//------------------------------// // Chapter 61: "Tempest Apologizes to Capper" // Story: The Redemption of Tempest Shadow // by twilightsparkle3562 //------------------------------// Capper sat in his guest room seemingly looking up at the ceiling and reflecting on how his life went from low to high, and then back down to low. "These ponies are nicely accommodating, but that's no excuse for what we all had to go through," He thought to himself, while rising to his feet and walking over to the window overlooking the streets of Canterlot. "Still, it would be nice to get an apology from that pony who tried to kill me, and see Rarity again. Maybe I can pay her a nice little visit while I'm here. I hear she has a boutique in this city now." No sooner did Capper say those words, then there came a knock at the door. "Who's there?" He called, turning towards the door. "Open the door, Capper," He heard the voice of Tempest on the other side. "I have something to say to you." A scowl befell on Capper's face when he realized it was Tempest Shadow. Opening the door, Capper came face to face with the pony who’d tried to kill him and the pirates. "So, you finally decided to come and apologize for what you did," He remarked bitterly. "Trying to kill me and those parrots back on the ship." "Because you lied to me, Capper," Tempest answered, and then sighed. "But, I've come to apologize for what I did. If you don't want to accept my apology however…" Tempest was just about to leave when Capper stopped her. "Wait!" Capper called. "If you have something to say to me, then say it. You've come to say your sorry for what you did to me, is that right?" "And that's not all. I've also come to release you from the debt you owed to the Storm King as well as to that boss of yours we trounced when we first came to Klugetown," Tempest explained. “All your debts are forgiven.” "You mean I don't have to owe any money to the Storm King, even though he is in a million pieces?" Capper asked. "Yes, and as part of my community service, I will come to Klugetown and repair any damage I have caused." Tempest offered Capper couldn't help but feel delighted to hear this, knowing that he had finally gotten the apology he desperately wanted. "Do you mean exactly what you are saying?" Capper asked, still not totally convinced at what Tempest was telling him. "That you will come and fix the mess you and those monster friends of yours made?" "You have my word, cat."Tempest nodded, and without any more dialogue, the broken horned unicorn stepped out of the room and left Capper alone. Once the door was closed, Capper let out a loud sigh of relief and went about trying to put together a visit with Rarity. "Did you apologize?" Razzle Fizzle asked when Tempest walked back into her guestroom a short time later. "Yes, although I wish it could have been a lot longer than it actually was," Tempest sighed, shutting the door behind her. "I told the cat that I would come to his home and repair any damage that I caused." "Perhaps you should also start calling the cat by his real name, Fizzlepop," Razzle Fizzle suggested. "If you do that, then he can start respecting you more." "If you say so." Was all Tempest could bring herself to say. Then Tempest turned and heard a click sound, realizing that another piece of the Friendship Festival crown had come together! a sign that Tempest's redemption in the eyes of Equestria was slowly coming together. "Look, Fizzlepop, ever since you started atoning for your actions, I've been gaining more and more respect for you,” Razzle declared. “I'm not as angry at you as I once was, and I think waiting to become Princess Twilight's captain seems like the right call. The time will come when you think it's ready." Suddenly, the two unicorns turned around and saw Captain Celano's ship returning to Canterlot bringing with them the mercenary that they had captured in Hippogriffia. The sounds of screams were heard as the ship landed! "What's happening?!" Razzle asked as she looked out a window. "Are those the pirates you also tried to kill, Fizzlepop?!" "Yes, they are!" Tempest realized. "Aren't you going to apologize to them too?" Razzle questioned. "Eventually. But, I think they have more important matters to attend to at the moment from what I hear." Tempest commented. The sight of a captured mercenary pony being dragged into Canterlot Castle by the parrot pirates proved that indeed was true. "We'd better go down and find out what’s happening!" Tempest declared, but Razzle had cold feet on the matter. "Wait, Fizzlepop!" Razzle cried out. "That pony might be dangerous! Don't forget, Instant Justice will not rest until you are dead. I lost you once and I won't lose you again. I will go and find out what is happening. You wait here, for your own safety." Reluctantly, Tempest agreed to let her sister go find out what was happening. Leaving her sister in the guarded guestroom, Razzle Fizzle went down to the throne room to find the mercenary pony cry out in sharp pain from the chains that he was bound in. "They captured a mercenary," Lemon Lime whispered, who had been awakened by the loud noises, along with Irish Spring. "Where's Fizzlepop?" "She's in her room for her own protection," Razzle firmly answered. "That pony is working for somepony who wants her blood." "Of course," Irish Spring remarked. "Princess Celestia is mad beyond belief right now and she looks as if she will not let the pony have any mercy." "Knowing Princess Celestia, her anger will get the better of her." Razzle commented with a gulp. Razzle had no sooner said that, when Luna and Twilight entered the throne room and the guards shut the door quite loudly. "We can still listen to what is happening.” Irish Spring declared, and the three unicorns put their ears to the doors to listen to the loud yelling and screaming that was to take place behind closed throne room doors. Elsewhere, in the Crystal Empire, Shining Armor and several Crystal Guards were investigating a brutal attack on a Storm Creature on the outskirts of the Empire. "He wasn't granted any mercy, your highness," A Crystal Guardspony glumly remarked as they all looked down at his wounds. "Do you think he might have participated in the attack on Canterlot?" "To be honest, I don't know," Shining Armor sighed. Despite the many horrors he’d witnessed over his lifetime, nothing quite prepared him for the atrocity of seeing a creature murdered in cold blood. He barely managed to keep his composure as he added. "But, one thing is for sure, Instant Justice and the mercenaries have not gone far. Get a platoon together, I have a feeling that they’re heading for Yakyakistan!" "Why do you think that, Prince Armor?" The Guardspony asked. "Because Storm Creatures adapt better to cold weather over," Shining explained. "And Yakyakistan is located even beyond the Crystal Empire." "Then perhaps we should let Prince Rutherford handle the situation, it is within his nation’s boundaries after all." The Guardspony suggested. Shining shook his head. "No, I think Equestria has suffered enough from one of its own. This ends now! Instant Justice needs to be stopped, and it’s imperative we do it before anyone else gets to him!" And so, preparations were made to head for Yakyakistan and hopefully end Instant Justice's rampage of revenge. Meanwhile in Canterlot, Celestia's anger and rage were about to explode in emotional proportions!