//------------------------------// // Chapter 6 // Story: All's Fair in Love and Piracy // by bahatumay //------------------------------// Doldrums. Nothing strikes more fear into a sailor's heart than feeling the wind dying away. The sea flattens into glass, the sails hang limp, and there’s absolutely nothing you can do about it. The feeling of helplessness is almost suffocating. Now, there were options on any vessel. There were oars, of course; but pirates were notoriously lazy. Pegasi could pull ships, but that usually was a short-term solution at best, as most pegasi lacked the endurance for true propulsion. Most captains didn't do anything but wait for the wind to pick up again. Rainbow Blitz wasn't most captains. She burst onto the deck with a sharp whistle, sending the card game that had started in front of her cabin flying and walking right through a game of dice. “All right, you lazy slobs, if there's no wind there's no cider! On your hooves, everypony, we're doing the rince na gaotha!” Ponies cheered and Applejack saw Octavia head below deck, only to soon return with a violin. A few other instruments appeared as well; Lyra retrieved a stringed instrument and Surprise pulled a tambourine from a barrel that Applejack was certain had only held water previously. “Wait. What's going on?” Applejack asked, watching the crew scatter. She knew the dance, of course—every earth pony worth her salt knew the rince na goatha—she just didn't get what they were so excited about. It also didn't help that she watched Surprise flounce by, balancing her tambourine precariously on the tip of her nose. If Surprise was excited about this, that meant only bad things. “You know,” Li'l Scoots said, her wings quivering with excitement. “That storm dance, split into two teams, like a little dance-off? I dunno if it works, but it's great fun! And Captain Blitz is the best at it!” Applejack suppressed a smile. Sometimes everything just lines up perfectly. “Ah'll believe that when Ah see it,” Applejack said dismissively and just a hint louder than necessary. Just as planned, Rainbow had been close enough to hear, and she spun around to defend her honor. “And just what is that supposed to mean?” Rainbow demanded. “I'm definitely the best at this!” “The rince na gaotha is an earth pony dance,” Applejack said with a shrug. “Pegasi just don’t have the right stuff for it.” Rainbow’s eyes narrowed. “Are you saying my mouth is saying things my legs can’t back up?” Applejack vaguely remembered something similar coming out of her own mouth in the not too distant past, and chuckled. “Maybe. Ah'm just sayin' that if we're really tryin' for some wind, it'd be best if an earth pony like me were lead.” Rainbow angrily threw her hat to the deck. “That’s it,” she spat. “You and me. Right here, right now.” “Can’t,” Applejack said snarkily, gesturing at her shackled leg and giving it a little shake. Rainbow growled and turned back to her crew, snapping an order. “Octavia, get that thing off of her.” Her voice sweetened. “We're having us a little competition, and I want to make sure my opponent is at her best.” The crew quickly split into two somewhat even groups. Applejack made sure she was on the side apart from Rainbow, something that seemed to suit her opponent just fine. Applejack had been telling the truth. The rince na gaotha is indeed an earth pony dance, and it involves a lot of hoofwork. She had danced this dance many times with her family. Well, most of the time she was part of the musicians; but she was very familiar with it. It was an intricate dance of steps, slides, and crosses, all in a set pattern and all designed to help the natural magic flow out of the earth and bring forth rain and fertility. But more than that, it was all kinds of fun. Before Applejack knew what she was doing, she was stamping her hooves and sliding along with the rest of the crew, laughing and swinging her hat. Those who say that pirates are ruffians who cannot appreciate fine things have obviously never heard the music aboard the Sonic Rainboom. Octavia and Lyra, playing a violin and a lyre respectively, played music of the streets but with skill that rivaled any in any Canterlot performance hall. They would trade off taking the lead, shifting seamlessly back and forth from harmony to melody, all the while remaining perfectly in tune. Surprise kept perfect rhythm on various barrels, which was especially impressive considering half the time she was using her face to make the sound. As always, the rince na gaotha was a dance of endurance to see which of the two sides could outlast the other. Derpy on Rainbow’s side was the first to falter, sliding when she was supposed to jump. Amidst the playful jeers, she good-naturedly stood off to the side. Dinky followed soon after, followed by Raindrops when her wings threw off her balance and made her dip instead of twist. Soon, sailors were dropping like flies. Within four minutes, there were only two ponies left: Rainbow Blitz, and Applejack. Rainbow gave a sly grin, and Applejack narrowed her eyes. If Rainbow thought she was going to win, she had another thing coming. The dance continued on. The crew’s cheering and stamping slowed as to everyone’s surprise both ponies kept dancing, apparently ignorant of the sweat trickling down their faces. Pretty soon, the effort was such that even the barbs and verbal jabs stopped, and slowly switched to taking bets on the outcome. Both contestants danced like madponies, seeing who would be the first to falter. Interestingly enough, the first one to give was Octavia's A string. It snapped mid-note, whipping back and slicing Lyra across the cheek. Understandably, this caused Lyra to drop her lyre and stumble backwards as she clutched her face in pain, knocking over Surprise in the process. Surprise flailed her legs and wings in an attempt for control, and instead ended up knocking over the rest of the musicians in one loud, cacophonous crash. The two dancing ponies, completely thrown off by the lack of music and the beat, misstepped and also stumbled. Applejack even fell to the deck. Surprise raised a hoof like she was a filly in school, except it was a rear hoof instead of a forehoof. “I took a pony to the knee, may I be excused?” she asked woozily from her new position, underneath the majority of the musicians. Rainbow Blitz looked at Applejack, and she looked right back. Octavia was the one to speak, though. Having determined that there were no life-threatening injuries, she over to the competitors. “You done?” she asked, nudging Applejack with a hoof. Now, to be perfectly honest, Applejack might have been able to go a few more rounds. But, if she wanted to get on Rainbow Blitz’s good side, she had to make sure the pegasus came out on top. “Ah’ve had my fill if she has,” she said. “I’d say we’re done,” Rainbow Blitz said, painfully pushing herself to her hooves. “Besides, we’ve goofed off long enough. Back to work! You lot! Pull out the oars! Lyra, Shoeshine, and you five, furl the sails! Raindrops, you're on point, get the ropes and start lashing them to pegasi! Bulk Biceps, take the wheel! Let's move, ponies! We've got places to go and cider to get!” “Ah’d also suggest we batten down the hatches,” Applejack said. “After that dance, that long? This storm’s gonna be a monster.” “Heh,” Rainbow said dismissively, “I don’t know if it even works. And even if it does, I’ve yet to see the storm I can’t master.” * * * Rainbow Blitz had said she could master any storm. Maybe so. But this storm was trying its darndest to best her. It had a better chance of pushing around an island. Rainbow Blitz had lashed herself to the wheel and was laughing maniacally as she piloted the Sonic Rainboom through swells that nearly tripled her mast height and threatened to engulf her and send her to the bottom of the sea. “You’ll have to try harder than that!” she roared in challenge. “No storm can sink Rainbow Blitz!” Applejack was below deck, making sure that everything was still secured and retying ropes when needed. Octavia had refrained from binding her leg again, but had taken to ordering her around like she was one of the crew--and as one of the lower-ranked members at that. Frankly, the little bit of extra freedom was well worth it. Applejack quickly retied the loose rope, lashing down the loose board. “Finished!” she called. “Get on top and check the lashings again!” Octavia barked, not acknowledging her accomplishment. Applejack nodded. “Aye, aye!” she answered, sprinting as fast as she could without losing her balance on the rocking deck. Up on the top deck, it was a madhouse; the previous lashings had not held. She had to jump quickly to avoid a sliding box, and quickly chased it down to retrieve it and lash it to the railing. Looking around, she could see that this box wasn’t the only loose thing on deck. More boxes and barrels of Celestia-knew-what slid around, making Applejack need to sidestep. She sprinted back, gathering what she could, and stacked it all in a corner. Even as the sea crashed against her, she managed to tie the ropes steadily. At least, what was left of them. To her shock, the ropes had frayed. She felt offended for only a split second--she had long ago learned to keep her own ropes shipshape--but then recovered. “Captain!” she called. “Ah need new ropes!” “I got ‘em!” Li’l Scoots spoke up unexpectedly. She’d been clinging to the railings in the storm, perhaps because she was doing something important, or perhaps because she was simply trying to impress Rainbow Blitz with her resilience. Either way, here she was, and she ran unsteadily across the tossing deck, wings spread wide for balance. Applejack nodded and looked back down, trying to see if she could tie two ropes together to hold it for now. Deciding she could, she pulled one over. To her surprise, it came much easier than she had expected, and then to her horror, she realized why. This rope had also frayed to just a few strands of fiber, and they were stretched thin against the barrels. A particularly bumpy wave hit, and Applejack crouched to lower her center of gravity. Unfortunately, that bump was all that the rope needed, and it snapped, sending barrels hurtling across the deck and right towards Li'l Scoots. Applejack didn’t even have time to shout a warning. The barrels impacted her much harder than any filly should be hit, and with a cry of pain she dropped the ropes and went flying. Instinctively, she flapped her wings furiously to try and get some balance, but even Applejack could tell that she wasn’t going anywhere but overboard. “Scootaloo!” Rainbow cried, obviously conflicted. Was one little filly worth the entire crew? Could she abandon the wheel and risk all their lives to save one? Luckily for Rainbow, Applejack reacted first. “Ah got her!” she cried, sprinting towards Scootaloo, but it was too late. Scootaloo slid under the railing and into the storm-tossed sea below. “Knew a pirate ship was no place for a filly,” Applejack muttered as she did the unthinkable--she grabbed a rope, lashed one end to the railing, clamped the other end in her mouth, and jumped in after her. Most pirates aren’t very good swimmers, but Applejack wasn’t most pirates. Letting go of the rope mid-fall so as to not give herself whiplash, she slid gracefully into the water; and when she had surfaced, she began swimming over to the thrashing Scootaloo. “Ah’m comin’, Scoots!” she called. Scootaloo, as can well be imagined, was terrified, and was writhing around desperately in the water. When Applejack came towards her, Scootaloo grabbed on desperately, instinctively trying to pull herself above the water using Applejack’s body as she gasped for air. Applejack sunk beneath the water, unable to swim. Somehow, she had to get Scootaloo to let go. Quickly running out of air, she decided to sink deeper, and Scootaloo let go on her own. “Ok,” she gasped when she surfaced again. “New strategy.” Maybe it would have been wiser to merely throw her a rope. Come to think of it, saving Scootaloo and roping an animal wouldn’t be that different. You have to come from behind and let them know you’re in charge. So that’s exactly what she did. She swam behind her, grabbed her from behind and pulled her on top of her body, restraining Scootaloo’s forelegs with her own and kicking with her rear legs. “Ah gotcha!” Applejack shouted. Still Scootaloo struggled. Now really running out of ideas, Applejack bit her ear, hoping that the shock of the pain would get her back to her senses. Scootaloo squeaked and stopped thrashing, but only slightly. “Ah gotcha,” Applejack repeated. “Breathe, Ah gotcha.” Applejack continued swimming, and suddenly realized just how much energy she had expended earlier when she tried to climb up the rope she’d brought down, but found herself weak. She grit her teeth. “Scoots, you’re gonna have to let go!” “What?! Why?” “Ah can’t pull you up, and so Ah’m gonna have to tie a loop in this rope and hold on, but Ah need both hooves to do it!” “No! Don’t leave me!” Scootaloo pleaded, beginning to flail again in a desperate grab to hold on to Applejack. “Ah don’t have much choi-” But she was interrupted by a large splash that was too big to be any supplies from on deck. In fact, it was too large to be anything but- “Octavia?” Octavia was a pony who got work done. “Scootaloo, grab my tail,” she ordered. Li'l Scoots did so, clamping her mouth firmly onto the long black tail. Octavia began to climb up the rope, pulling Scootaloo up behind her. Applejack couldn’t help but whistle appreciatively at the gray pony’s strength. Speaking of which, her own was failing. Her legs burned, and she was fairly certain she wasn’t going to be able to climb up even by herself. And after that effort, she doubted Octavia would be able to pull her up, too. Perhaps this is how she would die. At least she’d die a free pony, right? At least, that’s what she thought; until a voice from above brought her back and gave her new hope. “Do you want to drown?” Bon Bon shouted. “Grab onto the rope, idiot; we’ll pull you up!” Within seconds, Applejack was back on deck, trying to catch her breath. Octavia stood over Scootaloo, but the filly seemed to be ok. Octavia then turned to Applejack, and Applejack couldn’t help but crack a smile as Octavia’s expression softened from derision to grudging respect. * * * It was a soaked and miserable crew that assembled after the storm had calmed, though the sky was still dark and foreboding. Applejack’s hat was soaked, everypony that had wings looked more like they were carrying dripping wet miniature saddlebags, and everypony was looking through the sopping fibers of their now drenched manes. Rainbow, on the other hoof, looked still exhilarated. “Yeah! Good job, everypony! We showed that storm who's boss, huh?” The returning cheers were fairly half-hearted, and Applejack was fairly certain Lyra had given her a rude hoof gesture behind her back. Rainbow waved a hoof in disgust. “Ugh, you ponies are lame. As you were, girls. Get what you can for breakfast… whatever’s left, that is. I’m gonna go check on the powder.” She quickly descended below decks. “And as for you…” Applejack suddenly noticed that Octavia was carrying her cannonball again. She sighed and stretched out her leg, and Octavia snapped it on with a bit more force than strictly necessary. Rainbow returned, looking a bit more shaken than before. “Ok, good news, most of the powder is dry. Bad news, most of what food we had left is gone.” Dinky shrieked and sprinted belowdecks. She slipped on the wet deck and bumped flank over teakettle down the stairs, but quickly popped up and continued shrieking as she went to go check on her supplies. Frankly, Applejack didn’t see what she was so worried about. Considering the state of their supplies, this could be considered nothing but an improvement. Rainbow Blitz stretched. “Well, I'd say you all deserve a break. Head belowdecks, get some shut eye. I'll take first shift; Bulk, you're next.” The huge white pegasus saluted. Rainbow headed back to the wheel, but paused as she passed Applejack. “So what's with the cannonball?” she asked. Octavia blinked. “Your orders, captain.” “I dunno…” Rainbow Dash said slowly. “She’s quite the sailor. She dove in after Scootaloo, and she knows the ropes. I’d say she could help the crew out. Can she follow orders?” Octavia glared at Applejack. “Yes, captain,” she answered. “I’d say she’s a pretty good sailor, huh?” “She’s no landlubber,” Octavia said with just a hint of bitterness. Applejack thought that was the best compliment she would ever get from the gray earth pony. “All right, then,” Rainbow said. “Let’s keep it off for a while.” She grinned. “She’s too cute to be locked up, anyway.” Octavia glared angrily but said, “Yes, captain.” Applejack couldn’t suppress a wide smile as the cannonball was removed. She was one step closer to freedom.