//------------------------------// // 8-2:Pirates // Story: Pound and Pumpkin Tales 2 // by Never2muchpinkie //------------------------------// Mayhem and Twilight returned to the room with all the other children. “Sorry for the wait,” said Twilight. “Mayhem just needed a little reassurance.” “What’s wrong?” asked Flash. “Is he alright?” Twilight nodded. “This isn’t the first time Mayhem has played these kinds of games with others, but the last time he didn’t have all those safety rules in place and his friends got hurt because of it. Now he sees the importance of being more careful with his powers.” “Are… are they all right?” asked Sweet Pea nervously. “Their injuries weren’t serious, but he’s still feeling unsure about using his abilities. “I don’t want you to feel afraid. I am here too, and if necessary I can cancel his magic out. With all of Mayhem’s rules and my own magic I give you my assurances as princess that you will be completely safe. “So then.” She looked over at Flash. “I believe you asked for a pirate adventure, right?” He nodded. She put a hoof on Mayhem. “Alright, then. You’ve got the floor. Let’s begin.” Mayhem nodded, lifting his claw and giving it a snap. The room they were in disappeared, turning into a pure white void. The children looked around. “What’s this?” asked Chocolate Chip. “This is my world,” said Mayhem. “Think of it as the landscape upon which I create your dreams.” He created a paint bucket, turning it over. More paint than the bucket could hold fell out of it, spiraling out into the distance as the world slowly formed until they were on the sea in a big boat. Flash looked around, his face lighting up. “This looks so real! It’s exactly what I wished for.” “Not yet,” said Mayhem. With another snap they were all dressed in pirate costumes. Flash touched his new bandana, hooking his hoof through his sword handle and pulling it out of its sheath, swinging it around. “Now that’s what I’m talking about! This is so awesome!” Sweet Pea tapped the floor of the boat, hearing the sound of wood. Plum sniffed. “Wow. I thought this would just be a visual thing, but even the smell is just like being out on the ocean. I can even hear the waves.” “It’s still hard to believe that this is just an illusion,” said Chocolate, looking up towards the crow’s nest, then slowly spinning in a circle as he took in everything. “It all feels just like reality. Playing with just your imagination has nothing on this.” “So what’s next?” asked Sweet Pea. “Here’s the deal,” said Mayhem. “I have a script planned, but I’m not going to tell it to you. I’m just going to let things happen, and move the story along if I need to.” “Why won’t you tell us?” asked Chocolate Chip, his eyebrow going up. “What’s the big secret?” “It’s not about keeping things from you,” Mayhem replied. “It’s about having fun. If you know everything that’s going to happen then it’s not as much fun. I don’t know everything that’s going to happen either for the same reason. I want to be surprised too.” “But I thought you were in control of everything you create?” “Yes and no. I can certainly make my creations do whatever I want them to, but I want to play too, and it’s boring if I know exactly what’s going to happen. In this case I give them a general personality, and then they act according to that personality. “For example, if I give someone a friendly personality, then they can do anything nice they want to, and will refuse to do mean acts. And if I give someone a mean personality they’ll commit villainous acts. "That being said, my rules are still firmly in place. You’re in no danger while inside my world. “Now then. Let’s begin.” Mayhem snapped again, and suddenly the ship was full of ponies in pirate costumes. One of them went up to Flash, bowing his head. “Captain Flash, Sir, you left your hat in your quarters.” The stallion put the captain’s hat on Flash’s head. A stallion up in the crow’s nest let out a cry of triumph as he set down his telescope. “Captain! We’ve spotted the island you were searching for. Are we ready to land?” Flash needed a few moments to respond, still getting used to this. “Captain?” “Um… yeah!” They came upon a small island about a mile wide in each direction, filled with trees and vegetation. After the ship landed they set down the stairs, walking off with a few of the crew accompanying them. “This is it, Captain. The treasure you’ve been seeking is said to be here. We’ve followed the treasure map perfectly.” “Excellent!" said Flash, starting to get into his role. "That’s what I want to hear. "Make sure to bring the shovels.” “Naturally.” The group walked for about five minutes until they came upon a spot with a big X marked in the sand. “I think we have our meal ticket,” said a stallion. “Let’s dig it up.” Flash took a shovel, sticking it into the sand and throwing away a shovelful. Mayhem, Sweet Pea, Chocolate Chip, and Plum Pie all grabbed their own shovels and helped. A minute later there was a satisfying thump as one of them hit something solid. “That must be it,” said Flash. They dug around the area for a bit until they unveiled a handle. With their combined efforts they pulled the chest out of the ground. Once it was on solid ground they caught their breath. The chest was locked, and one of the pirates used a crowbar to break it open, revealing a hefty assortment of bits and jewels of all shapes and sizes. “Ooo!” said Plum, taking out an emerald. “It’s all so shiny.” “This is a good haul,” said Flash. He pointed to a few of the pirate crew and said commandingly, “You two, carry this back to the ship. We’re eating good tonight.” Everyone cheered. When they got back to the ship they set sail again. Flash took in a deep breath as he leaned over the front of the ship. Nothing he had ever done was as cool as this. He was being a real life pirate… or as close to real life as he could get. That joy didn’t last. They had only been sailing a few minutes when there was a sudden impact that jolted the ship, instantly getting his attention. He ran back towards the middle of the ship. “What’s going on?” “Captain, it’s terrible!” said one of the pirates, pointing at another ship hot on their trail. “We’re being fired upon. They must be after our treasure.” Flash got his game face on. “Well, they’re not getting it! We found it first.” “Here, here!” said the rest of the crew. “What should we do?” asked Sweet Pea. “We’re going to fire back!” replied Flash. “We’re going to defend our ship and our stash! “Ready the cannons!” “YES, SIR!” “Helmsman, change course for that ship.” “Yes, sir!” The ship became a flurry of activity. The children helped hand cannonballs over to the pirates, both sides firing at one another as they grew closer to the enemy ship. There was a gasp from up above in the crow’s nest. “Captain!” he said fearfully. “That ship… it’s… it's...” “It’s what?” asked Flash. “Their flag. That’s the flag of the most notorious pirates to have ever existed. They’ve sunk dozens of ships and it’s rumored they might not even be ponies.” “Not… ponies?” “Some believe them to be ghosts. Very few have seen them and gotten away alive.” “G-ghosts?” asked Chocolate, shivering. Flash grinned. “Is that right? Well, if they aren’t ghosts yet they’re going to be soon. No one messes with my crew and gets away with it!” The others looked emboldened by his declaration. The ships got closer and closer to one another, neither side able to land a decisive blow on the other. Eventually they got to the point that cannonballs were no longer viable because of how close they were to each other. “It looks like we’re going to have to make this personal,” said Flash. “Let them board the ship. We’ll send them packing. We’ll make them regret ever picking a fight with us!” “Here, here!” said the pirates. The enemy pirates hopped and flew over to their ship, the two sides staring at each other. Flash laughed, pulling out his sword as the pirates approached with weapons drawn. “All right! We’re gonna defend our ship from these creeps. I… uh…” He looked at his sword, and his heart started beating faster. He gulped. “Hey, hey!” he cried out. “Stop! Pause! Pause the game!” “What’s wrong?” asked Mayhem as the world around them turned gray and everything besides them stopped moving. Flash took in a deep breath and let it out. “Look, I want to have fun and use my sword to defend myself, but I…” He tensed. “Well, I just don’t like the idea of using it on something that looks like a real pony. It’s one thing to pretend to attack someone in a fantasy game and they pretend to be hurt, but I really, really don’t want to see how that’s going to look in something that’s this realistic.” Sweet Pea shivered. “Yeah. I don’t want to see that either.” “I know that these are not real ponies,” said Chocolate, “but they act and look like they are.” “So… what do you want to do?” asked Mayhem. “I still want to battle,” said Flash, sucking on his cheek. After a few moments his eyes lit up. “I got it! Can you make them skeleton pirates? I wouldn’t mind hitting something that’s just a pile of bones.” Mayhem nodded. “I can do that.” He snapped, and the opposing pirate ponies lost their flesh, though they kept their clothing. Plum looked uncertain. “Well, that’s a little better because we’re not going to be cutting something that looks real, but… but now they’re skeletons.” “Don’t be afraid, Plum. It’s all just a game. Remember my rules. They can’t hurt you, and if you get overwhelmed all you have to do is say the phrase I told you to get to Twilight.” She let out a breath. “I know.” “Okay!” Flash said excitedly. “Let’s get back on track.” Mayhem nodded, snapping. The color returned and the skeleton pirates continued their approach. “Alright, everyone!” Flash lifted his sword up. “Let’s fight. We’re not letting them take control of our ship.” The rest of them lifted their swords too and let out a roar, both sides charging towards each other. The two sides collided, each of them fighting. Skeleton after skeleton was struck, turning into a pile of bones. Flash’s pirates did receive some ripped clothing, but no injuries. Plum Pie was panting. Even though this was really scary, it was also kinda exhilarating. Sweet Pea felt the same. With Mayhem’s safety rules in place she wasn’t really afraid, and was able to just attack without worrying too much. A few minutes later there was only a huge pile of bones littering the floor of the ship. “We did it!” Chocolate said with a cheer, hopping up and down. A laugh caught their attention. A skeleton bigger and taller than all the rest was standing there, wearing a captain cap and suit. He was also wearing an eyepatch. “Well done, well done!” he said, clapping. “So… you’re the captain of the skeleton ship?” asked Flash. He nodded, chuckling. Flash smirked. “You’re outnumbered! I think you’d be wise to hand over whatever you got on that ship of yours.” “You sure did a number on me crew, but I think you’ll find it doesn’t amount to much.” The captain’s body began to glow, and the body parts of all the broken skeletons began to glow as well. Before their eyes all the pieces came back together, leaving them surrounded by skeletons once more. “W-what?” said Sweet Pea, feeling scared. “What did you do?” The captain walked forward. “These be the members of me old crew. Even after we were finally taken down I still returned to continue my pillaging. As their icon of strength their loyalty to me was so strong they, too, returned to this world to remain by me side. “For years we’ve sailed these seas, stealing from whomever we’ve pleased. So long as I remain in this world their loyalty to me means they will never fade away either. They’ll always rise again to fight by me side.” His head went back as he let out a deep, cackling laugh. When it stopped he smirked at all of them. “It doesn’t matter what you do. You can knock them down a thousand times and they’ll always get up again to fulfill me will. “Your pony bodies will eventually succumb to hunger and fatigue, but me crew doesn’t have any of those pesky needs. No matter how long you resist your only option is death. We need only wait for you to tire before we strike a decisive blow.” Plum was shivering slightly. “T-that means it’s impossible for us to win.” “Heh heh heh! I’m glad ye see the truth. Will the rest of ye embrace your fates?” Flash walked forward, brandishing his sword. “Never! Fight me, coward!” The captain’s crew advanced on him, letting out cries of outrage. “Hold it!” said the Captain, making them stop. “Coward, did ye say, boy?” “That’s right. Your plan is to keep bringing back your skeleton crew endlessly until we’re too tired to fight. That’s the path of someone too scared of losing to fight on their own. “Fight me one on one. We’re both captains here. It’s only right that we decide this battle between us, don’t you think? Or are you too much of a chicken to do anything yourself?” “I like yer spirit, boy!” He brandished his own sword. “So if it’s a competition of strength ye seek then let’s do it!” Flash’s heart was thumping in excitement as the two circled around each other in the middle of the ship. He didn’t think today could get any cooler than this. Everyone had their eyes on him. He let out a battle cry and suddenly struck, the captain blocking it. He dodged as the captain struck back in return. The two of them clashed, both seeking an opening. “Go, Flash!” yelled Sweet Pea. “You got this!” said Chocolate Chip. “You can win!” said Plum Pie. “Go, captain!” said Mayhem. “Captain! Captain! Captain!” his crew chanted. Flash heard all of them encouraging him, and it emboldened him. He struck strong and fierce, the clang of swords echoing constantly around them. At first the captain looked arrogant and smug, but as Flash continued to resist him the grin faded, and slowly he began to look angry. Flash could see the captain’s expression, and it only made him feel more confident. He flew into the air, then did a front flip as he came down to fill his blow with momentum. The captain was knocked off balance, and Flash hopped forward, knocking the sword out of his hooves. A colossal cheer went out through his whole crew as the captain’s crew let out shocked exclamations. “It’s over!” Flash said victoriously, ready to deal the final blow. The captain laughed as Flash struck, dodging and tripping the colt to the floor. His sword went flying, landing at the captain’s hooves. He picked it up, and with a triumphant smirk swung it down. “Yah!” Flash cried out as he pushed off with his two left hooves, turning over just as the blade hit the ship just an inch from his head. He hopped up and jumped, attempting to fly away to get some distance. “Oh no ye don’t!” The captain lifted his hoof and a strange purple mist formed in the shape of a rope, wrapping itself around him and dragging him back to the ground. “Got ye, ye little rat.” Chocolate gasped. “No! He’s got the captain!” “Now… I know just what to do with ye.” The mist extended down his legs to his hooves. “Off the plank with ye! The sharks are hungry.” Flash tried to fight it, but the mist felt solid. He couldn’t open his wings, and now his legs were moving on their own. “No!” Chocolate called out, starting to run forward. He paused as the captain’s crew all blocked the way. “Sorry, but this way is impassible,” said one of them. “That’s right,” said another. “Your captain lost, and now he must pay the price.” “Of course,” said a third, lifting his sword, “if you try to force your way past you’ll have to fight all of us.” “Now… just stand there and enjoy the show. We know we’re certainly going to.” With that they turned their backs to watch Flash continue to be dragged towards the plank. “What do we do?” asked Sweet Pea. “There’s too many of them to fight.” “Even if we could it would take too long,” said Chocolate Chip. Mayhem looked around. “There!” he said quietly, pointing to one of the cannons. “What are we gonna do with that?” asked Plum Pie. “Clear a path,” Mayhem said with a smirk. The others nodded, trotting away towards the side of the ship. When they reached the cannon they opened the hatch, putting one of the cannonballs inside. Mayhem floated off the ship, pushing on the side of the cannon, but it wouldn’t budge. Going above the cannon he shot a few streams of magic towards them, hitting them. “What did you do?” asked Sweet Pea. “I gave you a little magic. Now you can float like me. This cannon is too heavy to push on my own.” Chocolate looked down and hopped, but only landed back on the floor. “How, um… how do I do it?” “It’s not a matter of the body. Just use your mind and focus your will. Concentrate on what you want and it will happen.” “Wait,” said Plum. “If you can float then can’t you just fly over them and save Flash?” “And then what about you and the rest of the crew? If his crew is only still in this world because of the captain then stopping the captain will destroy the rest of them. “If we only save Flash then everyone will be in danger.” “I guess that makes sense.” They closed their eyes, focusing. In such a high-stress situation the fact it was just an illusion had mainly been forgotten. They only had a short time before Flash was pushed over the edge. It took a minute, but all of them got off the ground. “This feels so weird!” Plum said with a heavy breath. “No kidding!” said Sweet Pea. “It just doesn’t feel right to be in the air with nothing to support me.” “I agree too,” said Chocolate, “but that’s not important right now. We have to save Flash.” “Right!” the other two replied. Fighting their trepidation they floated over the ocean, going on the side of the cannon with Mayhem. Together the four of them pushed. They grunted and strained, giving it everything they had. Finally, it gave way, moving little bits at a time but getting easier as they went until they had it where they wanted. Their job done, the three children quickly got back on the ship, not feeling comfortable floating over the water. They were all panting, but now they were ready. Flash’s heart was beating rapidly in his chest, standing on the plank. The strange force had vanished, but he had nowhere left to run. The captain kept jabbing at him, forcing him to back up out of instinct. He, too, was having trouble reconciling what his head and heart were telling him with the fakeness of the world and Mayhem’s safety rules. He tried to tell himself that none of this was real and he couldn’t be hurt, but that didn’t stop him from feeling terrified. He was quickly running out of room to back up, and as he looked down at the water he could see a bunch of sharks swarming below, seemingly waiting for him to fall in. The captain jabbed at him again, and Flash backed up, one of his back hooves meeting empty air. He looked behind him and saw he had reached the edge of the plank. The captain raised his sword. “Nowhere left to run, lad. Let’s hear some good hearty screams as you fall.” Flash felt like he was at his emotional limit. Things were getting way too intense. He suddenly remembered the phrase Mayhem had gave him for just that moment. All he had to do was say it and he would be transported directly to Twilight. A part of him didn’t want to say it out of stubborn pride. He didn’t want to quit the game in the middle while everyone else was still playing. The captain gave a playful jab at him, faking him out. He automatically backed up, and as his back legs went over he fell halfway off the plank, holding on for dear life with his front. All thoughts of pride went out the window. The phrase was on his lips, but just before he was able to say it a loud bang rang throughout the area. After another few seconds a cannonball struck the captain from behind, knocking off one of his arms and half of his ribcage. He stumbled in surprise, and fell off the plank, just barely managing to twist himself and grab onto it with his remaining arm. “CHAAAAAARRGEE!” screamed out Mayhem. The cannonball that had hit the captain had also taken down a number of skeletons as well. The ones who remained were so surprised by this turn of events that they were slow to respond as they were ambushed from behind. Flash scooted himself forward, getting on top of the plank with a sigh of relief. He saw the captain still hanging from the plank, unable to pull himself up without another front hoof. Nearby was the detached hoof still holding his sword. He wrenched it out. “It’s over!” yelled Flash, getting back his courage. “You’re hanging by a thread and your crew is being decimated again.” “Hee hee hee!” the captain said. “Well done, but this is far from over.” He swung forwards, then backwards twice, building up a little momentum before his third forward movement, swinging his back leg up and onto the plank and pulling himself up. “No! This time it is over!” Flash said strongly. “For the sake of my crew and all the friends who stood by me I won’t lose. Not when they believed in me and gave me this second chance.” The captain hesitated for a moment, seemingly affected by that statement. Flash unfurled his wings, flying right at him. The captain grabbed his arm off the ground, holding it like a sword. Flash collided with him, flapping as hard as he could, pushing the captain back until he fell on the floor of the ship. He flew upwards, dodging the energy that had imprisoned him before, and came charging down as fast as he could with a yell, breaking the captain into dozens of pieces. Plum and the rest ran up to him, hugging him and congratulating him. He panted, smiling victoriously. The light from before emerged out of the captain’s bones, with him now looking ethereal as he floated above them. “Ye… ye actually did it,” said the captain forlornly. “Many years have I sailed these seas, and not one could defeat me.” “It’s like I said,” said Flash. “I fought for the sake of my crew who believed in me.” “Loyalty… it was me crew’s loyalty to me that allowed them to return to this realm alongside me. “Looking at you it’s starting to make me remember… remember the pony I used to be in the past. I first set sail for fun, to dig up treasure and see what the world had to offer. I had a crew who happily served me, and I treated them just as well.” “So what changed?” asked Plum. "Why become a cruel pirate?" “When I lost the love of me life I was filled with sorrow. That pain slowly turned to anger. I began to feel rage every time I saw a happy couple, and so one day I decided that if I couldn’t be happy that I would take happiness away from everyone I could. There would be no happy reunions for lovers returning from the sea, since they never would return home. “Me crew didn’t quite agree with me, but they followed along nonetheless until the day our ship was finally sunk. It wasn’t enough to stop me. My grudge endured, and I returned as a skeleton to continue haunting the world.” Tears began to come down his eye sockets. “I… I eventually forgot all about her and why I began to cause such destruction in the first place. It stopped just being about jealousy. I began to enjoy the harm I inflicted on others. It’s only now, in the face of defeat, that I see that there are others who still care. “Ye… ye love yer crew and they follow ye without question. They saved ye, and ye protected them in return. Ye still are able to love and care for others. Don’t wind up like me. Retain that pure love of the sea.” “I will,” said Flash, a tear shining in his eyes. “Now… now it’s time. We don’t belong in the world of the living. “Thank ye for breaking this grudge that has festered for so long.” His hat began to float and landed on top of Flash's head. “I relinquish this to you.” The captain saluted him. “May I be dismissed, captain?” Flash gulped, a lump in his throat. He saluted the captain in return, tears gently falling down his cheeks. “Yes. You are dismissed.” “Thank ye.” The spirit of the captain faded, along with all the skeletons. “At last,” said one of the pirates. “The seas are now safe from their evil.” “Yes,” said another. Flash walked up to the other children, extending his hooves towards them. They quickly closed the distance and hugged him. “Thank you… all of you. I couldn’t have done this without your support. I was helpless until you shot that cannonball and allowed me to turn the tide." “You’re welcome,” said Plum. The others responded in kind. After hugging each other for a while Flash let go. “That was fun. I would like to explore more of the sea, but…” He let out a good-natured sigh. “Well, I’m not the only one who wants to play today.” “Okay, Flash,” said Mayhem, and with a snap the world dissolved around them until they were back in the castle. “That was a lot of fun. Definitely scary when I was about to fall into the water, but that’s also kinda part of the fun.” “I enjoyed it too,” said Sweet Pea. “So!” Mayhem said cheerfully. “The day is still young. Who wants to make a wish next?” “Um,” said Plum. “I don’t know if I’d call this my wish, but that was pretty intense. I’d really like a little time to settle down before we move right along. Do you think you could, like, I don’t know, summon some kitties or something?” “Sure, but you don’t need me for that. My mommy is an animal caretaker. We can just go visit her. “Is that okay, Twilight?” Twilight nodded. “Sure. We can do that. “Good teamwork out there, all of you.” “Thanks, Twilight,” they responded. “Okay, then let’s go to Mommy’s house!” With that he snapped.