The Road to Ornithia

by The FraudulentBrit

Sailors Not Dancers

If there was one thing that truly could ruin a sailor’s mood, it was a flat wind. Without wind, a ship’s sails couldn’t propel her forward. And since the engines on a sky-ship like The Hawkins were used solely to keep her in the air, she was effectively dead weight in the air as well as the ocean water.

Silver turned to Mr. Copper Bottom and called out, “Mr. Copper Bottom, prepare to take us down to sea level!” Copper Bottom replied back, “Aye aye Cap’n!” As the helmsman began to work his magic, Silver then called out to the rest of the crew, “We’re goin’ down to sea level!” The crew then called back, “Aye aye Cap’n!”

As The Hawkins began to decrease in Altitude, Angel Wings couldn’t help but start to feel a little giddy. Before she joined Old Silver and the other sailors, she had never been anywhere near the ocean, and even then, they had been hundreds of meters above the cerulean sea. But now, she would finally get to experience the ocean up close and personal.

Angel Wings was so caught up in excitement that she almost didn’t recognize Silver walk up behind her and ask, “Never been to the ocean I take it?” Angel Wings replied, “No, but I’ve always wanted to see it.” Both pegasi then began to observe the tranquil waves as The Hawkins finally touched down on the ocean surface.

Angel Wings asked, “Hey, why exactly are we moving down to the ocean surface?” Silver took a deep breath, soaking up the salty air as he replied, “There’s not enough wind, so we’re goin’ to let the engines rest and conserve fuel.” He then paused before continuing, “Depending on how the wind goes, we might even sail on the water for a day or two.”

It was then that Spy Glass called out, “Whale ho off starboard bow!” Silver and Angel Wings heard the call and immediately made their way to the starboard railing and began to inspect scan the horizon for the whale. As several other sailors made their way over, Perry turned his head to the crow’s nest and shouted, “You sure you saw a whale?” Spy Glass replied, “I swear I saw one. It was right….”

At that moment, a massive sperm whale leapt out from the water, amazing the sailors with its majesty. Angel Wings remarked, “It’s beautiful.” Silver, however, remarked, “I hope it doesn’t land on us.” Luckily, the sperm whale collapsed safely back into the sea. Unfortunately, the splash from the massive mammal drenched the ship, including Silver, Angel Wings, and several other sailors.

Once the whale was gone, Spy Glass continued, “…Over there.” For a moment, Silver and Angel Wings considered what to do before they noticed they were absolutely soaked, and simply began laughing. After indulging in some laughter, Silver called out, “Alright, every-pony who was soaked, you have ten minutes to change clothes if you wish. We won’t be going anywhere so don’t worry about missing any work.” Angel Wings contemplated resisting, but when she stepped forward, the feeling of her soaked coat convinced her to take the opportunity to take the opportunity and at least remove her soaked clothing.

“Phew, that was fun.” Angel Wings said to herself as she removed her now soaked coat. As she set the now drenched piece of clothing on a chair, she began to check if the rest of her outfit was still wet. For the most part, her shirt was dry enough, and she figured that if she changed socks, she would still be able to wear her boots. Taking a breath in relief, she finished removing the remaining pieces of wet clothing and began to take them to the ship’s laundry.

However, it was at this moment that Angel Wings realized something; the mare she had been sharing the cabin with was missing. “Oh no.” she whispered as she began to panic.

It had been two days since the blue mare had been rescued from a burning wreck by the crew, and Angel Wings had been charged with keeping an eye on her. Since the new guest had restricted herself to her hammock, this made the job undeniably easy. But now that she was actually gone, Angel Wings was worried she had gotten herself lost somewhere on the ship.

It was at this moment that the door opened behind Angel Wings, revealing the very mare she was looking for, carrying a mug of hot cocoa in one of her wings. Angel Wings immediately said, “Oh thank Celestia I found you! I was worried you ran off somewhere.” The blue mare let out a gentle giggle as she replied in a somewhat raspy voice, “Well this ship isn’t exactly THAT big.” She spoke with the same accent Skibby had, one similar to Silver’s but one more naturally soft. As the mare took a sip of her drink, she asked, “Oh, uh, Angel Wings was it?”

“Yeah.” Angel Wings replied. “I’m the weather officer.” The blue mare then extended her other wing and introduced herself. “Staff Sergeant Aquamarine, EUP marines.”

“I’ve never met a marine before.” Angel Wings remarked, finding herself gripped by excitement as well as fear. She’d heard stories of EUP marines, particularly how they often had trouble separating themselves from their job. Aquamarine then, to her surprise, jovially replied, “Well I’ve never been on a civilian trade ship before.” Now both mares began to laugh. Their laughter ended as Aquamarine then said, “By the way, thanks for rescuing me.”

“I don’t know about the others…” Silver’s voice rang out from outside the cabin. Angel Wings and Aquamarine turned to see Silver approaching, his jacket removed and his off tan shirt now clearly visible. He then continued, “But I don’t keep debts.” Aquamarine immediately snapped to attention, as if she were being approached by her commanding officer, and barked out, “Sir!”

Silver replied, “Ma’am, I’m not a military officer.” Aquamarine replied, “Maybe not sir, but my unit heard about what you guys did in Botany Bay.” Silver began to blush and he began to nervously scratch the back of his head as he remarked, “Well, they kidnapped Cap’n Flint and a kid. We weren’t gonna let the wankers get away with that.”

Aquamarine then said, “Sorry me unit wasn’t there. We were assistin’ the Ornithians with their little problem when…” It was then that she began to look away in shame. Silver and Angel Wings knew that her pause came from recollecting what happened aboard the ship they rescued her from. Realizing that they needed to change the mood, Silver began to feign being hot and, flapping one of his metal “hands” to keep cool, said, “Oi, it’s gettin’ hot down ‘ere. Let’s get a cold drink.”

As Silver, Angel Wings, and Aquamarine began to pour mugs of water, Angel Wings asked, “So Aquamarine, what is it like being a marine?” Aquamarine hesitated for a moment before answering, “Well, the best way I can describe it is we keep order on ships and fight bad guys on enemy ships as well as in amphibious situations.” “Ooh.” Angel Wings replied in amazement. She then said, “That sounds kind of dangerous.”

Silver then joined in with, “Well it certainly doesn’t sound like anythin’ we’ve not dealt with before.” He then gave Angel Wings a gentle elbow nudge, to which the pink Pegasus began to blush. As the trio began to make their way to a table, Aquamarine remarked, “I heard about what happened before we left port. Apparently one of the Wonderbolts managed to fly all the way from Botany Bay to the Desert Garrison.” Angel Wings then humbly admitted, “Yeah, that was actually me.”

“Really?” Aquamarine enthusiastically asked. “You were the one who alerted the garrison?” Angel Wings nodded and replied, “Yeah. I may have…” As Silver gave her a cheeky smile, she corrected herself and continued, “I had begun to fall for Silver, and when he was captured, I knew some-pony had to do something. When the Wonderbolts began to bicker over who should do the job, I just went ahead and did it.” Aquamarine remarked, “Wow, that’s impressive. In the marines that kind of attitude could get ya in trouble.”

Aquamarine then changed the subject. “Speaking of attitude, mind if I ask a question?” Silver gave her a confirming nod. The marine then continued, “Well, I noticed that we’ve dropped anchor. I know that you guys have your duties keep this girl afloat, but do you have anythin’ to keep every-pony distracted?” Angel Wings asked, “Distracted?”

“Yeah.” Aquamarine replied. “boredom can be a serious threat to morale.”

Silver began to contemplate the piece of advice. He knew that sailors needed tasks to keep busy with anything, be it their tasks or extracurricular activities, to remain sane or risk the breakdown of morale. If not, the crew could lose respect for him and his other officers.

Angel Wings then asked, “So, as long as we have something to do, then we should be alright?” Aquamarine, taking a sip from her drink, replied, “Yup.” This confirmation led to Angel Wings’s eyes growing with excitement, she began to giggle enthusiastically. The pink mare then turned to Silver and said, “Silv… I mean Cap’n Silver, I have an idea.”

“Dance lessons?” Perry asked in confused shock. He, Nelson, Wyvern, and the other officers had been gathered to hear Angel Wings’s plan, and needless to say, each felt somewhat unsure. “Look….” Perry began. “…I don’t mean to come off as a pessimist, but I have my doubts about turning the crew into the royal Canterlot ballet.”

Nelson then spoke up in defense of the idea. “I don’t think she’s expecting that. Besides, it might help with dexterity and agility.” Angel Wings let out a breath of relief as she replied, “Thanks Nelson.” As the older naval officer nodded, Perry huffed as he remarked, “I still think it’s a dumb idea.”

Silver then asked his gunnery officer, “Do you have any other suggestions?” Perry shrugged confidently and replied, “Well I’ve been considering doubling down on cannon drills and….” Pausing as he thought, Perry realized that he really didn’t have any other suggestions. Silver let out a playful sigh and explained, “While I do appreciate your concern about our skills with cannons, if that’s all you have the crew do, we’ll just wind up back here.” The captain then faced Angel Wings and continued, “besides, I think a dance class might be more entertaining than endless drills.”

“Thanks Silver.” Angel Wings thanked her colt friend and captain. “I promise I won’t make every-pony do anything too demeaning.” As Silver, Nelson, and most of the others began to laugh, Perry sighed and grumbled to himself, “Great, what’s next, a beauty pageant?”

As the crew began to gather on the top deck, several began to wonder why they had been summoned. Skibby took a nervous gulp, hoping this wasn’t a communal punishment, while Copper Bottom was wondering why the whole crew had been summoned. After a few minutes, Silver made his way up to the front of the crew, rotated to face them, and began to speak.

“Alright boys!” the metal winged Pegasus spoke imposingly. “We’ve decided to introduce a few extracurricular activities to keep you from boredom, and the first one is….” He gave a dramatic pause before finishing, “A dance lesson, courtesy of Miss Angel Wings.”

Several sailors began to murmur with each other, some confused while others were annoyed. Still, the decision had been made, and Silver then began to speak again. “Now then, I don’ne expect everyone here to be expert ballerinas, but I do expect you will be professional about this. Do I make meself clear?” The other sailors, despite their hesitance, knew better than to try and stand up to Old Silver, and al replied, “Aye aye Cap’n!”

Confident that they would perform their task well, Silver then stepped aside as he finished, “Alright lads. I leave you to Miss Wings.”

Meanwhile, Angel Wings began to step forward. She had stripped down mostly to her shirt, and replaced her boots with an old pair of tap shoes, one of the few keepsakes she brought from before she joined the crew. Taking a deep breath, the young mare began to speak, “Good morning every-pony.” The other sailors gave her skeptical looks, not entirely sure they would respect her. However, after receiving a receiving nod from Silver, Angel Wings straightened herself and ordered, “Alright, I want every-pony to line up and straighten yourselves out.”

Once the other sailors had sorted themselves into three lines, Angel Wings began her lesson. “Alright, now we’re going to start out with an old warm up technique I learned as a foal.” She took a deep breath, scuffing the deck with her tap shoes as she began again. “What we’re going to do is do a few flaps, eight to the front, eight to the side, eight to the back, four to the side, and a ball change.” Skibby raised his hoof to ask a question. Angel Wings noticed this and asked, “Yes Skibby?”

The blue Pegasus replied, “Forgive me ma’am, but I don’ne know even half o’ those words.” Angel Wings let out a guilty laugh as she replied, “Heh. Well, how about I demonstrate the exercise?” As Skibby and several other sailors began to nod yes, Angel Wings felt a surge of confidence as she began to demonstrate.

She then proceeded to brush her right hooves forward with the front of her hooves and stamp them on the deck. After doing this eight times in rhythm, she proceeded to perform a ball change and then did the same thing again, only this time her hooves brushed off to the side. She then proceeded to do this to the back, then four more to the side, and then ended it with another ball change before she did it again with her left hooves.

After finishing with her left hooves, Angel Wings spoke again. “Alright, now it’s your turn.” The other sailors began to perform the warm up, some being able to perform it adequately while others were struggling. Unsurprisingly, Skibby was among the latter group. Angel Wings made her way up to her friend and said, “Try keeping your weight on the hooves you aren’t using.” Skibby nodded and began to try the warm up again, this time with more noticeable skill.

As the lesson went on, Angel Wings introduced more technique exercises. Now the group was doing an endurance exercise, doing alternating shuffles. She then noticed that Copper Bottom was having trouble keeping his hooves up. “Keep your legs up Copper Bottom.” She gently but firmly ordered. Copper Bottom replied, “I’m doin’ my best ma’am.”

At that moment, a vaguely familiar voice called out, “We’re bloody sailors, not bloody dancers!” Angel Wings could have sworn that it was…

“Stow that blabberin’ Mr. Arrow Bolt!” Silver shouted, silencing the thuggish Pegasus. Unfortunately, Angel Wings began to shake, a combination of shock and anger starting to consume her. ‘Why was Arrow Bolt here?’ she thought to herself. She was so stumped in confusion that she almost failed to notice Silver trying to snap her out of her stupor.

“Miss Wings, you alright?” Silver asked. “You zoned out for a moment.” Angel Wings, however, simply whispered, “Can I have a word with you?” Silver nodded and called out to the crew, “Take a few minutes off lads!” He then led Angel Wings into his cabin.

Once Silver had closed the cabin door, Angel Wings immediately, and none to politely, asked, “What in the name of Celestia is HE doing out there?” Needless to say, Silver didn’t need three guesses as to who she was referring to.

Sighing, Silver began to explain. “I have to look after the well being of everyone onboard this ship.” As he took another guilty sigh, this time averting his eyes, he continued, “And until we make port, that does include Mr. Arrow Bolt.”

Angel Wings’s anger began to subside as she remembered that Silver had promised that Arrow Bolt would be deported once they made port. However, they hadn’t made port yet, which meant that he hadn’t been sent away. Still, that didn’t help her feel any better.

Taking a deep breath, Angel Wings said, “Ok, I’ll give him another chance. HOWEVER….” She began to channel the confidence and authority that she learned from the journey to Botany Bay. “…If he steps out of line or even BEGINS to say that one name…” As she started to choke up, Silver interrupted her. “He does that and I’m draggin’ his arse back to the brig.” Angel Wings nodded and departed the cabin.

Once she was gone, Silver let out a deep breath as he began to feel the weight of his actions. As captain, he needed to think of the well being of everyone onboard the ship, and at least for the moment that did include Arrow Bolt. Unfortunately this time it meant that he had to anger Angel Wings. Even if he made it clear that Arrow Bolt was on his last chance, it didn’t remove the hurt expression on her face as she nearly lost her temper. All he could do was whisper to himself, “Please forgive me.”

After taking a deep breath to regain her composure, Angel Wings faced the rest of the crew and began to speak again. “Ok every-pony, now we’re going to try….”

One of the sailors, Barricade if she remembered correctly, called out, “We’re not gonna prance around like a bunch of mares!” several other sailors called out, “Yeah.” Skibby tried to speak up, but another sailor stopped him as he said, “Keep your mouth shut you little runt!” Soon enough, the sailors began to shout at each other, even throwing insults including incredibly vulgar phrases.

Unable to tolerate the disorder, Angel Wings snapped as she shouted, “Every-pony, SHUT UP!” Sadly, rather than comply, the other sailors began to shout back at her. One called out, “Why? What authority do you have over us?” Another called out, “Yeah, you’re only weather officer because the Cap’n likes you!”

If being insulted because of her relationship with Silver wasn’t enough, the final straw was because she heard Arrow Bolt blurt out, “Oh shut up you pathetic little no-pony.”

Unwilling to tolerate it anymore, Angel Wings screamed, “JUST SHUT UP YOU STUPID BASTARDS!” This time, the entire deck, possibly the entire ship, went silent. As she began to sniffle a little, Angel Wings began to angrily chew out her colleagues, “I thought that this would help improve morale and keep every-pony from getting bored!” As the others began to contemplate what they’d done, Angel Wings continued, “But you know what, forget it!” She then stomped off to return to her quarters, her sniffling escalating into full on sobbing.

Silver, emerging from his cabin when he heard the shouting, was not pleased by what he’d seen and witnessed. His face growing red with anger, he began to call out his crew.

“I can’nae believe what I just heard! He angrily shouted. “I am ashamed of every single one of you!” As the sailors held their heads in shame, Silver turned his attention to Arrow Bolt and said, “Mr. Arrow Bolt, step forward now!” As Arrow Bolt made his way forward, Silver turned to Wyvern and said, “Mr. Wyvern, Escort Mr. Arrow Bolt back to the brig. If he says ANYTHIN’, gag him.” Arrow Bolt was about to protest, but the look on Silver and Wyvern’s faces convinced him not to.

Once Arrow Bolt had been escorted away, Copper Bottom stepped forward. “Sir, I apologize for the way I and the others acted.” He held his head low and the tone in his voice made it clear he was being sincere.

Silver, though content in the apology, replied, “As much as I appreciate the gesture, I am not the one you need to apologize to.”

Skibby then stepped forward. “Cap’n!” the young stallion asked. Silver replied, “What is it Mr. Skibby?” As the blue Pegasus made his way up to his commanding officer, Skibby continued, “I might have an idea…”

After a good cry, Angel Wings found she had lost almost all energy she had. Once she slipped her tap shoes off, she simply crawled into her hammock and took a long nap.

Whenever she had a bad day as a filly, Angel Wings found the best way to release her immediate stress was to just do the least intensive action possible, ranging from meditating to reading a book to just taking a nap. More often than not it was from dealing with bullies mocking her for her then lackluster flying skills, though the worst cases were from fights with her mother.

Once the thought of her mother entered her mind, Angel Wings began to feel her eyes water once again. She remembered how her mother was never satisfied with what she could accomplish, ranging from a dance award to recognition for any piece of art she could create. She would always complain about how other foals always did a better job than she could, and it seemed that no one could please her.

And that was when she would bring out the insults. Angel Wings cringed as she remembered how her mother would constantly belittle her. “If you can’t make your way to the top, then you’ll just end up a pathetic little no-pony.” Angel Wings began to shake her head, trying to get the thought of her mother out of her head. She wasn’t going to let her control any more of her life.

Her train of thought was derailed when she heard the sound of knocking on the cabin door. Facing the door, Angel Wings dejectedly called out, “Come in.”

To her surprise, Perry entered the cabin. Rather than make a witty remark or wise crack, the gunnery officer simply asked, “Hey kid, you feelin’ alright?” Angel Wings simply sighed and said, “Well, let me see. I exploded at Silver, I made a fool of myself in front of every-pony, and pretty much alienated everyone, so I’d say I’m right at the bottom of the pecking order.”

Perry simply made his way to her hammock and replied, “So I’d say a typical Tuesday?” As much as she wanted to be angry with him, Angel Wings couldn’t help but let out a giggle at his remark. Perry noticed her mood lightening and continued, “Yeah. I’ll be honest, life isn’t easy up here.”

“I know.” Angel Wings replied. “I guess for a moment I thought I could just put on a happy face and they’d follow my lead.” Perry then began to laugh as he added, “You know Silver has the same problem.” “Really?” Angel Wings asked, somewhat surprised.

“Oh yeah.” Perry replied. “While the lads and I have sort of a… personal loyalty to Silver, not every-pony here is. For example, our lovely cook Bully Beef is here only because of the pay, Skibby was kicked off his last ship for something regarding his luck, and our very dear friend Arrow Bolt….” Perry said this last part with so much sarcasm it was impossible to be angry at him. “… Is here because of his disciplinary issues.”

After Angel Wings finished her laughing, Perry continued, “What I’m trying to say is, I know you’re not too happy with Silver letting Arrow Bolt out of the brig but…” Angel Wings interrupted him by saying, “He was just doing his job as captain?” Perry replied, “I was actually gonna say he regrets it and he’s sorry, but that works as well.”

Angel Wings then rose from her hammock and said, “I should probably find Silver now.” As she began to make her way to the door, Perry spoke up. “Two things kid. One, he should be in the galley, and two…” Angel Wings turned to see Perry use his magic to levitate her tap shoes to her as he added, “You’re gonna need these.”

As Angel Wings made her way towards the galley, she was surprised to hear the sounds of clapping, cheering, and some-pony playing a fiddle. “That’s odd.” She said to herself.

Once she actually entered the galley, she was surprised, or rather shocked to see that the crew were throwing what seemed to be an impromptu party. Several sailors, including Copper Bottom were drinking from mugs, and a few others were swapping jokes or stories.

But what was actually surprising her was that a few of the sailors, including Skibby, were actually dancing. As Skibby was dancing on one of the tables, a few others seemed to be challenging each other to a dance off as others were gathered around them.

As Angel Wings struggled to comprehend the apparent hypocrisy, Skibby noticed her and called out, “‘Ey guys, she’s ‘ere!” The festivities died instantly as the other sailors turned to face her, smiles replaced by guilty frowns. It was then that Skibby stepped forward and said, “We decided that, after what we all did, we should make it up to ya.”

From behind her, Angel Wings heard Perry’s voice say, “We forgot to mention an old rule of thumb to you.” She turned to see him, Nelson, and Silver enter the galley. The gunnery officer continued, “Sailors love to dance, but hate being forced to dance.”

Silver then stepped forward and said, “I shouldn’t have put that much responsibility and authority on you yet. I’m sorry I failed you.” Angel Wings couldn’t help but feel moved. She then stepped forward and said, “And I’m sorry I snapped.” Both captain and weather officer stepped closer to each other as they wrapped the other in a warm embrace before both, at the same time, said to the other, “Can you forgive me?”

After giving the other a knowing nod, Skibby called out, “Alright everyone, let’s shake those flanks!”

After slipping her tap shoes back on, Angel Wings joined in the fun, impressing the others with her skill. Silver himself couldn’t help but admit he was truly amazed by her skill. Not only was she technically very skilled, never missing a beat to the fiddler’s rhythm.

He was duly surprised when Angel Wings extended a wing to him, inviting him to be his partner. “Ah.. I…” Silver nervously stuttered. “I don’t know how to dance.” Angel Wings gave a knowing smile as she replied, “I think I can help with that.”

The pink mare then proceeded to carry the metal winged Pegasus around the galley and swing him around. Though Silver found this terrifying at first (and found himself regretting eating a heavy lunch), he soon found the experience intoxicating. After a few minutes he spoke up, “I think I get what you’re at…” As he and Angel Wings returned to the deck floor. He then raised his metal wing, allowing Angel Wings to twirl herself. Soon enough the entire crew (minus Arrow Bolt, who was explicitly excluded from the little shindig), were watching the two dance.

But as the time passed, the rest of the crew retired for the night until only Silver and Angel Wings were left. Realizing they were alone, Silver said, “I think I should take over the next case of extracurricular activity.” As Angel Wings began to sigh, Silver continued, “But I think that by the time we return to Equestria the others will respect your authority.”

Silver then added, “And if I may…” he began to look around as he continued, “I would’ne mind being your student.” Realizing what he was inviting him for, Angel Wings replied, “I think that can be arranged. Same time Friday?” Silver playfully answered, “Yes ma’am.”

As he began to back away, Angel Wings called out, “You forgot something!” “I what?” Silver asked before he realized what she was implying. He then gave a professional bow, the kind he’d often seen fancy clients do at balls. Angel Wings replied with a curtsy of her own. However, she then added, “That wasn’t what I meant, but it works.”

Silver realized what she meant and returned to her. The two shared a brief kiss before Silver gently said, “I love you, you know that?” Angel Wings blushed as she answered, “I know. I love you too.” They then departed the galley and both made their way to their quarters, hoping they could get a good night’s sleep.