The Mane 6 hit the high seas in a battle against pirates!
It was just a nice relaxing cruise for the Mane 6; that is until a certain pink somepony caused them to end up stranded at sea. Little did any of them know that they would be found by a ship captained by the most dreaded pirate in Equestrian history: Blackmane. He has returned to wage plunder on Equestria and once again rule the ocean. Will Twilight and her friends set sail and defeat the scourge of the seas? Yargh!
Pinkie Pie joined the other vacationers on the dance floor as the sun set on the cruise of a lifetime. She and her friends had embarked on a round trip cruise aboard the biggest luxury liner in the Equestrian fleet: the E.S. Crown of Celestia. After once agan, saving Equestria from certain peril, Princess Celestia herself had awarded her six students with a well deserved vacation, and the mares were already enjoying a nice lavish day aboard the massive cruise ship. As the afternoon drew to a close, Twilight Sparkle, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash sat at a table by the ship's outdoor café.
"I gotta tell ya, Twilight," said Applejack. "At first I was skeptical about vacationin' on a boat. But this cruise is a real barrel o' fun!"
"Yeah, just look at all the events they got going on here." Rainbow added. "Rock climbling, deep sea diving, zip lining; this week is going to be awesome!"
"It sure was nice of the Princess to give us these tickets." Twilight said. "Although, I think some of us are enjoying it a little too much." That's when she saw Rarity strutting over in a skimpy summer dress made by herself. "Rarity, are you just going to lounge about tanning the whole week? It's sunset and you're missing dinner."
"Ugh, no fatty buffet food for me," replied Rarity. "I for one want to keep my slim and trim bikini body. I'll just have a salad."
"Well, you don't know what yer missin'." Applejack scoffed as she ate from an overstuffed plate. "This shrimp and sunflower cocktail is to die for. And the veggie sushi? Forget about it!"
Then, Twilight looked around for a moment. "Hang on guys, I'm going to find Fluttershy."
She got up and walked around the boat deck in search of her bashful friend. It wasn't long before she found Fluttershy bending over the railing and hanging her head over the water.
Twilight approached her. "Fluttershy, you don't look so good. Are you sea sick?"
Fluttershy looked back with green cheeks. "Oh, uh, I'm okay, Twilight. I'm just-" she then bent over the railing again and vomited before returning. "I'm just a little light headed."
"Maybe you should head back to the cabin and get some rest." Twilight urged her along. "I'll come back with some antacid."
"Oh thanks, Twilight," smiled the sickly Fluttershy as she slowly started off. "Um, we're still going to swim with the dolphins when we make port, right?"
"Of course, Fluttershy." Twilight smiled back and let her dizzy friend wobble back to their cabin. But her focus was thrown off when Pinkie yelled in her ear, with a fruity drink in her hoof.
"Whoo! Come on, Twilight, come dance with me!" she beckoned as she sang out of tune. "Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby, rock the boat!"
"Pinkie, I think you've had one too many hay daiquiris." Twilight glowered.
"I think you've had one too few!" replied Pinkie before taking a swill and prancing off some more.
"What is with that pony?" asked Applejack joining in with the other two. "She's been actin' even loopier than usual ever since we came on board."
"I don't know," said Twilight. "I guess being on the open water changes you."
"Well we can't let her ruin our vacation." Rarity added. "There are quite a few hunky stallions aboard and I will not be made a foal of."
Over by the stern end of the ship, Pinkie danced some more leaving behind empty hay daiquiri glasses and turning heads from other ponies. Rainbow flew over to restrain her.
"Pinkie, get a hold of yourself." She shook her. "You're not fun when you party too hard."
"Come on, Rainbow, you need to cut loose!" Pinkie slurred then hopped into one of the attached lifeboats hanging off the stern. "Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby, rock the boat!"
Then, Twilight, Rarity and Applejack came over to help. "Pinkie, get out of that lifeboat!" ordered Twilight.
"Party pooper!" giggled Pinkie.
"Ugh, what's going on?" gurgled Fluttershy, who poked her head from inside the lifeboat.
"Fluttershy, what are you doing in there?" asked Twilight. "I thought you were going to the cabin."
"I didn't make it," she answered embarrassed. "So I stopped here to rest...and, um, throw up...some more..."
Then, she was grabbed in Pinkie's tightened hoof as the party animal began to sway the life boat. "Come on, Fluttershy, let's go out on the dance floor and rock n' roll!"
"Uh, I'd really rather not do any rocking or rolling." Fluttershy quivered, holding back the urge to wretch.
"That's it," said Applejack. "Yer comin' with us ya lunatic."
The rest of the ponies piled onto the lifeboat to hold Pinkie down, as she continued to tip the tiny vessel from side to side.
She sang loudly again. "Come on, everypony! Rock the boat!"
"Don't rock the boat!"
"Rock the boat!"
"Don't rock the boat!"
"Rock the boat!"
"Don't rock the boat!"
"Um, guys?" squeaked Fluttershy.
"ROCK THE BOAT!" Pinkie then leaped into the air with ecstacy. But when she came back down, the impact shook the small lifeboat, snapping its ropes from the davits.
The surprisingly sturdy boat hit the water with an enormous splash. But the impact of the fall caused the ponies inside to bounce up and land hard back in. All six of them were immediately knocked out cold in the small dinghy, as the Crown of Celestia steamed away unaware.
...
"Ugh, my head." Rainbow moaned as she stirred awake.
"What happened?" mumbled Twilight as she and the rest slowly woke up from their daze.
"Good heavens," said Rarity. "Why are we in this boat?"
"Hey, where's the ship?" asked Applejack with a worried look.
As the sun shone bright the next morning, the ponies quickly returned to reality and began to remember how they had ended up in this predicament. They turned their heads in all directions in search of the Crown of Celestia, but no such luck came. It was only miles of endless ocean all around.
"Oh my gosh," gawked Rainbow. "We're lost as sea!"
"What?! You mean they just sailed off without us?!" gasped Rarity.
"We gotta do somethin'!" added Applejack. "Maybe they're comin' back for us."
"It's no good." Twilight grimaced. "We've been out here for more than twelve hours. They're either too far away for they completely forgot about us."
"Oh my goodness! This is bad! This is really really bad!" squeaked Fluttershy.
"How could this have happened?!" whined Rarity.
That's when Pinkie Pie finally woke up with a yawn. "Good morning, everypony! Hey, what happened last night?"
The rest of the group only starred daggers at her. "Darn it all, Pinkie!" scolded Applejack. "Ya just had to go and knock the lifeboat loose from the ship!"
"We're stranded at sea with no help in sight and it's all your fault!" added Rainbow.
"I was having such a lovely cruise and you ruined it!" yelled Rarity.
"Ah come on, guys," shrugged Pinkie. "We can still have our cruise...just on a smaller boat! Don't be so upset; it's like I always say. Come on everypony, smile, smile, smile-"
"NO!" they all shot back at her.
"Ugh, and to think I could be dining with the captain." Rarity hung her head.
"I didn't even get to finish my dang dinner!" Applejack stomped her hoof.
Fluttershy leaned her head over the side of the boat in dissapointment. "I was going to swim with dolphins." She whimpered.
"Look guys, there's no help in complaining about it." Twilight said. "We have to find a boat out here to help us. Let's just grab the oars and paddle."
"I'll help!" offered Pinkie.
"Like heck you will!" snapped Twilight.
With much disdain, the six rowed off on their flimsy vessel into a random direction. There was not a speck of land in sight and the water was flat calm showing no sign of a helpful current. The heat from the late morning sun sweltered around the stagnant water, leaving the ponies drenched in sweat as they arduously rowed. To add to their torment, there was not even a single seagull that could lead them to an island; the sea seemed lifeless and horribly infinite.
As the hours passed, all hoped seemed lost as Rarity cried a river.
"Oh this is dreadful! I can't stand anymore of this torture! The heat is unbearable, the sea smells putrid, and WORST of all, my mane is frizzing!"
"Don't worry, Rarity," said Twilight with a strangely elated smile on her face. "We'll just stop at that ice cream stand over there!"
"Ice cream stand?!" Applejack raised an eyebrow. "You gotta be kiddin', Where?"
"There!" Twilight pointed with a delirious look in her eyes. "Look, Princess Celestia is there waiting for us; with balloons!"
Applejack looked at her friend skeptically. "Twi, I think yer seein' a mirage. Maybe you should lie down for a while." She told Twilight whose eye began to twitch.
Suddenly, Rainbow perked up her head and peered out to sea. "Hey, what's that?"
The group followed her gaze and were shocked to see large speck in the distance. After focusing, the speck turned out to be a ship, with masts towering above the deck. They became overjoyed.
"It's a boat!" smiled Fluttershy. "We're saved!"
"Oh sweet relief!" blurted Rarity. "I hope there's a shower on board!"
"Come on guys," said Twilight. "Start rowing!"
With newfound relief, they paddled quickly over in the direction of the miraculous ship. As they approached, they could make out the details of the vessel. It appeared to be an old-fashioned sailing vessel, a three-masted barque, complete with a wooden hull and rolled up sails. Getting closer, the ponies marveled at the strange vessel from a bygone era; but something just didn't feel right about it. A strange quiet and emptiness seemed to fill the atmosphere around the sturdy hull. Oddly enough, there were no voices heard from inside or on the deck, or any sign of life for that matter. It looked as though this rescue would not be too fruitful.
The mares finally came alongside the lonely ship and ascended the ladder to the deck.
"Well this is strange," pondered Twilight out loud. "What's an old-fashioned ship like this doing way out here?"
"The heck if I know." Rainbow said abruptly. "I just want to get home already. A pony should never have to do so much rowing...not that I'm not strong enough or anything."
Upon reaching the top of the ladder, the group surveyed the deck. The wooden area was completely void of life, with only a few barrels and crates full of unknown content sitting about. Only the sound of the wood creaking and water lapping against the hull was heard.
"Hello!" called Applejack. "Anypony home?"
"Ooh! Maybe it's a surprise party!" perked up Pinkie.
"Yes, Pinkie," replied Twilight, sarcastically. "It's a surprise party."
"Who would just leave an empty old ship just floating out in the middle of nowhere?" wondered Rainbow.
"Well the least they could've done is clean the place." Rarity scoffed. "This deck is absolutely filthy! There's mold everywhere I look!"
"Would ya rather go back in the lifeboat?" Applejack mocked her.
Twilight looked in all directions around the deck. "I don't like this. There's something off about this ship. I'm getting a bad feeling in my horn."
"You can do that?" Pinkie asked her, curious.
"This is kind of scary." Fluttershy said cautiously. "Maybe I should wait in the lifeboat." She turned back toward the ladder, but before she could proceed, she bumped into a figure that was not there before. It was a pony, but not a friendly looking one. A gray stallion, dressed in tattered and stained sailing garb, stared menacingly at Fluttershy with a devious toothy smile. Fluttershy squeaked in fright and immediately backed away from the grizzly sailor who then gave a raspy laugh.
The other mares quickly turned and looked in surprise. "Who are you?!" demanded Twilight.
But without a response the shabby sailor was joined by several more stallions just like him. The mares looked all around as more and more sailors in filthy clothing circled around them, all cackling with anticipation. Some of them came armed with swords and daggers while others carried old-fashioned flintlock rifles and pistols. But what stood out from these dregs more than anything was the smell; they reeked of salt water, rancid food and grog which brought torment to Rarity's nose. They surrounded the lost and afraid ponies and closed in on them; that is until one of them called from among the hoard.
"Captain on deck!"
Immediately, the gaggle of cutthroats formed a gap letting somepony through. Silence filled the air again as Twilight and her friends heard slow hoofsteps approaching; the sound of one hoof resembled wood. Entering the circle came a tall stallion who seemed even bigger than Big Macintosh. His coat was a sickly lime green and his unkempt mane was soot black with a scraggly, braided beard to match. Covering that mane was a large black colonial hat, complimented with a bright red jacket. The intimidating stallion stared down the mares with blood red eyes for a moment; then he chuckled a little and spoke in a loud raspy bellow.
"Looks like a few sea maidens have washed up on me ship, eh boys?!" he spoke. The sailors cheered and cackled in response.
"Sea maidens?!" glared Rainbow. "Who does he think he-"
Twilight instantly shut her up, not wanting to start a conflict. "What's going on? Who are you?" she asked the captain.
The immense pony only laughed again. "Who am I?!" he mocked. "Ya'd best be jokin' if ya don't know the one true captain o' the deadliest ship in the sea, the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge!"
"The Queen Chrysalis's Revenge?" Twilight repeated the name to herself. "Wait a minute, it can't be!" she suddenly gawked in realization. "You're...you're...you're Blackmane the Pirate!"
"The one and only!" boasted the captain.
"But, you died three hundred years ago! How is this possible?!" Twilight became baffled.
"Hold up, Twi, just what are you talkin' about?" asked Applejack.
"Blackmane was the most feared pirate in Equestrian history!" she explained. "He raided and plundered numerous seaports and ships. But it wasn't until Princess Celestia defeated him and sank his boat along with his crew; since then he became a legend."
"And I'd be a livin' legend now, lassie!" Blackmane bellowed with another round of cheers from his crew.
"Wait a minute," said Rainbow skeptically. "How could some dead old sea coot from a hundred something years ago suddenly appear alive again?"
"Ya'd best not be referrin' to me, pegasus!" scolded Blackmane as he pointed a peg hoof at her. "I'll have ya tied by yer wings and keelhauled a hundred times over!"
"I'd like to see you try, old man!"
"Rainbow, sush!" hissed Twilight who then turned back to Blackmane. "Look, I understand you must be some kind of Blackmane impersonator. But can you please just give us a lift to shore? We seriously need to get home."
Once again, Blackmane led his crew in another round of boisterous laughter. "Then ya've come to the wrong ship, lassie! 'Cause home is the last pace we'll be takin' ya!"
"Wha- what does that mean?" quivered Fluttershy.
Then, Blackmane began to pace around the mares in a scheming manner, hobbling with his peg. "Ya see, it gets mighty lonely out here on the ocean. We haven't felt the warm company of a mare in over three hundred years. But now the sea's bounty has blessed us with six fine ones right here." He then stopped to sniff Rarity's perfume.
"Oh dear mother of Celestia!" she gagged from the captain's stink.
"As ya might guess," he continued. "We plan to keep you lassies onboard with us. Nothin' will suit a pirate better than a group of sea wenches!" More rowdy applause came from the crew.
"I think I'm going to be sick again!" whimpered Fluttershy.
"Well we'll just see about that!" glared Twilight as she charged the magic within her horn. Immediately, she fired a burst of lethal aura at Blackmane. But stunningly, the magic simply seemed to disintegrate away as it hit him. Blackmane remained grinning without a scratch.
"What the?!" gawked Twilight. "What happened?!"
Blackmane cackled loudly again. "You were wrong, lassie, I'd be no impersonator. But yer right about one thing: I am dead! Me and me crew have come back from oblivion to take back what's ours! The seas of Equestria!" The crew cheered him along. "And this time, we are immortal!"
"Um, Twilight," said Applejack flatly with a hint of fear. "I'm startin' to think he's not an impersonator."
"Men, take these maidens below deck!" ordered Blackmane. "And don't think you can try anymore of yer fancy spells, lassie. Yer unicorn magic will have no effect on a ghost ship!" he then wobbled away cackling.
A group of pirates then grabbed the mares and dragged them down a hatchway leading below deck. As they were led against their will, Pinkie uttered simply.
"We're dead! We're dead! We're dead! We're dead! We're so dead!...Uh, I mean, nopony panic!" Rainbow tried her best to control her fear as she and her friends were locked away inside the dank underbelly of the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge.
"How can this happen?!" Twilight pondered anxiously. "My magic didn't even phase him! Maybe he really is Blackmane. Could this be some kind of ghostly magic I'm not aware of?"
"I don't know and I don't care!" Applejack stomped her hoof. "We gotta find a way out o' here! I ain't gonna be a sea wench to nopony!"
"I couldn't agree more." Rarity replied. "We have to escape before I pass out from all this filth!"
"Help...me."
The ponies looked around after hearing a very faint voice. "Did you hear that?" asked Rainbow.
"Oh my gosh!" whimpered Fluttershy. "It's a ghost! This ship is haunted!"
"Yeah, we kind of established that, Fluttershy." Twilight said.
"Oh...right..." she blushed.
"Help...me!" squeaked the faint voice again.
Twilight looked about the lower deck through the darkness. She couldn't make out anything other than stacked casks, cannons and hammocks. Then, she utilized an illumination spell to bring out more detail. And that's when she saw it.
"Help...me!"
Over by the starboard wall, a large cage sat almost unseen between two high stacks of crates. The voice was coming from inside the dark prison, and after approaching slowly, Twilight was shocked to find a mare lying on the floor inside. The pony was struggling to even say the simplest cries of distress.
"Help...me...please!"
"Oh my goodness," gasped Twilight. "Are you okay?"
The weakened pony was a young gray unicorn mare with a long dark green mane and bright orange eyes, who was about Twilight's age. She made no effort to get up as she lay half covered by a dirty tarp. She began to breathe quickly in short gasps and strained to keep her head raised. The poor prisoner only gave one word in a faint whispering response. "Water!...Water!"
Quickly, Twilight turned aside and found a cask of what she hoped was water. She levitated a bucket inside and scooped out the liquid after checking that it was not just alcoholic. She slipped the small bucket between the cage bars and rested it in front of the withered mare.
She looked back up at her with weak yet overjoyed smile. "Thank...you." But she did not drink the water.
Instead, the downtrodden mare lifted the tarp over her body and revealed not two hind legs and a flank...but a fish tail. Twilight and company gawked, trying to make sense of what they were seeing, and making sure it was not just a fish's tail attached to a pony's body. The unusual mare then sat up and splashed the bucket of water onto the strange appendage. The green scaly tail wiggled in reaction to the cool sensation from the splash, proving that it was not just a costume. It then seemed that the pony was quickly regaining her composure as she sighed with relief and spoke in a clearer, yet gentle breathy voice similar to Fluttershy's.
"Ha, that feels so much better." She relaxed.
Rainbow's face was riddled with shock. "Wha- is- I- but- eh-"
Twilight rubbed her eyes and spoke. "You're a...you're a...a mermare!"
The creature looked at her tail awkwardly. "Oh yes, I guess that's worth mentioning."
"A mermare?" repeated Applejack. "I thought those were just a myth!"
"No, I assure you," the mermare replied. "We merponies are quite real."
"This just keeps getting weirder and weirder!" uttered Rainbow.
"Well, how did you get yourself on this ship?" asked Twilight, trying to accept the reality of what she was seeing.
The mermare then looked down, lost in a bad memory. "It was dreadful. I was out swimming near a coast far away from my home, when I saw this ship sailing by. I hopped up onto a rock to get a closer look, but then I saw that the ponies on board spotted me and began chasing me, throwing nets in the water. I tried to swim away, but I was quickly caught and thrown into this cage. That's when I overheard Blackmane and his crew talking about...about..." she started to quiver with horror. "Selling me at a fish market! Ever since, they've given me little food and hardly enough water to breathe. I've lost track of how long I've been in here."
"You poor thing!" frowned Fluttershy approaching the cage. "It must have been so awful."
"That tears it!" growled Rainbow out of nowhere. "This Blackmane scumbag is really getting my goat! If he thinks he can just trap innocent mares in here, he's gonna have to put up with me!"
"I can't believe I'm sayin' this, but Rainbow's right!" Applejack then walked over to the cage and busted the lock with a swift applebuck. "Wer not gonna let this pirate pony keep us cooped up in here. We gotta escape, and we're bringin' this mermare with us!"
"Will you really help me?" asked the mermare with newfound hope.
"Of course," smiled Twilight. "We just leave you to suffer any longer. I'm Twilight Sparkle, by the way; what's your name?"
"Shelly; just Shelly." She smiled lightly, then flopped like a seal out of the cage on her two hooves and tail.
"Hi! I'm Pinkie Pie! You may not have realized yet, but you're my first ever fishy friend!"
"Uh...thanks?" shrugged Shelly.
"Um, not to be pushy," said Fluttershy. "But how are we going to get out of here exactly?"
"Well, if I can't take down a smelly zombie with a peg leg, then there's no hope for my magic." Twilight admitted. "But it doesn't look like these pirates are doing much to keep us locked up."
"That's because they'll be down here any minute to flirt with us and spread their filth!" retorted Rarity.
"And that's where you'll come in, Rarity." Twilight smiled.
"...Excuse moi?"
"All you have to do is give them a little of your famous charm and those pirates will be easily distracted. Then we'll steal back a lifeboat, and row our flanks out of here! Don't worry, I'll levitate you back in with us once we're far enough."
Rarity sneered. "You expect me dangle myself in front of those disease-ridden mongrels?! Surely you jest, Twilight! I am no cheap window model for a bunch of lowlife sea scoundrels to gawk at!"
"Oh come on, Rarity," Rainbow rolled her eyes. "You won't have to do it for long! It won't even take much to keep those thugs preoccupied."
"There is absolutely no chance!" scoffed Rarity. "I have been frying in the hot sun, surrounded by stinking stagnant fish water, no offense to you Shelly, and mentally felt up by savage sea rogues! I deserve a little sympathy!"
"You know," said Shelly. "If you guys help me out of here, I'll repay you with some pearls from the sea."
Rarity paused her rant. "...Pearls?"
"Oh yes," nodded Shelly. "There's an entire gathering of oysters where I come from, and they produce hundreds of the purest and shiniest peals a day!"
"...Well what are we waiting for?!" sprung Rarity with sudden glee. "I've got some pirates to tease!"
"Wow, how'd ya know she'd buy that?" Applejack asked Shelly.
"She just seems like the type who likes pearls." She answered.
After mentally preparing herself, Rarity lifted up the hatch to the boat deck a crack and peered around. Sure enough, twenty something pirates were attending to their daily duties of swabbing the deck and rigging the lines; the ship seemed to be moving at a steady speed. Rarity gulped and whispered to herself.
"It's for the pearls, Rarity. You gotta want it!" She then stepped out of the hatch and immediately caught the attention of the crew. "Yoo-hoo, hello sailors!"
The pirates stared at Rarity bug-eyed and became quickly aroused. They surrounded with her with drooling smiles. Rarity sugarcoated the flirting with a toss of her mane out of her face. "Can you big brave seamen tell me when we next make port?" she asked in filly-like voice. "I'm afraid I don't have my sea legs and I feel a bit...woozy!" She then mocked a fainting motion with her hoof on her forehead and struck a racy pose lying backward. The pirates began to cheer and whistle, begging for more.
Meanwhile, three more of the prisoners crept out of the hatch with Rainbow giving the all-clear. Together, Rainbow, Applejack and Twilight tiphoofed to an overturned jollyboat and began lifting it off its stand. But then as Applejack and Rainbow began hauling the dinghy, Twilight's eyes drew to the back of the ship. She noticed an opened door leading to what appeared to be private quarters. A look of intrigue grew on her face.
"Hold on, guys," she said in a hushed voice. "I'm going to have a quick look."
"Twi, are you out o' yer mind?" hissed Applejack. "If we take any longer they'll hear us!"
"I'm just going to find out how exactly how Captain Blackmane got here in the first place." She then stubbornly crept over to the opened door and did a double-take before entering and closing the door behind her.
Inside the darkened room, the floor was crowded with fancy silken furniture and piles of gold and silver trinkets and antiques. Navigation charts and rows of books lined the walls and collected dust under low candlelight. But despite being a bookworm, Twilight's focus was on the desk by a large panoramic window, which she presumed belonged to the captain himself. She approached the desk and skimmed through the unorganized open parchments that featured more sea charts and journal entries. With scholar's intuition, she levitated a random sheet and pondered to herself, trying to pry any sort of useful information from the captain's scribing.
"What could this be?" she asked herself before flipping the paper over to find more info. But before she continue searching, an unwanted voice startled her from behind.
"Tis mighty rude to spy on the captain's charts, lassie!"
Twilight gasped and spun around as she saw Blackmane standing in the doorway with a yellow toothed grin on his face. She tried to search for an opportunity to escape, but before she could even move a hoof, the dread pirate drew a large cutlass and pointed it at her as he stalked closer.
"Ya thought you could escape that easily, unicorn?" he growled. "I have every square inch of this ship watched over!" He approached Twilight and rested the frightening sword by her neck.
Twilight refused to buckle down. "You can't keep us here forever, Blackmane!"
"Quite right, missy!" Blackmane grabbed her in a hostage hold with his sword pointed. "At least not all o' ya! I think I'll show ya what became of yer little escape plan!" He then led her outside onto the boat deck.
To Twilight's shock, she saw Fluttershy, Pinkie and Shelly being held at sword-point by Blackmane's crew; yet there was no sign of Applejack, Rainbow, or Rarity.
"Take a good look, Ms. Sparkle!" smiled Blackmane as he pointed his sword out to the starboard side. "We already took good care o' yer two grunt workers. And your little flirtin' jezebel will be joinin' 'em!"
Twilight gasped as she looked out in horror. The ship was steering away from a tiny speck of an island with only a few palm trees for vegetation. On the sand, Applejack, Rainbow, and Rarity were crying out in distress as the Revenge left them behind.
"Twilight! Help! Do something! Come back! My mane!"
"Oh no! What have I done?" grimaced Twilight then face Blackmane. "Why did you leave only them? You know Rainbow will just fly back."
"Oh don't ya worry," replied Blackmane with a smug look. "We took the liberty of chainin' the blue one's wings up with a padlock. She and the orange one were too tough to keep under our control; and the white one wouldn't stop whinin'! So we marooned them with no provisions on our secret maroonin' island!"
"Uh, cap'n," said one of the pirates. "How is it a secret island if yer tellin' 'er about it?"
"Shut up ya bilge rat!" barked Blackmane. "I'll give ya the cat o' nine tails for backsassin' me!"
"Yes sir, sorry sir!"
The captain continued his monologue. "But I won't be lettin' the rest o' you go any time soon. Yer too smart to keep out o' me sight, Ms. Sparkle. So I'm givin' ya the esteemed privilege of bein'...the captain's wife!"
Twilight turned her face away in disgust at the very thought. "Ugh! Dream on!"
"And as fer that little seahorse ya let out of the cage, ya better get well acquainted with 'er pretty fast. Because she'll fetch a hefty price when we make port! Ar har har har har har!" The crew laughed along with him.
"Shelly," said Twilight peering over to her remaining friends. "I'm so sorry I got you into this."
"I don't blame you, Twilight Sparkle," replied Shelly. "I was doomed anyway."
"But don't be too dour, lassie." Blackmane lifted Twilight's chin. "It's been centuries since a mare has been made the captain's wench. Now, give us a kiss."
Twilight desperately pushed her face away to avoid the inevitable grimy, smelly experience. But before the captain's hairy lips could reach her, Pinkie's voice was heard from afar.
"Avast ye landlubbers!"
Everypony turned upward at the top of the main mast. There, perched on the crow's nest in a heroic fashion, Pinkie made herself heard, as she wore a striped sailor's shirt, a bandana over her head and an eye patch. She swiped the air with a sword while grabbing a sail line.
"Unhand me maties, or prepare to be swashbuckled!" she announced proudly.
Twilight slapped her face. "Pinkie, why? Just why?!"
"How the blazes did she get past us?!" yelled Blackmane at his crew. "And where did she get that sword?!"
"I don't know, sir," replied a crewmate. "It's like she has supernatural powers!"
"Attack!" With a wild battle cry, Pinkie leaped from the crow's nest and swung on the rope over the pirates' heads, swinging her sword randomly.
"Stop her, ya filthy swabbies!" ordered Blackmane as his crew chased after the pink swashbuckler who swung from mast to mast.
With her captor distracted, Twilight broke from Blackmane's grasp and kicked him down. "Fluttershy! Help me get a boat!"
As the chaos ensued, Fluttershy hovered anxiously and watched the crowd of angry pirates. "Oh gosh! Oh gosh! What do I do? What do I do?! I'm going to be sick again!"
"Just come over here!"
With the captain incapacitated and the crew distracted again, Twilight and Fluttershy attempted to push the overturned jollyboat which had been moved by Rainbow and Applejack. Miraculously, they nudged the tiny boat into the water right side up and hopped in.
"Come on, Pinkie!" called Twilight.
Immediately, Pinkie ceased her dramatic ruse on the rope and jumped into the boat with a thud. She sprang up with her usual smile. "Whoo! I've always wanted to do that! Alright, let's go!"
BOOM!
Suddenly, a leak sprang up from the bottom of the jollyboat. Water quickly began flooding inside making the boat sink inch by inch. The three ponies looked up in surprise as Blackmane stood at the edge of the Revenge in a captain's pose, with his hoof on a smoking swivel cannon that had been aimed at the small craft. He looked at the mares with a calm yet irritated smirk.
"Don't bother dryin' yerselves off, lassies." He simply put.
After about an hour of sailing, the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge had gone far enough away from the marooning island where they could not find it again. Once again, Twilight found herself along with Fluttershy, Pinkie and Shelly in the same predicament, as their hooves were bound in ropes; Twilight's horn was stuck with a cork on the end. Shelly raised her eyebrow at the three land mares.
"Um, just curious, when were you guys planning on helping me back there?" she glowered.
"Oh, sorry, heh heh," chuckled Twilight sheepishly. "I guess we're just not used to it."
Blackmane paced in front of them with a sneer. "So, it seems that none o' ya can be kept quelled. Ya couldn't just be good little fillies and do as the captain said!"
"I'll be good!" Fluttershy pleaded.
"Fluttershy, shush!" nudged Twilight.
"Well it don't matter now." Blackmane resumed. "Ya've passed up a rare opportunity to be our consorts. So I'm afraid it's the briny deep fer ya! Prepare to walk the plank!"
The three gasped as the pirates laid out a long plank over the side of the ship. With a poke of their swords, the crew prodded Twilight along, who then hopped with all her hooves tied across the plank with nowhere else to go but over. She looked back and glared at the captain.
"You'll pay for this, Blackmane! You'll see, we'll be back to stop you!"
"That's enough jibber jabber out o' you, lassie. And to think all ya had to do was kiss the captain. Oh well, over ya go!"
With that, the grumbling pirates poked Twilight along until finally, she was forced over the edge and into the sea.
"Twilight!" Fluttershy cried as her wings were bound.
"Yer next, quiet one!" said Blackmane. "Ya can't be trusted."
Fluttershy was next to be herded across the plank. Now unable to fly, she approached the edge of the board and stared over into the water. She squeaked in fright of the high drop and the fear of nasty fish lurking in the depths. Fluttershy turned back meagerly.
"Um, is it too late to be the captain's wife?"
Without a response, the pirates poked her flank one last time sending a squeak from her as she plummeted into the water.
"Alright, now the pink one!" ordered Blackmane. "Keep 'er steady, lads!"
Pinkie required extra security to be pushed off the plank. Her entire body up to her neck was wrapped in rope causing her to crawl along like an inchworm. Before she reached the edge, she gave one last remark.
"I just want to say that you guys are no fun at all! What kind of pirates don't swing on ropes?!"
Irritated by her voice, the pirates shoved her off the plank. She shouted as she fell. "CANNONBALL!"
With his prisoners finally disposed of, Blackmane turned to Shelly who still lay on the deck. "And as fer you, seahorse! I don't want to hear anymore complainin' when we make port. If ya try any funny business like those harpies, then I won't have any regret in makin' ya into sushi!"
Shelly lay defeated. She was still weakened from her dehydration, but there was no way she was going to let freedom pass her by. Summoning whatever strength she had left, Shelly charged the magic within her horn and focused as hard as she could.
"Come on, come on," she muttered. "Just this once!"
Unbeknownst to the pirates, her magic summoned the forces of the ocean bringing some sign of life forth and upwards to the surface. Just then, to Shelly's elation, a single starfish broke the water's surface and shot upwards and onto the ship. The five legged mollusk landed and latched itself to Blackmane's face. The captain panicked.
"Gah! Bloody heck!" he began to buck here and there. "Somepony get this bloody starfish off me bloody face! I bloody hate these things! Get over here ya scurvy dogs!"
As the pirates bumbled to help their paranoid captain, Shelly saw her one small chance at escape. She hobbled on her hooves over to the edge and slid overboard and into the water with barely a splash. Underwater, her gills began to fill up with sweet refreshing H2O and she became reenergized. Then, she immediately swam downward toward the three sinking land ponies. Twilight, Fluttershy and Pinkie were all puffing their cheeks with their last breath of air as they hopelessly tried to break their rope bonds. But in a swift flash of movement, Shelly swam by them, cutting the ropes with her horn. Then, she used her magic again to surround the three in separate white auras. When she was done with the spell, the land ponies suddenly all took breaths as if there were oxygen. Twilight was astounded.
"What the-? I can breathe?"
"You're welcome!" smiled Shelly proudly. "I used a spell that lets land creatures breathe underwater for the time being."
"Wow, this is amazing!" beamed Twilight. "You've got to show me how to do this!"
"Eh sorry, it's exclusively merpony magic."
"Oh my goodness, this is bad!" frowned Fluttershy. "Applejack, Rainbow and Rarity are stranded! We have to go help them!"
"I wish we could, Fluttershy," said Twilight. "But we've sailed out too far to know where they are. Don't worry, they'll be fine; so long as Rarity doesn't die of a frizzy mane."
"Well what do we do now?" asked Pinkie. "I can't just swim around underwater forever. Although it is fun!" she then performed some underwater flips and spins. "Whee! Look at me! I'm a seahorse! Flippy floppy!"
"Why am I strangely offended by that?" Shelly watched her in puzzlement.
"Well, if there's a renegade undead pirate on the loose, then I think we should take action." Twilight said then smiled. "And I think we'll have a little help from this." She removed the cork from her horn and activated her magic to create a protective bubble of air. Then she reached into her mane and pulled out something that she had smuggled. It was the parchment she had rolled up in Blackmane's quarters right before she was caught. Twilight encased the paper with the protective bubble and unfurled it, revealing a map.
"I saw this in Blackmane's study and read over it. It's a map to a secret island that he uses as a base to hide all his supplies and loot. If we can find this island and beat Blackmane to it, we'll be able to fight back and defeat him!"
"But Twilight," said Fluttershy. "I thought you couldn't defeat Blackmane."
"Not with my magic anyway. No, it looks like we're doing this the old fashioned way. If we're going to defeat pirates, then we have to think like pirates!"
"Now you're talking!" cheered Pinkie. "Argh! Get the anchors out o' yer pants, maties! We're settin' sail!"
"Not quite yet, Pinkie, although that impression was haunting. Shelly, you know the ocean better than all of us. Can you help us find this island?"
"Absolutely!" smiled Shelly. "After rescuing me from that awful ship, I am in your debt."
"Then let's get moving, girls!" grinned Twilight. "We've got some pirates to sink once again!"
"Ah! A sea monster! It's got me!"
"Fluttershy, that's just a piece of kelp stuck to your leg."
"Dag nabbit, I can't see them no more!" said Applejack, staring out to sea. "Blackmane must've locked 'em up again." She turned back to Rainbow and Rarity who Blackmane had marooned along with her on a speck of sand that was barely considered an island. "Well girls, it looks like we're stranded...again."
"Oh woe is me!" whined Rarity. "I'm starting to wish I never went on that fabulous cruise in the first place. I mean look at my nails! They're starting to get chipped!"
"Forget about that!" blurted Rainbow. "Would you two just help me get this darned thing off me?!" Her torso had been wrapped in a padlocked chain by Blackmane's crew, which painfully clamped down her wings making her grounded. She wriggled desperately trying to shake it off.
Applejack also attempted to yank Rainbow's chain, but with no avail. "I don't know what to tell ya, Rainbow. We can't get that thing off without the key."
"Huh, you know what? This is great!" replied Rainbow with a heavily sarcastic smile. "This is perfect! This is exactly how I pictured this vacation! I get stranded in the hot sun on a rinky-dink lifeboat, get captured and ogled at by undead pirates, get stranded AGAIN by said pirates, and to top it all off, I CAN'T FLY!!!"
"Just settle down, Dash," said Applejack. "All this whinin' isn't gonna get us nowhere. If Twilight was here, she'd tell us to focus on gettin' off this island. And I think I know how!" She then stepped over to the three fully grown palm trees that somehow managed to find growth on the sandbank. "If I can knock down these palm trees with some swift applebuckin', we can make 'em into some kind of raft and paddle our way out o' here!"
"If I have to do anymore rowing, I'm going to seize up!" huffed Rainbow.
"Will you two stop with yer complainin'?"
"What did I say?!" shrugged Rarity.
With a few stretches of her powerful legs, Applejack prepared herself for some of the hardest applebucking in her life. After rearing back, she launched a lightning speed mule kick at the base of one of the palms. She repeated the kick over and over, trying to chip away the thick armor-like bark and cripple the tall tree. But with each menacing kick, she was making hardly any progress.
"Come on, come on!" she urged herself. "Why won't it budge?"
Little did she know that she was also shaking a low-hanging coconut growing from the base of the frons. Eventually the shaking of the tree snapped the heavy fruit from its branch and sent it plummeting toward Applejack's head.
"I think I'm startin' to get it! Just need a little more-"
BONK!
The coconut hit her square on the cranium and left her wobbling from side to side in dizziness. She mumbled to herself deliriously. "Granny Smith, ya left yer teeth in the dishwasher again!" She immediately collapsed, out cold.
Rarity and Rainbow simply stared at her unconscious form. "I don't mean to sound insensitive," said Rarity. "But I almost wanted to see her fail."
"Rgh! I can't take this!" grumbled Rainbow. "Everything that has happened to us so far has gone from bad to worse!" She tugged at her chain some more in frustration. "Stupid chain! Stupid island! Stupid pirates! Stupid coconut!" Then she kicked the coconut that clonked Applejack into the water, sending it sinking straight down.
Rarity blinked. "Um, Rainbow, did you just kick food into the ocean?…WHEN WE DON'T HAVE ANY?!" she scolded.
Rainbow looked in the water where the fruit splashed and realized her mistake. She shrugged with an embarrassed smile. "Uh…I'm not hungry?"
Suddenly, both she and Rarity began to feel a tremor beneath their hooves. They looked around in confusion as the island itself seemed to be shaking.
"What's going on?!" quivered Rainbow.
"I haven't the slightest idea!" replied Rarity who then gasped as she pointed out to sea. "Look!"
Rainbow spun around and stared in fright as a mass of bubbles appeared in the spot where the coconut she kicked landed in. More and more air rose to the surface signaling something was emerging from the deep. Rainbow and Rarity watched frightfully as a large green mass slowly rose out from beneath the surface. To add more to the confusion, the mass appeared to be in the form of a head and face; this was apparent as a large toothless mouth gaped open at the front. The mouth let out an earth rumbling, low pitched sound that strangely resembled a yawn.
"HOLY COW!" screamed Rarity, not even the least bit surprised at her sudden crude language.
Just as the mouth finished its supersonic yawn, a large opening appeared at the top of the head revealing a staring black eye. The gigantic head slowly turned back and stared at Rainbow and Rarity with a curious blank expression.
"What in the name of all that is good and Celestia is that thing?!" blurted Rarity, cowardly hiding behind Rainbow.
"Whoa!" Rainbow only stared back at the creature with amazement. "It looks like a giant turtle! Wicked!"
"A turtle?!" retorted Rarity. "It's big enough to be a dragon!" Then she looked around the island and made the connection in her head. "Wait a minute, Rainbow, I think this island is actually part of this creature!"
"You mean this whole time we've been standing on the back of a humungous sea turtle? That just blows my mind!" Rainbow then walked closer to the curious turtle's face and smiled at him. "This guy really is huge. He must be like Tank's great grandpa or something! I'm gonna name him Super Tank!" The turtle stretched his head further back to get a closer look at the funny little blue creature that appeared to be communicating with him. "Hey Super Tank, do you think you can get us out of here?"
With a low grumble, Super Tank lowered his head away from the little blue mammal. Then, the ground beneath Rainbow and Rarity's hooves began to quake again as the island, or as it was really the back of Super Tank, suddenly shifted out of place. The ponies looked around to see four more large green masses rise out of the water around the island. They appeared to be giant scaly fins as they moved in sync and began to slowly push the water behind them. Rainbow and Rarity hung onto the palm trees for support as Super Tank shook the sand off his back which had been building up from a year's hibernation. The surface then revealed to be a rock hard green shell with a pentagonal pattern. The vegetation supporting the three palm trees was also shaken off, leaving just the ponies riding the shell. Rainbow watched the turtle cruise across the water at a steady turtle-like speed.
"This is awesome! Maybe Super Tank will give us a lift to shore!"
"And perhaps we'll be able to find Twilight and the others." Rarity added. "Our luck has finally turned around!"
"Go, Super Tank, go!" cheered Rainbow.
"Ugh, what's all the yellin' about?" mumbled Applejack, finally regaining consciousness. She then looked around at the turtle's head and fins and the fact that they were now moving. She blinked as she was taken aback. "Remind me to lay off the applebuckin' for a while."
...
A large school of trout scattered off in a synchronized cluster and made way for the four horse-like creatures treading along the sea bottom. Shelly swam around the other three leading them around her terrain, while using her magic to maintain the water breathing spell for them as well as protecting them from the heavy water pressure. Twilight and Pinkie trudged along the ocean floor with Twilight navigating with the map she stole from Blackmane. Fluttershy, meanwhile, used her wings to paddle through the open water.
"Um, Twilight, how much further is the island?" she asked about Blackmane's base of operations.
"According to the map," replied Twilight. "We're only about halfway to Scurvy Shoal. At this rate, we won't reach it until tomorrow. And we probably won't even beat Blackmane there."
Fluttershy darted her head around nervously. "Well, it's just that it's getting kind of dark. And the sea is starting to look...spooky." There was still some sunlight glistening through the calm waters. But it was starting to set in the late afternoon, and soon the ocean would become dark.
"Don't worry, guys," said Shelly. "We're not too far from my vacation home in the reef. We can stop there for some rest."
"Vacation home?" Twilight queried. "Shelly, are you rich or something?"
Shelly then stuttered nervously. "Uh, well, I do have friends in, uh, high places."
"Well I hope you at least have some sushi." Pinkie said. "I'm getting hungry and there hasn't been a sign of cake anywhere in this darn ocean!"
As they waded along the sandy bottom, they began to see less and less sea around them, since nighttime was slowly creeping in. Just then, a large ominous shadow swept over Fluttershy, making her squeal quietly. The antsy little pegasus looked in all directions but could see nothing that could make such a big shadow; that's when she looked up. Fluttershy's pupils shrunk to the size of peas and her body became frozen with fear as a massive bull shark loomed about twenty feet above her. She chittered frantically, trying to utter some word of warning to the others.
"G-g-g-g-g-g-g guys," she squeaked. "Sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-sh-"
"Not now, Fluttershy," said Twilight, her face buried in the map. "I can't be distracted."
"Ooh! Look at that humungous fish up there!" blurted Pinkie.
"What fish?" Twilight peered up, then became stiff at the sight of the bull shark leering above them. "GAH! SHARK!"
"That's what I said!" shrieked Fluttershy.
"Everypony, don't move!" hissed Twilight in a hushed tone. "Its vision is based on movement. He can't see us if we keep perfectly still."
"Twilight, that doesn't sound-"
"Shh! I said keep still, Fluttershy!"
"But why are we whispering?"
"SHUSH!"
The three petrified ponies stared at the intimidating shark hovering just above them. Then, the beast wrinkled its nose and brandished its may rows of dagger-like teeth. Suddenly, it kicked into gear and swam toward its frightened prey.
"Um, Twilight," said Pinkie, suddenly afraid. "I think he can still see us."
They quivered hopelessly as the shark torpedoed closer and closer, ready to sink its teeth. But before it could get into range, Shelly darted in front of the hunter and gave it a swift hoof slap clear across the nose. The shark stammered to the side, shaking its head from the painful blow.
"No! Bad!" scolded Shelly with an angry mother-like hoof. "You do not eat ponies! You got that?! Bad shark! Very bad shark!" The emasculated predator looked shamefully away from the yelling merpony and even seemed to whimper. "Now, now, did we learn our lesson?" The shark then gently nuzzled Shelly and quivered its lip, looking up at her with puppy dog eyes. "Good boy," she petted the fish's head. "Now you be a sweet little killing machine and go eat that school of trout over there."
With that, the once menacing shark panted happily and sped off into the deep, to massacre other forms of sea life. Twilight, Pinkie and Fluttershy were stunned at the unusual performance.
"That was amazing, Shelly!" said Twilight. "How did you get that shark to listen to you?"
"We merponies have the power to commune with sea creatures." She explained. "By the way, sharks don't need to see you; they can smell your fear."
"Wow, Fluttershy," smiled Pinkie. "She handled that big old nasty shark like you would!"
Fluttershy only crossed her hooves in a jealous manner. "Hmph, I could've done that."
With terror out of mind, the four continued on the vast sea floor with darkness quickly sweeping the water and blurring vision. Before it became too dark, they came upon a large mound which turned out to be a coral reef. Shelly pushed aside a piece of fan coral which served as a door to an opening inside the reef.
"Welcome to my home away from home!" she invited them in with a smile.
Twilight, Fluttershy and Pinkie entered the vacation home, expecting to find nothing but a dark, dank cave. Instead, they were amazed to find the interior opulently decorated with ocean themes, including shell and starfish wallpaper and sailing antiques as décor. There was lavish waterproof furniture in the living room with a cozy kitchen nook behind it; a few other doorways led to even more extravagant bedrooms. The entire place was lighted by glowing orbs of merpony magic making the reef home look just as lavish as a loft apartment on land.
"Sorry if it's kind of a mess." Shelly admitted. "I really must do some refurnishing."
"Dang!" gawked Pinkie. "If this is a vacation home, I wonder what a regular merpony house looks like!"
"Yeah, I can totally see Rarity renting one of these places out." Twilight added.
"Well I might as well give you three a bite to eat." Shelly opened up a stainless steel refrigerator. "What do you guys feel like? Grilled seaweed? Fried Seaweed? Baked seaweed? Seaweed soup? Seaweed gumbo? Seaweed stew?"
"Ooh! Can you make seaweed crepes?" asked Pinkie.
"I guess, if you're really into that stuff." Shelly shrugged.
"I'll eat later, Shelly," said Twilight with a yawn. "But all that treading water has gotten me pretty tired. I think I'll just rest my sea legs."
"Take your time, Twilight." Shelly replied. "There's a spare bed in the door on your right. Wait, not that one!"
Twilight opened the first door on the right before she could hear Shelly, and it suddenly swing open. A long sizable tentacle reached out and grabbed Twilight around the waist. Whatever creature was inside began flailing Twilight around in the air and slamming her on the ground. Shelly then came to the rescue and used her magic to stuff the tentacle back into the room and pry Twilight out. She shut the door with some vigor and smiled awkwardly.
"Sorry, that's just my octopus room. You want the second door on the right."
Twilight glowered as she stood up, rubbing her bruises. "Thanks."
She then slumped into the guest bedroom to rest her head, weary from her long ordeal. As she entered the elegantly decorated quarters, she found it mindboggling that everything that had happened, being stranded at sea, captured by pirates, escaping into the ocean and avoiding a shark attack was all in just one day; and the night was still young. She began to wonder if going after Blackmane was still a good idea. But she knew that this was another one of those situations where Princess Celestia would entrust the fate of Equestria in her hooves...again.
Twilight toppled over onto the cushy water bed with a bounce. Immediately, the allure of sleep finally crossed over her and she closed her heavy eyes. She didn't even care that this was her first time sleeping underwater with a breathing spell; she just wanted to drift off for at least a few hours. More and more, she slipped into sleep letting the gently motion of the water lull her. That is until she heard the door slam open.
Her bloodshot eyes shot open and she lifted her head up, noticing a clock that read three hours later than she had last checked; it felt like three minutes. Then she saw who had burst in; to her surprise, it appeared to be another merpony. Unlike Shelly, this one was larger in build with a longer horn, and appeared to be male. The mer-stallion wore metal armor similar to that of Celestia's royal guard. Twilight said nothing as he stared at her firmly.
"You must come with us." The guard spoke.
Twilight stared back in blank surprise. "...Okay." She regretted getting up again, but it looked like this merpony meant business.
She was led out of the bedroom to see that both Fluttershy and Pinkie were also apprehended by two other stallion guards. They looked just as confused as she was.
"What's going on?" Twilight asked anypony.
"Silence, land-walker!" growled the guard.
"Twilight, I'm so sorry!" said Shelly from across the room. "I had nothing to do with this."
"Tisk tisk!" came a voice entering the reef home.
Everypony looked as a fourth merstallion appeared; but this one was not dressed in the same silver armor as the guards. The merpony sported a turquoise robe with gold trim, giving him an appeal of nobility. He spoke to Shelly with calm assertiveness.
"You really must know better than to get involved with their kind, Princess Shelly."
"Princess?!" repeated Twilight. "Shelly, is there something you never told us?"
Shelly only looked around sheepishly. "Um, well, I meant to."
The robed merpony then glared at Twilight. "You'll not speak to Her Grace Princess Shelly, land-walker! You have only been blessed by her to be given ability to breathe in our terrain!"
"Simmer down, my Princess." The merpony named Scallop patronized her. "We shall have you back home very soon. You must have been terrified being lost for so long. Your father has been worried sick."
"Will somepony please tell us what's happening?!" Twilight stomped her hoof.
"Hush your tongue, land-walker!" scolded Scallop. "We shall soon deal with you and your friends justly. Guards, take them away! You shall come with me, fair Princess."
With the stars dotting Luna's sky, the once foreboding sea was now glimmering with the luster of the moonlight. The calm, glassy water was only rippled by the giant sea turtle lumbering across the surface. On his shell, Rarity provided an illumination spell while Applejack rode atop Super Tanks's head as if she were on a stagecoach.
"Woohoo! Get along, little turtle!"
"Rainbow Dash, it's been hours." Rarity whined as she lay with boredom. "Haven't you spotted anything yet?"
Rainbow sat perched atop one of the palm trees attached to the shell, rolling a frond into a tube and using it as a telescope. "I can't exactly see that well at night, Rarity. Man, isn't there a single boat out here?! I know it's a big ocean, but at this point I'll take anything! A cargo ship? A clam boat? A freezing couple barely floating on a hunk of wood?" She continued to scout the vast sea until something finally caught her eye. "Wait a minute, look! I can see light ahead! Land ho!"
Applejack and Rarity stared forward where she was pointing. A mile or two away was a speck of orange light emitting from an unknown source. As Super Tank slowly paddled closer, the three could now see a flat lumpy silhouette that appeared to be an island or even a peninsula. The light was revealed to come from a town sprawling across the coast of the land form, and the shadows of old fishing trawlers could be seen rocking in place as they were tied up at dock. At last, the ponies had found civilization.
Rainbow whooped and Rarity sighed with relief before Super Tank floated up to the docks and stopped to let his little walking passengers off. After finally stepping on dry land, Rainbow turned back to her new friend.
"Thanks again, Super Tank. Catch ya later!"
The giant turtle licked her with a humongous slippery tongue, leaving her covered in reptile spit. Then, Super Tank lowered his head once more and cruised off in search of a nice private beach to sleep.
Rainbow, Rarity and Applejack turned ahead and wandered into this mysterious town. From the looks of it, the town appeared old and rustic, lit only by oil street lamps. The cobblestone roads were grimy and the buildings were poorly maintained as well; but it was far from empty. Everywhere on the dirty streets were vagrant ponies partying like there was no tomorrow. Some were drunk on cider while others commingled with bawdy looking mares among the sound of Celtic music and breaking windows. Applejack watched the scene with disgusted confusion.
"Where in the name of Celestia are we?" she asked.
Rainbow spotted a sign and read the town name. "Horsewater. Population 1,583." A scream was heard from among the town followed by a loud crash. "Population 1,582."
"Good gracious!" scowled Rarity. "This town is absolutely revolting! Is everypony on the sea a lowlife?!"
"Well, what do we do now?" asked Rainbow.
"I say we find some help." Applejack replied. "If we're goin' after a bunch of zombified pirates to save Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie and Shelly, then we gotta rustle up as many rough n' tough sailors as we can find in this stink hole."
The trio entered the muddy streets of Horsewater in search of any place that might house ponies with nautical experience. Before long, after avoiding the rowdy citizens trying to flag them down, they came upon a tavern called the Barnacle Bar. The bar seemed to be the hub of all the chaotic partying in town as Applejack stepped through the saloon doors with her friends at her sides. She surveyed the gaggle of hearty sailors, complete with scars and scowls, who drank and cursed in conversation and even picked a few cider induced fights. Applejack raised her voice.
"Alright, listen up!" The sound of accordion music ceased as every bar patron stopped in dead silence and looked back at the stranger. "I'm roundin' up a crew to help me! Blackmane and his crew have returned from the dead and he's fixin' to raise heck on the ocean all around Equestria. So if ya'll think yer tough enough to stop him, then join me!"
The sailors stared back at her with blank expressions. Then, in unison, they all broke out in hysteric raspy laughter. "Blackmane?! The Pirate?!" said one sailor between breaths. "He's nuthin' but an old sea legend now!" added another. "Yer not from around here, are ya missy?!" rasped the bartender.
"Um, Applejack," said Rarity. "Did you ever think that our story might sound a little...far-fetched?"
"Well what else was I gonna say?"
"You could just say we're rounding up a rescue party for our friends." Rainbow rolled her eyes.
"I was gettin' to that!"
"Blackmane, ya say?" came a brooding voice from the corner of the bar.
The trio looked to a dimly lit booth where a shadowy figure sat alone. Staring soberly back at them was a gray middle aged stallion in a blue captain's jacket with a white navy cap to match. His face was lined with a trim white beard and featured a sagely complexion that had seen too much. He spoke to the mares in a deep yet handsome tone, with some pirate-like speech traits.
"Now there'd be a tale not for the weak of heart." He said softly with a swig of cider.
Applejack knew this pony had to be of some help and sat down across from him with the other two. "You believe Blackmane's come back?"
"Aye," the captain answered with tired teal eyes. "I know everything there is to know about Blackmane; and the curse he left behind."
"Curse?" repeated Rainbow. "What curse? Who are you exactly?"
The pony took another drink then stared at them. "I am Nemo, Captain in the Equestrian Royal Navy...or at least I used to be. I must ask, what brings three young mares like you around Horsewater? You seem to be more mainland types."
"Well ya see," explained Applejack. "We were stranded from our cruise ship and we eventually found this old ship. Turns out we walked into an ambush by Blackmane and his crew who captured us. After a while, we managed to escape, but we left three of our friends behind. Now we're tryin' to find 'em again."
"Trying to find Blackmane again?" queried Nemo. "That'd be a fool's errand there."
"Mr. Nemo," said Rarity.
"Captain." He urged.
"Sorry. Captain Nemo, how did Blackmane return in the first place?"
That's when the captain sat back and became lost in bitter memories. "That I'm afraid was partly my doing." The mares listened closely, eager to hear Nemo's story. "It was no more than a month ago. I was leading my vessel, the E.S. Thresher, on a routine patrol across the Western Sea. We came upon an island to replenish our food and water supplies when some of my crew went off searching in the jungle. My first mate returned with an unearthed chest full of gold coins and jewels. He urged me to take it aboard my ship and share the riches amongst the crew. But something didn't seem right about that treasure; it was some sort of evil vibe. I ordered my first mate to leave it behind out of superstition. But then, after we set off, I found that the greedy rat had snuck a piece of the treasure onboard; a very large and fine cut emerald. Furious, I demanded that he throw the jewel overboard in order to rid my ship of any bad luck. That's where I made the mistake I regret to this day."
"Um, are you getting to the Blackmane part soon?" asked Rainbow. "I really have to pee after all that sea travel."
"Rainbow, hush yer tongue!" barked Applejack.
"As I was saying," said Nemo, clearing his throat. "After I tossed the gem, a storm started brewing around my ship. I told my men to hunker down below deck. That's when I saw it; a withered old vessel, armed with forty maybe fifty cannon, that seemed to burst out of the rocking waves. And on board that old clinker was a pony I never thought I'd lay eyes on: it was none other than Blackmane, piloting the dreaded Queen Chrysalis's Revenge."
"Hold up!" interrupted Applejack. "Ya mean Blackmane just showed up when you dropped that fancy jewel into the ocean?"
"That seemed to be the only explanation." Nemo answered.
"But how is that possible?" asked Rainbow.
"Well, it was only after this incident that I studied the legend of Blackmane to make sense of what I saw." Nemo continued. "After his long reign of pirating, Blackmane was confronted by Princess Celestia, who eventually sank his ship along with his crew. Before being executed, Blackmane revealed that he had buried the last of his loot on an unknown island. And he cursed that if any of that treasure were to be removed and put into the sea, he would return from his watery grave. Believe me, my dears, when I say that a pirate's curse is just as powerful as any dark magic."
"Dear Celestia," said Rarity in horror. "He really is undead!"
"So what did you do when he returned?" asked Applejack.
"I was too dumbstruck to do anything. Before I knew it, the Revenge opened fire on us, and in mere minutes my ship burst into flames from the barrage and I found myself hurdling into the drink. Miraculously I survived, but only to watch the Thresher sink out of my sight, with all of my crew aboard. Eventually I washed up here in Horsewater, where I took the time to read up on Blackmane's curse and realized what I had done. I was too ashamed to show myself around the navy again, not only because I brought utter chaos upon the seas, but because I was too cowardly to go down with my own ship and crew. And so, I declared myself missing, and have been wallowing here since." Nemo emptied his glass with remorse.
"So that jewel your first mate took was part of Blackmane's treasure, and that's what brought him back?" recapped Applejack. "This is just gettin' crazier n' crazier!"
"Don't you get it, AJ?" said Rainbow. "That's how we can get rid of Blackmane! All we have to do is find that jewel and return it!"
"Rainbow, surely you jest," replied Rarity. "That emerald is lost somewhere at the bottom of the ocean. It would be impossible to locate!"
"Aye," agreed Nemo. "That is why I regret casting it away in the first place. I do not even remember the location of where it all happened. I am afraid I am nothing but a useless old sea salt who will make things worse. If you three want to continue searching for your friends, I suggest finding somepony else."
"Now wait just a minute, salty!" Applejack slammed on the table. "I ain't gonna let you sit here drownin' in cider! You couldn't have know about what ya did, and there's no use in sulkin' about it. Out there is a no-good fish-breath undead pirate raisin' heck in the ocean, and he's got our friends. Yer the only one who can help us now, and I ain't gonna sit around afraid to get wet. Now it's time you man up and be a gosh darn sailor!"
Nemo stared back at her with a cocked eyebrow as he listened to her tenacity. Then he spoke without changing his stony expression. "Missy, you've got a lot of nerve speaking to an old captain like me...which is why I like ya! You're right, it's time I stopped mulling and set sail once again to undo what I've done." He stood up from the booth. "My dear ponies, you got yourselves a captain! We shall find that emerald!"
"Whoo! Now we're talking!" beamed Rainbow. "I'm tired of running for help. Let's take that greasy sea thug down!"
"But Captain Nemo," said Rarity. "How would we start to find the jewel anyway? You don't even have a boat anymore."
"You're right, I don't have a boat." Nemo then gave a knowing smile for the first time since his tragedy. "At least not the kind that stays above water."
Before Twilight knew it, she, Fluttershy and Pinkie were being held under spear-point on an underwater carriage hollowed out of a nautilus shell; she thought she would never see the day. She sat in the back of the carriage with the merpony guards staring her down, while Shelly and the stingy stallion named Scallop sat up front in a more comfortable seat. Twilight called up to her, ignoring the guards' glare.
"Um, Shelly," she said. "At what point were you going to tell us you were a princess?"
"You'll speak when spoken to, land walker!" spat Scallop.
"Scallop, please," said Shelly who turned to Twilight. "I didn't want to tell you guys at first, but my father is...the ruler of the merpony kingdom, Trotlantis."
"Trotlantis?" repeated Twilight. "The ancient island city that sank into the ocean? I thought that was just a myth!"
"No, it's as real as I am." Shelly replied. "And my father is the king of the whole city. I didn't want to tell you guys because I thought you would focus more on helping me get home than defeating Blackmane."
"That's ridiculous." Twilight retorted. "Why wouldn't you want to go home?"
"Because I wanted to help you. Plus, my father's kind of...mad at me."
"Why is that?"
"Holy hotcakes!" blurted Pinkie, looking out the window. "Look at that city!"
The three land walkers then peered out over the sea floor below and stared in awe. Ahead was a sprawling, glimmering metropolis sitting just over a sandy cliff with a sign reading TROTLANTIS; POPULATION: A LOT. The carriage, pulled by two bottle nosed dolphins, entered the city limits, revealing hundreds of merponies swimming through the sandy streets and over the skyline. The buildings seemed to be made out of mounds of coral and the streets were lined with bright opulent lanterns lit by magic. Every which direction had merponies going about daily activities just like any land pony would; bartering at markets, building new structures, chatting it up at restaurants and the young ones playing happily with one another. Pinkie beamed at the magical sight.
"Wow! It's like a giant fish tank full of ponies!"
"It's absolutely beautiful!" marveled Fluttershy.
"Yeah, it's like something out of a storybook!" added Twilight.
"Hey, you don't see us gawking at one of your cities!" grumbled one of the guards.
"Have you ever ever seen a land pony city?" Twilight contradicted.
After passing over the Trotlantis skyline, or rather sealine, the dolphins pulled the carriage to the balcony of a towering skyscraper, or rather seascraper, in the center of the city. Shelly explained, as they were led inside through a grand hall, that this was the palace of Trotlantis and home to herself and her father. The land ponies stared in wonderment at the slick hollowed out coral halls, lined with paintings of past merpony rulers and mounted antiques such as prized shells or weapons like tridents. After a suspenseful tour through the hall, they finally entered a large chamber much like Princess Celestia's throne room. Sure enough, there was a decorative throne at the end of the room with two lines of guards and squires floating in front. And seated at the throne was an elderly yet muscular male merpony who resembled Shelly. His face featured a long white beard and mane and a gilded crown on his head; he held a gold trident in one hoof. The regal merpony stared at his visitors firmly as Scallop bowed before him, weasily.
"Oh your most high and mighty majesty, King Conch, I am pleased to inform you that I have returned your fair daughter safe and sound."
"King Conch? What kind of ridiculous name is that?" snickered Pinkie, before being smacked upside the head by Twilight.
"You see, Princess Shelly?" continued Scallop. "Your father has been worried sick! I hope you learn your-"
"That's enough, Scallop," bellowed the king. "Be gone with you."
"Yes of course, Your Majesty. Forgive me, Your Majesty. A thousand pardons, Your Majesty. Sorry." Scalloped backed out of the chamber bowing pathetically.
Then, King Conch gave a disappointed stare at Shelly who then swam forward with nervous eyes. "Hi Daddy." She said meekly.
"Shelly, I am not amused." King Conch went on. "You have been missing for more than a week without leaving any notice. And now we find you with the likes of the land ponies? Have you lost your mind, child?!"
"Well, Daddy, I, um, well-"
"You should not even allow these land walkers to breathe our sacred water with your magic." Then, King Conch used his own magic to cancel the water breathing spell on Twilight, Pinkie and Fluttershy. The three mares immediately began to suffocate and flail their hooves for air.
"Daddy, please!" yelled Shelly before activating the spell again, leaving them coughing from the close call. "You can't just leave them to drown! They have done nothing to us!"
"I thought I have taught you better, Shelly." King Conch shook his head. "Their kind has been the bane of our existence for centuries! Soiling our oceans with their ships, fishing, and diving. We do not welcome them here!"
"Daddy, if you'll just listen-"
"I've heard enough, Shelly. You are not to leave this palace without my permission, as your father and king!"
"Um, King Conch? Your Majesty, sir?" spoke Twilight cautiously. "I think I can explain."
"You dare speak to His Majesty out of turn?!" threatened a guard.
"Settle down, captain." Conch ordered. "What have you to say, land walker?"
"Your Majesty, this is a big misunderstanding." Twilight said. "Your daughter was actually captured by a ruthless pirate. We found her and rescued her, and in return she gave us this breathing spell and promised to help us get to safety."
"And why should I believe you?" grumbled Conch.
"It's true, Daddy," added Shelly. "I am in debt to them after they rescued me from the capture of Blackmane."
Then, the king became dumbstruck after hearing his daughter speak that name. "Blackmane? You mean, he's back?"
"Yes, Your Majesty," explained Twilight. "Somehow, Blackmane has come back from the dead and now he's going to terrorize the ocean. It wasn't Shelly's fault for going missing."
Conch suddenly became sullen. "Shelly, forgive me, my daughter. If I had know you were in such danger I would have personally set out to find you. I am so glad you are unharmed."
"So, you believe that Blackmane has returned, Your Majesty?" spoke Fluttershy.
"Yes, the memory of that monster has been stained in our history." Conch told them. "When he roamed the sea, he plundered and sank numerous ships, littering the homes of merponies everywhere with wrecks and grog. Eventually, many smaller merpony kingdoms were polluted by Blackmane's destruction, and the city of Trotlantis was overcrowded with refugees. When he was finally executed, many of us gathered in secrecy to watch his death with celebration. But there was not much cheering as Blackmane cursed, in his final words, that he would be brought back if his treasure were to be sent to the sea floor. At first, nopony believed him; but his terror lived on when we witnessed his lifeless corpse swimming around the ship three times before finally disappearing into the depths."
"Oh my goodness!" squeaked Fluttershy with fright, as she imagined the grizzly scene.
"Since then, we have prayed that Blackmane's curse would not come to fruition." Shelly said. "But now that he really is back, his reign of destruction will continue, and our people will suffer from the from the repercussions. That is partly why I wanted to help you guys stop him."
"My gosh," pondered Twilight. "I've read that Blackmane's destruction was immense, but I never would've thought it could affect an entire civilization."
"Land walkers," continued Conch. "If my daughter says that your intentions are true, that I shall put my trust in you. There has been no time in merpony history more disastrous than Blackmane's rule. I apologize for any hostilities."
"Oh don't worry about it, Kingy!" said Pinkie. "It was kind of fun! Now I know what it's like to be in a fish tank!" Then Twilight shoved a hoof in her mouth to keep her from saying anything else stupid.
"And I cannot thank you three enough for rescuing my daughter from the grasp of Blackmane. You are welcome here in my city, and you may spend, what you call on land, the night here."
"Thank you so much, Your Majesty." Twilight bowed. "I promise we'll keep your people safe from Blackmane's destruction."
"Hey, hey Twilight," tittered Pinkie. "Guess what what we're doing tonight?"
"Pinkie, don't say it." Twilight glowered.
"We're..."
"Don't!"
"We're..."
"Pinkie!"
"We're..."
"I swear to Celestia!"
"We're sleepin' with the fishes!" Pinkie then burst out and rolled on the floor laughing as everypony else in the room slapped their faces.
...
That night, Shelly lay in her royal bedchamber reading a novel after being readied for bed by her hoofmaidens. It had been a long time since she was able to snuggle in her own bed since she was captured several torturous days ago. But before she could fall into a much needed sleep, Twilight opened the door and poked her head in.
"Um, Shelly? Can I come in?"
"Of course, Twilight." Shelly replied. "What is it?"
Twilight approached the bedside. "Well for one thing, I just want to thank you for sticking with me and my friends after what you've been through. We've faced problems like this when it comes to saving Equestria, and it hasn't been easy."
"Oh don't worry about it." Shelly shrugged. "It's not like I'm some scaredy catfish."
"Clearly you don't know Rarity. Also, there's something I meant to ask you. What were you doing when Blackmane captured you anyway?"
That's when Shelly frowned and looked as if something was amiss. "Uh, nothing really. It's no big deal." She shied away.
"Come on," Twilight sat on the bed. "You're the princess of a whole kingdom. There must have been some reason for you to have been out in the open water. And if you weren't alone, you would've been saved from capture. So what were you doing if there was no-"
"I was running away, alright?!"
Twilight gave a surprised look at the merpony's outburst.
Shelly sighed with guilt. "I'm sorry; I lied. It was my fault that I got captured. I ran away from Trotlantis and found myself near the coast of western Equestria. That's when I was netted by Blackmane."
"Why would you run away? Surely your father was worried sick."
"He was the reason." She said spitefully. "He says that I should devote my life to ruling the city like he does. What I really want to do is explore the ocean and meet the ponies of the land. But my father would never let me make contact with your kind. So eventually I just wanted to escape and leave everything behind. I didn't want to mention this before."
"You didn't want to mention a lot of things before." Twilight contradicted.
"Sue me."
"Shelly, there's no reason to leave your home and family behind just for that. You should just learn to talk to your father and he'll understand."
"You don't know what it's like with him. He's an even bossier father than he is a king. All he wants is for me to be ruler, but so far he thinks I won't live up to anything. I don't want to be a tyrant like him. I just want to be me."
Twilight smiled and put a hoof on her shoulder. "Well, I'm sure he'll see that now that you're helping us defeat Blackmane. You'll be a hero! And I'm sure your father will forgive you for everything once he sees just how competent you really are."
Shelly closed her eyes in deep thought, then looked up at Twilight with a small smile. "Thanks, Twilight. I needed to hear that."
"Anything for a friend." She then got up to exit. "Well, I'll let you get your sleep. You deserve it the most."
"Goodnight. Oh and Twilight?"
"Yeah?" Twilight looked back.
"Could you tell Pinkie something?"
"Sure, what is it?"
"If she makes another fish joke, I'll turn her into a sea cucumber."
"There she is, ladies." Captain Nemo smiled. "Feast your eyes on the E.S. Barracuda!"
Applejack, Rarity and Rainbow stood at the Horsewater wharf the next morning admiring Nemo's prized secret; a diesel submarine from a bygone era. The sleek iron vessel floated beside the wharf with water lapping against its cigar shaped hull, complete with a conning tower full of periscopes and sensory antennae. It stretched about 300 feet long and featured a cramped beam of 16 feet wide. Rainbow gawked at the submersible war relic with amazement.
"You actually have a real submarine?! That is so cool!" she exclaimed with fascination.
"Land sakes," added Applejack. "Where did ya find this old tub, Captain Nemo?"
"She was salvaged about a week ago. I offered to restore her after she had been sunk by a whale with boundary issues. Now she's back in working condition. And since you ladies have given me the strength to start anew, we can take the Barracuda to search for that emerald."
"This is excellent!" said Rarity. "That jewel should be much easier to find underwater. But Captain, do you even remember where you dropped it?"
"It's all a blur to me now." Nemo admitted. "But after reading up on some pirate lore last night, I've charted out a general area based on the possible location of Blackmane's island. Since I lost the emerald a few miles away from the island, we should be able to find it in this area eventually."
"Shoot! Yer just as smart as our friend Twilight!" said Applejack.
"A captain has to know these things, ya know."
"Well what are we waiting for?" urged Rainbow. "Let's get down there and get naval on some pirates!"
"Aye! Let's cast off!" agreed Nemo.
"Uh, yeah, let's go in that...small metal deathtrap." Applejack gulped as she followed the others onboard.
Before long, the Barracuda was underway with Nemo and his new crew below inside. To avoid prying eyes, the submarine was submerged before it even left the harbor, slipping silently beneath the shroud of the water. The Barracuda cruised out the coast of Horsewater under the surface and into open ocean for the next few hours, following Nemo's predetermined heading. Inside, the ponies gathered in the cramped control bridge, surrounded by tangles of pipes and wiring and complex ship's readings. As Nemo took the tiller, Rainbow took interest in every square inch of the nautical marvel like a curious foal.
"Holy cow! This is so awesome! I can't believe I'm inside an actual submarine! This is just like that Daring Do novel when Daring Do snuck aboard a submarine when she was looking for..." she then noticed Rarity and Applejack staring at her oddly. Rainbow blushed and tried to regain her cool. "Ahem, I mean, uh, yeah it's an underwater boat. Whatever, that's kind of cool, I guess..."
"Aye, she still runs like new." Nemo said. "With her speed, we'll be able to traverse this area within a day or two."
"Applejack, are you okay?" asked Rarity. "You're shaking like a leaf, darling."
Applejack stood idly by a collection of pipes, breathing a bit heavily and darting her eyes. "Um, girls, I don't know if I ever told ya this, but I'm a bit claustrophobic."
"You have claustrophobia?" scoffed Rainbow. "Yeah right!"
"Well why do ya think I'm so comfortable livin' in a wide open farm?" Applejack shot back.
"So you pick now to tell us?!" added Rarity. "In a submarine?!"
"It's fine, it's fine!" she took deep breaths. "It's gonna take a lot more than tight spaces to scare me. Even though we are in a cramped metal tube, surrounded by nothin' but dark walls and only inches of knee room, knowin' that all there is outside is the crushin' depths of the deep sea!"
"Ya know, missy," sulked Nemo. "Yer makin' piloting a submarine a lot less fun." Just then, a bell was heard as a light blinked on the navigation map. "Aha, we've reached the search radius." Nemo showed the mares to the map. "All we have to do is comb the area until we come across the emerald. Unfortunately, the jewel is too small to be detected by the sub's sonar; plus the ocean floor is too soft to make out any shapes on the screen."
"So then how do ya expect to find it then?" queried Applejack. "Get out n' walk?"
"Well, that's kind of the point." Nemo explained. "Miss Rarity, judging by your cutie mark, I assume you're an expert at gems?"
Rarity tossed aside her mane and fluttered her lashes vainly. "You guessed correct, Captain. I just adore the sparkling luster of fine jewels! I even spend time using my gem-find spell to dig up only the best ones to accessorize my dresses."
"I figured ya might." Nemo smiled. "That is why you'll be walking outside the submarine to find the gem."
"Excuse moi?!"
"All ya have to do is put on my diving suit and guide the submarine using the gem-find spell until you come across the emerald."
"Pardon my Prench, but there is no way in heck I am doing that!" protested Rarity. "Why do I have to be stuffed into diving suit just to find the gem?"
"The submarine would interfere with the spell if you tried it inside." Nemo explained. "Besides, we need a way to dig the emerald up when we find it."
"I beg your pardon, Captain, but I am not anypony's digging dog!"
"Oh come on, Rarity," said Applejack. "How bad could it be?"
"Well why don't you do it then, Applejack?!"
"Um, hello? Claustrophobia?"
"You think you're claustrophobic?" snorted Rainbow. "I'm the one who's wings are still tied up in this stupid chain!"
"How did that happen, anyway?" asked Nemo.
"I don't want to talk about it."
"Now look here," continued Rarity. "I already had to play sexy bait for those disgusting pirates. And I still never got those pearls Shelly promised! I will not subject myself to a heavy diving suit, being herded across the filthy sea bottom sixty feet under! Have all of you forgotten that I'm a lady?!"
"Tell you what," Rainbow rolled her eyes. "If you find any other fancy rocks down there, they're yours to keep."
"You're not going to convince me with that." Rarity turned away.
"Actually, I've heard of a galleon that sank somewhere in these waters." Nemo recalled. "It was said to have carried about half a million bits worth of pure jade."
"...Jade?" perked up Rarity. "That would be the perfect new addition to my accessories! Jade necklaces? Jade bracelets? Jade encrusted headdresses? Oh I have got to get my hooves on it!"
"Well, maybe you'll find some of it if you go look." Applejack persuaded her.
Rarity thought for a moment, weighing the fear and danger of being stuck in the crushing depths of the ocean floor versus the luster and beauty of jade. "...It's worth a shot!"
After putting aside her better judgement, Rarity prepared for her salvaging trip. Nemo equipped her with an old fashioned heavy diving suit with a bronze helmet. The others helped her into an airlock in the bottom of the sub and began filling the tight room with sea water. The airlock opened and the weight of the suit pulled Rarity down to the sandy sea floor about ten feet below the vessel. With a nervous gulp, she slowly trudged forward with an air hose tethered to the Barracuda which followed her carefully. She grumbled as she moved along.
"Oh dear, what was I thinking? This is absolutely nerve-racking! I feel like this rusty old suit will spring a leak any moment!"
Nemo's voice came over a com-link in her helmet. "Just stay calm, Rarity, don't waste any oxygen. Now just use that gem-find spell and sweep the area."
"Hey Rarity," came Rainbow's voice in a taunting manner. "That suit kind of makes you look a little round in the hips!"
"Really, Rainbow?" snapped Rarity. "I was about to say the same about that chain of yours!"
Concentrating on her magic, Rarity activated the gem-find spell and spread her aura across the sand in front of her. She prepared herself for a long and monotonous search as she looked for any sign of a priceless gem. But really, she was more focused on coming across the pale green allure of jade. For about an hour or two, she scoured the area leading the Barracuda along, but to no avail yet.
"Ugh, my hooves are getting tired from this hideous suit." Rarity whined. "And there hasn't been a single sign of jade anywhere."
"Uh, you do remember we're lookin' fer the emerald, right?" came Applejack's voice.
"Right, yes, I remember."
Just then, she spotted a large dark figure up ahead which piqued her interest; Rarity hoped it was the sunken galleon. But as she moved closer, she found that it was no more than a large boulder dotted with species of coral.
"Anything yet, Rarity?" requested Nemo.
"I'm not quite sure" She reported. "But perhaps this rock might hold something valuable."
"We don't have time, Rarity." Applejack said. "Forget the rock and keep movin'."
"But I'm sensing something rather curious coming from behind it. I must get closer."
Rarity approached the lone rock and put her hooves against it for further inspection. Suddenly, a shadow loomed over her that couldn't have been the Barracuda. She looked up and gawked as a long noodle-like object stretched out above her and clung onto the rock. Startled, Rarity backed away from the boulder and watched in shock as three more wiggly appendages grappled around the rock and an amorphous shape loomed out from behind it. That's when she realized that these spindly objects were tentacles as the rock was dwarfed by a terrifying giant squid.
"Oh sweet Celestia, Luna, and Cadence! A sea monster!" she cried out.
"Rarity! Get out of there!" ordered Nemo.
But the poor unicorn froze with fright. The humongous squid stared at her with two giant bulbous eyes and and clacked its parrot-like beak. Then, the forty foot sea monster extended one of its ten tentacles and scooped up Rarity, clutching her in its sticky grasp.
"Ah! Help! Please help!"
"Don't worry, Rarity, we're a comin'!"
Applejack, Rainbow and Nemo all exited the submarine's airlock in diving suits and rushed over to rescue the damsel in distress. The giant squid grappled onto the hovering Barracuda as the ponies began to attack it.
"You won't getting your slimy tentacles on my ship, you kraken!" Nemo clung to the tentacle holding Rarity and began stabbing at it with a knife.
Meanwhile, Applejack tried mule kicking at the back of the beast's mantle. "Put 'er down ya big ol' piece of calamari!"
Rainbow punched between the squid's eyes. "Yeah! Ya like that?! I don't need to fly to take you down!"
The fight continued to free Rarity from the giant squid's death grip. But nothing they could do had any effect on the monster. Three more tentacles snaked around and gripped the others tightly. Now all four ponies were trapped in the squid's suction cups and it seemed all hope was lost. Nemo continued to stab at the tentacle holding him as he was pulled closer and closer to the monster's gaping beak.
"I knew it! I knew it would end like this!" he grumbled. "But I'm not going down without a fight!"
Rarity thrashed and writhed, trying to escape the lung crushing grip, but she knew she was doomed. She couldn't help but notice that her spell was still indicating something strange, and it was coming from the squid itself. That's when she saw it; a glimmer on the squid's mantle. Rarity squinted at the top of the pointy head and was shocked to see a baseball sized dark green gem embedded in the squid's flesh. That's when she realized that it must have been Blackmane's emerald. Summoning all her might, she focused her magic and attempted to pull the jewel out of the mantle. The emerald finally popped out and the squid's pupils shrunk to the size of peas.
The creature immediately released its grip on the ponies and pushed off to swim away with relief, leaving a trail of ink behind. As the ink cloud covered their suits, Nemo, Applejack and Rainbow saw what Rarity had pulled from the beast.
"Well bite my tail!" smiled Applejack. "That's gotta be the emerald!"
"Aye, I recognize it exactly!" said Nemo. "This is the very gem!"
"How did it get stuck in the head of a giant squid anyhow?" asked Rainbow.
"Who cares? We finally got the key to stop Blackmane!" cheered Applejack. "Nice job, Rarity. Ya really pulled through!"
"Agh! Get this black mess off of me!" Rarity shrieked as she frantically tried to shake off the squid ink. "It's absolutely disgusting! Black is not my color! Get it off! Get it off! Get it off!"
After recovering from their ordeal, the ponies raised the Barracuda to the surface to get some fresh air. Applejack burst out of the hatch on top of the conning tower, shaking off her confinement.
"Oh thank Celestia! Outside at last!"
"Out of my way!" barged Rarity pushing her out. "I'm the one who needs fresh air after what I've been through!"
"Pfff, pansies." Rainbow strolled out onto the deck. Then she noticed the two staring out into the sea with shock. "What the heck is the matter with you guys?" That's when she saw the ship and stared in horror.
Approaching the Barracuda from afar was a lumbering sailing vessel that was all too familiar. There was no mistaking the grimy rotten wood and the torn withered sails. They were caught within range of the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge. The mares could not believe their eyes; they could even see a smiling Blackmane perched on the bowsprit, staring them down with lust in his eyes.
"Oh crud, it's Blackmane!" blurted Rainbow.
"How could he have found us?!" worried Rarity.
"Ladies!" Nemo poked out of the hatch. "All of you get below deck. I have a submersible you take to get out of here. Take the emerald with you." He then placed the flawless gem in Rarity's hoof.
"But we can't just leave you, Captain." Rarity said. "Why don't we just go under and run away?"
"Not even a submarine could outrun a ghost ship. Besides, I want to get revenge on that murderer for sinking my crew! Now please, come with me. Hurry!" He lead the mares back down below deck through the submarine until they reached the aft airlock, which contained his submersible. It was a spherical vessel about the size of a small carriage, with a large panoramic glass dome. "You girls will have to take this to escape. I have it set on autopilot."
Rarity and Applejack spoke in unison. "Not more cramped spaces!"
"There's no time to argue." Nemo said. "I'm trusting you three to find Blackmane's island and return the emerald back to his treasure. I'll hold him off so you can get away undetected."
"Captain Nemo, are you sure you'll be alright?" frowned Rarity.
"You can't sink a good sailor, missy." Nemo gave a wink. "Now get inside, quickly."
Without any more sign of protest, and putting aside their discomfort, Rarity and Applejack gulped and entered the tiny submersible. However, Rainbow remained standing behind Nemo in the airlock with a stoic expression.
"Rainbow Dash, you must get in the sub!" ordered Nemo.
"No way, Cap'n!" she held firm. "I'm done with running from that undead maniac. If you're not going down without a fight, then neither am I. I'm staying and there's no telling me otherwise!"
Nemo knew better than to let her life remain in danger; but he was compelled by the gutsy pegasus's tenacity. He grin slightly. "Very well, Ms. Dash, it's a pleasure to have you aboard!"
"Rainbow, what are ya doin'?!" blurted Applejack.
"Don't be a fool!" added Rarity.
But then Nemo slammed the hatch shut on the submersible and pulled a lever to open the airlock. The tiny bathysphere was lowered into the swelling water bellow, and its autopilot was activated, sending it puttering away through the deep blue. After making sure the two mares were underway and closing the airlock, Nemo walked down the gangway with fortitude.
"You'll have to stay below deck for now, Rainbow," he said. "If any of those mongrels make their way down here, I trust you to protect this ship."
"Aye aye, Cap'n!" she saluted. "What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to show that scoundrel that Captain Nemo still stands."
With Rainbow hidden underneath, Nemo exited out onto the top deck of his sub, with his navy saber in sheath. Sure enough, the Revenge floated parallel to the hull of the Barracuda as Blackmane himself swooped down onto the idle submarine. The dreaded pirate eyed the old captain with suspicion.
"Argh, I remember you." He grumbled. "You were the captain of the first ship I sank after my triumphant return. I recall blowin' it to smithereens!"
"Ya can't keep a good sailor down, Blackmane." Nemo said boldly. "Your reign of destruction is over!"
"Har har har har! Mighty tough talk, navy sailor, from somepony too cowardly to go down with his own ship. I don't mind sinkin' yer giant sardine can here neither. All I have to do is give the signal and my cannons will send it to Discord's locker!"
"Why sink an entire ship, Blackmane?" taunted Nemo. "There's only me onboard. Why not just fight me pony to pony and be done with it? Unless of course you're not as fierce as legend tells!"
Blackmane growled with rage and unsheathed his cutlass. "Fine! You'll rue the day you crossed swords with the dread pirate Blackmane, sailor! I'll finish what I started when I sent yer crew beggin' for air!"
"Enough talk," Nemo drew his sword as well. "It's time I redeemed myself. I will have revenge!"
With that, the pirate and the navy veteran clashed blades in a vengeful duel on the topside of the Barracuda. Blackmane's crew cheered him as he slashed wildly to shred his enemy to bits. Nemo defended himself, his ship, and of course Rainbow swiftly and honorably. He knew that the key to saving the seas rested with Rarity and Applejack slipping away through the sea. And somewhere, Twilight, Fluttershy, and Pinkie were on the same mission.
Unaware of their three other friends' escapade with a salty sea captain, Twilight, Fluttershy, Pinkie and Shelly made their own way to quell the scourge of Blackmane. They had left Trotlantis earlier that morning after promising King Conch that the merpony kingdom would be free of the remnants of the dread pirate's destruction. Twilight closely studied the map she had smuggled from the Revenge and before long, the four finally discovered the location of the secret island, which held Blackmane's treasure and base of operations; Scurvy Shoal.
According to the map, the illustrious isle was in a thick crescent shape, with thick tropical overgrowth surrounded by a long distance of beach between the treeline and the water. It was the perfect place to hide anything from cider to vast amounts of looted gold.
After another trek through the suspenseful depths of the sea, the ponies at last came ashore onto the desolate island, breathing fresh oxygen for the first time in a long while.
"Brrrrrrrrrr!" Pinkie shivered from the salty moisture on her coat. "I've never spent so much time underwater! Hold on a sec." She then rapidly shook off the water giving her droopy wet mane its original poofiness back. "Whoo! Spin dry!"
"Um, Twilight," said Fluttershy. "What should we do now that we've found the island?"
"Blackmane must stop by here regularly to stash loot and restock his ship." Twilight explained, pulling out the map. "And when he does, we'll be ready for him."
"Ooh! What are we going to do?" asked Pinkie excitedly. "Booby traps? Are we gonna trap him in a net or hole? Ooh! Why don't we throw a pirate themed surprise party?! Blackmane will be so confused, he'll have to surrender!"
"...Um, well that's certainly thinking outside the box," humored Twilight. "But I got a better idea."
"It's not going to involve any scary battles, is it?" shivered Fluttershy.
"Hopefully not. But I think I know how to break Blackmane down. All we have to do is find his stashed treasure. When he arrives next time, we'll threaten to dump it all into the ocean, unless he surrenders to the Royal Equestrian Navy. Undead or not, he'll be living whatever life he has rotting in prison!"
"You really think that'll work?" asked Fluttershy. "How do you know Blackmane will buckle under?"
"Pirates are greedy. A pony like Blackmane would flip if one ounce of his treasure is harmed. But he won't dive into the ocean to get it back. Pirates from his time couldn't swim and were afraid of the deep. If Blackmane is as thick as I presume, we'll be able to put him away with good old fashioned negotiation."
"Aw that's no fun at all!" Pinkie stomped her hoof.
"Nopony ever said this was going to be fun, Pinkie. Now let's get to following this map. You coming, Shelly?"
Twilight then looked over to a disgruntled Shelly stuck in the shallow wake on the beach, unable to go any further. "Um, a little help please?"
"Oh, sorry! I guess I should return the favor." With an aura of magic, Twilight hollowed out a hunk of bark from a nearby palm tree and formed it into a tub shape. After filling it with seawater, she then used vines to tie the tub to Pinkie's back and helped Shelly inside.
"Yay! I feel like a sled dog!" smiled Pinkie.
"Yay, I feel like an idiot." Shelly glowered.
"Sorry, Shelly," shrugged Twilight. "It's the best I can do, since I don't know any air breathing spells for merponies as far as I know."
"No no, it's fine." Shelly replied. "I guess I could use a little rest from swimming."
"And I can live my foalhood dream of being a cart puller!" said Pinkie. "You want a ride, Fluttershy?"
Fluttershy just stared at her, unsure what to think. "Uh...I have motion sickness?"
"Alright you guys, let's get started on this map." Twilight unrolled the parchment and read began reading the directions to the treasure. "It appears that there are rhyming clues that will lead us. The first one says 'You land on the beach, after hauling today's loot, why not rest your head on the giant tree root?'"
"Aah! There's a giant snake on the beach!" screamed Pinkie.
"Aw, the poor thing is probably lonely here." Fluttershy added.
"Giant snake? What are you..." That's when Twilight noticed a deformed jungle tree leaning into the foliage. Underneath was a humongous brownish green root, detached and stretching out of the ground and coiling around the sand. The forked end of it seemed to resemble a gaping fanged mouth. Twilight smiled. "Looks like we found our starting landmark! Let's get moving!"
After reaching the twisted root, the four looked into the shady jungle preparing for the unknown.
Fluttershy gulped. "Why couldn't Blackmane just bury his treasure on the beach like a normal pirate? That jungle looks awfully dangerous."
"You were just feeling sorry for a giant snake not a minute ago!" glared Twilight.
"Well, um, it was just a root."
"Yeah but you...never mind! Let's just find the second clue. 'Into the jungle you shall march, take thirty paces to the old dead larch.' A larch tree on a tropical island? That doesn't sound likely."
"Hey Twilight, what's a pace?" asked Pinkie.
"Just take steps with the same hoof, Pinkie."
"Ooh! So we get to limp like zombies?" she then stood up on her hind legs with her front legs straight forward. "I've come for your brains! Extra crispy!"
"Pinkie, if you don't mind, we're trying to stop a real zombie. Now let me count. One, two, three," Twilight then took the required thirty paces into the jungle in search of the mysterious larch. "Twenty eight, twenty nine, thirty!" She surveyed the area. "...What the heck?! I don't see a larch tree anywhere! I knew there couldn't have been one."
"Larch!"
"Maybe there's a typo on the map. There must be more to this clue."
"Larch!"
"Let's see. Larches live in temperate climates. Temp- temper- temperate- tempt- temptation. Pirates are attracted to temptation. Like the seven deadly sins. There are seven boulders in this area. I think I'm starting to put it together."
"Larch!"
"Pinkie! Please stop! I can't think when you're..." That's when Twilight found Pinkie staring at a wooden board sticking out of the ground nearby. Upon closer inspection, there appeared to be writing on the board, and there was a mound of dirt below it; it seemed to be a grave. Twilight read the inscription aloud. "'Here lies Old Larch; feared pirate and faithful first mate. Died from a combination of trenchhoof and a shark bite.' The old dead larch! Well done, Pinkie!"
"What? What I do? I just like saying the word! Larch! Larch! Larch!"
"Can somepony please tell me what a larch is?!" grumbled Shelly.
Twilight continued. "Okay, next clue. 'Feeling thirsty after a long day's sail? Stop for a drink at the river's tail.'"
"Is there a river on this island?" asked Fluttershy.
"According to the map, there's one nearby," answered Twilight. "But it goes all the way through the island. There's no end to it anywhere. So where would we find its 'tail'?"
"Maybe we should just follow it all the way through." Shelly suggested.
"I'm waaaaaay ahead of ya! Weeeeeeeeeeeeee!"
The others looked as Pinkie was carried down a flowing river that had been trickling silently under their awareness. Pinkie giggled the water sent her floating away without any sign of slowing.
"Pinkie! What are you doing?!" shouted Twilight. "Wait, where's Shelly?" She looked around for the merpony as she who no longer had a means to pull her across land.
"Finally! Water!" Just then, Shelly was seen bursting out of the river's surface with a joyous splash.
"Shelly, go help Pinkie." Twilight said. "Who knows what could be in that river?"
"I'm on it!" With that, she dove beneath and sped down the river aided by the strong current.
Twilight continued along the river on hoof with Fluttershy scouting from the air. They hoped that Shelly would save Pinkie before the river's undertow cast her out into the ocean on the other side of the island. Twilight looked at the map, carefully following the position along the river she was moving along. Eventually, she reached halfway down the river in the center of the island.
"Fluttershy, do you see anything?" she asked.
"Um, Twilight, I found Pinkie." Fluttershy said with a bit of confusion.
Up ahead, Twilight finally found her wily pink friend sitting on the river bank. Beside her was a strange rock formation with fresh water trickling down its side and into the brackish river. Pinkie was chugging down the falling water as if she hadn't experienced enough water already. Shelly floated beside her with an annoyed expression.
"Hey guys! This water tastes so crisp and fresh!" Pinkie said.
"Pinkie, what were you thinking?" glowered Twilight. "I mean why would you just..." She stopped and gazed at the rock formation pouring water into Pinkie's endless stomach. The water flowed down an appendage of the formation which seemed to resemble a pony's tail. Once again, she put the pieces together in her head. "The river's tail! Wow, Pinkie, you're actually proving to be pretty helpful this time!"
"Thanks!...Wait, what's that supposed to mean?"
Twilight turned to the map again. "Follow thee, to a tree, marked with a symbol in blue, scale the tree's height, and using keen sight, you'll find the final clue.' Who wrote these instructions? Zecora?"
"Well if you guys are going to be doing any climbing, count me out." Shelly said.
"You can stay here for now, Shelly." Twilight replied. "It shouldn't be hard to find a tree with a blue mark on it. Although the clue doesn't give much else detail about it."
"Wait Twilight, um, I already found it!" called Fluttershy, hovering high above. She pointed over to a tall fertile tree that stood out from most of the smaller ones around it.
Upon closer inspection, Twilight approached the tree and noticed a pony-made inscription on the trunk. It was the word 'BLUE' written in red paint. "Okay seriously? I'm starting to doubt the guidance of these freaking pirates!"
"Well what did you expect, Twilight? They're pirates!" added Pinkie.
"Whatever. What's the last clue? 'From atop your newfound crow's nest, you'll find the X that marks the treasure chest.' Fluttershy," she called up. "Do you see an X from up there?"
Fluttershy floated above the top of the marked tree and surveyed the area. Eventually, something caught her eye. "Well, I see a clearing with two swords crossed in an X. Does that count?"
"That works for me!" smiled Twilight. "Now let's go get that treasure!"
"Um, Twilight? Just a thought." Fluttershy spoke up. "Wouldn't it have been easier to just skip all the clues then have me fly up and find the X in the first place?"
Twilight stared without a word for a moment, realizing just how pointless following the clues was. She took a minute to rub her forehead and recoil from her rare moment of ignorance. Then she sighed. "Shall we go to the X?"
Within a short walking distance, the ponies finally found the crossed swords which marked the end of their treasure hunt. Twilight removed the swords and prepared her magic.
"Okay girls, once we dig up this treasure, we'll have the edge we need to bring Blackmane to his knees!" She then used her magic to remove the earth in front of her, creating a hole that grew gradually deeper. However, after removing about twelve feet of dirt, there was still no sign of a chest of any kind. Twilight began feeling confused as she dug even more.
"Wow! Are we about to uncover lava?" asked Pinkie.
"I don't get it!" grumbled Twilight. "I don't see any treasure no matter how much I dig. This doesn't make...oh no! Those slimy pirates! This treasure map must be a decoy! I guess Blackmane isn't as thick as I thought."
"Um, guys?"
"So we don't know where the treasure is?" Pinkie reiterated. "How are we going to threaten Blackmane now?!"
"Hey guys?"
"I guess we'll just have to keep looking." Twilight sulked. "We'll dig up this whole island if we have to."
"Um, I think there's-"
"In that case, Twilight, use your magic to lift the island up and we'll search underneath! It'll be like looking under the couch for loose change!"
Suddenly, something flew past between Twilight and Pinkie piercing the air. They both looked in shock to see a sword vibrating from inertia as it was embedded in the ground. Then they looked the opposite way to see where it had been thrown from. They were even more shocked to see Fluttershy who had just flung her hoof.
"Oh my gosh!" the awkward pegasus whimpered. "I'm so sorry! I don't know why I did that! I was just trying to get your attention! Please don't be mad!"
"Fluttershy, what's the matter?" asked Twilight.
"Um, well, I was just wondering, have you noticed that all the seagulls here seem to be flocking in the same direction?"
"...Uh, no. We haven't really been focusing on the seagulls."
Fluttershy explained. "Well, there must be something that's attracting the birds to a certain spot. And I know for a fact that birds, especially seagulls, are attracted to shiny objects. If I'm right, all we have to do is follow the birds and we'll find them nesting around the treasure!"
"Fluttershy, that's genius!" perked up Twilight. "Are you sure it'll actually be the treasure?"
"There doesn't seem to be any food on this island that the gulls would normally eat. So they must be more attracted to something else."
"It's worth a shot. Let's follow the seagulls!"
With Fluttershy leading the way, the three followed the direction of any seagulls they spotted to somewhere on the western part of the island. They trekked further through the thicket, avoiding any dangerous wildlife. At one point, they were blocked off by an angry viper, but it was no match for one of Fluttershy's stares. Finally, they began to hear the cacophony of seagull calls and they at last found where they were gathering. They came upon a withered and rundown wooden shack, near the riverbank, surrounded by congregating seagulls. The shack was fully open on one side where an entire cluster of seagulls were fighting over possession of something hidden inside. After Fluttershy gently cleared away the pesky birds, Twilight finally found it.
Under an old tarp sat a chest of rotted wood with a busted open lock. But it was the contents inside that drew gasps from the three mares. The chest was filled to the brim with gold doubloons, pearls, gems of all colors and cuts, and gold jewelry fit for a princess.
"Sweet Celestia!" they gasped in amazement at the vast wealth.
"I can already hear Rarity screaming over this!" said Pinkie.
"Nice thinking, Fluttershy." Twilight smiled. "We wouldn't have found this without you."
"Aw shucks." She blushed.
"We did it, guys. With this treasure, we can force Blackmane to give in to the navy, and we'll have saved the ocean!"
"I still say we should have a battle!" Pinkie rolled her eyes.
"Guys! Guys, come here!" Suddenly, they spotted Shelly swimming vigorously upstream and ran up to meet her. "I found something that washed on the beach. You're gonna want to see this!"
Hurriedly, Shelly led the three down the river, once again through the jungle. Before long, they reached the beach, a bit further from where they started and Shelly swam over near the wake where the river dumped out. Resting on the edge of the beach was an odd spherical machine with propellers and a large thick glass bubble. But it was the ponies inside the bubble that caught their attention.
"Oh my goodness! What happened?!" shrieked Fluttershy at the sight of Rarity and Applejack lying unconscious.
"Get me out of here! Get me out of here! Get me the H-E-double-carrot-sticks out of here!" Rarity tripped on her own hooves as she exited the opened submersible after regaining consciousness.
"Rarity!" squealed Pinkie happily as she grabbed her in a lung crushing hug. "I'm so glad you're okay! You should've seen what we've been through! Shelly let us breathe underwater and she led us through the sea where we were almost eaten by a shark, and then we were captured by these merponies who thought we were bad, but then we became friends and then we found this island and Twilight had this map that-"
"Pinkie, for the love of Celestia please let got of me!" cried out Rarity. "I can't take anymore cramped spaces!"
"Oh quit complainin!" said Applejack, stepping out behind her. "I'm the one who actually has claustrophobia!"
"Applejack! Where were you guys?" asked Twilight, relieved to see her lost friends again. "How did you get off that island?"
"Well, it turned out the island was a humongous sea turtle that we managed to ride to some port town." Applejack explained. "It was there that we met Captain Nemo, who offered to help us stop Blackmane."
"But I'm afraid things took a turn for the worse." Rarity said. "Blackmane found us and Nemo told us to escape, because we had already found the key to defeating that dastardly sea thug."
"Wait a minute," spoke Fluttershy. "Where's Rainbow? Was she in that tiny submarine with you?"
"That hot-headed wingnut refused to go with us." Applejack shook her head. "She stayed behind with Nemo to fight Blackmane. I swear, that pony will pick a fight with a tree."
"I do hope she is alright." Rarity sighed. "If we're going to send Blackmane back to where he came from, we'll have to do it fast for her sake."
"Funny you should mention that," said Twilight. "Because we already found Blackmane's hidden treasure! This is his secret island, and he'll be stopping by here anytime now. Once he does, we'll threaten to sink his beloved gold and, being greedy as he is, he'll have no choice but to give in! Although I can't say what that will mean for Rainbow and this Nemo friend of yours."
"You found his treasure? Oh Twilight, that's terrific!" smiled Rarity. "We won't have to wait for Blackmane to arrive! Because we have a way to send him back to his watery grave once and for all!"
Applejack then held out a softball sized, diamond cut emerald and explained. "We found a missing piece of Blackmane's treasure, which he cursed if went missin' would bring him back to life. If we return it to the rest o' his treasure, he'll completely cease to exist! That rusty ol' barnacle won't know what hit him!"
"Are you serious?" gawked Twilight. "That must be some serious curse. I can't believe we finally have the key to stopping him for good!"
"Well what are we waiting for?!" Pinkie then used her head to push out the treasure chest found earlier onto the beach. "Why don't ya put that sucker back in there?!"
"Pinkie, you brought the treasure out here?!" questioned Twilight.
"Well duh! I'm not going to pass up the opportunity to steal a pirate's treasure!"
"By the goddesses!" Rarity lit up at the sight of the treasure. "Fabulous jewels and pearls and gold accessories everywhere! Somepony catch me! I'm about to faint!"
"Calm down, girls," said Twilight, taking the emerald. "We're not bringing any of it with us. We're here to save the seas from chaos. And it'll all be over with this gem. Well, here it goes." With a simple flick of her hoof, Twilight tossed the green gem into the stash of gold and jewelry, then closed the chest and used her magic to hurl it into the jungle never to be found again.
"Well, that was...uneventful." Rarity blinked.
"Yeah, I really kind of expected this to end with some kind of epic battle or crazy chase." Pinkie added with disappointment.
"Come on guys," shrugged Twilight. "Not every adventure has to end with a bang. In fact, I think it's better this way. Besides, with the curse of his treasure lifted, Blackmane won't be terrorizing the seas anytime soon!"
"Yeah I guess." Applejack kicked some sand. "Still, it kinda feels like we got all riled up fer nothin. I was actually itchin' fer a fight."
"I certainly wasn't." Fluttershy replied. "I'm just glad we won't have to see that scary, viscous, bloodthirsty, pirate ever-"
"AAAAAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR HAR!"
Twilight's pupils shrank from the sound of the familiar cackling. "No...it can't be!"
The mares looked down the beach as the last thing they wanted to see on the water loomed into view around the bend. Ending all newfound hope, the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge sailed up the coast with its monstrous captain poised on the bowsprit, laughing with a blood-curdling howl. The Revenge anchored several yards away from the baffled mares as Blackmane stalked through the shallow water and stepped onto the beach with a crazed look in his blood red eyes.
"But-but-but I thought restoring the treasure would make him disappear!" stammered Applejack.
"I thought Nemo was telling us the truth!" added Rarity with just as much confusion.
"Har har har har har har!" boomed Blackmane again. "You dizzy lasses! Ya really believed in the curse I made before me death all those years ago?! I was just sendin' chills up everypony's spines I was! Ya think I would place me entire fate in the presence of one lousy chest o' gold?! I've got hundreds of chests buried on numerous secret islands across Equestria where that came from; that there treasure is practically worthless to me!"
"But...but that still doesn't explain how you got here in the first place!" Twilight argued.
"Don't ya get it, lassie?" seethed Blackmane. "'Tis not the treasure that keeps a pirate afloat; it's all about fear! When I was alive, I spread terror all across the seas of Equestria. And from the moment of me death, ponies everywhere revered me as a demon, and spoke with dread whenever me story was told. Then, when yer old navy friend threw me emerald overboard on that fateful night, he cast away his superstition and anxiety along within it. It was that superstition that revived me legend as it touched the sea, me final resting place, and the fear that gripped every pony back then resurfaced and gave me rejuvenation, along with me ship and crew! You see, lassie, a true pirate thrives on fear in all forms, and if a pony's happiness has any magical power, then so does a pony's fear! It was all of you who brought me back; and there'd be no gettin' rid o' me! Ar har har har har har har har har!"
"That...this doesn't make sense!" Twilight said, conflicted.
"But if you're still here, then what happened to Rainbow Dash and Nemo?" asked Rarity anxiously.
"Oh ya shoulda seen it!" grinned Blackmane. "That rowdy little pegasus and that old coot sure put up a fight; but they were no match for a whole gang of pirates. Those two cowards hid below deck in their little floating sardine can which I then sent to the depths with a single cannon shot! It was too easy! One little cannonball was all it took to send that rust bucket sinkin' like a stone!" He began to tear up from laughter. "It looks like you're friends got a little surprise from that! They're as good as drowned! Ar har har har har!"
The five of them stared with shock and dismay at the thought of their dear friend Rainbow, trapped in an iron enclosure in the crushing force of the deep sea.
"Oh no, not Rainbow!" whimpered Fluttershy.
Suddenly, Applejack dug her hoof into the sand with anger. "That tears it! Listen you sword flingin', scurvy-ridden boat jockey! You can chase us around every sea in Equestria for the rest of our lives! But when you sink one of mah friends, I'm gonna sink you right back! Ya hear me, Blackmane ya stinkin' limey salt sucker?! I'm gonna kick yer sorry flank into the next three hundred years!!!" She then charged towards the maniacal captain with every intention of mule kicking the green right off of his coat.
"Applejack, don't!" Rarity yelled after her.
But the farm pony refused to listen and was just feet away from slamming right into Blackmane. That is, until one of the pirate crew members tossed a net over the side of the ship and entrapped Applejack, being kept down with weights. She wriggled and writhed but made no success to break out of the weighted net.
"Are you kiddin' me?! More cramped spaces?!" she shrieked with rage.
"Ya should've learned from yer pegasus friend's mistake, farmer." Blackmane said. "Ya can't fight an undead pirate and live to tell the tale! And as fer the rest of ya, I hate to see such pretty lasses meet their end, but ya'll get what you deserve for tanglin' with the likes o' me! I hope you enjoyed me island, because ya won't be leaving with yer lives! Ow! GAH! What in blazes is going on?!" He then started writhing his head and bucking as another hurled starfish stuck itself to his face.
"Hey Blackmane! I got a score to settle!" Shelly yelled at him from behind in the beach water. "Nopony keeps the Princess of Trotlantis in a cage!"
"Shelly, what are you doing?!" called Twilight.
"You guys find somewhere safe in the jungle!" she replied. "I'll keep Blackmane and his goons distracted. Don't worry about me; I got a whole army of crustaceans over here! I'll catch up with you later."
"Bloody heck! Get this infernal sea star off me face! I'm gonna be sick! Where in blazes is me ship's medic?!"
While the captain was incapacitated, Shelly then summoned a crab to scuttle out of the tide and sneak over to Applejack. The little crustacean then clipped the net open with its claws before sidestepping away, freeing the earth pony from another claustrophobic panic attack.
"Thanks a bunch, Shelly!" she smiled, getting up. "Let's beat it girls. I'll have to kick his sorry flank later!"
"Thank you again, Shelly," called Twilight, as she and her friends cantered off. "Please make it back okay!"
After his bucking fit, Blackmane was finally free of the starfish's grasp. "ARGH! I've had enough of yer shenanigans, seahorse! I'm gonna lock you up on dry land until yer nothin' but seafood!"
Shelly only glared back, and held up two more starfish like shurikens. "Bring it on, grog breath!"
With their merpony friend occupying the ruthless captain, the Mane Six minus one fled through the jungle, hoping that they were not tailed by any hunting pirates. They strew away from the river and any other spots where it looked like the pirates had made settlement, in order to cover their tracks. Eventually, they came upon a hidden cave covered by overgrowth and agreed to take shelter inside.
"Come on, we have to go in deeper so they won't find us!" said Twilight.
"But Twilight, are you sure Shelly will be alright?" asked Fluttershy.
"She's got the whole dang ocean to swim around!" implored Applejack. "I'm sure she'll be fine. Now let's just get to safety!"
"Hmph, you seem quite worried for somepony who was charging full throttle at Blackmane." Rarity scoffed.
"Don't push me, sailor bait!"
After hearing the raspy shouting of pirates in the distance, the five moved deeper into the cave, until the light from the entrance could no longer be seen. Soon enough, they found themselves in a dank watery cavern, illuminated only by the glow of an underground pool. They huddled around by the silent water, recuperating from the horrible incident.
"I just can't believe it." Twilight spoke, saddened. "Blackmane caught up with Rainbow and now she's gone. It's just terrible."
"Now come on," protested Applejack. "There's no way a pony like Rainbow Dash could've been taken down that easily. She would've found a way to escape n' find us, right?"
"Then...why hasn't she?" Fluttershy teared up.
"Oh the poor dear." Rarity added with remorse. "Why did she have to stay with Captain Nemo? I could've stopped her!"
"It just ain't right!" grumbled Applejack. "We can't just let Blackmane get away with takin' our friend!"
"But what can we do?" whimpered Fluttershy.
"I don't think there's anything we can do." Twilight sighed. "Blackmane's curse was a bust, my magic is useless against him, and there's no way of getting help from outside this island. Let's face it, we're outmatched by a bunch of pirates...We've failed..."
They hung their heads in hopeless remorse. With Rainbow out of the picture, it seemed that defeating Blackmane was something that even the Elements of Harmony could not achieve...That is, except not to Pinkie Pie.
"Alright ya lily-livered land lubbers!"
The four others looked up to see Pinkie poised in a dominating stance on top of a rocky crag. Somehow, she had managed to change into pirate garb, including a head rag, a striped sailor's shirt, black rubber boots and an eye patch. She waved a cutlass around in emphasis.
"Now I've just about had enough of this swabbie talk!" she spoke in a very Blackmane-like tone. "Yer givin' up that easily just because one of our shipmates has keeled over!"
"Pinkie, I don't think this is any time for pretending!" glared Twilight.
"Watch that kinda talk, scalawag!" scolded Pinkie. "This ain't no pretendin' time! This is the real deal! No more of this runnin' around and hidin' business! That's for landlubbers! We're gonna take a stand and sink this sea pig to the briny depths!"
"And how exactly do you expect us to do that?" retorted Rarity.
"Ya silly sea sods! Why just take a gander over there!" Pinkie pointed her sword over towards the far side of the luminescent pool.
The rest of them looked curiously at a large shrouded shape sat partly in the cool water. With a glow from Twilight's horn, it was revealed to be a wrecked sailing ship, which bore the mark of Blackmane on a flag. The withered old vessel was a sleek two masted schooner, with around twenty something cannon. Its rotted hull had sprung a major leak in the port side, and the sails were torn and tattered, hanging loosely from their lines. It seemed like a sorry excuse for a working vessel; but somehow, the ponies saw hope in the abandoned wreck.
"My gosh!" gasped Twilight. "This must be the E.S. Baltimare!"
"You know about this ship?" asked Rarity.
"I've read about it. It was Blackmane's first ship! He abandoned it once he captured a larger one which became the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge."
"How the heck did he get it inside this darn cave?!" wondered Applejack.
Twilight pondered as she panned around and studied the features of the underground cavern. "There must be some sort of secret canal that leads to the sea from here. Blackmane probably used it to hide his ship from anypony looking for him here."
"Don't you get it, guys?!" smiled Pinkie, speaking normally. "We actually have a ship now! And we can use it put Blackmane in his place! If we're going to defeat pirates, we're gonna have to think like pirates!"
Twilight finally managed to smile along with her. "Pinkie is right! We shouldn't be running from Blackmane anymore. He thrives on fear and we're practically feeding it to him. Well we're not afraid of him! We're going to beat him at his own game! And all we have to do is restore that ship! Are you guys with me?"
"Absolutely!" said Rarity. "I am desperately sick of that scoundrel!"
"Um...okay." Fluttershy added. "We'll do it for Rainbow Dash!"
"Yeehaw! Let's raise this boat!" cheered Applejack.
"Then get ready to set sail, maties!" rallied Pinkie. "Today Blackmane will rue the day he messed with...the Pirates of Harmony! Yargh!"
"Where is she, blast it?!" growled Blackmane, as his crew began to set out on the beach of Scurvy Shoal. "I want that trouble makin' fishwife wrung dry!"
"Sorry, Captain, but she's swam off into the sea, she has." One of his lieutenants replied.
The captain sighed as he sat upon a shady rock with a bottle of cider. "Aye, no matter. We still got six more lasses to track down. Argh, confound these land-lubbin' mares; they be forcin' me to drink!" He uncorked the cider and chugged the warm aged liquid down his gullet, while his crew watched thirstily.
Suddenly, a familiarly annoying voice was heard from afar. "Avast ye stinkin' swabbies!"
Blackmane spat out the cider and looked in befuddlement down the right side of the shore. Around the bend appeared a sleek two masted schooner, cutting through the water as if it were running on steam. Aboard the speedy craft were the five wanted mares, dressed and armed in full pirate attire. Twilight stood triumphantly at the bowsprit, Fluttershy and Rarity rigged the sails, Applejack took control of the wheel, and Pinkie stood in the crow's nest slashing her sword wildly. A jolly roger waved in the wind from the main mast, depicting a smiling Rainbow Dash above two crossed versions of her cutie mark. On the side of the ship bore a name in white paint: Wave Dasher.
Grumbling with fury, Blackmane reboarded the Revenge and called his men to follow. "All hands, look alive!"
The Wave Dasher approached the Revenge until Twilight gave the order to stop. "Hoist the canvas!" The smaller ship stopped, facing the larger's bow for the mares to confront their destructive foe.
Blackmane eyed Twilight skeptically. "How the blazes did you restore that old hunk o' junk?!" he demanded.
"No fixer upper is impossible with a little magic." Twilight smiled proudly.
"Argh, hang your magic! I told ya before, lassie, yer magic won't have any affect on a blast from the past like me!"
"That's just it, Blackmane," explained Twilight. "We don't need magic to beat you. All it takes is a little something that you'll never understand: courage."
"What kinda crock is that?!"
"You think that you can just live forever off of other ponies' fear; but it doesn't work that way. When you take away that fear, you're just another mortal who can be sunk like any old ship. And that's just what we plan to do! We're going to send you back where you came from, Blackmane, by beating you at your own destructive game. And as long as we have friends who will stick by us through it all, there is nothing that can scare us! We're not afraid of you anymore!"
"You tell him, Twi!" cheered Applejack along with the others.
"Har har har har har! A real thouchin' speech ya gave there, missy!" Blackmane cackled. "But have you forgotten? I'm the greatest pirate who ever sailed these waters! It don't matter what ya do to try and sink me! I'll have ya droppin' to the briny bottom, before ya can say FIRE FORWARD CANNONS!" Immediately, a pair of large cannons poked out from the forecastle of the Revenge and fired simultaneously upon the schooner.
"Applejack!" called Twilight as the cannonballs hurdled down towards the deck of the Dasher.
In a split second reaction, Applejack jumped down from the wheel post and mule kicked both projectiles, deflecting them back toward the Revenge. The two pirates who fired screamed before their own ammo knocked them back through the lower deck, causing a loud crash heard from above. Blackmane growled with rage.
"Sinking us in shallow water?" Twilight shook her head mockingly. "That's real low, Blackmane, even for you."
"Boom! Try to sink us now, Stinkmane!" Pinkie taunted from the crow's nest and gave a raspberry.
Blackmane gritted his teeth but retained his composure. "Yer quite right, unicorn. A real pirate knows how to fight face to face. Men, prepare to board!"
"Rarity, fly the main sail!" ordered Twilight. "Applejack, take us hard to starboard!"
Without hesitation, the Dasher steered away from Blackmane's ship and out into deeper water in order to escape a landing party.
"After them, ya putrid sea rats!" commanded Blackmane.
Since the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge was heavier and slower, the mares managed to put a great deal of distance from them, moving away from the island. They now had plenty of room for a naval clash.
"Alright, Applejack, hard to port." Twilight said. "We'll open fire on them from the starboard side. Pinkie, ready the cannons!"
"Oh boy! I've been waiting for this part!" Pinkie grinned with glee as she sped out of the crow's nest and down to the gun deck. She primed the line of cannons as the Dasher rotated for her to face the enemy vessel. When the Revenge was finally in view, Twilight gave the order.
"FIRE!"
"Eat cannon fodder ya scalawags!" Pinkie shouted and lit all eight cannon on the starboard side.
The guns boomed with a floor-shaking blast sending a hail of cannonballs hurdling toward the Revenge. The larger ship made an attempt to turn right to return fire, but that only made them a bigger target. The cannonballs rained on the barque causing considerable deck damage and even crippled the fore mast. But Blackmane was far from beaten. As expected, the Revenge retaliated with a barrage of cannonballs aiming for the stern of the Dasher.
"Applejack, starboard again!" ordered Twilight. "We can't let them damage our rudder!"
Quickly, Applejack made another hard right, pointing their ship closer to Blackmane's. The barrage grazed over them, tearing holes in the top sails and chipping off the tips of the masts. Fluttershy ducked in fright.
"Eep! It's so...loud!"
As they now sped toward the Revenge, Twilight decided to repeat the tactic. "Pinkie, ready the port cannons! Applejack, a little more to starboard!"
"Oh this is so barbaric!" whined Rarity. "I think I'm getting gunpowder on my fur! I need a bath!"
With the port side of the Dasher now facing the Revenge, Pinkie fired another hail of ammo at the enemy ship's stern. It seemed that the Revenge would be put out of commission for good. But the cannonballs only did minimum damage to the stern as it seemed to have been reinforced with iron, sending some of the ammo bouncing off into the water.
Then, instead of more cannon fire, the Revenge responded with four sail-driven jolly boats lowered off from its sides. Applejack quickly steered away from the enemy, but the tiny shuttle craft proved fast enough to catch up with them, even with gangs of battle ready pirates aboard. The landing party approached the Dasher closer and closer.
"They're gainin' up on us, Twi!" shouted Applejack.
"There's no use, trying to shoot them off." Twilight grimaced. "We'll have to fight them when they come aboard."
Fluttershy whimpered. "I can't fight! Can't we just hide?!"
Suddenly, a miraculous voice came from the water over the side of the ship. "Don't worry, guys! I got them covered!"
"Shelly?" Twilight peered over the starboard. "Where have you been?"
"Oh I just convinced a friend of mine to help us out." She smiled knowingly.
The pirates cackled as their jolly boats began to surround the Dasher. Just then, a humongous shape rocketed out of the water and crushed one of the flimsy craft, leaving the pirates onboard nowhere to be seen. The rest of the landing party looked and screamed in horror as a great white shark returned to pick them off one by one. Twilight covered Fluttershy's eyes and recognized the aquatic killer as the same shark that Shelly saved them from, when they were trekking on the ocean floor.
"Sweet sassafras, Shelly!" smiled Applejack. "That was amazin'!"
"And brutal!" added Rarity with a bit of disgust.
"It's all about having friends in the right places." Shelly said as the shark appeared next to her, panting happily. "Who's a good boy? Yes you are! Who's Mommy's good boy?" she petted the ferocious predator, who nuzzled her lovingly.
"Aww, he's so adorable!" smiled Fluttershy.
"I guess if sharks were ever cute." Twilight added.
"Yer not givin' up on me now, are ya lassies?!" yelled Blackmane, as his ship approached them from behind. "It'll take a lot more than a shark to clean out me crew! Prepare to be boarded!"
"Shelly, I'm not sure your friends can do much good on deck." Twilight said.
"Not to worry, Twilight," replied Shelly. "I have another big guy on the way. I'll do what I can for now."
"Thanks. Well girls, it looks like we'll have to brawl with these pirates after all."
"I can't do it! I'm too scared!" shrieked Fluttershy.
Applejack grabbed and shook her. "Fluttershy, you need to pony up! This is war, and we gotta win! Are you gonna let these sea rascals terrorize all the poor little sea critters?"
Fluttershy snapped out of her frightened state and realized just what she was fighting for. "Not the little fishies!" she suddenly glared with seriousness.
With no more time to run, the Dasher was joined at the port side by the Revenge. The remaining crew laid down gangplanks and rushed aboard the smaller vessel, armed with cutlasses, sabers and daggers. The blood thirsty pirates circled the mares once again with devious grins and crazed eyes. Twilight huddled with the others, facing down their murderous enemies.
"Um, Twilight," whispered Applejack. "Do we even know how to sword fight?"
"Ooh, I did play Peter Pony in my high school play!" replied Rarity.
"I hate to break this to you, Rarity, but this isn't exactly Neverland." Twilight said.
Just then, Pinkie jumped in front of her friends and scowled at the pirates, this time equipped with two swords in hoof. "Put up yer blades, ya barnacle suckin' lily livers!"
"Let's put these sea hags in their place, boys!" a lieutenant shouted as the others charged into battle.
With surprising speed, Pinkie bolted into the gaggle of pirates, swinging her swords in all directions like a blender on hooves. Left and right, she knocked out her foes and sent some of them careening into the water where their lack of swimming would be their demise.
Over by the jib mast, Twilight levitated a discarded sword as three pirates approached her.
"Ah! A floating sword!" cried the first pirate.
"It must be witchcraft!" the second one gasped.
The third slapped the other two. "You stupid sods! It's just that purple unicorn usin' her bloody magic! But she's got a lot to learn about the steel blade!"
With a cocky smile, Twilight levitated nine more swords and pointed them all at the pirates like darts.
"Sweet mother of Celestia!" the third pirate panicked. "She's gone mad! Abandon ship!" The bumbling pirates cowardly jumped over the side, taking their chances to avoid the unicorn's overpowering magic.
"How's that for witchcraft?" grinned Twilight.
In the middle of the deck, Applejack had no problem beating the pirates senseless with her own hooves, giving them swift bucking kicks as if they were ordinary apple trees. "Fifteen! Sixteen! Seventeen! Who needs swords anyhow?"
On the starboard side, another separate group of bandits crowded Rarity, who only lied on the deck innocently.
"Oh please have mercy! You wouldn't harm a poor little lost filly like me, would you?" she teased with glassy eyes and a quivering lip.
The pirates suddenly became smitten by her alluring, filly-like pose; but it was all a reuse. A group of sea bass suddenly flew out of the water and clamped their mouths around the distracted pirates heads, sending them in a confused panic stumbling overboard. Rarity leaned over the edge of the ship and brohoofed Shelly.
"Not bad for a land pony!" the merpony said.
"You still owe me those pearls, darn it!" blurted Rarity.
But as the brave mares defended the deck of the Dasher, the gangplanks were still crowded with charging pirates. It seemed as if the hoard was endless.
"Oh boy, it looks like this crew is bigger than I thought!" worried Twilight, as she levitated parcels of cargo into some pirates.
"Aye, they be swarmin' like maggots to a sea monster's carcass!" added Pinkie, still on her sword fighting tirade.
"Pinkie, yer pirate impression is startin' to really creep me out." Applejack said.
Suddenly, amidst the chaos onboard the Dasher, a cannon shot was heard from the aft deck to the right of the wheel. Two cannonballs linked by a chain spun wildly through the air toward the pack of pirates and swept a good ten to twenty of them off the deck and into the drink. The deadly projectile even hit the bow of the Revenge knocking the damaged foresail completely off its base. With the sound of splitting wood shrieking, the foremast toppled over and collapsed onto the taller main mast, tearing the sails to shreds, breaking off the beams, and putting both masts of the Revenge well out of commission.
Everypony ceased fighting for a moment and looked up to see Fluttershy standing on the aft deck next to a smoking cannon with a look of rage in her eyes.
"Stay away from the fishies, you big smelly bilge rats!!!" she hollered at the pirates.
Her friends stared with shock at their once peaceful ally. "Fluttershy, that was incredible!" beamed Twilight.
"Oh gosh, was that too mean?" Fluttershy asked, reverting back to her nervous self.
With their ship now critically damaged, the pirates seemed to freeze on the Dasher, as a feeling of dread suddenly overcame them. Then, a loud and enraged growl was heard from onboard the Revenge as Blackmane appeared armed to the teeth, with shoulder straps filled with loaded pistols. He stomped over the gangplank with burning black rope stuck under his cockade hat, causing smoke to billow around him and giving him a demonic entrance. The outraged captain gritted his yellow stained teeth and stared down the ponies with hate-filled bloodshot eyes.
"I've had just about enough of ye trouble makin', land lubbin', thorn-in-me-side harlots!" he bellowed at the top of his lungs. "If I have to send ya to Discord's Locker, then I'll damn well do it meself!" he pointed two pistols at the mares and pulled back the flintlock hammers.
"But Cap'n, there's no need for that!" urged one of the lieutenants. "We can easily capture them! I swear!"
Blackmane only responded by shooting the lieutenant in the chest. The pirate withered away into nothing but dust, as he had been when he died three hundred years ago. The mares watched in terror as the ruthless pirate captain turned on one of his own without a single hint of remorse.
"Yer next, sea hags!" sneered Blackmane as he grabbed another primed pistol.
"Twilight, what do we do now?" asked Applejack as the five of them backed into each other. "We can't escape from bullets!"
"Just let me think!" Twilight began to sweat, knowing that this could very well be their downfall.
But just when the battle against Blackmane seemed to be drawing to a close, a hulking mass slowly rose out from the water a medium distance away from the Revenge. Out of the bubbling wake came what appeared to be a floating fortress of iron which was suddenly realized by everypony as a submarine, with a single large blast mark on its conning tower. Both the crew of the Dasher and the Revenge stared baffled as the diesel warship surfaced completely. That's when a spunky blue pegasus poked her head out from the hatch on top of the conning tower, wearing a white navy cap and a battle-ready expression.
"Smile you son of a seahorse!"
Immediately, a loud clank was heard and an oblong shape was conjured from the front of the sub. The torpedo created a ripple on the surface as it rocketed toward the Queen Chrysalis's Revenge. In one ear-shattering instant, the pirate ship burst into flames in a massive explosion, sending wood and iron spewing off every which way. The Dasher rocked in its spot violently from the repercussions of the blast, knocking mostly everypony off their hooves and even sending some more pirates into the ocean. Those who remained held onto whatever they could, including Blackmane who watched his prized vessel with shock and sorrow.
"ME SHIP!"
The once dreaded Queen Chrysalis's Revenge burned like a bonfire as it slowly slipped beneath the silent blue. The fear that had gripped many an innocent vessel was now disintegrating before its own captain's eyes.
Then, Blackmane's eye was caught by the blue pegasus who leaped from the submarine and soared into the air hovering above the Dasher.
"You're landlocked, Blackmane!" grinned Rainbow Dash, her wings now free from her chain bindings.
"Rainbow Dash! You're alright!" cheered Twilight with the rest of the mares.
"We thought you were a gonner, girl!" added Applejack.
"It's gonna take a lot more than some lucky shot from a washed up pirate to sink me!" gloated Rainbow.
Blackmane glowered again and barked at her. "There's now way ya could've survived that blast! I saw that tin can o' yers sink before my very eyes!"
"Um, DUH! It's a submarine, dude! It's supposed to do that!" Rainbow mocked. Then she pulled a navy saber out from a sheath around her hip. "You may be a master on the sea, Blackmane; but you can never defeat me in my own element: the air!"
With a roaring rush of wind, Rainbow swooped down toward the deck of the Dasher and dive-bombed the remaining crew. Before they could even react, the pirates were picked off few by few, as the blue blur knocked them into the drink at lightning speed. The other mares cheered her on as she wiped out the last of Blackmane's crew. After barely half a minute, Rainbow landed on the top beam of the main mast, standing triumphantly without a scratch.
"Way to go, Rainbow!" jumped Twilight. "Only you could have pulled that off so fast!"
"Was there ever any doubt?" she boasted. "And I can't believe you guys named a ship after me! That's so cool! You guys really are the best friends ever!"
"They'll be the best dead friends ever!" Blackmane rasped as he quickly climbed the rope ladder up the main mast to face her. He held his own large cutlass in his hoof. "Let's settle this once and for all! If yer pirate enough to duel me!"
Rainbow pointed her sword at him. "Buddy, I'm more pirate than you ever were! En garde!"
With that, the two began their climatic duel, clashing swords in vengeance. The ponies on deck watched from below with anticipation. Rainbow made swift jabs and swipes trying to land a clean hit, but Blackmane blocked every potential blow. The disgruntled pirate hacked and slashed erratically, but Rainbow was fast enough to dodge the razor sharp blade. The pirate and the rebel pegasus seemed to be evenly matched as they showed no sign of tiring out.
Suddenly, Blackmane swiftly pulled a pistol from his strap and fired at Rainbow. Fortunately, the pegasus jumped out of the way as the bullet whizzed past her and hovered above the beam.
"Hey! No dirty tricks!" she glared.
"Since when did a pirate ever abide by the rules?!" mocked Blackmane who then fired another pistol.
But no matter how much ammo he used, Rainbow was still able to anticipate his blasts and dodge the bullets at every turn. "That's it, I'm tired of this mast!" She then did a backwards loop and rammed into Blackmane, knocking him down onto the deck.
But it did nothing to injure the stubborn pirate. They continued to battle on the deck, colliding swords in a blur of steel, with Rainbow swooping from here and there on her wings. Eventually, Blackmane managed to bat her out of the air, and send her rolling to the deck and losing her weapon. He then pinned her down and raised his sword to make the final blow.
"Never forget, lassie, I'm the greatest pirate who ever lived!" Blackmane smiled devilishly. But before he could strike, he was pulled off of Rainbow by a mysterious hoof. He looked caught off guard as Captain Nemo held him by the collar.
"A true sailor never harms a lady." Nemo swung his hoof and punched Blackmane clear across the face, causing him to fall to the deck, momentarily dazed. He then helped his partner up. "He's all yours, Miss Dash."
Rainbow called without a moment to lose. "Pinkie! Sword!"
"Which one?" asked Pinkie. "I have long ones, short ones, straight ones, curved ones, swords with gold on them, swords with jewels, daggers, axes, clubs, hooks, boxing gloves-"
"Darn it, Pinkie, just give me the sword I dropped!" shouted Rainbow.
"Aye aye!" Pinkie quickly tossed her the navy saber.
Rainbow caught her sword and lunged forward to eliminate Blackmane. The pirate on his back desperately rolled over to try to avoid the strike, but it only resulted in his front leg being sliced off, and withered away.
"GAAAAAAHHHH!"
Pointing her sword down, Rainbow stood over the incapacitated Blackmane. "Any last words, you trigger happy creep?"
"Greatest pirate!...Greatest pirate!" Blackmane only yelled in delusion, as he writhed from the pain in his severed leg.
"Rainbow Dash!" called Fluttershy from aside.
Rainbow looked to see her ferrying the others onto the Barracuda. "We need to go! Now!"
"But what about him?!" she argued.
"He's already had enough, Rainbow." Nemo called with a proud smile. "You've very well beaten him."
After a moment of hesitation, Rainbow looked down at the fading pirate captain one last time. Then, she took off and joined the others onboard the Barracuda. "Why did we have to leave the ship?" she asked.
Shelly surfaced beside the submarine. "Because an old friend of mine has finally arrived!"
The eight ponies watched as a titanic figure loomed in from behind the Dasher. A shadow overlapped the floating vessel, cast by an enormous sea creature. Rainbow's jaw dropped as a giant sea turtle shot out of the water.
"Super Tank?!"
With a low-pitched grumble, Super Tank landed upon the schooner which was equal to his size, and crushed the Dasher in one gargantuan belly flop. A raging splash spilled out all around from where the Dasher once floated, creating a wave which soaked the ponies onboard the rocking submarine. All that was left was a debris field of shattered wood and barrels floating silently on the surface. The tattered old vessel, which lay abandoned in a dark cavern for three hundred years, was finally put to rest, along with the memory of its former captain. After a brief minute of silence, Super Tank finally poked his head out next to the Barracuda and smiled at his friends. Then, he opened his gaping mouth and let out a deafening belch, spewing turtle spit all over them. One object tumbled out of the reptile's mouth; a black cockade hat laced with once burning rope. The curse of Blackmane was finally over.
"Sorry about that, Rainbow Dash," said Shelly. "I already summoned him a while ago and he really wanted to help."
"Are you kidding? I'll take an awesome giant turtle over a rickety old ship any day!" Rainbow nuzzled her lumbering reptilian friend. "Did he taste good?! Did that nasty old pirate taste yummy, Super Tank?!" She was met with a very moist lick from Super Tank's enormous tongue.
"I guess that's it!" smiled Twilight. "Blackmane is finally gone for good!" Everypony cheered with her over their momentous victory. "And we didn't even need Princess Celestia to tell us to do anything!"
"I'm so relieved we were able to vanquish that vile cretin after all!" beamed Rarity.
"What do ya talkin' about?!" glowered Applejack. "All you did was flirt with those pirates to distract 'em! At least I actually put up a fight."
"Don't forget I risked my life in front of a giant squid just to save our flanks!" she rebutted, sticking her tongue out.
"Hey, I just noticed something!" Fluttershy said elated. "I haven't gotten sea sick once on this whole journey! Girls, you're looking at a brand new Flutter- BLAAAAAGH!" she immediately vomited over the side of the sub. "...Oh well, it was fun while it lasted."
"That was epic!" jumped Pinkie. "I actually go to be in an all-out pirate battle!"
"I know right?!" added Rainbow. "We took that old wannabe down!"
"You certainly proved to be a real fighter on the sea, Miss Dash," said Nemo. "And that is why I am making you a Junior Naval Officer!" he gave her a white sailor's cap with a blue anchor symbol emblazoned.
Rainbow accepted the rank with a happy salute. "Aye aye, Cap'n!"
"So where will you go now, Captain Nemo?" asked Rarity.
"Well, now that my conscience is clear, I figure I might as well return to the navy." He pondered. "On the other hoof, I suppose I can wait a little longer while I explore the majestic depths of the ocean! I'm certainly not getting any younger. I may even visit the merponies."
"I'm sure we'll be happy to welcome you, Captain." Shelly saluted.
"Thank you once again for all your help, Shelly." Twilight said. "It's nice knowing we have allies in the ocean."
"My people will thank you for protecting our kingdom from Blackmane's destruction." Shelly replied. "In fact, I think I'll actually like being a princess; my father will certainly appreciate it. But I'll make sure to visit you guys by the coast whenever I can!"
"Oh yeah! Underwater party with the fish ponies!" cheered Pinkie.
"I'll try not to take Pinkie's comments to heart." Shelly rolled her eyes. "Ooh! I almost forgot. A couple of parting gifts! Excuse me a second." She dove under the water and returned within a moment, carrying a silk bag. "This is for you, Rarity!"
Rarity took the bag and peeked inside. Her face instantly lit up with amazement. "Pearls! Beautiful, sparkling, dazzling, authentic pearls!" She admired the smooth shining white orbs, overjoyed. "Oh thank you ever so much, Shelly!" Rarity then grabbed Shelly out of the water and kissed both her cheeks over and over before plopping her back in.
Shelly rubbed her face with slight discomfort. "Well, I'm a mermare of my word! Alright, I better swim off. But I'll leave Fluttershy with a few more friends of mine. So long, everypony! And please...stay dry!"
With a final exchange of waving hooves, Shelly leaped into the air with a fantastic triple flip and slipped beneath the water, with a clean splash-less entry. Immediately, a foursome of dolphins poked their heads from the surface and squeaked happily.
"Dolphins!" beamed Fluttershy, who flew out to join them in the water. The friendly aquatic mammals nuzzled and licked her face. She had finally gotten what she wanted, since that fateful night on the cruise ship. "Best vacation ever!"
Epilogue
Dear Princess Celestia,
I am proud to report that the scourge of the dreaded Blackmane's return has been put to an end, before he could do any major harm to Equestria. If there is anything that I have gained from this experience, it's that courage can be the ultimate weapon against any foe, no matter how dangerous. And as long as you loyal friends by your side who refuse to quit, there is nothing to fear; not even an undead pirate that we happened to come across because Pinkie Pie set us adrift from the cruise you gave us in the first place. I guess it was really a blessing in disguise. Plus I suppose every little pony wants to play pirate once in a while! For now, my friends and I are simply enjoying the majesty of the sea. Don't worry about us, our cruise is going just splendidly!
Your faithful student,
Twilight Sparkle
"Hey Twilight!" called Rainbow from atop the palm trees. "Quit writing and come enjoy the sunset!"
Twilight gathered with her ragtag crew to look off into the ocean's horizon, as Super Tank ferried them toward the sunset which put a close to a long and rewarding adventure.
"Yargh, maties!" rallied Pinkie Pie. "How's about a good old fashioned sea shanty?! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHH...Rock the boat! Don't rock the boat baby!"
"Rock the boat! Don't rock the boat baby! Rock the boat! Don't rock the boat baby! ROCK THE BOOOAAAT!!!"
