Chapter 5: Ripples
Two weeks after Alternia’s Response to Luna, Baltimare…
The harbour city of Baltimare, the southernmost city on Equestria’s eastern coast, was one of the safest harbours in Equestria. Its waters were guarded by the narrow mouth of Horseshoe Bay as well as the naval fort situated there, protecting ships from storms or any other seaborne threats, and for good reason. The dockyards of Baltimare were the second greatest producer of ships on our Eastern Coast, the first being Manehattan and the third being Fillydelphia.
Today, I was here to launch one of Equestria’s newest warships, a battleship, whose massive, knife-edged prow stood proudly in front of me in the slipway, ready to be slid into the water. There were no guns in place, and the ship’s armor belt hadn’t been installed yet leaving gaps in the side. However, she still cut an imposing sight.
While Equestria had no real need to maintain an armada for offensive purposes, I had always made sure Equestria maintained a fleet that could defend her shores, and protect her overseas allies. This battleship would join the twelve other battleships dispersed in various ports and fleets.
I levitated the champagne in my magic, ready to smash it against the ship’s steel hull as hundreds of ponies watched eagerly. The image of me supporting Equestria’s military endeavours would be a very positive one. I hoped to add it to the plethora of charitable, public, and social events I had already attended, such as the Monthly Fashion Week in Manehattan, the Cloudsdale versus Fillydelphia Thunderball match, and the Vanhoover Sun Marathon. Harlequin and Buzz did not like having to escort me while I ran the marathon as it forced him and a few others to run as well, but the cheers I received when I crossed the line (somewhere in the middle of the pack) were well worth the slight displeasure of my guards.
“I name this ship the Ark Royal. May she serve Equestria long and bring her crew home, no matter what task is asked of her,” I declared. With that I swung the champagne bottle at the hull and shattered the bottle against the bow, sending the ship sliding down into the water stern first. Hitting the sea with a massive splash, sending up mist that covered the crowd, the ship was guided by tugboats to the fitting docks where the rest of her machinery would be installed.
With that ceremony over, I stayed around for the reception for a bit, before I excused myself, and headed with my guards to my hotel room, for the real reason I was here in Baltimare.
Meeting with all three of my sisters these days was not easy. Chrysalis, Simulacris, and Belladonna had plenty of meetings with other Equestrian officials to discuss topics on changelings working in Equestria, and had their own hives to run.
Today though, I got lucky. Belladonna and Simulacris were visiting Baltimare to discuss with Hanna Belle and Marenitz the details of future changeling participation in the Equestrian Foreign Legion, and in the Equestrian Intelligence Service. Chrysalis was unavailable, but she had sent an envoy apparently to represent her.
A smile spread across my face as I opened my hotel room door and found her waiting for me, with my younger sisters.
“Auntie Alternia! It’s been too long!” exclaimed Lamia, Chrysalis’s oldest daughter and heir, and my niece. I smiled as she walked quickly towards me, the gears in her prosthesis whirring. She was wearing a matching glass eye today instead of her usual eyepatch, but my niece, in spite of her scars, was as bright as ever. Belladonna and Simulacris were close behind her and chuckled in amusement as I met my niece midway into the room and embraced her tightly.
“I heard that you ruled the hive for a while as your mother conducted business with Belladonna and Simulacris. How did that go?” I asked.
Lamia grinned. “Mother was very proud. It’s another reason why she sent me on this meeting. She wanted me to get some diplomatic experience.”
“Which you will need. The Great Hive Mothers know that your mother is terrible at diplomacy,” said Belladonna as she rolled her eyes.
I frowned at Belladonna warningly as Lamia flinched, but a narrow-eyed Simulacris was the one to speak up.
“Play nice, Donna. You aren’t much better,” said my younger sister.
Belladonna grimaced. She had caused a great deal of conflict in our family by attacking Chrysalis’s hive in the first place, even if it was in an attempt to avenge me and my mother.
“You have a point,” conceded Belladonna.
I nodded and sat down on a sofa chair. “Well then, let’s get to the reason why I wanted you to meet me. But first, were any of your hives interested in Marenitz’s offer to hire changelings as intelligence operatives or to buy information from your hives?” I inquired.
Lamia, and my sisters nodded. Simulacris even grinned. “Your admiral was most persuasive, and I anticipate having the agreement finalized by tomorrow’s meeting.”
It was then that Belladonna asked, “Why are you smiling so widely, Alternia?”
I calmed myself. Sure I had the perfect plan for my problem, but what I was discussing was no laughing matter.
“Well you see, sisters, niece, I’ve had a little bit of a pirate problem,” I started slowly.
My niece’s brow furrowed, and she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She frowned at her mechanical prosthetic, loosened the straps slightly with her magic, and settled back into a more comfortable position. “Can you elaborate, Auntie?”
“I’ve received reports from Princess Luna in Venecia indicating the reason for why we have been missing some ships since the tsunami.” From the saddlebag that one of my soldiers carried, I produced several documents and laid them out on the table in front of us. “The cause appears to be a surge in piracy, leading to a series of shipping attacks all around Venecian waters, as reported by survivors of these attacks.”
I glanced at Belladonna, Simulacris, and Lamia meaningfully. “Now if this was a random, one off surge in piracy, I would simply send out a few more ships to assist Luna, but there’s something odd about these attacks.” I pointed to the shipping cargo manifests of the attacked ships. “Some of the ships that have been attacked were fully loaded with cargo, but many of them were empty, having offloaded their supplies at Venecia.”
Belladonna levitated the shipping manifest closer to herself so she could read it in detail. “Is it possible the pirates simply made a mistake when they attacked those ships?” she asked.
“It’s possible, but unlikely. The pirates of the Eastern Sea can be quite intelligent. They would have known these ships were coming from Venecia, thereby realizing that they would be empty. In addition, most pirates have informants at ports so they can track and follow ships that leave, and they also monitor the radio channels,” I explained.
Simulacris frowned. “So how can we help you? I’m sure your navy is more than capable of hunting these ships down.”
“Yes,” I admitted, and then grinned. “But not capturing them alive.”
Belladonna nodded sagely, as a similar grin spread across her features. “I’m beginning to see where you are going with this, Alternia. Please continue.”
I gladly did, and when I finished, I got what I wanted.
A week later, Eastern Sea…
The sea was calm as the RMS Carmane steamed through the waves, colored orange by the setting sun. With two red-painted smoke stacks, black hull and white superstructure, the ship was a shining example of the Royal Equestrian Mail Steamship Company.
Which was why said ship was being stalked by the pony pirate, Captain Nobeard the Smooth of the pirate ship Close Shave. Standing on the poop deck of his boat (that is the rear, and highest deck of a vessel), he cut an indescribable sight.
That is, an indescribably poor sight.
There’s a quote that says that “piracy never pays,” which applied quite well to the pirates of the Eastern Sea. Nobeard, being a typical example of a pirate, had a tattered, oil-stained, once-red cloak, a tricorn hat that was torn at the edges due to shrapnel from some old battle, his horn hadn’t been polished in a month, and really black teeth. Even then, he was still the cleanest of his crewmates, a motley bunch of griffons, ponies, minotaurs and diamond dogs, all of whom bore the scars and the stink of a pirate’s life.
His ship was not much better, it hadn’t had a paint job in ages. Yet, to his credit, Nobeard had done what smart pirates did, and made sure he had a good ship. The Close Shave was a sleek clipper with a single steam-driven propeller. Together with the generous amount of sails, she could make nearly twenty knots, fast enough to intercept merchant vessels and evade patrol boats.
In addition, Nobeard had fitted his pride and joy with eight gun carriages on the lower deck. These could fire sixty-eight pound solid or explosive shells. The problem was these guns were muzzle-loading smoothbore cannons, and therefore inaccurate for long range fire, and slow to reload as every time the gun had to be pulled back into place. Weapons were hard to come by these days, particularly since the Equestrians were keeping a really tight lid on what weapons and artillery they had.
Still, these eight-inch diameter guns were good enough to hold a liner at gunpoint. Once Nobeard’s sole unicorn technician had intercepted the liner’s radio communication, his gryphon and pegasi crewmembers had spotted the liner. From then on, it had been relatively easy to intercept the vessel, approaching as a nondescript coal ship.
At least, until they came within two kilometers. Grinning, Nobeard barked an order. The Close Shave’s crew wheeled out their 68-pounders to their rough-cut gunports and raised the Jolly Roger.
Temporarily dropping his spyglass, Nobeard ducked into the wheelhouse on his ship, and told his radiopony to send the following message:
“RMS Carmane, this is the pirate ship Close Shave and her captain Nobeard the Smooth! Slow down, and prepare to be boarded! Or we fire!”
The Equestrian liner didn’t respond immediately. So Nobeard lifted his spyglass, peering through the wheelhouse’s cracked glass windows and to the ship. As he did so, he rubbed his hooves in glee as he saw the open-mouthed passengers on deck. Rich, foppish ponies, all with jewels, gems, accessories, all for his taking. His spyglass lingered briefly on the curves of the younger mares on the ship, before he continued his examination. The crew were either frozen place, or hastily running around on deck like headless chickens, uncovering the davits to their lifeboats. Like that would help them.
The radio crackled and Nobeard turned to glance at his radio pony who grinned, showing off his gold tooth, as he cranked up the speaker so that his captain could hear the nervous sounding voice of a young mare.
“This is Captain Surprise of the RMS Carmane, please don’t shoot! We’ll give you anything and won’t say a word, just don’t kill us!” begged the mare.
Nobeard chuckled and grabbed the radio microphone. “Just let us aboard the vessel, and after we take what we want, we’ll be on our merry way,” he said in a slightly smoother, but just as brutish tone.
“Really?” squeaked the mare, a note of hope in her voice.
“Oh yes,” said Nobeard, winking to his radiopony.
“Oh thank you, thank you! You won’t forget this!”
Lifting his hoof off the microphone button, Nobeard guffawed along with his radiopony. “Pretty little thing. Of course I won’t forget this.”
Trotting back toward the wheelhouse window, Nobeard returned to his spyglass as the liner neared, her crew clustered on deck along with all of the passengers, who had been arrayed with all their finery. All of them were watching his boat nervously as they neared to only one hundred meters.
It was then that Nobeard noticed one passenger who seemed strangely unworried. Standing near the bridge of the liner was a female unicorn clad in a plain brown sea-cloak, who watched Nobeard with a gaze that spoke only of contempt. Nobeard ignored the look though as he sneered. A haughty thing like her would scream louder. Mares like those were all bark and no bite.
At least, that was what Nobeard thought, until the hooded “unicorn” was engulfed with emerald fire from the hoof up. The brown cloak burnt away, replaced by black, polished carapace and holed legs.
“Let fly!” roared the changeling.
On her command, the “foppish passengers” sprang into action. Green fire engulfed their lavish dresses and posh suits to reveal scores of changelings who seized shortswords, boarding pikes, and heavy crossbows within the lifeboats, which they then mounted on the sides. The pony crewmembers who had crowded around the “lifeboat davits” uncovered them to reveal eight four point seven inch breech loading naval deck guns that were turned to bear down on the pirate boat. From doors on the topmost promenade deck and cargo hatches poured out Lunar thestrals in full black armor, with axes, more cutlasses, and spears.
And worst of all, a Royal Equestrian Naval Ensign rose to join the flag of the Royal Mail Steamer.
“Oh what a load of horsecrap,” croaked Nobeard as the “liner’s” guns roared, and the first volley of crossbow bolts soared toward the Close Shave.
Overcome with shock and fear, the pirates were taken completely by surprise. The wheelhouse exploded as high explosive shells tore it apart, shattering the main wheel, killing Nobeard, the radiopony, and splattering bits of them across the deck. More shells blasted holes into the deck, and sent pirates flying, or even worse, blasted eye-gouging splinters through the interior of the ship. Ice enchanted crossbow bolts froze pirates to the deck, while lightning-enchanted arrows sent electricity arcing across the steel hull, stunning anybody touching metal.
One of the pirate gun crews, the only one not completely paralyzed by the attack, managed to fire off a single 68 pounder shell. The explosive shot slammed into the Carmane’s side, blowing a massive hole into its steel hull, letting empty bunkbeds and cabin furniture drop into the sea. Hurriedly, the pirate gun crew pulled their cannon back in, trying to reload it. That was when two bolts sailed through their gunport and hit the wood deck, whereupon their enchantments activated and they released a massive cloud of thick, cloying smoke.
“Fire! FIRE!” roared the pirate guncrew as they stumbled through the packed decks, charging for the hatches. Their cry of panic was echoed throughout the Close Shave, which turned into a chaotic scramble for fresh air, as the mass of pirates fought each other to escape the smoke.
Those pirates on deck and balanced on the yardarms of the sails were a bit luckier, but not by much. Pinned down behind whatever cover they could find by the hail of crossbow bolts, the pirates could do nothing as Lunar thestrals descended straight down upon the vessel. Surprised, outgunned, and faced with overwhelming opposition, many pirates threw down their weapons as thestrals roared at them to do so and were taken into custody.
By the time the thestrals, led by Captain Vlad—commander of the Lunar Guard—actually landed onto deck, all the pirates that were not moaning and bleeding onto the now blood-wetted and arrow-forested deck had surrendered. It didn’t matter if they were pony, minotaur, griffon, or diamond dog. Every one of them were now bowed and cringing as Vlad’s narrowed gaze travelled over them.
“Where is the captain?” Vlad demanded.
A trembling diamond dog crawled forward on all four paws, not daring to look up. “He’s dead, I’m the first mate.”
Vlad winced briefly, and grimaced. “Tell the last of your crew to surrender, and we shall show them mercy.”
The first mate’s head bobbed up and down. “Yes sir!”
A few hours later, the pirates had all been imprisoned into the cabins (now modified into decently comfortable prisons) of the Armed Merchant Cruiser SS Carmane, and the commanders of the raid were seated around a mahogany table.
“Well that was fun!” said Captain Surprise happily, her yellow mane as fluffy as a certain pink-party-pony back in Ponyville, except hers had a captain’s hat perched on its top.
Phasme, the commander of the two companies of Chrysalis’s changelings on the vessel mirrored her colleague’s infectious smile. “That was some rather good acting on your part, Captain,” she said.
Vlad, Luna’s thestral captain of her personal guard regiment chortled. “Indeed! Let’s stave in the caskets and break out an extra pint of rum for everypony and the changelings. Yo ho ho and a bottle of rum!”
Phasme rolled her eyes, though she grinned at Vlad. “I’m tempted, but first...” Phasme turned to Surprise. “What’s the damage report to the Carmane?”
Surprise, her lips turned upside down in an adorable pout, rubbed the mahogany briefing table as if it was a baby. “Those meany weeny pirates put a big hole in my precious. She can make ten knots, but we’ll have to return to Venecia for repairs.”
Vlad sighed. “Well that was to be expected. This is the first time Equestria has conducted a joint naval operation with the changelings. Next time, Phasme, do you mind getting your changelings to prioritize peppering their gunports with smoke rounds?”
Phasme nodded, and made a note on her clipboard. “I’ll make sure to brief my squad leaders. Did you discover anything out of the ordinary or of interest on the pirate ship?” asked the changeling.
“I have, and to be honest, I have no idea what they are.” Vlad reached down under the table to his saddlebag and took out several packages in clear ziplocked bags from it. Sliding them to the centre of the table, Vlad waited for his companions to take a good look.
Surprise grabbed one of the plastic bags, narrowed eyes fixed on the contents. “Looks just like a lot of gold to me.” And it did. The plastic bag was pretty much filled to the brim with gold coins, jeweled necklaces and bracelets. The rest of the bags had an assorted collection of goblets, more coins, and rings of all sizes.
“Yes, but something looks strange about these gold pieces,” said Vlad in an insistent tone.
“You’re right.” Phasme, eyes wide, levitated a goblet for closer inspection and gasped. “This is a Griffon goblet from the reign of King Grover!” Phasme picked up a bag of rings and bangles. “These are Zebrican hoof bracelets, from eight hundred years ago!” she exclaimed.
Glancing at the ponies and changeling in the room, Vlad picked up a bag of coins that had Celestia’s profile on one side, and Luna’s silhouette on the other, this wasn’t a modern bit though, judging by the flat surface and rough edge. “So this isn’t just gold. These are archaeological treasures from bygone centuries. How did they get aboard a pirate ship though?”
Phasme stood up and made her way to the room’s door. “I got a feeling we need to speak to the first mate of the pirate vessel again.”
The diamond dog first mate was brought out of the cabin he had been locked in and back into the SS Carmane’s temporary interrogation room, which used to be one of the storage rooms. The bare, white-walled room was now reconfigured into a bare interrogation room with a single battered wooden table and a few chairs.
Phasme, her changeling fangs glinting in the dim light leaned forward onto the table, and pushed a bag of gold to the centre. “So, Golddigger. Tell me about how you came across these.”
His single remaining grey eye flicking left and right, Golddigger scratched his eyepatch in a nervous fashion. “I don’t really know much.”
Vlad frowned at Golddigger. “What do you know then? Anything you say could help your case in court. At least, depending on whether it’s useful or not.”
Golddigger swallowed and studied the bag for a moment before meeting his captors eyes.
“Okay. As I said, I don’t know much about this, but a little more than a month ago, a mysterious pony came into Port Royale. Couldn’t tell if it was a she or he as he wore a really heavy cloak, but he asked ta meet with the captains. So my cap and a bunch of others meet this weird pony in a small room at the local tavern, and I’m talking about the old sea dogs here like Brinewing, Thunderwave, Whipcrack, Merlos, Bergond, and Long Silver.
Vlad and Phasme glanced at each other. This was odd. Those captains were notorious. They never made enough of a threat to Equestrian shipping to warrant a full out invasion of the pirate base, which they had never quite discovered the location of until now, but they had substantial bounties on them. For something to bring them all together was worrying.
Golddigger scratches his ear. “Now I dunno what was talked about in that meeting, but cap came back with a bunch of loot and gems, just like this stuff here. The old sea horse said we were heading to Venecian waters to raid ships and that they’ll be rich pickings involved. I thought this was mighty strange, so afore we left, I talked to some of me other maties on different ships and they said their captains came back with gold as well, and that they were also headed to Venecian waters. I’m not the smartest dog on this ship, but my guess is they were paid off.”
Looking up from her clipboard where she was jotting down notes, Phasme asked in a slightly more soothing tone, “Do you know why that pony wanted the pirates to go to Venecia, Golddigger?”
Golddigger shrugged. “Nope. Cap wouldn’t say a word. I dunno if he wasn’t talking, or he didn’t know himself.”
Vlad nodded. “Thank you, Golddigger. Your assistance is most welcome.”
And very worrying, thought Phasme and Vlad.
Magical letter correspondence between the Princesses of the Equestrian Triumvirate dated immediately after capture of the pirate vessel Close Shave by the armed merchant cruiser RENS Carmane…
Dear Alternia and Celestia,
I am sure you have both heard the news that the RENS Carmane with the vital assistance of Queen Chrysalis’s changelings captured a pirate vessel. Little has been said on the subject that you do not know from Admiral Marenitz’s report, but I would like to add that apart from being a “critical element in taking that bastard pirate Nobeard by total surprise” the changelings performed with a level of professionalism and combat prowess I would have expected only from my own Lunar guard. For that, Alternia, I am very thankful for your idea, and for asking your sisters to hire their changeling soldiers out. Also, please convey my gratitude and the accompanying three envelopes to Queen Chrysalis, Queen Simulacris, and Queen Belladonna. They will be happy to know that when this incident is wrapped up, we will publicize the participation of their changelings in this operation.
The raid did result in some alarming new findings, however. You may have heard in Marenitz's report that the pirates were paid by a mysterious pony. A pony who paid these pirates in gold antiques more suited to be in a museum or art gallery than as any form of currency or barter. An example of the artifacts we have found in the pirates’ possession are the gold hoof bracelets dated from before the birth of Equestria, representations of power and status that have not been used for eons. See the interrogations and inventory report from my subordinates.
While we are glad we finally have an explanation as to why the pirate activity in Venecian waters has stepped up, the identity of the pirates’ employer eludes us, and the timing of this worries us greatly. For if I am correct, the pirates were told to attack Venecia as if to take advantage of Venecia’s defense fleet being incapacitated by the tsunami.
Whomever this mysterious employer is, we need to locate him or her post-haste. To that end, I have two suggestions. We should have our supply convoys escorted by a heavier guard and increase patrols in the sea around Venecia, and we need to send a spy into the pirate base, now that we know its location from the pirates aboard of the Close Shave. It may take time to train and get such a spy ready for the operation, but it will be necessary.
Any further thoughts on my suggestions will be much appreciated.
Yours sincerely,
Luna
Reply from Celestia...
To our dearest sister, Luna, and our most trusted co-ruler and counsellor, Alternia.
We are glad that thy efforts in the Eastern Sea have yielded so much success, Luna, and we thank Alternia for making this possible.
While our first instinct would be to besiege the pirate base so that they cannot harm Equestrians or ponykind any longer, we realize the problem here is no longer the threat of piracy itself, but of whom hired the pirates in the first place. Hence, I firmly support Luna’s suggestions to send in a spy to find out who is behind the attacks, and also to increase the ships guarding our convoys as well as the patrols around Venecia. As was explained to me in our initial crisis meeting, however, we should not deploy any of our largest warships in case they worry the Griffons, even though I think the battleships would be very effective in deterring pirates.
Yours sincerely,
Celestia
Following reply from Alternia…
Dear Luna and Celestia,
I agree with Celestia, Luna, you’ve been doing a fantastic job, and your report does help illuminate a few issues, even if it raises more questions. Thus, like Celestia, I’d like to express my support for your suggestion, and will talk to Admiral Marenitz to see what she can do about both the increase in Equestria’s naval presence, and about the spy.
However, Celestia, in regards to your comment about deploying our battleships, I actually support you on your wish to send out our best warships. I admit, this is very different from the explanation you received in our first crisis meeting, but that’s because the situation is different. Before, we had no reason to deploy battleships to assist what largely was a equitarian crisis. Now, though, with the pirate raids being noticed by even Griffon ships who frequent Venecian waters, Equestria has every right to deploy its battleships to the area. Also, the Griffons will be more understanding of our increased military presence.
Both of you might ask, considering the success a retrofitted civilian liner had against one of the more notorious pirate vessels, if the measure of deploying our biggest ships is excessive. But until we can understand the nature of the employer of the pirates, I advise to better be prepared rather than caught off guard. No ordinary pony could have gotten hold of the treasures in Nobeard’s possession and it is reasonable to infer from how the pirates all agreed to go to Venecia that they were all paid similarly. Somehow, somepony managed to get all the gold and direct the seven most dangerous pirates on the Eastern Sea to prey on a single objective, which means this employer clearly has access to a large degree of wealth, and likely power to back it up.
For the following reasons, I will suggest to Admiral Marenitz to increase the naval strength at Venecia. Luna, you currently have five changeling “trap-boats,” two cruisers of the Hippocampi class and five destroyers of the Thunder class, with one additional cruiser and two additional destroyers of the same type being used for convoy duty. I propose that the next convoy will be accompanied by a flotilla of one of our newer Llamrei-class battleships, two of the heavier Sealion-class cruisers, and two Thunder-class destroyers, which will remain on station at Venecia upon arrival. Moreover, two more flotillas of the same composition should be sent to Venecian waters on patrol duty.
Please respond if you have anything to add or have problems with my suggestions.
Your sincerely,
Alternia
One month after RENS Carmane’s capture of Close Shave, Pirate base of Port Royale…
Port Royale, Pirate capital of the Eastern Sea was located between the arms of a crescent shaped atoll, which formed a massive bay. As befitting of the main pirate capital of the Eastern Sea, the bay Port Royale was nestled in was heavily protected. The tips of the island where the pirate base was sported a number of rough gun emplacements and dirt forts with scrap metal shelters. There were also a number of shore level batteries made from the salvaged hulls of run-aground vessels. Some were old wooden-hulled sailing boats sporting dozens of old cannon, others were iron-hulled vessels with heavier guns.
On the shores of the inner bay itself lay the ramshackle houses, dock facilities, canning facilities (Griffon pirates had to eat fish after all), brothels, and of course, taverns.
It was in the room of one such tavern, the “Rotten Rudder” that the pirate captains of the Eastern Sea, also known as the Brethren Court gathered with what appeared to be an equine.
The equine meeting the Brethren Court had its cloak pulled down so far down nobody could see its face. Yet, despite being among some of the most dangerous figures in the world, the equine, nobody was sure whether he or she was a unicorn, pegasus or earth pony, spoke in a calm voice.
“Before we continue with our agreement, I’ve been asked to voice our joint patron’s concern over the lack of attacks on Venecian shipping. You’ve all but ceased your attacks. Why is this?”
The pirate lords and ladies glanced at each other in silence, as if daring each other to speak.
Captain Bergond, a huge minotaur, easily as tall as the ceiling of the tavern, coated with daggers, boarding axes, shrugged and spoke, his gravelly voice grating in the candlelit room.
“Beg your pardon ‘respected client’ but have you not heard?”
The cloaked equine shifted its head to glare at Bergond and his mocking smile, but the shade of her hood was so dark, nobody could see its eyes. “Heard of what?”
A zebra wearing an eyepatch, gold rings fastened to his ears, pointed his right hoof at the empty seat at the table. “If it hasn’t struck your thick head you whelp, we’ve lost one of our mateys only a month ago doing ya job. Ever bothered to ask why Cap’n Nobeard of the Close Shave ain’t here?”
“His loss has been noted and his cut of the pay will be divided up and split among you.”
Brinewing, a female pegasi and an older pirate, frowned, and tapped her hook, which took the place where her right forehoof should be, on the table. “So you do know that not only Equestria, but the Griffon Empire, has responded by sending their warships to Venecia. And that the Equestrians have set up several changeling trap boats to hunt us pirates down?”
Whipcrack, a female diamond dog with a long leather whip at her side, and a battered captain’s hat perched between her ragged ears was less reserved. Springing to her paws, the bitch pointed one claw at the equine.
“And that’s not all, they sent their fucking battleships. Equestria’s best battleships in fact, the goddamn Llamrei class warships with four twelve-inch rifled cannons! Not to mention Griffonia’s re-deploying her entire Northern Fleet that includes eight battleships because of our attacks on their shipping!” Whipcrack sneered. “You little shit, you know we don’t have that firepower and you’re telling us to go and attack anyway?”
The cloaked head turned to face the diamond dog. “Nobody could miss the presence of Equestria’s and Griffonia’s bloated tubs. You must continue your attacks on the supply ships. Both the griffons and the Equestrians will be too busy to attack you. And as added incentive, my patron is willing to add whatever vessels survive the coming struggle to our current deal.”
“Coming struggle? The hell do you mean?” demanded Merlos, the earth pony pirate captain’s eyes wide as he tried and failed to gauge the emotions of the hooded equine. The other pirates were also quite confused by the hooded equine’s cryptic offer, but one was a bit more intelligent.
Long Silver, a griffon wearing long johns and a peg leg, found his eyes widening and he stood up in shock. “You’re not seriously planning to set off a Celestia-damned war against the Equestrians and Griffons are you? What the hell are you playing at? We’ll be slaughtered against them!”
“I’m more concerned about who in bloody tartarus your employer is to seriously consider such a thing,” said Brinewing in a low, dangerous tone.
The cloaked equine looked from pirate to pirate. “We play at nothing. War is coming, Venecia is only the beginning. Our Empress has seen how the Equestrians, the Griffons, and many others trespass across our waters, blatantly ignoring our ancient agreements because it suits their needs. You stand to benefit from the struggle. Fortune and the spoils of war are yours as long as you continue to pressure Venecia’s support.”
Whipcrack guffawed. “Well tell your so-called Empress to go stick a big fat —”
Brinewing cut in, glaring at Whipcrack. “What my associate means, is that at the present time, the task you’ve asked us to carry out seems far too dangerous for us to risk. No spoils of war or gold that you can offer will be worth risking our lives in a suicide mission and besides…” Brinewing glared at the equine. “How will your employer deal with the Equestrian and Griffon naval threat anyway? You can’t just make an entire fleet disappear.”
The hooded figure shook its head, before speaking in a solemn voice firm with confidence. “You focus on power projected above the surface. We rule the deep. The ocean itself answers our call and our elite warriors are peerless, above and below.”
The pirates blinked, and stared at the hooded figure, at least until Thunderwave sighed. “You’re crazy. I’m out.”
“Out of its flippin mind,” added Merlos. Shaking his head, he sank into his chair. “I’m with Thunderwave. It was mighty profitable working with you, but not anymore.”
“Here. There’s booty aplenty in other waters, and I ain’t risking my skin to help your ‘Empress’,” said Long Silver mockingly.
“Get out,” growled Bergond.
“Scurry back to the bed of your Empress little twat,” spat Whipcrack.
Brinewing sighed. “My apologies, honored client, but my ship alone will be of little use to your… Empress. Tell her that I am disposed to being re-employed after the Equestrian and Griffon military presence decreases. It was most profitable.”
Masking its disappointment, the cloaked figure gave the assembled pirate lords and ladies a slight bow before turning towards the door. “I will relay your decision to terminate our deal to the Empress. I fear she will not be pleased. Be wary, tides might run a bit high tonight.”
The cloaked equine left, to the chuckles of the pirates.
“Good riddance to bad rubbish. Hey Bergond, you got any of that grog you took off of that ship a few weeks back?” asked Thunderwave.
The minotaur chuckled. “Yar, I’ll go get some. Brinewing, what are you up to?”
Brinewing checked that her cutlass was at her side, and adjusted her tri-horn’s hat black feather, but didn’t look back. “Just following a gut instinct,” she said gruffly. Making nary a sound the pirate captain opened the door and caught sight of the hooded client trotting off down the street to the waters of the bay. With subtlety that belied the hook of her forehoof, Brinewing tailed the equine.
The pirate captain would have thought their “honored client” would have headed straight for one of the inns in the bay, but to her puzzlement, the equine kept walking on, his or her hooves clip-clopping on the rough cobblestones of the winding street, past the inns and toward the harbour.
“So he has a boat then,” said Brinewing to herself. It was right then that the equine turned. Fast as a rat, the pirate ducked behind a stack of crates she had identified for such a reason. Peering into the crack between two of the crates, she watched until the hooded figure turned back and continued to walk in the direction of the docks.
Letting go of the breath she hadn’t known she had been holding, Brinewing stood up and grinned as she swiped a long bottle from the crate. Uncorking it with her hook hoof, she took a swig.
“Why do they say that the rum is always gone? Anyway, where were we? Ah yes.” Brinewing, swigging occasionally from her bottle, continued to tail their former client. They were now at the docks now, deserted, apart from the occasional ship’s watch, who were asleep as usual.
The client didn’t head to any of the vessels though, he or she just kept walking straight down the main pier. To Brinewing’s puzzlement, the client continued to do so until the equine had reached its end and was looking out into the water.
That was when the hooded equine jumped.
Gasping, Brinewing dropped the rum, and galloped forward until she was at the edge of the pier, but there was no sign of the hooded equine, except for the figure’s cloak which now floated on the surface.
“Damn, I must have spooked him,” spat Brinewing. Her brow furrowed with worry, the pegasi took off and hovered over the water’s surface, trying to find the client. Strange as he or she was, the pay had been excellent and she didn’t want to lose a potential future source of income.
“Oi, you can come up. Sorry for skulking around. I just wanted to talk,” said Brinewing.
“Come on down then.”
Brinewing barely got a gasp out before five armored tentacles shot out of the water and coiled themselves around her barrel like ropes. As they pinned her wings to her sides, and covered her mouth, The pirate fell into the water with a quiet splash and sank into the depths.
All that was left was a black tri-horn hat with a feather in it, floating in the calm bay waters.
Calm bay waters that slowly, gradually began to be sucked out of the bay as the waters around Port Royale suddenly began to recede, leaving ships stranded at their moorings. The vast majority of the pirates were inside chanting loud shanties, wrapped up in their little world, but some onlookers tottered to the water’s edge staring in confusion at the sight.
For a long while, the bay stayed like this, not completely empty, but a basin of low water, low water that also surrounded the island. The few bystanders, gobsmacked, their rum-addled minds unable to comprehend the sight, walked down into the low water, finding fish that had been left behind, and even picking up odd implements and cargo that had been dropped into the water long ago.
What began as curiosity though, turned into fear, and then terror. As they saw what was coming there way, the pirates dropped everything and ran. One or two even tried to take to the sky, but it was too late, and their movements were too slow thanks to the rum.
As a massive twenty meter high wave slammed into Port Royale, crashing over the island, smashing the buildings into splinters, throwing ships into the sky like little toy boats, and wiping the pirates from existence.
Perhaps it was a small mercy that most of the rapscallions didn’t even know what hit them.
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Surf's up, mateys! Arrrr!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1692_Jamaica_earthquake
Go Brinewing! It's a pity they didn't discuss boons.
Also I'm worried about the spy. Did they survive?
*Squee*! 5 of the stories I've been keeping a close eye on have updated!
6570855 Spy was planned to be sent, but wasn't sent in yet.
6570786 Surf and Turf, you mean?
6570895 All surf and no turf. Damn pirate built on an atoll!
Yikes. The shit hit the fan at supersonic speeds towards the end there. This fic is awesome!
....Bucking Seadwellers. The hay is Condy up to?
6570902 And lo, what has come from the sea shall return to the sea.
Really interesting - so Equestria developed the idea of Q-Ship, huh?
Now we definitely entered in the eldritch abomination area
I hope that we see a RENS Thunder Foal at the climax
6570887
So it takes them a week to put together Thestral and Changeling bait ships but over a month to get a spy in? Well I suppose they'd need someone higher up to get any decent intel. But my first thought is that they'd try to snatch one of the captains to pump them for information. Then again they might not want to tip the apple cart. We saw what the extra naval presence did to their resolve. Maybe they thought that any extra pressure might scupper their chances of getting a meeting with the pirate's backer. Also the pirates may not have been able to provide much intel as they may have been staring at the shinies.
Time to stop my speculation on what is basically a moot point.
6570963 my headcanon is that they had merchant cruisers ready, just needed personnel. :P
You think pirates at the very least would know what signs point towards a tsunami, although, maybe not when they're near black out drunk.
That was fun, may I have another? Looking forward to more.
Keep up the good work. Deus tecum.
6571053 Considering the time, they were both sleepy and drunk.
6571048
I understand that but you'd still need to canvas them for both military training if they're going as bait and some sea-faring legs (Seasickness and falling over would probably be undesireable). Then they'd need some basic training to convincingly mill about in confusion while still being in a decent position to attack. They could have professional sailors aboard to take the running of the ship. But still with changelings I thought it might be quicker to infiltrate than a month. But it depends on the level they're going for I suppose.
I love Master and Commander, so I did greatly enjoy that scene.
That unnatural tsunami definitely sent a chill down my spine. Reading about the water receding was like watching a train wreck, there is nothing you can do to stop it. I wonder what the reaction to the tsunami by the Equestrians, griffons, and other races will be? There will be some survivors and they will talk.
Q-Ships FTW!
Dark.
Sheesh, all the Pirates were killed. Such a shame, though. I sort of liked Brinewing and Whipcrack. They remind me of someone I once knew.
the tech level of this Equestria confuses me. A sailing pirate and Q ships.
6571327 pirates have sails b/c they don't have resources to nab the newer (and recently introduced) steam ships XD
6571354 so late 1800's then.
6570954 Condy?
Holy moly those are some big guns.
Well we saw that sea ponies control the ocean but i was wondering are we going to see any Sirens? It would certainty fit the theme
Achievement unlocked: Piss off Cthulhu.
6571514 Actually that's pretty small. That's the weight of the cannons, not the ammo. The cannon balls would probably be around a 1/4 foot in diameter. And the cannon would be a wooden chassies, and black Iron barrel.
For a moment I thought Hooded Seapony was talking about setting off a war between Equestria and the griffons, which would have felt a little contrived after Alternia specifically said the griffons were more understanding of the situation now. Bad enough this may or may not have been the landlubbers' fault in the first place...?
6571904
I've never heard of cannons referred to by the weight of the cannon not the cannonball. If that is how it is in this story then those are amazingly small cannons that are more like hand deployed mortars.
6571918 If we went by weight of the cannon ball with 62 pounds, then the ship would have sunk just from one of the cannons firing on board. A 2000+ pound cannon would weigh too much for the wooden deck to hold up especially for a ship designed for speed and maneuvering.
6572056
6571918 Well they're 68 pound cannon ball firing. Big guns but low velocity, andnot to mention the pirates dont have the best shells :P. The deck would be strudy enough. Consider the HMS Warrior, iron hull (which this ship is) with sails and wooden insides. It had uhhh 30 of those things.
I have this suspicion that Brinewing is still alive; it may prove to be untrue, but who knows?
Well this seems a bit imbalanced. "Oh you wanna fight us? Would be a shame if a tsunami ruined everything you love.". Boom, instant surrender.
6571559
Sadly I don't have the talent nor the patience to write. However perhaps one of the fine authors here could take the idea and run with it?
6572125 Yea huge a** cannon definitely not light enough for a Pirate ship. Pirates would generally stick with Lighter cannons that could be moved easily, and be armed with little difficulty, a heavy cannon would require a good amount of discipline, to use appropriately, without killing themselves and anyone around them.
6572214 A 68-pound smooth bore would only clock in at between 900 and 1200lbs, plus a couple hundred for the carriage. Call it 1400lbs per gun. Less than half that if they're 3' carronades instead of full long guns. Actually pretty light in terms of naval weight. A stoutly timbered clipper would have no trouble with it. A wooden ship of the era and design vren's going with for this story would be framed with 6-8" timbers with 4" decking. The load bearing capacity of that much wood is really quite impressive.
In comparison, the 4.7" guns the Carmane used, if based off the British QF 4.7" naval breechloader, clock in at over 4500lbs for just the barrel and breech. Those you need good steel for
The main draw of such a gun for a pirate in this setting is that they A) have about an 8" bore, so they look real big and scary to an unarmed merchant ship, and B) would be common as dirt, since every real navy has ditched them in favor of breechloaders that can fire shells just has heavy shells just as heavy.
While I won't dispute that a pirate running during the height of the age of sail, expecting to get into regular battles would likely choose a lighter gun (most likely in the 20-32lb range), this isn't that kind of time. Vren's basing the naval tech off of the late 1800's, when merchant ships by and large no longer travel armed. So a pirate of that time doesn't need a quick firing agile armament, but something that's big and loud and throws a lot of smoke and fire to intimidate victims into surrendering quickly instead of trying to run, since they likely can't fight back.
6572214 See Drone_Roeluns replied comment. Also, the guns are more for "scare" than full out broadside engagement. Think about it, you'd just need one salvo and a passenger ship should surrender, not even in fact.
6572276 Thanks. And that's why for the passenger ship, which is made of steel, those 4.7 inch naval guns are fine XD
6572290 Heh, and my edit managed to cross post with your reply
6572298 You were writing in much greater detail though, and got everything right XD
So the seaponies are going to war with davey jones and the kraken at their side... this shall be MOST entertaining...
6571435
Y'know. The Seadweller Empress.
Her Imperious Condescenscion.
6571568 We know it's true. But do not worry - are chickens are going to heaven...
Holy crap that's ingenious! The Empress isn't aiming to cause war between the Gryphons and Equestria ! She's just going to nuke a majority of both fleets!
Good gravy this is getting as good as the last book!
Keep going! ;)
6572381 That really made no sense in the way you said it in your initial post.
6572540 You're not quite right, but...
You're not too far off either.
6572574 but of course! We shouldn't perfectly predict everything, that would be boring!
6572552
Homestuck references, dear. Try to keep up.
6572655 Not everyone follows Homestuck. Try knowing your crowd first.
6572717
Which is why I keep dropping obsure references to fish out those that do get them.
Quod Erat Demonstratum.
(i have no idea what that actually means.)