Twilight's Pirate Adventures

by David Silver

4 - There be Dragons

Days slipped past. Twilight emerged from her room for meals, but also to get fresh air. She peered over the side of the ship, watching the endless sheets of water that had become their scenery. "Fluttershy would love to see this."

"Huh?" Spike looked where she was pointing and saw an immense creature spraying water high into the air. "Woah... what is that?"

"That's a whale," said Twilight with a self-pleased smile for knowing that fact. "They may look fierce, but they don't attack ponies."

"What about dragons?" Spike peered suspiciously at the creature, though it was sinking beneath the waves.

"Not that I know of?" Twilight shrugged. "Our information on dragons, let alone their relations with everything else, is still forming." she turned towards the front of the ship, eyes following the motions of the parrots. "That is part of why this mission is so important. We can't pretend the pirates don't exist, and not knowing could cost us."

Spike did a twirl and leaned his back against the railing of the ship. "They seem like alright people to me."

A purple ear perked towards Spike. "About that. You've been spending a lot of time with them. Are you learning something?"

Spike's body went rigid. "Oh, uh, just... pirate stuff?"

Twilight leaned to the left towards Spike. "Pirate stuff?"

"You know?" Spike smiled a bit too widely. "Like how to sew!"

Twilight's head pulled back in a jerk. "How to sew?! I... would not have guessed that. You never learned that from Rarity?"

Spike laughed a little too loudly, bringing his hands together in a clap. "Funny thing, really. I've helped her make things, but she never really wanted me to do the making. I mean, I get it. She's the professional and all." He lifted his shoulders. "But none of them are, so they showed me how to patch holes in clothes. It's not as hard as I thought it'd be."

Twilight slowly nodded. "I see, that's surprisingly nice, really. Maybe I'll bother you instead of Rarity if my clothing gets damaged." She smiled gently as she raised a hoof to run along her new pirate-themed garb. "You know, you don't have to carry that fake sword everywhere."

The tension returned to Spike in a fury. "It's part of the look... Besides, I like it."

"Suit yourself." She rose to her hooves. "Celeano?"

"Aye?" She looked over from the steering wheel. "What's on your mind, Princess?"

"How long, approximately, before we arrive?" Twilight walked at a sedate pace towards the small stairs that led up to where Celaeno was stationed, the wind gently running through her fur and clothes in fitful little rustles.

"It should be--" She drew out a spyglass and pulled it from its compressed state until it was about a foot long, ideal for peering through. "Just a few more..." She raised her free hand. "Visual at three o' clock! Confirm, ye blasted dogs!"

Twilight cringed at the sudden change in tone. Her eyes went up towards the sun, trying to determine the time a moment before it hit her and she gave a nervous laugh, adjusting her sights ahead and to the right. The ship was rapidly increasing in noise as the crew rushed about.

A plaintive squawk came from above, their least eloquent member spotting something.

"What I was afraid of." Celaeno scrunched her monoscope closed with a firm click. "Princess, you should go below deck. We have raiders inbound."

Twilight shook her head, peering at what looked like two little incoming dots. "Maybe they're just friends? How can you be sure they're here for trouble?"

Celaeno shoved Twilight back towards the stairs. "A pair of dragons don't fly out this far because they want to have a nice chat. Now, ye paid me to keep your pretty hide intact, so do as I say."

Spike waved a hand excitedly. "I'll try talking to them, you know, dragon to dragon."

"That--" Celaeno hesitated, seeing Spike winking at her behind Twilight's back. "--is a great idea, Spike. Maybe they'll respect a fellow in scales." She gave an emphatic thumbs up.

Twilight hiked a brow, looking back and forth between them. "If Spike is staying, so am I." She crossed her forehooves, standing on her hindlegs. "I'm a friend of their leader, you know."

Celaeno pushed Twilight again, knocking over the bipedal pony to the ground. "Ye maybe a princess, but you're on my ship, which makes me in charge. Now get going."

With sudden irritation, Twilight's horn glowed with her angry magic. "You can't--"

"No time," came a new, male, voice. Mullet grabbed the prone form of Twilight and hefted her right up onto his shoulder. "Below deck ye go!" And he jumped down the short flight of stairs, whisking her squirming form away.

Celaeno hiked a thumb in the direction they had gone. "By most rights, ye should be going with her. You can try talking, but the moment it gets dicey, you're leaving. The contract was pretty specific, and included the safety of both of you."

The dragons drew close, a yellow scaled beast as large as the ship they rode, and a smaller red dragon that darted about, perhaps half the size, though still quite large. The smaller seemed rounder, but had great spikes on its long tail. The larger's weapons seemed to be mounted on at the ends of its fingers in the form of terrific claws that extended longer than Celaeno stood.

Spike straightened his shirt with a soft clearing of his throat, as if to assume a position of authority, even if he was trembling slightly. "Good day, fellow dragons!" he shouted.

With a great rush of air, the smaller one came up alongside the ship, its huge eye taking up an uncomfortable amount of space. "What'd you say?" asked the male voice. "Speak up."

Spike laughed briefly and awkwardly as he glanced to the others, but they were all looking to him. "Y-yes. Hello!" he raised his volume to a hoarse shout. "Welcome, fellow dragons!"

The larger one prodded the back leg of the smaller one, speaking in a female voice, booming overpoweringly, "Did they surrender yet?"

The male waved dismissively back at the larger female. "Yeah yeah, hello tiny dragon. We're larger than you, so we're taking your stuff. Be a champ and pile it up so we can just take it and go."

Spike thrust up a finger, so very small compared to the two dragons he was dealing with. "W-wait. I am a friend of the dragon lord, and we travel on official business. She will be really angry if you get in the way."

"Did that ant say something about the dragon lord?" The female peered over the shoulder of the male. "I can barely hear it."

"Yeah, that's what he said." He leaned in over the edge of the rail. "What proof do you have. You're not even big enough to be a proper dragon. Flame it, you don't even have wings."

Spike cringed at the verbal blow. "Be that as it... may. I bested the Gauntlet of Fire!" He drew his sword, as comically tiny as it felt. "I've seen other worlds. I helped topple immense evils and am Princess Twilight Sparkle's right-hand dragon!"

The female suddenly shoved the male away to the right, moving in. "Did you say the Twilight Sparkle?!"

Spike blinked with sudden confusion. "Yeah?"

She leaned in as close as she could, her breath like a small hurricane of wind. "I love her! As ponies go, she's the best! She always fixes things without even having to use her amazing magic! She's so strong, her mere presence is enough to scare everyone into order." She gave a girlish squeal of glee, clapping her massively clawed hands together in a rapid patting. "Oh Oh! I didn't recognize you." She turned her head to the side to allow her eye closer. "You really are Spike, the destroyer of Sombra. I hear you have an entire kingdom of ponies ready to kiss your feet. Ha! This is too good!"

"And here I am," boomed Twilight, speaking with the Royal Canterlot Voice. She ascended the stairs from below. "I had hoped my assistant would dismiss such... distractions... before my presence was required."

The male huffed, smoke escaping his long snout. "What are you doing? They don't look like they're surrendering at all."

The female shoved the male away roughly. "Shhh. Twilight Sparkle is here." She giggled with growing glee. "Sorry to bother you, Your Majesty. I'm your biggest fan!"

Twilight looked over the ship-sized dragon. "I... can believe that," she boomed. "What business do you have?"

The female reached back and produced a goblet that looked tiny for her use, but was as large as a proper horse. She set it on the top of the ship. "Could you, I mean, if it's not too much trouble... sign this?" She grinned, great teeth displayed. "It would mean so much to me!"

Twilight waved a hoof at it, her signature appearing with her magic in a showy flash of power, etched into the surface. "For my biggest fan, I will grant this boon." She cleared her throat in much the same was Spike had done. "Now, I am on urgent business, so I say goodbye, and good travels."

"Y-yes, of course, Princess. A pleasure meeting you." She quickly snatched the goblet, giggling all the while. "C'mon, let's go."

"W-what, we didn't get anything!" He huffed at the female, flames licking around his lips. "You are--"

She tucked the goblet away and snatched the male, capturing him in her immense claws. "You will not make me look bad in front of the Princess Twilight Sparkle, great overlord of comradery! She has forced friends across the world, and if she gets annoyed, she'll send them after you, if there's anything left after she's done with you." She suddenly let his shaking form go. "Besides, I did get something." She giggled with growing glee, starting to depart the ship. "And I will treasure it forever..."

Twilight turned away from the two dragons, one much happier than the other. "Now then... I believe we need to make something a bit more... clear."

Celaeno smiled awkwardly. "We were thinking of your safety, Twilight."

"And I appreciate that." Twilight let out a slow breath. "But I will not be carted away like a sack of potatoes unless I'm hurt."

Mullet gestured at the shrinking form of the dragons. "Well, it's settled for now. Yer ladyship, it's almost time fer lunch, will ye be joinin' us?"

Spike took the opportunity while they were talking to get his not-fake sword away. "Hey, a little food sounds like just the ticket right about now."

Twilight quirked a little smile. "Can we try something different today?"

Celaeno snapped two fingers as she turned away. "I've been waiting for you to ask that very question. Today's a treat! Boyle!"

Boyle saluted with his hooked hand. "Aye aye, captain." He strode swiftly below deck.

"This lunch'll be worth waiting for." Celaeno clapped her hands. "Now, sorry fer the shove, but when things are getting tricky, a captain needs to know their orders are followed. Ye know where I'm comin' from, aye?"

Twilight's tension ebbed slightly. "Well, yes. Emergencies can be a difficult time." She raised a hoof to her chest. "But I am not a dainty noble that needs to be sheltered. This is far from my first adventure, and likely not the last."

"Aye aye, Princess." Celaeno ascended the steps towards her steering wheel. "Good job, Spike," she said without turning. "Ye got the intel we needed and bought time until we could act on it."

Twilight raised a hoof quickly to pat Spike on the shoulder. "That was very brave of you. Did you see how big they were?!"

Spike nervously laughed, wringing his fingers together. "How could I not? Will I get that big someday?"

Twilight shrugged softly. "I'm not sure, but you'll always be Spike." She wrapped a leg around him and pulled him in for an eagerly-returned hug.

Author's Note:

That could have gone far worse. I was quaking in fear while typing about the dragons, so a few typos might have happened.

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Comments

[Daremo]

both of your safety. - both of your safety."

a soft clearing his his throat - a soft clearing of his throat

---

This does open a can of worms. Maritime law in our world says that a ship can only have one captain, and for good reason. A captain's command is law on their ship. If Twilight insists on asserting her authority, at best she could be bestowed a title of 'commodore' while aboard, but she would still be second to the captain.

Of course the caveat here is that this is not earth and our maritime laws and traditions need not apply. But the fact remains that if Twilight asserts herself in another crisis and ignores or countermands an order from Celaeno, that could go poorly for everyone.

[Booster Spice]

8740899

If Twilight became a Commodore, that would be one of those in jokes, accidental or otherwise, that you can find regularly through the show, but I suspect not many people would recognise it unless its coincidences accross multiple other events.

Wouldnt the female dragons hoard increasing in value that much more, help increase her physical size as well as clique standing?

[Twilight_Shimmer]

I kinda wanna see Spike get his own ship.

[zimmerwald1915]

8740899
I agree, she really ought to know her place, and stick to being a quiet-as-a-churchmouse passenger. Things only worked out here because of an extraordinarily lucky (and probably unique - no other dragon has ever behaved like the yellow one here) coincidence.

[Xanderfox]

Deus Ex Fangirl!

[tsaukpaetra]

darn lucky that. Still, an autographed chalice is pretty valuable indeed...

[howard035]

I wonder if Spike will be tempted to stay forever with the pirates.

[ColtKit Productions]

That's right dragons! Beware Twilight or she'll give you a friendship beating! Lol that one dragons reaction was just hilarious. She's such a fan girl.

[zimmerwald1915]

8746775
Yeah, the crew's really lucky for that coincidence, isn't it? Almost as if someone is conspiring to make things go well for them.