The calm sea was nearly soundless around the small speck of an island. The crew of the Resplendent had decided to take a days rest, and put some solid land under their hooves for once. Captain Mainsail couldn't help but agree, after all, even the saltiest of sea ponies need to take a short hiatus every now and then. Gallant however, couldn't relax. His mind held onto the word that the captain spoke to him before they landed. He'd never thought of the sea as cruel, what pony in their right mind would want to sail the sea if it was constantly trying to kill them.
"Gallant, hey Gallant," Carronade called out to him, "quit your daydreaming and come join us!" The unicorn was standing by a group of his fellow crewmen at the shore. Gallant pulled himself up, and trotted over to them.
"What are you guys doing?" Gallant asked.
Carronade pointed out into the shallows, "The captain's doing some spearfishing." The group stood and watched Mainsail as he waded into the shallow water, a spear in his mouth. They all watched in silence as he stood in the water, the light tide sweeping in and out of the shore. The tension seemed to be on the edge of a knife, and Gallant could barely contain himself. He wanted to say something to break it. Suddenly the spear flew from the captain's grasp and into the water, Mainsail triumphantly lifted the spear out of the water, with a large fish on the end of it.
Mainsail turned towards the crew with a big smile plastered across his face, "We're eating good tonight boys!" All at once the crew broke into a flurry of cheers and hollers. The only thing Gallant seemed to notice was the captain's smile, it was bigger than . Well, he really shouldn't be surprised by it. The captain's still a normal pony underneath his rank, but for some reason Gallant was surprised.
That night, the crew lit a bonfire. Mainsail had caught a few more fish for the crew to eat, and broke out a barrel of beer from the ship's cargo hold for them to drink. Gallant was having a good time drinking with the rest of the crew, but every now and then he'd glance over at where the captain was sitting and notice something else out of the ordinary for him. He'd be telling a joke to his crewmen, dancing like a buffoon around the fire, he even convinced the crew to break out into song at one point.
"So I take it the captain's behavior intrigues you?" Carronade pondered.
"Actually yes, it does," Gallant answered, "you've been aboard the Resplendent far longer then I have. Is the captain always like this?"
Carronade shook his head, "Put bluntly, no. The captain is as serious as they come while out at sea. However, the captain's motto is that when you're on land you need to relax and take a load off. Anyone who's been on the crew long enough has come to understand this and has gotten used to it." Gallant wasn't sure if he could, especially considering what the captain had told him earlier.
"Oy, you two have heard some of the legends about the captain right?" A crew member piped in.
"Ya," announced another, "like that he once sunk three pirate vessels crewing the ship all by his lonesome."
"Or that Princess Celestia personally promoted him to captain, nopony gets promoted by the princess herself." Said the other.
Carronade decided to chime in, "I heard that he once made a group wanted pirates surrender their vessel just by staring at them."
"You know what else legends say," Another voice called out, "they say that there are monsters beneath the sea that are so large the they can swallow ships whole, or that islands exist where gold grows on trees, or that mystical artifacts exist that bring eternal life to their possessors." Gallant looked where the voice came from, it was the captain.
"I was told some of those stories when I was a colt sir." Carronade told the captain.
Mainsail's expression grew serious, "That's all legends are boy, stories. You'd do best not to think too much of them."
The next morning the Resplendent set sail once more. Gallant wondered what made the captain say that last night, it seemed like most of the crew were surprised by his reaction. Did the captain not like his past being brought up? He thought it would be best not to think too much into it, as he wanted to follow the captain's advice. Ever since yesterday, Gallant's new position was either at the helm of the ship, or in the captain's quarters. Mainsail surprisingly didn't ask him to do much, he mostly just wanted him to listen to how he commanded the ship. He often pulled Gallant aside to give him advice on how to treat the crew, or how to act in certain situations.
"You never want to give your orders with anger." He told Gallant.
"Sir?" Gallant asked.
"You need to be loud, and forceful, but never angry," Mainsail nodded in assurance of his point, "if you're angry, the crew may falter because they feel you're loosing your cool. This is mostly evident in battle, which is expected to happen as a captain in the navy." Gallant found himself learning very quickly. He still had no idea how Mainsail could command such respect and admiration from the crew, he didn't even know why he admired him so much. As the Resplendent glided over the small swells of a calm sea, Gallant couldn't help but feel at ease. He was finally living the life of a sailor that he'd wanted to, at least he was starting to.
A seemingly uneventful week passed. The Resplendent stopped for supplies at Hispantlerla, and was now headed to Horseshoe Island. They didn't know why, the captain didn't tell them anything of their missions unless they needed to know. Out on deck, Gallant was daydreaming when he heard the captain call out to him.
"Heads up!" His gruff voice came from his right. Gallant quickly turned in time to catch the wooden cutlass that Mainsail had thrown to him.
"What's this for captain?" Gallant asked.
"Simple," Mainsail started, "you're training to become a captain, so you need combat training." Gallant looked down at the sword, even though it was fake, he was still nervous about holding it. He looked up at the captain as he was lifted the sword into his mouth. Before Gallant could utter a word, Mainsail readied and charged him. Gallant swung at Mainsail, but he ducked the attack and used the back end of his sword to flip Gallant's legs out from under him. He collided hard with the deck, wincing in pain. Gallant could tell that this was going to be tough on him, and it was. Even though he couldn't use magic to manipulate his weapon, Mainsail moved so fast that it wasn't a problem. At first, Gallant could do nothing to stop the captain's onslaught, but after an hour or so, he managed to parry a few of his attacks. Gallant learned that by placing his weight on the edges of his hooves that he could move easier, and eventually found himself putting up a fight against the captain. He got cocky, and decided to go in for an attack. Mainsail quickly ducked out of the way, spun on his hooves, and kicked Gallant's legs out from under him again.
"Right, were done for the day." Mainsail picked up Gallant's sword without a hint of lost breath.
"Right...you know...a little advice...would have been good." Gallant panted, struggling to catch his breath.
"Don't kid yourself boy," Mainsail said matter-of-factually, "advice does nothing for you in swordplay. The only way you learn is through physical practice. I'm not gonna give you any pointers in combat, you have to learn for yourself. That is the only way you will become a great swordsman."
He turned to walk away, when suddenly a lookout yelled down, "Captain! Ships spotted off the starboard bow!"