a present the first time they save the world.”

The first of many times, surely.

Taking the package, Barbossa pulled away the string and tore at the paper. Inside a piece of green cloth, not unlike the one he wore on his own head.

This one however, came with three patches sewn onto the fabric; two were identical blue shields with a yellow pony in the middle whilst the third was an exact copy of the cutie mark that Sweetie Belle had obtained during their shanty session.

“It’s a new bandanna!” Scootaloo cheered, waving her hooves in the air. “For your head.”

The green tone was similar to the one he owned, but the patches were also just as muted. Not quite as bright as they should have been.

“With my cutie mark,” Sweetie added. “And our logo. From our club.”

“Me ‘n Scoots don’t have our cutie marks yet, so it was the next best thing. And we know you don’t like bright colours none, so we made it all dark and pirate.”

They looked at him expectantly, watching between the cloth in his hands and the top of his head. His own, grubby excuse for a bandana sat proudly tied under the newest hat he’d acquired. Freshly. From the corpse of a copy.

He sighed. “What the Hell.”

With little provoking, Jack jumped down from his shoulder. Barbossa tossed his new hat to the fillies, letting them catch it as he removed his bandanna. Staring at it briefly, feeling little else for it than ownership, he took his gift and tied it over is hair. Patches side down, of course.

He had a reputation.

Grabbing his hat back from the fillies, he rested it back atop his head and straightened himself. Returning Jack too his rightful place too, of course. “Fits like a glove.” You said your tanks in these sorts of situations, he mused. Especially when children were involved. “Thank ye.”

Applebloom eyed him briefly. “Yer not just gonna toss it away when yer back home, are ye?”

His boot kicked at his old bandanna, now sitting sad and alone on the floor. “Cross me heart and hope te fly,” he smirked back. “Keep the old one. A gift from me to you.”

After a brief exchange in which no single member of the small party wished to pick up the cloth in their mouth, Sweetie Belle shakily grasped it within her magic. “Uh, thanks,” was mumbled before it seemed to dawn on her that, yes, she now owned something previously own by a pirate. “We’ll look after it for you!”

“Likewise.”

From elsewhere, Pinkie blew her noise into a very sad handkerchief. “I think I’m going to cry,” she cried.

“I think I’m going to barf,” Rainbow added with what could be a fake gag. In the most recent days, even Rainbow had calmed down from everything had occurred. Despite a notable wound on her hind leg. Magic could not heal that so quickly either, he was told. He hadn’t quite been listening at the time. The leg he himself injured might not be helping matters “I thought you were meant to be a pirate?”

“Ye thought right. Maybe we could have another fight te truly decide?”

She simply rolled her eyes. “I think I’ll pass. Wouldn’t want to break your face even more than it already is.”

“Strong words from the mare that’s twice had legs damaged by little ol’ friendly pirate.”

“Let’s just keep things friendly, alright?” Applejack interjected. She needn’t have bothered; Barbossa doubted that he or Rainbow were eager for a repeat of any past altercation. Especially not this close to a resolution. “Ain’t nobody who wants a nasty goodbye.”

“Which is why we should totally get a picture!”

It was then that Barbossa noted Pinkie playing with a small device off to his side, aiming it towards him and never seemingly content with just how it stood. It was a small wooden box on three legs, with a glass pane at the front.

“What’s that?” he wearily asked.

“This is a camera, silly. It takes pictures.”

“I don’t have any pictures.”

“No no, it makes a picture.”

Barbossa was confused.

Celestia appeared at his side to give her own take at an explanation. “It’s a device that captures images. Rather than panting a painting, a camera can capture a scene perfectly in only a second.”

Right. Because of course it did. Very magical.

Barbossa would be glad to be rid of magic. It wouldn’t do to have a device sitting around his own word that could catch you in an instant of immorality.

“Stay there!” Pinkie squealed. “You’re perfect. Everypony, get in! We have five second.”

The next few seconds were as mad as any Barbossa had experienced with Pinkie Pie. She moved ponies around, plopping a very unamused dash next to him and ushering Celestia as best as such a small pony could manage. The world was a blur of pink fur and fluff and tail until Pinkie herself leapt out in front of the group and posed.

“Everypony say cheese!”

“I’m not a pony.”

Well, if this device created a painting then he would give them a painting. As Barbossa pulled the most dignified pose could when surrounded by so many bright colours, there was an all-consuming flash of light. It lasted for only a second. Less than a tenth of a second, even.

It left burns in his sight, like the sun if you stared too long. He blinked away the specks in sight and moved away from the group.

“Wait!” Pinkie yelled, moving back to the camera. “We need to do one with funny faces. And the Crusaders!”

“No, we don’t,” Barbossa replied, rubbing at his eyes.

Celestia took his side with that one. “I’m afraid he’s right. For as long as we could have him stay, it only staves off the inevitable. And I hear there are more adventures to be had by you and your crew. It would not do well to grow complacent.”

“I quite agree.” Though, as he turned to leave, one thing did pull at his mind. “The refugee, from Jones’ crew. What happens te him?”

“The same as we plan to do with Discord. Before you arrived, we had plans to free Discord ourselves under stable conditions. To see if his power could be used for good.” Her smile grew solemn, but still determined. “With his power now drained and a better understanding of the Torment’s past, we are free to deal with both in the matter than best befits them.”

“And that is?” Love and kisses, no doubt. Either way, without his godlike powers, Discord would be in utter misery for a time to come. Barbossa had no doubt about that.

“Don’t you worry: Discord will be punished. And the Torment will be cared for.”

Barbossa was not quite so fussed what happened to the crewman; they were strangers to each other and unlikely to ever meet again. But he supposed it was a grand thing to think that the man would be looked after. Even out of Jones’ curse, if such a thing was to ever be lifted, he would likely have more luck with ponies and dragons than people.

Coming back to his own present, and future, all ponies faced him and smiled along with Celestia. Rainbow Dash seemed pleased he was leaving, but it was an eager smile all the same.

Celestia was the first to speak, bowing her head. “Goodbye, Captain Hector Barbossa.” Her eyes lingered before her attention turned to the others. “And to you, Pintel. Ragetti. Calypso. We owe you a great debt.”

“S’alright,” Ragetti replied with an unabashed smile.

“We will not forget you any time soon,” Luna added.

It was much the same from all the others. Goodbyes and hearty farewells. Far too many ears from Pinkie Pie and rampant waving from the children.

“Remember, avoid the sharp end of the sword,” Rainbow teased.

He wished to say that both heads could be horrifically painful settled with, “I’ll try.”

Barbossa turned to face the portal. With Pintel and Ragetti by his side, the future seemed definite for the first time in a long while. The shimmering light it emanated felt like everything a light implied; warm and bright.

They were going home.

“Good luck with your adventure,” Twilight said. “I know you’ll be fine.”

“Aye,” Barbossa replied, smiling and turning his head back so that they could see “Same te ye.”

With Calypso at their backs, they pushed through.

☠

“Slap me thrice and hand me to me mama,” Gibbs exclaimed. “It’s Jack!”

So it was.

The Black pearl, the truest Black Pearl the world would ever know sailed effortlessly through the sand of the beach before finally coming to a gentle rest in the still water of the sea.

As if said sight was not to be argued at all, Captain Jack Sparrow promptly stepped down onto said beach. In front of a good deal of others, Gibbs was among the very first to greet him.

“Mr. Gibbs.”

“Aye Cap’n?”

“I thought so,” Jack replied back, cryptically as ever. “I expect you’re able to account for your actions, then?”

Cryptic or not, Gibbs now found himself genuinely confused. Did Jack know about the pink horses?

“Sir?”

“There’s been a perpetual and virulent lack of discipline upon my vessel. Why?” he asked. His voice grew sharp. “Why is that, sir?”

Gibbs wasn’t so sure. There hadn’t been much of an occurrence before Barbossa returned. Even then, a great deal of the commotion had been the cause of the horses, but no pirate.

Maybe it was madness.

If within the space of two hours, various men had borne witness to horses and devils and demons flying through the sky on pirate ships… what possibly could Jack have seen in all the months since his death?

In the awkward lack of the joyous reunion he had accepted, Gibbs lowered his voice “You’re in Davy Jones’ Locker, Cap’n.”

As if told fire was not something to be touched after burning his finger, Jack simply replied “I know that.” If only to reassure himself, he then repeated the sentiment. “I know where I am. And don’t think I don’t.”

“Jack Sparrow,” a familiar voice rumbled from behind them all.

Barbossa was back.

Finally! Gibbs released a sigh. The minutes since everyone else had returned had felt longer still than the ones before everyone had left. No more toing and froing. Hopefully this would mark the beginning of an end to this infernal voyage.

Backing up this hope was the lack of any horses, pink or otherwise.

Before Barbossa, his merry cohorts and Tia Dalma could join with the rest of the party, Jack sparrow took his chance to speak at them first.

“Ah, Hector!” Jack called. Quite the child. “It’s been too long. Hasn’t it?”

As Captain Hector Barbossa stood opposite Captain Jack Sparrow, it took the former of the two all the will in the world not to pull out his pistol then and there.

“Aye, Jack.” Far too long. “Isla de Muerta, remember? Ye shot me.”

Epilogue

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Over the Edge and Over Again
Epilogue

Sunset Shimmer huffed as she closed yet another webpage. She rubbed at her heavy eyes until she finally gave into temptation and let her face fall deep into the warm embrace of her pillow. Minutes passed in beautiful darkness before she pulled herself back to task.

Tilting her head back towards the screen, she clicked through her laptop until she found herself back at her favoured search engine.

Easing out another breath, she began typing anew. After almost four hours of pointless research, the words felt almost automatic to her fingers.

Captain Hector Barbossa

“Stupid pirates,” she mumbled. Her neck twisted uncomfortably as she sat herself upright. Just to her right, a little out of her reach, was a small table. Atop that table was a framed photograph.

It was of her friends, all gathered together around her. Princess Twilight was positively beaming, front and centre.

Smiling, Sunset took a fresh breath in. “Right, that’s it; one more time.” She sat up straight and cracked her knuckles into one another. “If this comes up cold he definitely didn’t exist here.”

She hit enter.

☠

“Josiah.”

It had taken quite a while for the name to crop up. Celestia had been surprised when it was first dropped into casual conversation, falling into the murky darkness again moments later. Even in the months after, it had taken time to cement inside his mind.

But after years of help and hardship, they had rediscovered his name.

Josiah. He may have been the Moonlight’s Torment once, but that was a long time ago.

Celestia once again knocked at his door. Much like any other in the more secure parts of the castle, it was decorated it radiant gold and white.

Unlike most others, barnacles had begun to take hold over the handle and seaweed throughout the growing cracks in the wood. An after effect of Davy Jones’ influence, Celestia mused. They would need to look into maintaining it.

At least so it did not spread beyond the door to his room.

Which did eventually open.

It revealed a damp space. Polished in places and rotted in others. A pristine bed, changed daily sat amongst a green floor originally fitted with a purple carpet. Weeds spread over the surface, clinging to the damp that permeated the fabric. Hardy clothes in various states of disrepair and a window that overlooked the Royal Gardens.

After so many years a prisoner aboard and ghoulish ship and so many more living in the wilds of Equestria like a wild animal, a room to his tastes and needs was the very least she would have ever offered him.

“You all in?” he asked, his voice scratching and dry.

“Oh, definitely!” Celestia replied. “There are so few who play games with me, these days. If you’ll have me?”

Issues still arose. Panic attacks. Disorders and syndromes compacted into one mind that Celestia would not have wished separately upon one hundred. Josiah was a broken soul, drowned in hate and agony.

Hopefully with some heart and a little warmth, she could help to make his life a worthwhile one.

His fish-like features had not settled in the years gone by, but not had he grown more into them. Even his blackest eye, that of a terrifying angler fish, seemed to sparkle when he got his way.

Or when he gets a worthwhile gambling and drinking partner.

“’Course,” he replied. He fully opened the door, revealing Luna to already be sat at warped table, cups in front of her and a very disappointed look on her face. “You provide the best bets.”

☠

“More tea?” Discord asked.

“Of course!”

Fluttershy lifted her teacup forward, letting the tea rise from below before settling into the very top of her cup. The hot aroma of orange taffy and butterscotch spread though her nostril before she brought the cup back took a gentle sip.

“Mmm,” she sighed. Glorious.

“Can you guess the flavour?”

Well, it wasn’t orange taffy and butterscotch, but she would have surely been disappointed if it was. It tasted like… something you don’t taste. A feeling. Or a concept.

“Is it… a feeling?”

“Nope.”

“It could be shape flavoured.”

“Closer! But no.”

Hmm. Sip. Oh! “It’s a colour!”

Discord’s grin split his face clean in pi. “Yes!”

Another sip and she knew instantly.

“Blue flavour. I never tasted the colour blue before.”

“I wanted to give you something different. Plenty of ponies can offer you a tea that tastes like a flavour. But I can give you a tea that tastes like a colour.”

“And it’s not even blueberry or blue paint flavour.”

“I know!”

Fluttershy let out another sigh and leaned back into Discord’s couch. She so enjoyed their weekly tea parties at her cottage. It was strange to think that only a short while ago the situation had been very different. Violent and not very nice at all. Before she could even stop herself, she remembered all the fear and hurt, everything that occurred over those nasty few days.

“I’m sorry.”

“Why are you sorry?” Fluttershy asked, perhaps a bit too quickly.

“I’m not an idiot, you know. I can see it in your eyes.” Discord sat within his flowerpot, waving at the memories flashing through her mind. “So… I’m sorry. For getting you involved in everything.”

“We’ve spoken about this,” Fluttershy said, her relaxation bubbling into something as blue as her tea tasted. “Tirek tricked you. He… he tricked all of us. It wasn’t just your fault.”

“I was the one that sided with him.”

“And I’m the one he tricked into releasing your powers. Behind everypony’s back. He manipulated a lot ponies and… a lot of us made mistakes.” She couldn’t deny that. Tirek had told her how cruel the others were being, how unfair it was to keep something as important as magic from Discord for years after they were taken.

She believed him. She stole the nine pieces of eight. She freed Discord… then he turned his back on her just like she had done to her friends.

Fluttershy knew how he felt in the days after, because she felt the same when he friends confronted her. It was too early, too dangerous. Especially with Tirek on the loose. She thought she was being kind.

She learnt that day that being kind was not always the best option. Sometimes you have to get mean or end up hurting them even more.

“We’re both moving forward. The girls forgive me. And we all forgive you. What matters now is the new memories we make, not the old ones we bear.”

Discord thought over this. Literally; he floated above her head, drifting on a cloud crafted from her own imagination. Until he came to a conclusion.

“In that case, how about we go to shake the ice-cream tree and see what flavours we get today? It was smelling rather melancholic this morning, but it was a nice shade of silver the last time I checked so there should be some nice sour flavours and sprinkles in there.”

Fluttershy beamed. “I would be delighted.”

☠

“Seein’ as we’re here, mate…”

Barbossa let out a long, dreary sigh. “Right. O’ course.” He knew. He just knew. “The ponies?”

Jack smiled gleefully. “The ponies.”

With a palm tree at his back, rope around his stomach, wrists tightly bound and not nearly enough alcohol in his leg for the occasion… Barbossa relented.

Fine. “Sure. Ask whatever ye wish. I know ye’ve been waitin’.”

Like a child being given that one piece of confection they had been waiting all week for, Jack rubbed his hands together. Or, he would have, had they not been as equally bound in rope as Barbossa’s own.

“I have been led to believe that there was a pink one.”

“Aye. Right shame ye missed her. Everyone else saw her.”

Jack’s face fell, like it always did. This game had been fun for as long as it had lasted. A sight to behold; a talking horse, right from the pages of myth and legend.

And the mighty Captain Jack Sparrow was the only blaggard who hadn’t seen it.

“I know they were real,” Jack defended. “Misters Pintel and Ragetti were rather illustrative on the subject. Details upon details, names and hobbies. They said one had a very nice hat. Marty said he kicked a dragon in the eye.”

“Did they?” Shame.

“There are too many witnesses.”

“Yet ye still trust me over them.”

“I trust Gibbs and you over a bunch of drunken pirates.”

“Such a pity that he did not see much te trust ye with.”

“And I’ve seen that grubby little bit of cloth you wear.”

Ah, bugger. “What?”

“Just once or twice,” Jack smugly replied. “You tie it face down but every now you forget. There are little patches on it. One has a horse on it.”

Technically two had horses, Barbossa wished to point out. But it had become worn in recent years and the patches were not sticking like they used to. He supposed only the bare essentials would remain before long.

“Plus, Ragetti said you were there for a week.”

“Not possible. We were only in the Locker for two hours. Not a lot of time to fit seven days into such a short span, is there?”

“So did Pintel. And Tia Dalma.”

That blasted witch. Even after their deal was good and done, she still held a palm over him.

“Come on, Hector. Tell me. We’re best friends.”

“I don’t remember agreein’ te that.”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Blackbeard seems on track to killing us both once he gets what he wants. On that note, I’d rather not die without knowing about all this business with the talking horses.”

Jack was right on thing; Blackbeard was a dangerous foe. A stain on the sea and all that he touched with his presence. A vile plague that Barbossa wished gone.

“It was a land of whimsy, Jack.” In that case, why not? At least he still had two legs in Equestria. “They call it, Equestria. A place so fuelled by magic that the inhabitants who live there control the sun and stars with a mere thought. Where jewels grow from the ground like flowers and the weather is set to a schedule of mortal design. Rain where it is needed and sun where it is sought. A paradise by any name.”

“And they’re all ponies?”

“Yes. Yes they’re bloody ponies.”

“For a paradise you don’t sound so happy about being there.”

“More happened than I have time te say. Not all of it kind.”

“Might be worth heading back, then. Getting some of that loot. Seeing some old friends, eh?”

Ah, of course. That explained it all. Jack had heard all the stories he needed to hear. He wasn’t interested in Barbossa’s.

He just wanted a route to some easy gold and jewels.

“I’m afraid I shan’t be goin’ back, Jack,” he said and saw an instant reaction in Jack. Where he had defensive before, Jack now deflated, leaning back against the tree. “Besides, I doubt they’d let you in.”

“And why’s that?”

Barbossa pursed his lips. “There’s a magic te friendship. One they hold quite highly and ye usin’ me te get some easy gold? Well, that’s not very magical now, is it?”

☠

The castle was quiet, as was normal for that time of night. As much as Princess Twilight Sparkle enjoyed having ponies visit her castle library to further anything remotely related to the pursuit of knowledge, that point in the day where the murmur of noise reduced to a still silence was a beautiful one.

Because that meant it was time to go to her chambers are start doing some more work of her own! Well… perhaps work was a strong word.

Staring at the coin she had crafted, a fine gold bit with the skull of a pony on it, Twilight concentrated as she weaved her desired spell between the metal.

Mild ‘pops’ sounded as excess magic escape from between the atoms of the gold, dissipating into the air yet more power was forced back into. A few more seconds-

A final chime. A noise run out from the coin and settled as Twilight put it down onto her desk.

“Okay. Thirty-eighth times a charm!”

Calming her breath and taking a deep breath, Twilight picked up the coin with her hoof. A wave of energy came over as that ‘chime’ came from the coin once more, vibrating the air as if it was spinning at impossible speeds on an invisible axis.

She looked it her mirror.

She was not a skeleton. “Drat.” Her coat had the texture of a slightly dry orange and, indeed, she could see the innards of an orange inside her mouth, but she was not a spooky, scary skeleton.

It appeared dead fruit was not going to make her spooky either.

Heaving out a deep sigh, Twilight placed the coin back on her desk. She would remove the spell later. It would not do well to have another ‘incident’ where a charmed coin got into a certain dragon’s food supply and left him looking like a draconic hoofball for several days.

Still, she would make her coin eventually.

She would make the rest of her body invisible eventually. Pinkie had been requesting such a coin for Nightmare Night for the last year or so and Twilight finally had the time to work on a side project. For fun, as well as the value of learning how to make only your bones visible.

Looking back at the coin once more, she shifted to look at the photo on the desk. A copy, of course. The original had sadly perished along with most of her belongings when the Tirek torched her library to smithereens.

“Heh, copy.”

Captain Hector Barbossa looked out at her, caught in a moment that could never be replicated.

She had thought about him over the years, wondering. All the questions she could, should and would’ve asked had she the chance. Maybe even the chance to follow after him for a visit or two. Maybe even find a reference to him at Canterlot High School. She was sure the humans there were different, but it never hurt to check.

Did the perceived time difference still occur when he left Davy Jones’ Locker? Did the difference remain after the portal was closed? How much time had passed for him compared to her?

Would she be long since dead to him, or the other way around? If he died, would he be back in the Locker? Some other after life? So many variables…

In the end, she supposed it didn’t matter. No matter what happened, in his world or theirs, they would always be friends. Friendly.

They would always be friendly.

Giving the picture a nod and a quick salute, Twilight smiled. Suddenly, she remembered one of the songs he had written down for her.

Yo ho

A pirate's life for me.