Expedition to the Cloudbreak Islands

by Starglider

Vampire

Set Sail sat at the very front of the saloon, staring out at a peaceful sky through the full-height windows. The early morning sun shot rays of light through the drifting clouds and outlined the misty forms of distant floating islands. This strange place was undeniably beautiful and deceptively peaceful. All the better, she thought, to lull a pony into a false sense of security before springing some fresh horror on them.

The brown pegasus had led something of a sheltered life, growing up in Twilight's Equestria. True, she'd made cargo runs beyond the borders, out to Griffonstone, Mazein and Mount Aris. Yes, she'd dealt with her crew getting into bar fights, con-artists trying to make off with the cargo and once even a roc that had taken an unsettling interest in their ship.

None of it had prepared her for what she'd seen, what she'd had to do, out here in the Cloudbreaks; and it had only been three weeks since they left Vanhoover. It was a strange mix of excitement and dread, wondering would come next: how long would she have to keep playing captain, before they made it back to Equestria, if they ever did?

She shivered, looking around at the empty tables and the elaborate decor. As much as Set Sail believed in transparency and everypony having a say, sometimes it was best to... work things out, in private, before presenting them to the crew. The mess was out of the question, the chart room too cramped and she was still... uncomfortable with the captain's office, so the saloon it was.

Usually the further down into the ship she went, the more anxious she got; the saloon was right at the bottom, but the panoramic windows did a lot to relieve her anxiety. It was just forward of the cargo hold though, and... no, she couldn't bring herself to go in there. Not yet. At various points through the night there had been banging, shouting, sobbing, the crash of splintering wood and screeching so loud, it had reminded her of that roc. Not to mention that singing:

~Thee haughty tyrants ne'er shall tame:
All their attempts to bring thee down,~
~Will but arouse thy rampant claws;
But work their woe, and thy renown.~
~Rule, Mount Aris! rule the waves:
Hippogriffs never will be slaves.~

Azure Feather arrived next, the blue unicorn nodding silently to the pegasus before taking a seat and staring into space. No doubt the guardpony was thinking about battle tactics or combat spells or perhaps thinking up questions for her next prisoner interrogation, Set Sail thought gloomily. The glittering butterfly wings had returned to the unicorn's back; she'd probably cast the spell immediately after waking. The pegasus could certainly understand a pony wanting the reassuring feel of wings at her side, particularly this high in the sky.

Summer Scribe followed, with another of the researchers in tow; Blue Type, she was called, a lavender earth pony. The unicorn's horn was aglow, levitating in a stack of papers, and the two mares were chattering excitedly to each other, even as they drew up chairs and parked themselves at the table. Set Sail frowned, as much at their unwarranted cheerfulness and unreasonably well-rested condition as the unexpected addition. True, she hadn't explicitly said it was a private meeting, but...

Finally Nutmeg Inferno and Winter Hope arrived, seemingly bumping into each other just outside the room. The kirin was more subdued than Summer, probably still shaken by the ordeal she'd shared with her engineer friend. She still pranced lightly into the saloon, taking a seat across from Summer and listening to their chatter about interspecies relations and the economic basis for Cloudbreak trade agreements or some such. The stallion was the last to reach the table, dark bags under his eyes and a haunted expression betraying a night spent dealing with medical emergencies in the sick bay... and the cargo hold.

Set Sail looked harried herself, if not quite as traumatized as the poor stallion. "Everyone is... here, I suppose," Set Sail said neutrally, with a wary eye to Blue Type, "I'll just point out the elephant in the room. What happened to Reef is... magic beyond anything any of aboard could perform. I'll let Winter Hope tell you the details, but what he told me last night wasn't... pretty." She looked to Winter, adding with a sympathetic grimace at the stallion, "If you don't mind talking a little bit about what you... found."

Winter Hope started at the table for a few seconds, brows furrowed, collecting his thoughts. "Ok, sure. Perhaps I should start with the good news," he began. Turning to Nutmeg, he gave a weak smile. "Gearshift is doing fine. We applied the green paste Doctor Skimmer recovered... a second dose, from what I hear the first application saved his life... and the results really are miraculous."

"The skin is fully healed, if still a little tender. The pigmentation hasn't quite come back: he's got a striking cream dapple now that may stay with him for life, but he didn't seem upset. Quite liked the idea actually. I'm keeping him in the sick bay for the rest of the morning, just in case, but other than that he's back on his hooves."

"We used the last of the paste on Grenelda; it removed the pain and even cleared up the scarring on her pectoral. She said it's still a bit stiff, so I've told her to start with short flights and work her way up, but other than that... I think it's ok for her to resume her duties. That Gustus fellow couldn't thank me enough." Winter finished, wincing for some reason.

"Do you think there's any chance of procuring more of that paste?" the unicorn asked, giving Set Sail a hopeful look. "Celestia knows we could use it, particularly with our normal supplies running low."

Summer Scribe looked distraught to hear of Reef and Gearshift's condition - particularly the hippogriff - but relieved to hear that the green paste worked so miraculously. She wasn't sure what to expect, seeing it for the first time at the water park, but she was glad that the doctor's faith in it hadn't been misplaced. "I'm thankful to hear it," she said simply. "Yes, is that something we can get more of?" Her thoughts turned to his condition; perhaps they couldn't fix him... but he was still alive: thinking and mobile. Surely there was still hope? She just didn't know enough...

"It was given to us in good faith by the gillmen," Set Sail told Winter Hope, "Reef Skimmer performed a rather miraculous healing of a terrible affliction they suffer from, and they were more than happy to provide the healing paste in exchange. What they said about the ingredients made it sound... hard to produce though, so we'll have to be careful with what we can get, and not take any more... unnecessary risks. You don't happen to know how to make... Peroxide, do you?"

"Hydrogen peroxide, you mean?" Winter said, curious. "...I don't. I used to order it by the crate, back in the day... involves strong acids, I think, but I never paid attention to the details. Sorry Captain."

Shaking her head regretfully, Set Sail turned hopefully to Nutmeg, who just shrugged, saying, "Hey don't look at me. I only ever used the stuff too. I can probably build whatever is needed to make it though, if you know someone with a recipe. Especially with that factory out of fluffing nowhere."

Azure Feather remained quiet, digesting the facts. The best medic they had was now... unavailable, supplies were running low, the injured crew was recovering, but... it was clear they would have to carefully consider the risks entailed by further exploration. Chances of getting back to Equestria were... becoming slim. She frowned occasionally as she thought of their troubles - Reef's situation concerned her the most - but stayed silent, waiting for the status report to complete.

"Yeah, if Nutmeg isn't sure how to make it, we need to find someone who does." Summer stated the obvious. Assuming they didn't have books full of industrial chemistry still on the ship, but that was a bit of a stretch. "Given the existence of the factory in the Gillmen's islands, it's likely someone or something can help out if we poke and ask around enough."

"But Gears is really better?" Nutmeg asked Winter Hope, worry all over her face. "Can I see him? Is he okay? I still don't know what I did. Y-you didn't get any uh... medical... stuff that might let you know how he was injured, did you?"

"Oh well. I guess it was too much to hope for." the stallion admitted. "Uh... Gearshift, yes, it's amazing really. A very resilient specimen, even with the healing magic... Most ponies wouldn't be taking something like that so lightly, you know what I mean?" He smiled at the kirin. "Of course you can see him, just... take it easy, ok?"

"And... there's more good news." he added, with a genuine smile. "Clashing Gale finally woke up. He was a bit freaked out, as you'd expect; frankly we all were, after all he came on board as a blue pegasus, now he's a purple bat pony! Seems ok though... enough to be making small talk with Cloud Cutter when I left."

"A purple what?" Nutmeg asked in confusion, "You mean like a pony with bat wings or something, and one of those weird fleshy squished bat noses?"

"Bat ponies! You mean you haven't heard..." Summer Scribe began, before stopping herself. They were still quite rare, and not everypony followed the news. "Actually they're called thestrals: basically ponies with dragon-like wings; they haven't been around Equestria for a loooong time: not since Princess Luna got banished to the moon. "

"After their Reverent Idol returned, the thestrals started trickling back in from the Nightlands bit by bit. We know they used to be far greater in number though, there's this really famous dig that found an ancient place of worship..." Summer looked ready to settle in for a full-blown lecture.

"That's very good news, Winter!" Set Sail said in delight, cutting off the unicorn mid-sentence, "I'll have a talk with him right away, to see how he's doing, and maybe tell him a little of what's happened since then."

"Thank you, Set Sail, I'm sure he'd appreciate it." the stallion replied.

"Wow, so they're like me?" Nutmeg said thoughtfully to Summer, "I mean us? Kirin? I never even heard of them before."

Summer had been about to go into the specifics of why Princess Luna was their main figure of worship, but was reduced to opening and closing her mouth like a fish, stunned by the interruption. "...yes, like the kirin. Sort of. Anyway, I don't have any clue why Clashing Gale became a bat pony," she sheepishly admitted. She had one job, right?

The older unicorn glanced at Summer, shaking his head in amusement. Young unicorns did have a tendency to think they ought to know everything. Then his smile faded, and he sighed: "So... the not-so-good-news. Bluebell was able to relocate Cloud Cutter's shoulder. The spook- I mean, purple... pegasi seem to be unaffected by any of the painkillers we have, but fortunately my spell still works, so... she was able to sleep at least." Another sigh. "I wish I could tell you how long it will take for her to recover."

"Typically, a pony would have to stay off the leg for a month and avoid running or heavy labour for another two. Certain..." the stallion gulped and looked nervously at Azure; she was regarding him with her usual cool expressionless gaze "...magic-altered crewponies seem to recover much faster than usual. We can only hope that applies to Miss Cutter."

"Got any of that paste left to put on her shoulder?" Nutmeg asked curiously.

Summer Scribe shared Nutmeg's concerns: "Yes, it would be useful to know if it works that way too."

"We used the last of it on Grenelda," Winter said, uncertain, "but... the doctor said it might not be a good idea to try it on Cloud Cutter anyway. Something about conflicting elements, he wasn't entirely clear. Academic I suppose, until we can get more of that paste."

Conflicting elements! Summer Scribe put a pin in that. Like, if you were a spooky elemental, you needed a spooky healing solution...? She had no idea what that even involved.

Frowning, Nutmeg couldn't help but think that most of it was used up on Gearshift...

"And about... the doctor himself?" Set Sail gently prompted Winter.

"Ah, yes. The bad news." Winter Hope stared at the floor for a long while before continuing. "As you know, Doctor Skimmer has been... altered. Radically. To all appearances, it's as if his neck and extremities have been replaced by... foreign matter. What remains appears to be a mix of hippogriff and aquatic features; from his other form, I imagine. His torso and abdomen have somehow been separated and then connected by the stuff as well."

The unicorn shook his head, then continued: "I think it goes beyond that though; I tried twice to get a blood sample, and each time the syringe filled with the blue goo. Had to toss them overboard too, once the stuff began to dissolve the glass." He shuddered at the thought. "It's not even acid; some sort of magic that disintegrates any matter, though fortunately it seems some materials last much longer than others."

"My guess is, all the fluids in the doctor's body... what's left of it... have been replaced by this stuff. As to what it is... honestly I don't have a clue. I've got nine years as a nurse, three years in hospital administration, seven as a quartermaster... I'm not a scientist. I'd say ask Doctor Skimmer, or if we still had Doctor Pulse..." He shook his head. "Somehow, Doctor Skimmer is full of that stuff but it isn't dissolving him. Or anything else... most of the time. Extract a piece though, and it seems to revert to type."

"Physically, he's... stable, as far as I can tell. Couldn't find a pulse, but that doesn't seem to be causing Cloud Cutter any difficulty. Took food and water without trouble... somehow, given his oesophagus is gone. Limited mobility... oh, he mentioned he can't fly, at some length actually..." the unicorn grimaced.

"From what Reef said, I'd guess this alien matter is interfering with the wing magic flyers use to lighten themselves. Most likely it will preclude cloud walking as well. Oh and of course his amulet is gone, he found that very upsetting as well. At least the central pearl part, the other peals seem to be attached to his head now, but he wouldn't let me get close enough to investigate."

"Did... did the worms like tear him into pieces, and he healed...? I didn't even think about how he was in three pieces," Nutmeg said, wide-eyed in recollection.

Summer Scribe is still so astonished thinking about it. How could such a radical transformation happen like that? It felt like a practical joke played on them by the world, somehow! "...I'm glad he's still with us, all things considered." She looked apologetic. "He wouldn't let you get close? How is he feeling?" Though she hardly needed to ask.

"But he's okay otherwise, isn't he?" Set Sail asked Winter, anxiously leaning towards the stallion, "I haven't been able to get close to Reef either. He's been so..." she glanced towards the cargo hold leerily, "...upset since the incident."

Azure's head listened carefully as the other ponies spoke in turn, concern clear in her eyes. Cloud Cutter - one of their very few trained fighters - recovering, but possibly on the injured list for an extended period. Their only fully-trained medic was incapacitated... nopony could say when or even if he would be able to resume his duties. Things weren't looking good for the entire expedition, she thought glumly.

"How is he feeling..." Winter echoed Summer, wondering how to put this. "...about as badly as you'd expect. As you know, as soon as he got back he crawled into the hold and has refused to come out. At least he let me in..." Winter looked pained.

"At first, he seemed completely certain that Summer Scribe would find a way to 'cure' him. Then he started sobbing, and eventually... well frankly Captain he became violent. Began to thrash about, screech his head off, uh... hammer on the walls... smash crates to bits. Claimed that 'you unicorns' were responsible for his condition and 'you'd better fix it or else'. The... uh, the deck... started to melt where he was standing on it. I..."

The stallion's voice trailed off, and he looked at the captain guiltily. "Look to be honest, I high-tailed it out of there and it was two hours before I could even consider going back in. When I did, Reef was just curled on the floor, crying. Said he was sorry, and that it was hopeless, and we should just dump him off the side of the ship. To be fair to the good Doctor, Celestia knows what that stuff is doing to his brain." The unicorn was blinking tears out of his own eyes at this point. He gave Summer Scribe a beseeching stare. "Please, Miss Scribe, tell me you know how to fix him."

Azure bowed her head as she heard the full report on Reef Skimmer. The physical situation was bad enough, but to hear him in such a mental state... At least he was still alive, but the prospect of him treating patients much less going on missions seemed remote. Ugh. Looking at Winter Hope, it was clear morale was suffering with him as well. She then turned quietly to Summer Scribe, hoping for a constructive answer.

The little unicorn frowned. "I wish I had any idea on how to cure him. I barely even know what happened!" Her voice was raised, her tone exasperated. "...I've really got nothing this time, I'm sorry." she finished sadly. 'I mean, sure, technically I am responsible,' she thought, 'but who could have possibly accounted for this?'

"I'll try my best, but I don't even know where to start. Like, maybe we could poke at a sample of the magical goo stuff, but like..." she threw a hoof up in frustration. "This isn't my speciality and I don't think anyone else on board has relevant expertise either. All we can do is grope around blindly and pray we bump into a solution."

"Would you mind going into a little detail about how the problem occurred at all?" Set Sail asked with a steady look Summer Scribe, "I wasn't there, so I don't know exactly what happened to release those... things that did this to Reef."

"Sure." Summer thought back to the previous day's events. "So, the magical slime worms came from the factory; presumably some waste byproduct or magical mishap rather than an intentional creation, so I suspect there's no documentation on them. When we tried to restart the factory they came out of the pipes, and the 'containment protocol' flushed them down to the water park without our knowing."

"So that's where they attacked next - I remember seeing Reef activate his amulet, and it like..." she made an expansive gesture with a hoof, "made an expanding flash that engulfed all of the worms and dragged them inwards. So I guess he physically fused with them? Exactly what happened or why I don't know beyond that." Focused on the problem, the notion of apologising didn't occur to Summer.

"It was you, Azure, Cloud Cutter, and Melonwater at that factory," Set Sail recalled cooly, "You were going to investigate what they called a convent of witches. Cloud Cutter told me she was heavily injured when the creatures attacked her, but you used the control room to shut down the production line, so after that, the golems were able to eliminate the remaining ones. She said she couldn't use the control room herself, because you were the only one allowed to access it. Just like you were the only one allowed to restart the factory."

Summer Scribe nodded her head, "I found a card that the golems accepted as a worker pass, and I guest-ified everypony with me so they could pass. If any other pony wanted to use the control room, I would have let them..."

"...erm, actually..." The very soft voice emanated from Blue Type, who was studiously avoiding everyone's gaze "...I have to correct the Senior Researcher there. There does seem to be some pertinent documentation..." She glanced apologetically at Summer.

Set Sail looked at Blue Type uncertainly. Summer perked up, asking "Really? What did you find?"

"Um, so... obviously this is incredible find." the earth pony began. "There's so much to tease out of just this first batch of documents." the older mare said, her obvious enthusiasm dampened by the grim turn the meeting had taken. "It's like a window into their civilisation, as it was three centuries ago! Oh, I wish I could see the site... umm, once it's safe, of course."

She looked down, "I know Melonwater got off easy compared to... some of you, but even so, he's... oh, he's just, how do I put it, lost his taste for exploration, perhaps?" A dismissive shake of her head. "But never mind that! You need answers, and perhaps I can... oh where to begin..." The lavender mare glanced nervously at Set Sail "...Captain, please understand, I've only been able to translate a few documents so far. I tried... to guess what would be most pertinent."

Sighing, Set Sail's gaze softened at Blue Type's nervousness, saying, "That's what we came for, isn't it? To find out about who once lived here? I know we have some different... priorities now. But whatever you think would help, I could really use some good news right now."

Summer Scribe nodded along in agreement, sharing her researcher's enthusiasm, if still a little subdued. "Yes, yes! So what have you found out so far? We'll always have time to read more later." Also, huh, was Melonwater going to be OK...?

"Right, right!" The academic frowned, wondering if anything she'd found qualified as 'good news'. "So, this one..." Blue gestured to one of the papers with her hoof, covered in typewritten runes "...is an annual report summarising the state of the 'MagiBubble Cola Company'. It says that they'd been losing market share for years to 'Fizzland'... a competing factory, I think... and blames, uh, 'numerous endorsements, unfair media coverage and gratuitous product placement available from the competitor's Skylander connections'."

"Skylander: I'm pretty sure that refers to the legendary heroes we saw on the shrines!" Summer Scribe cut in. "I guess it makes sense they'd be in demand for celebrity endorsements!"

"Of course, Summer..." Blue Type said, annoyed at the interruption, "...now if I could finish, the next bit is about how the 'MagiBubble' company managed to recover their market share by releasing new, more 'exciting' products. The author seems very optimistic that their 'world class research and... design? development?' will 'maintain... speed? momentum?' and 'see off any further threats from those Fizzy Bottom... bozos?' They do seem concerned about 'profitability' though, with the cost of all the ingredients and the, erm, 'logistical advantage?' that their competitor enjoys, due to being in 'the core'... that must be a region of the Cloudbreaks."

"As you can imagine, the implications are enormous!" Blue enthused. "Corporations as ongoing enterprises comparable to what we have in Equestria, that must mean a complex legal code with some way to enforce contracts... Highly trained, specialised labour, that must imply a well-established educational system, maybe even universities! Oh I do hope all of this still exists." The earth mare looked around; no one other than Summmer seemed to share her enthusiasm. "...oh, right, I suppose that's not a priority right now."

"It's been three hundred years," Set Sail said frankly, "There's no telling what's here anymore. A lot more talking creatures than anypony could have imagined though. I don't see why they couldn't have universities. Assuming they didn't blow those up too."

"Oooooh, I knew it, but it's even better seeing hard proof of it! I can't wait to..." Summer looked around sheepishly. "Oh, right. Yeah, we can talk about this later. Right now, I guess we've gotta prioritise Reef's condition. So you haven't happened to translate anything related to THAT, yet...?"

"It's part of our mission here, so it's definitely an important find! The problem is... yeah. Things... could be a lot better right now." Azure Feather suddenly spoke, before quieting down again. She hoped this quiet academic would turn up something that would help.

Blue Type sighed. "The doctor... I know, priority research. This second document does seem to be relevant, it looks like an internal memo." she continued, gesturing at a handwritten note. "As you can see it's somewhat damaged, but it seems to be a series of complaints or warnings to the 'management', from one Foreman Fizzo. He goes into some detail about 'inadequate testing', 'understaffing', 'mindless... constructions? golems maybe? ...being no substitute for 'trained engineers', and how the new product range is a 'step too far' and 'flirting with disaster'."

"And this third one completes the picture." the earth mare said in a satisfied tone, pointing out a carefully written scroll bearing an elaborate official stamp. "It's some kind of incident report or maybe legal judgement, stating that the MagiBubble Cola Company bears full responsibility for creating 'The Gulper', as well as many smaller 'animate magical hazards'. It also says they bore full liability for the ensuing damages in the fight with the 'Skylanders' as well the cost of incarcerating the creature in 'Cloud Cracker Prison'."

"Look at this..." she unrolled the scroll, exposing a sketch of something resembling an enormous blue slug with arms facing off against a six-legged fish-creature bearing sword and pistol; almost exactly matching the pose of the statue they'd seen in the water nexus. "It finishes by saying that the company 'does not appear to have sufficient funds or skilled staff remaining to safely reopen', and that.... assets will be seized and the site quarantined."

"Oh, and on a happier note... you might find this useful Summer." Blue Type said, smiling and pushing a page filled with her own mouthwriting over to the unicorn. "It's a translation of some of their advertising, with a description of each kind of soda they were making." Her smile faded as she glanced back at the captain. "...and that's... all I have, for now."

Set Sail looked about ready to cry, saying unsteadily, "The only thing I can think to... help Reef is to find wherever that other factory is. Maybe they weren't... as much of a disaster as this one? It's been so long though..."

Summer Scribe squinted at the document: warnings of imminent danger, complaints from the overworked workers of hubris and folly... yeeeep, that does sound related. "Hmmm. 'The Gulper'? 'animate magical hazards?' So this is a disaster with legal recognition." She read on. "So wait, this factory made an entire magical villain - which the Skylanders had to fight and imprison - and the lingering dormant slime worms were just the side-effect of that?!" In that light, she was thankful it hadn't turned out worse. Buut... it did seem like they'd unknowingly breached a quarantine. Whoops... but how could they have possibly known in advance?

Summer scooped up the notes. "Thank you! I'll have to read all I can, especially about this 'Gulper'. Maybe figure out what products were made and how, see if there's any lines of inquiry there..." she nodded solemnly to Set Sail. "As long as we're not the only people out there who have experience with this, we're not out of hope. I refuse to believe that there aren't any corporations in the Cloudbreak Islands anymore! We'll just have to see it for ourselves!"

Set Sail didn't seem mollified by that, staring angrily at Summer as she growled, "And you don't even—!" That was as far as she could get before choking up; with a final anxious look at the other ponies, she whispered "I'm sorry!", then raced out of the room.

"Hoo boy..." Nutmeg murmured, watching the captain depart.

Summer Scribe blinked; before she could put together a response, the captain was out of earshot. She looked around anxiously: "What did Set Sail just apologise for...?"

"Flare up," Nutmeg said easily, "Ponies don't really get those, but uh... you know, if she was a kirin. A lot of stuff would be on fire by now."

Blue Type seemed lost. "Perhaps... do you think... she holds herself responsible for everything that happens, to the crew I mean? She is the captain, after all. Or, the 'acting captain', I think... ?" she finished, uncertain how that all worked.

"Morale issues." Azure stated plainly, shaking her head lightly, before nodding to Nutmeg. "This isn't easy for her, with her crew in such a bad way. It's a weight... she didn't really need right now."

"I could give her a sedative." Winter Hope mumbled, staring into space. "Or failing that a stiff drink." he said, eyes settling on the saloon's modest bar. "You know, to calm the nerves. Celestia knows I could use one right now."

"Mmmmm... yeah, I got it: she's stressed to all hell and back with everything going on. I know how it goes: you have to keep yourself together and keep at it, because if you fall apart things just get worse." Summer said, pondering Winter's suggestion. "Now that you mention it, I could use a drink too..."

Nutmeg wasn't one to complain about ponies being okay with getting a little drunk. Azure just shrugged: "Haven't had a drink since arriving in Vanhoover before coming onto the ship. Would definitely not mind a drink right now." She looked at the rest silently, wondering who would go for the cider first...

And so the four ponies and one kirin proceeded to drown their sorrows, pouring out drinks and telling each other it would be ok as they watched the sun crawl up into the sky. Even Blue Type joined in, although she stuck to the root beer. Winter Hope excused himself early, saying he had to check on the patients, but the speculation about what civilisation might still be out there got wilder and wilder, with only Azure's occasional interjections to drag them back to reality.

---

Set Sail found the great airship's sick bay to be relatively quiet, with the doctor self-banished to the hold and the part-time nurses attending to other duties. Three winged ponies sat in quiet conversation, all with blank eyes glowing white and coats turned similar shades of deep purple. Unlike the pegasus mares, the stallion's wings were formed of bones under skin webbing, covered in fine purple fur so dark as to be nearly black. In the opposite corner the second mate, Trade Wind, was dozing on a cot.

The acting captain eased into the sickbay, wincing at the sound of her own clopping hooves on the boards as she made for their direction. She didn't feel as confident, seeing that he already had... ponies to talk with him, who understood his situation so much better than she did.

Silver Frost lowered her head, in an emotiveless impression of a relieved sigh, attempting to calm her nerves. Ever since crash landing here and... dying? Unliving? the state of her new self had been a constant concern. However her team leader being completely out cold and... even more radically transformed than the rest of them? That was the real source of anxiety.

"It's nice to see you're finally up and about again. Do you... feel fine? I admit, I've felt uneasy since the crossing. Wouldn't wish this on anypony, but you got these... bat wings! Ain't never seen anything like it happen to a pegasus before."

Clashing Gale was still trying to understand his situation. When he'd taken the controls of the Storm Piercer, he'd been a healthy blue Pegasus with his whole life in front of him. Now... he had changed so much. Absorbing Silver Frost's words, he took a little while to respond: "Yeah, I know... I don't know what else to say about the wings. They're there, they feel... strange. The storm... I saw the barrier, the controls getting fried and.... that's all I remember. I've really been out that long, huh?"

"Yeah, it's been weeks." Silver Frost fretted, hooves a bit skittery. "Sounds like your memory is ok. That's good. Umm, do you need anything? Hungry, thirsty, uhh, any other comforts?" It was such a relief to see him back on his hooves... but something about talking to your now totally transformed superior was difficult to wrap her head around.

Cloud Cutter smiled in relief at Clashing's words. "We were so glad when the doctor said you were only unconscious, but you didn't wake up, until the magic started... changing you. They have a magic here that does that sort of thing. More powerful than anything I've ever seen before. You won't die or anything, at least we haven't. It's a... healing magic, in a... mixed up sort of way. Ponies have been joking that we're all a bunch of... zombie ponies. It's silly, I know."

Silver chuckled at Cloud's words, trying to inject some humour: "Well, if we're zombies, you're a vampire, huh?"

Hearing familiar voices was definitely a comfort for the new thestral, even if their owners were so drastically changed. Cloud Cutter's description of dangerous, unknown magic made him grimace, but Silver Frost's response only set him thinking.

"A vampire? Sounds like something out of a foal's story book. That being said... I am hungry. For what, I don't know, and that's..." He paused, but the frown on his face told the story: he had no idea what was really going on, and that was worrying to say the least.

Silver Frost perked up at the mention of hunger. Maybe Clashing Gale could still enjoy the comforts that she and Cloud Cutter could no longer appreciate? "Well... If you feel good enough to walk, we could head down to the mess hall and figure out what your cravings are?" Her tail was sweeping with a hint of interest.

For her part, Set Sail now had a more visceral reason to keep silent. They were in public. Nothing could possibly happen if he noticed her, but... she'd heard stories too. She tried to dismiss her worries as jumping to conclusions, but as the only pony here brimming with life, it left her feeling a little vulnerable. Her irises narrowed as one of the spooky ponies suggested they go to the mess hall.

They were bound to notice her now, so the pegasus stated clearly: "Clashing Gale. They said you were awake. I wanted to see if you were doing alright. I suppose your... friends are catching you up to speed with what's happened in the past few weeks." She stood resolutely, trying to convince herself that she wasn't preparing to become a vampire's first meal here.

Clashing Gale stared at this new pony. "Third Mate... Set Sail?" They'd had a chance to meet the deck crew in the training drills, but not really get to know them. "I... yes, my team is helping me learn what's happened since our... landing?" He paused... before hissing softly under his breath and shaking his head heavily.

It was at that point that a thin purple unicorn trotted briskly into the sickbay, skidding to a stop as she realised another pony... was standing around just inside the doorway. "Umm, excuse me Set Sail, if I could just get around... oh, Clashing! It's true, you pulled through." Mystic Rune nodded curtly to Cloud and Silver; she always felt a little self-conscious, first being the only unicorn on the Harmony's Storm Piercer team, and now the only unicorn in the even more exclusive club of strangely transformed ponies. "I'm so glad."

Silver Frost gave her comrade a little hoof-wave. "It's a small miracle, isn't it? Peculiar that he's turned out... different, but everything about this is so strange, anyway. He seems to feel right as rain; I look forward to him being back on crew."

"Right, he's... Clashing, you're a batpony! Why is he a batpony?" Rune looked around the sickbay for some sign of a medical professional who might answer this question, without success. "W-Where's the doctor? Or even the nurses? Did something happen..." The unicorn bit her lip reflexively... to little benefit as it had been numb since her transformation.

At the entrance of the purple unicorn, the newly christened vampony actually managed a smile. "Mystic Rune? You're okay? There's a relief..." His gaze quickly returned to Set Sail. All the stories about vampires... were they really true, he wondered? "Frost, as interesting as food sounds right now, I don't think it's-"

Set Sail had been staring, fishmouthing for a moment. Her brain had not prepared her for this sort of response. "Uh-th—well, to... catch you up on things," she broke in, blinking in surprise. "Trade Wind has some badly broken legs. The captain and Pearl were... oh no, they didn't tell you, what happened after the Storm Piercer failed in the heart of the storm?"

Silver Frost lowered her head. "...Yeah, they fell overboard. So Set Sail's taken leadership by seniority. We've been making do across every field, really: Summer Scribe managed to be the most senior research pony by sheer luck, somehow." A low chuckle. "Still, we're not dead yet, so we shouldn't complain too loudly."

"That's when we lost Raindrops." Mystic Rune said, ears drooping as she glanced nervously at Set Sail. "She was... blown away. In that terrible gale. There were flying boulders, hundreds of them, they... damaged the power feed. Rainy, s-she climbed through the hole to fix it but... she couldn't get back inside. She... s-she saved us all." The unicorn gulped. "The rest of us are ok..." she ducked her head. "...except my magic. And the other's weather sense. Oh, but you don't want to hear me moan."

Hearing the fate of Polar Sky and Pearl Gleam... it was clear that affected Clashing Gale, but he said nothing. Hearing that one of his team was lost as well, that got his attention and then some. "Raindrops?! We lost... the Captain, the First Mate, the Second Mate's badly injured, Rune's magic is... limited, Cloud Cutter's weather senses are off... Raindrops is gone..." The more he went, the worse he looked. "Who else did we lose..." He ended up replying, laying back on the bed as the troubled look on his face only deepened.

"It wasn't your fault," Set Sail told him, her voice filled with concern for the recently awoken stallion, "There was strange magic in that storm. Our ship hit some sort of a... a glowing wall in the air. The whole Storm Piercer lit up like it was hit by lightning. We lost a lot of ponies. I'm sorry; I wanted to ease you into it, but I guess the cat's out of the bag."

"There was nothing any of us could do." she said sadly. "You fell unconscious, and your crewmates... did too. The rest of us managed to make it through the storm, but the ship is still seriously damaged. But... we're safe for now. There's enough food, and we're moored in a relatively sheltered spot."

Silver Frost nodded in agreement with Set Sail. "Yeah, it was a plain miracle that we made it through alive at all; no one could have made contingencies for something like this. That strange magic in the heart of the storm wall totally disrupted the Piercer, and who could have known in advance?"

Clashing Gale nodded a bit as he remarked something the other purple ponies had realized weeks ago. "I can't even cry if I wanted to. The storm really did a number on all of us... but Silver, Captain... you two are right. We're still here... we're still... heh, alive, in a manner of speaking... we'll manage."

"Though, Captain? Those stories you heard of vampires... what if they're true. May I suggest..." He almost looked sick even suggesting this. "Gathering... a small number of... less essential creatures? I... urgh, I may need to... um..." There was no easy way to say it. There was no friendly way of saying it. "...Please tell me there's something here some creature won't miss if I have to take it down?" he asked hopefully.

Silver Frost was taken aback. Oh dear, it had been meant as a joke... "Well, we happened to crash on an island full of sheep, if that's, err, to your predilection...?" she sheepishly (heh) suggested. Clashing wasn't really going to drink blood, was he...?

"I'll ask Nutmeg what she does for her dietary needs," Cloud Cutter said in a practical tone, a little caught with Clashing Gale's... dark, thrillingly sleek appearance as she gazed his way, "The chief engineer that is. She and the griffons have been doing fine despite... taking creatures down to feed themselves. The rest of us haven't been feeling hungry at all. Those of us touched by the Undead force, that is. If you are as much of a stereotypical vampire as I am a stereotypical zombie, then I don't think you have much to worry about. I don't smell of rotting flesh, haven't a single craving for brains, and my head doesn't even fall off."

He looked at the faces of his crew. "Silver, um... that may be a good start, yes..." He admitted, looking away a little as he turned to Cloud Cutter. "You two are literally saving my flank here. I already owe you a stiff drink."

All this talk had woken Trade Wind, who propped himself up on his bed. "Seniority... so yeah, I admit, I'm in no shape to take command right now. Like she said, Set Sail over there seems to be holding it together. After the crash and all." he said dubiously, still not sure exactly who to blame for the abortive 'landing' attempt.

Silver smirked back. "Given the circumstances, we're lucky we just crashed. Things seem to be holding together well enough now. I suggest you keep resting; when you can walk on all fours, then you can discuss with Set Sail how to manage things again."

"Oh, Trade Wind you're up!" Set Sail declared, turning his way with a gladsome look on her face, "I-I'm doing my best, yeah. At least we haven't lost any more ponies since. And yes I spoke with Gustus about steering the ship, but with the helmspony...lost, it was just us deckhands who had to steer. Should I be more... stern about it? He got us safely to a stop, damaged the island more than the ship, so it's okay, right?"

"Gustus, huh? Yeah that figures." Trade Wind snorted. "You gotta be tough on those griffs, Sail, or they'll run wild." he told the third mate. "Just the nature of the beast."

Set Sail shook her head, saying to Trade, "Oh no, Gustus is one of our best griffons in fact. He might be a little brash, harsh tongued, and strange in his ways, but the one you really have to watch out for is Grenelda. I don't know what to do about her, honestly! She's a good fighter, and you can just tell her heart's genuinely in everything she does, but it's been a bit of a hassle at times. Her and the other ex-convicts are a... rough, scrappy bunch. Ponies and griffons alike."

"Yeah Grenelda, she's a tiger among the kitty cats for sure. You keep holda that tail whatever it takes, Sail." Trade told the acting Captain. Looking around, he added "Don't see that doctor any more? Guess he couldn't take the pressure after all."

At that Set Sail just... fell into a morose silence.

For the other pegasus stallion, Trade Wind had an approving nod. "Glad you're back with us Gale, even if you're a little... batty. Heh. Shame about Rainy... but... yeah. What's this about losing your weather working? You gonna have any trouble getting us outta this Tatarus-hole?"

Clashing Gale gave Trade a slow nod. "Look... I don't know all the details, not even half of them. What I do know is that the Harmony and her crew have been through a heck of a ride. One that isn't even close to ending. This 'undead' magic here... it feels like the tip of the iceberg. Like it's just one piece of the puzzle. What's happened to me and my team: it's crazy. Sounds like others have had their own share of madness."

"I can't do proper spellwork at all! All I have now is basic levitation!" Mystic Rune whined. "And when I do... whatever I pick up turns all slimy!" In a quieter voice she added "I'm trying to teach Summer Scribe what to do, but every time I do she derails into some theoretical discussion about fundamentals of mana flow..."

Silver Frost gave Trade Wind a little shrug. "Weather powers or not... and I do feel incomplete without them... I fear we're stuck here indefinitely. We're down a working airship-with-storm-piercer, so that goes without saying. Sure we'll need weather workers to get back, but right now we need a carpenters and then some. Steady Brace and Maurice are doing what they can, but..."

Clashing Gale simply quieted down, listening carefully as more pieces of the puzzle slowly fell into place. Yeah... this crew had quite the hand of cards dealt to them, it seemed.

Trade Wind gestured with a hoof at the purple ponies. "If that's the way it is, then you're gonna have to train the deckhands in wrangling that new-fangled weather machinery and yourselves in tending the rigging. 'Cause we're gonna need a solid team of pegasi on each to haul everypony outta this mess." he said firmly, as if a crash course on Storm Piercer operation was a weekend motivational seminar.

Trade Wind's remarkably considerate line of thought snapped Set Sail out of her thoughts on the doctor. Her ears went down as she admitted, "That's a big problem actually. The magic that hit the Storm Piercer made our only really super rock solid pegasi..." she looked uneasily at Cloud Cutter, saying, "I don't want to speak for you a-and it's not your fault either obviously, but we're just in a bit of a... bind here."

Cloud Cutter looked from Set Sail to Trade Wind, regarding the rather unfriendly stallion blankly. "All operators of the Storm Piercer have lost their weather sense," she said coldly, "Wind reading, cloud control, it's all just gone, in exchange for some... other things. I trained my whole life to get good enough to operate the Storm Piercer, so unless I can stop being morbidly purple, it might be quite a while before we can train any of the pegasi who stayed in their element."

"Huh. That so? Guess our only hope is a cure then." Trade Wind said grumpily. "Shame all the big-league science ponies - and our only real doctor - were on the Friendship. Who knows what in Tartarus befell those poor souls... yeah, Gale: lost sight of 'em in the storm, but from the look of it they were hit even worse. Guessing we still haven't heard a peep from their beacon, Sail?"

Set Sail shook her head sadly.

As the full implications sank in the vampire pony was sent reeling, laying back down on his cot. "We've lost the entire crew of the Friendship? Oh, lovely... do we have any good news? So far it's been brick after brick after brick..."

Cloud Cutter gave Clashing a thoughtful look, saying "Oh there's certainly good news. In the change I've gained some ...less than ideal but very powerful magic, and the others might develop similar abilities. Some of the other crew have been doing what the natives call alignment, which dramatically strengthens their abilities. You know that one mopey unicorn by the name of Azure? She's developed amazing new powers, based on wind!"

"The doctor is... still indisposed, but he saved a lot of lives and took control somehow of this... magical substance, which could enable him to do incredible things. We've found a friendly fish people, and they told us about friendly griffons, though there seem to be no native ponies in these lands. It's just all this good news isn't leading to anything that could enable us to... use the Storm Piercer again." she said sadly.

"Mmmm... I think that... As much as we all want to leave, it's so far from being an immediately achievable priority." Silver Frost mused. "So we need to focus on what we can do: stay alive and keep those 'drow' at bay." She looked resolute. "It's just... well, I don't know. I don't know what I should be doing any more. It feels like all I'm good at now is... being purple."

"The 'Drow'?" Clashing asked, picking up on the unfamiliar term. "What are those? Sound like a... bird race?"

The ponies proceeded to bring Clashing Gale (and to a lesser extent Trade Wind) up to speed on their recent adventures. Set Sail had to leave early, flying off to supervise repairs to the rigging, but the others continued until the meeting was suddenly cut short. From above came a screeching call: "Dragon!"

---

Down in the saloon, Summer, Blue Type and Nutmeg decided that perhaps it would be best to break for... brunch, it seemed. 'What an enjoyable way to pass the time!' Summer thought. Baseless speculation of civilizations past was one of her favourite hobbies, and Blue Type was so good at it.

She was feeling buzzed and delightfully warm, the weariness of the previous day washed away as she set off for the mess. The unicorn was glad of Blue Type's support, both the psychological and physical, as they staggered together through the corridors. A few hayfries did a little to improve the situation, but really she needed...

"Dragon!" came the shout from above. "It's a dragon! Looks like a griff out there as well. Find the captain, quickly!" It was the male griffon's voice, cutting through the pleasant haze Summer had been enjoying.

"Uh, I better hide," Nutmeg said; the kirin had been relatively modest in her alcohol consumption, so she was only a little buzzed. "The last dragon wanted to capture me or something. Gonna... lock up the engine room, yeah. Can you find- wait." She squinted at Summer, then turned to Azure, asking, "Can you go find the captain?"

Summer Scribe perked up! "Is it that dragon again? Can't she leave us alone for one day?" Technically she had, but... she looked around. "Shoot, where is Set Sail? Did anyone see where she went?" Despite Nutmeg's squinting she seemed quite eager to scramble around searching for the pegasus.

"Locate the captain? After she ran off?" Azure confirmed, nodding lightly. "Can do my best, but this may take a while." Azure had consumed a drink or two herself, but seemed steady on her hooves. "I'll check her quarters, seems the most logical place to start." Then again, she didn't trust herself to think logically right now...

Summer Scribe nodded, "OK, check her quarters, I'll see if she ran off anywhere else." She raced off in a random direction, not accomplishing anything productive, but perhaps it was for the best that she wouldn't be the one to encounter Set Sail.

Nutmeg wanted to support Summer, but she didn't want any of those weird lightning dragons going and zapping her entire engineering crew again. So she left the unicorn to stumble on her own and hastily bounded off to the engine room. Its sturdy iron door slowly creaked closed behind her.

It wasn't long before Azure found her way to the right cabin: she knocked on the door three times, in quick succession. "Captain? Report from the deck for you!" she called out, hoping to Celestia that she'd be in there... but there was no response. The winged unicorn hesitated for a moment, not wanting to disturb the captain if she was still... dealing with things, but 'dragon!' did sound like an emergency, so she pushed the door open a crack, and... nothing. The room was empty, or rather, quite cluttered but currently uninhabited.

With a shake of her head, she started to think about where the Captain could be. Wasn't in the saloon or her quarters... outside? Was she maybe already on the deck? Azure started a quick pace towards the deck, hoping Set Sail had heard the cry...

Summer Scribe, in her demi-methdological room-checking search pattern, heard and then saw Azure racing by, and moved to follow her up the ramp. "Was she not in her cabin?" she asked, "I can't find her anywhere below either..."

In fact Set Sail had already flown down from the crow's nest, landing on the deck and hissing quietly to everypony as she scampered around: "Get the fliers with buckets over to the stream, just in case. Prepare to fight, we don't know what's going on here! The dragon isn't moving yet, so make every second count! Comet, can you get a lasso ready?"

Azure gave the captain a quick nod as she trotted over to the rail, looking out towards the dragon. "Lovely... with what we've heard of these things, they're not the friendliest. At least... at least now I'm rested and can actually do my job. Not good with rope but can bring a fight if I have to!"

"Oh, she's already here! Everything we did up to this point was pointless!" Summer Scribe moaned. "Where's the dragon?" She looked around, trying to get a glimpse of it. Was it the same one they'd fought off before, the one that tried to kidnapping Nutmeg, or a new and mysterious one?

Several ponies... plus Grenelda the griffon... were already hanging over the rail, staring out into the meadow. Out there in the grassy expanse, perhaps a hundred metres from the ship, sat two unknown creatures. One was definitely a dragon, almost the storybook archetype of a dragon, save for its size.

Purple scales, golden horns and spinal plates, clawed feet, club-like tail and broad batlike wings... reminiscent of the dragon that had invaded the ship a few days ago, but definitely a different creature. Where that one had been lithe and lean, spikey and bristling with aggression, this one was larger and more filled out, masculine-looking and bearing a seemingly friendly expression.

Next to him sat what at first glance appeared to be a large, lanky griffon, resplendent in fiery red and yellow plumage that seemed to glow with inner light. On close inspection though, the details were definitely not like any Equestrian griffon; smooth plating along his belly, a crest of rigid plates and hind claws that were as avian as his foreclaws, with no trace of feline fur. The second creature stared impassively back at the Equestrians, his expression not as engaging as his draconic companion but at least not actively hostile.

Summer Scribe followed everypony's gaze, scrutinising the dragon and fiery gryphon down below. "New dragon, huh... Doesn't seem to be acting hostile or sneaky. Maybe this one can be reasoned with?" she mused. "And who's that friend with them? The fiery bird thing. What do you make of this, Azure?"

"Well... just between you and me, if they were hostile, they'd definitely try and at least scout, be evasive, hide, something... not this. Maybe they're just scouting us for a future invasion... or maybe they're just like us. Looking for allies, in which case, well, you're a pretty good diplomat yourself, Summer... maybe you and I could go have a talk with these two?" Azure asked, tilting her head. "What's your thoughts on the chances of friendly contact?"

Meanwhile Set Sail and the rest of the crew are creeping up behind the brave/foolish ponies gazing over the edge of the railing, holding various weapons and shields, improvised and otherwise.

Summer nodded her head. "I'm of the same mind as you: they're head and shoulders above Purple Dragon and the Drow, as far as I'm concerned. If they're willing to be reasonable, then so am I!" She put a shaky hoof forwards, before saying sheepishly, "Can you take us down?"

Azure nodded in agreement, flapping into the air before wrapping her legs around Summer and lifting the little unicorn up in a body carry. Fortunately she was fairly light, and the distance wasn't far. The two ponies flew down to land about fifteen metres from the unknown creatures: close enough to be seen, but far enough to avoid an ambush attack, she thought. She'd let Summer do the talking though!

"Hey there, uh, unicorns!" the purple dragon called out in a pleasant voice. "It's ok, don't be scared! We aren't going to hurt you. Quite the opposite, in fact!" His careful smile only hinted at the many sharp teeth underneath.

Author's Note:

This story is a collaboration between myself (playing Winter Hope, Blue Type, Trade Wind and Mystic Rune here), Ferret (playing Set Sail and Nutmeg), Patashu (playing Summer Scribe and Silver Frost) and Spearmint (playing Azure Feather and Clashing Gale), based on an online RP.

This chapter is mostly based on the twenty-fifth session, with me as the GM. This was a bit of an exposition drop from a couple of tertiary characters, with the PCs mostly reacting. Summer still hasn't got the concept of 'the captain being angry with me' or for that matter, the notion that it could be her fault. Never mind that though, almost six months into our Skylanders/MLP crossover RP, and Spyro finally shows up!

The part with Clashing Gale was added later. When Spearmint decided he wanted to adopt the character (and turn him into a vampony), we spent the first half of the thirty-second session retconning him in; fortunately most of the edits were to unpublished chapters (the story is running about two months behind the game at the moment - it takes a while to edit them and add illustrations).