Three days have passed since the rescue of the S.S. Atlantis. After what felt like eternity, our heroes are now on their way to the second safest place in the world, where they could rest for a month, or at least until the heat dies down for the young Alicorn and her Human father.

Justin slowly opened his eyes at the sound of frantic knocking on his door. Then, without warning, the door slid open, and in ran his daughter, Ruby, who had a huge smile on her face. From the other side of the door, Pinkie Pie and Gilded Blade stood with smiles on their faces, though Gilded was attempting to hide it behind his right hand's claws.

"Daddy! Wake up, we're here! We've made it to Atlantis!" Ruby cheered, all while Justin turned towards her and weakly smiled before gently ruffling her mane.

"Alright, honey... let me get my stuff. You go on ahead and get your stuff ready, too... okay?"

Ruby nodded her head and ran back out of the room and into the hallway, while Gilded quickly followed her. Pinkie, however, stepped into the room and closed the door behind her. Justin looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "Um... you okay there, Pinkie?"

At once, Pinkie's smile fell, and she was looking away nervously. "Um... y-yeah..." She paused for a moment, until she looked up at him again. "I wanted to say I'm sorry for... putting you in an uncomfortable position three nights ago."

Justin sighed before sitting up and scooting his legs off the bed. Then, while standing up to slip his jacket on, he replied, "You weren't conscious, Pinkie Pie. There's no need to apologize for something you didn't even do."

"But I did do it, even though I was asleep! As such, I feel it is my fault!"

When Justin had his jacket on again, he began strapping the leather vest over his torso. "And as I said, you weren't conscious, so you didn't do it in my eyes."

"But-"

Justin turned towards her and gave her a silencing glare. "No buts, young lady. You don't have to apologize to me, because I'm not even penalizing you. Now please... stop hurting yourself for me... okay?"

Pinkie was silent for a moment, until she sighed and looked away from him. Then she felt his hands gently grip her shoulders, which instantly caught her attention, and caused her to look back up into his eyes... which were no longer glaring, but appeared to be more cheerful. She even noticed a weak smile on his lips.

"You help us smile, Pinkie Pie... and while that might not seem like much... after all that Ruby and I have gone through, that means the world to us. If anything, we should be thanking you more." Then he pulled her into a hug, which she hesitantly returned. "Thank you, Pinkie Pie."

She sniffled a few times before nodding her head. Then, when they broke from the hug, she weakly smiled at him again. "Um... I s-should probably get ready, too!"

Justin chuckled before nodding his head. Then he walked towards the door and held the button for her, and motioned out the door. Pinkie followed his motion and nodded her head appreciatively. "Thank you, Justin... it's good to know I did something right for you and Ruby."

With a nod, Justin replied, "Any time, Pinkie... and remember, you can come talk to any of us if you have anything that's bothering you. Okay?"

She nodded her head. "Okay." Then, Pinkie began heading back to her room to start packing any of her belongings that she unpacked shortly after their arrival.

When she was no longer in his sight, Justin closed the door to his room and continued to strap his armor back on. When he was finished, he was wearing his usual attire, with the addition of the leather vest, two leather shoulder pads, a pair of leather gloves, leather shin guards that rose up just above his knees, and a round wooden shield over his back, rested on top of the strap that had his staff hanging over it. On the belt over his waist, he had both of his longswords, which he had repaired and re-sharpened two days prior in The Poseidon's military smithy, with the permission of Maud Pie. On his fingers, his magically enchanted diamond, sapphire, emerald, and ruby rings were shining brightly, with two additional rings added; a pink opal ring that had a mixture of fire and wind magic, and a yellow jasper ring for enhanced electricity magic.

After giving himself one final look in the mirror, Justin stepped out the door, and noticed that Ruby and Gilded were already outside of his room, and the rest of the crew were already up, and headed down the hall. Not wasting any more time, he joined with Ruby and Gilded, and the three of them soon joined with the rest of the crew, where they would all have breakfast, then prepare for their entrance to Atlantis.

Meanwhile, in The Highlands, a group of sailors were on their way back from a fishing trip with a large portion of fish on their boat.

One of the sailors was a Minotaur with the name "Golden Fish" written on the tag. He turned towards the Gryphon sailor with the name "Silver Eagle" on his tag and asked, "So, ya think you've got what it takes to handle the seas, Silver?"

Silver nodded his head and chuckled. "Ya kidding? I've had to handle clouds worse than this! And with this job, it's safe to say I've conquered the skies and the sea, now!"

Gold chuckled before nodding his head. "Yeah! Though... our passenger seems to have quite a knack for the skies... I mean, she's always lookin' up all the time!"

Silver tilted his head in confusion before turning towards his Minotaur friend. "The guest that somehow found her way on our ship while we were headed from Gryphonia?"

Gold nodded his head in response. "Yeah. Funny how much like a mercenary she can fight! Took down them pirates like they were butter in front of a sharpened knife... but she's dressed like a Zebra, though! Can't tell 'er for a mare or just a short 'n skinny lad! Course, her ears kinda speaks of Equine nature!"

"Indeed! Can't even see inside that brown cloak of hers to tell if she's some kinda Zebra from Goldwood, or something else... quite a mysterious lot those Zebras are..."

Their conversation was cut short when they heard the door to the boat's Main Lobby slam open. Then, when they turned to see just what happened, the hooded figure stepped out of the lobby and turned towards them. Then she pointed at the nearby island, which caught Silver's and Gold's attention.

Gold gently smiled and nodded his head. "That's the place, lass! If yer lookin' fer a good ol' bite, an' maybe a good rumor or two, then 'The Raging Bull' is the place to go!"

With a nod, the figure watched as the boat got closer to the port.

When the boat arrived in the port, the hooded figure jumped over the watery gap, while the sailors continued on with their jobs. Then, after reaching the tavern, the figure stepped through the makeshift curtained door and eyed the large number of mixed creatures that, at this point, all turned to see her.

The music from the bard went silent, the conversations went silent, and the bartender who was tending to a Minotaur customer went silent. Despite the curious eyes, the figure walked past the crowd and, upon reaching the bar, lifted herself onto the nearest empty stool, and pulled out her picture of Pinkie Pie.

The bartender, a snobby-looking Gryphon dressed in a black suit, asked in an accent that seemed surprisingly close to Canterlotian (only in Common Tongue), "I say, what is a ruffian like you doing in here in that cloak?! Perhaps you can't read the signs outside!"

The figure tilted her head in confusion, but remained silent.

"Not much of a speaker, huh? Very well, then..." He reached behind the counter and pulled out a sign with multiple odd writings on it. Translated, the writings were "Druathican", "Drakensonian", "Highlandean", "Common Tongue", "Equestrian", "Gryphonian", and "Saddle Arabian"... each of which written in their own native languages.

The figure thought for a moment before pointing at the "Druathican" one.

The Gryphon nodded his head and cleared his throat. Then, in Druathican, he said, "You have to take the cloak off."

The figure scratched her chin with her right hand before shaking her head left and right... much to the bartender's disapproval.

"Then if you refuse to remove the cloak, I'll have no choice but to issue a complaint to my friends, if you know what I mean? And believe me... they know more about these streets than the guards, themselves! They'll hunt you down when you run away... so, are you going to remove it, then?"

Again, the figure shook her head before pointing at the picture of Pinkie Pie once more; this time, with more force.

"Well, that's too bad! It's been fun, but you left me no choice, so I'm going to have to ask you to hold still, so we can make it quick." Then he turned towards the Minotaur beside the figure and nodded his head.

The Minotaur glared at the hooded figure before reaching behind his back and pulling out a clockwork pistol. Then, once he aimed the barrel at the hooded figure, too much happened at once for him to comprehend.

The hooded figure quickly gripped the barrel of the pistol and pushed it forward while she moved backwards; disarming the Minotaur's grip on the pistol, and causing it to be fully disarmed, and now in the possession of the hooded figure. Then the hooded figure quickly aimed the pistol at the Minotaur's left leg and shot his hoof; sending him on the ground yelling in agony, and causing the entirety of the room to be cleared, save for a few who must've known the Minotaur and the bartender.

When they tried to draw their weapons, however, they soon found their arms and ankles tied into several roots that grew from the ceiling and floor. Then, with them out of the way, the figure pointed at Pinkie Pie's picture, while glaring at the bartender, who was now staring wide-eyed, slack-jawed, and shakily at the sudden turn of events.

"Y-you wouldn't h-hurt me if I told you I know where she is, would you?!" the bartender asked.

Despite his weak attempt of persuasion, the figure sighed before pointing the pistol at the furthest-left beverage on the back counter. Then, a vine grew from directly behind the bartender's back (coming out of the wall) and wrapped around his neck. In the matter of seconds, he found out that his face was at the farthest-right corner of the assortment (but the far-left side of the figure's perspective).

Wordlessly, the figure pulled the trigger of the pistol, and at once, the twentieth bottle shattered and sent the clear green liquid splattering all over the counters and floor. One second later, the nineteenth bottle shattered, mixing a slightly brighter green liquid to splatter. (The drinks were lined up from red at the left to green at the right, and every shade in-between.)

With each passing second, the bottles were quickly depleting, and the bullets were getting much more closer to the bartender's head. Finally, when she reached five, he screamed, "OKAY! I'LL TALK! PLEASE, DON'T KILL ME!"

The figure stopped shooting and looked him in the eyes. Then he shakily pointed at the picture of Pinkie Pie and said, "S-she went with that human there on that picture on that wall over there! They were planning to go to Saddle Arabia, but they were forced to go to Atlantis first, to let the tension from all around the globe ease up on their case!" He then pointed on an old WANTED poster that had a red "X" marked over it.

Slowly, the figure walked closer to the picture of Justin and ripped it off of the wall to have a closer look at him. Then, after bringing it up to the defenseless bartender, she pointed at the picture, to which the bartender replied by chuckling. "She was awful clingy to that guy... almost as if her life depended on it!"

The hooded figure stood there speechlessly before staring at the picture. Then, after her left hand (the one that was holding the picture) started to shake, she Frisbee-tossed it in the air and shot the picture several times, before slowly looking at the bartender and pointing at the clock that rested on the wall behind him.

"T-the ship to Atlantis? When will it be back?" The figure nodded her head. "I'm s-sorry, Miss, but-"

The figure aimed the pistol at the fifth bottle and shot it. *BOOM*

"I don't know what happened to it!"

*BOOM*

"I'll let you know when I hear from it! Honest!"

*BOOM*

"REALLY! I DON'T-"

*BOOM*

"THE SHIP HAS BEEN DESTROYED! I SWEAR, THE SHIP WAS LOST AT SEA! BUT THEY'RE WORKING ON BUILDING A NEW ONE IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF WEEKS! THE CREW SURVIVED, THOUGH! THEY'RE ON THEIR WAY TO ATLANTIS AS WE SPEAK! THEN THEY'LL BE ON THEIR WAYS TO SADDLE ARABIA!"

The hooded figure stood there for a moment with the pistol aimed at the last bottle. Then, with a sigh, she walked up to it and took it from the shelf before turning to her left, where a goat waitress lied under the table nervously.

She looked like she wasn't anything more than an innocent female who was used by the males for certain activities; her black-laced outfit only supporting that theory. Her fur even had a few red spots where she was abused, and her right eye even had a dark spot around it, where she's been struck.

The hooded figure hummed before taking a large pouch of bits from behind the counter, which caused the waiter to gasp and glare at her.

"HEY! THAT'S-" The figure pointed her pistol at his forehead. "-PERFECTLY FINE FOR YOU TO TAKE! PLEASE, DO HAVE A LOVELY AFTERNOON!"

The figure said nothing, but walked up to the goat and placed the bag of bits in her hands and pointed at the door. The goat, in turn, bowed her head respectfully before running out of the place quickly with the bits still in her hands. Then the figure walked up to another WANTED poster of Justin and pulled it off of the wall. Afterwards, she turned towards the exit and began walking.

As she walked, though, she kept everyone in their bindings, considering they were only the criminals that were hired to protect the bartender. Then, when she made it to the doorway, she turned around and threw the bottle of red cocktail towards the bartender. When it landed, it landed just inches over his head, and shattered; sending the liquid all over his body, and the floor beneath him.

The figure then turned away while the soaked bartender breathed heavily. Then he started to cry before saying, "T-thank you for sparing me! I promise, I'll stop making deals with thugs if you-" he couldn't even finish his sentence before the figure aimed the pistol at the area where the cocktail landed and shot a fire bullet onto it; igniting the Gryphon on fire, and causing him to shriek in pain, while the fire from his body traced down the liquids on the counter. Then the hooded figure stepped out just in time for the fire to start seeping closer towards a propane tank that was used to heat up the stoves.

Justin was sitting next to Ruby at the breakfast table. The two of them were eating salads, and despite Ruby's insistence that he eat a meat substitute, he continued to refuse her request, stating that they are both in the same boat together. After finally deciding to just drop the subject, Ruby began telling him that she wanted to practice magic with Zula.

"I know she doesn't use Unicorn magic, but that doesn't necessarily mean that I can't learn it, right?"

Justin scratched his chin in thought before turning his head to Zula, who was looking at them while they spoke. Most of the other crew were just busy chatting amongst themselves, though. Then he turned to Ruby, smiled, and nodded. "I'm sure we can find some time for you to visit her for that... but don't think this is a free ticket to staying out late at night! I want you to be where I can see you at seven at night every time you go! Okay?"

Ruby nodded her head and returned the smile. "Yes, sir! Thank you, Daddy!"

Justin ruffled her mane and replied, "Any time, Honey."

Meanwhile, Quill was speaking with Zero about what they were expecting in Atlantis.

"Honestly, I've heard that the city is so deep in a huge shield bubble, that the top of the water level can easily be mistaken for the sky, itself!"

Zero shrugged his shoulders before replying, "I think it might be a spell, really. After all, they do have days and nights here... and being so deep under the ocean kinda makes one wonder if, without that magic, would the entire place be pitch black?"

Stealth Paws was on the seat in-between the two, who were at the far corner of the large rectangular table. "Honestly, mate, it's probably just some emulators that float above the place. I mean, I've been through a few caves that had lights powerful enough to be mistaken for the sun... and one example would be The Undercity!"

Gilded, who was sitting beside Quill, nodded his head. "Yeah, I was wondering how they got the place to be lit up like that... so it was the result of Fox technology?"

Stealth nodded his head and replied, "Indeed it was, mate! Helped a few of 'em be installed, even! Of course, that was before... it started getting populated."

Quill scratched his chin in thought. "It's all so surreal to think about, really! I haven't really been to Atlantis before, so maybe this could be something I could add to one of my poems!"

Zero chuckled before shrugging his shoulders. "Haven't been here, either, to be honest. Hope the water level doesn't disable flight, though! Would like to get my wings out for a stretch every now and then, y'know?"

While they continued to talk, Gilda was sitting right next to Swift, with both of their eyes focused on Maud. Gilda and Maud were talking, while Swift listened in, but barely spoke.

"So, Maud! When we get to Atlantis, what are we all going to do?"

Maud slowly blinked before replying, "Once we get there, I'll send a letter to Princess Celestia. She might be able to send Pinkie's friends to Saddle Arabia once the month's come to pass. With them on our side, we should have a free passage directly to Equestria, without any legal work required. After all... they are the Bearers of Harmony."

Gilda nodded her head and sighed. "Yeah... I've been told that."

Swift noticed her sudden change in mood. "What's wrong, Dear?"

Gilda cleared her throat before replying, "Well... I've just been thinking about what a friend of mine said when I was up there. She and I... kinda got in a little fight before I left there, and... she said some things that hit me where it hurts."

Swift nodded his head and gently rubbed her right shoulder with his left arm. (His arm was stretched behind her back, and he was sitting at her right.)

Gilda weakly smiled at Swift's gesture before continuing. "Before you guys, she was literally the only friend that I had... well, besides Gilded up there, but that doesn't count, since he's my older brother."

Maud nodded her head. "Friends and family will always have a fight every now and again... but don't forget that the fights are normally what leads to a better understanding of what's right and wrong. I may not know your friend that you fought with, but I'm sure if you both were the only friend to the other, then eventually, the realization will hit you that, maybe, you both were wrong about something."

Gilda tilted her head in confusion. "About what, though? Being friends to begin with?"

Maud shrugged her shoulders before replying, "Either that, or maybe one of you did something that offended the other?"

Gilda paused for a moment before closing her eyes, looking down, and slowly nodding her head. "Yeah... I was angry because she made other friends... and put them above me. And... after this whole ordeal, I've learned that maybe, just maybe... I actually kinda deserved it, too."

Gilded scratched his beak in thought before turning towards his sister. "Hey, G. I'm sure you and Rainbow Dash'll be able to work things out once we get to Equestria, won't you?"

Gilda smirked before looking up again, and rolling her eyes. "I can only hope so... though knowing her, that's highly doubtable."

Pinkie, who also sat next to Justin, chirped in. "Believe me, Gilda! If she was like you were at some point, then I can guarantee that she will be more than happy to forgive you!" She then gave Gilda a determined smile and pointed at herself. "And if she refuses, then I'll make her forgive you!"

Gilda looked at her, weakly smiled, and nodded her head. "Thanks... I appreciate that."

As they were talking, Thor'lok and Software Patch sat at a separate table that was pulled up close to the one everyone else were sitting at. Software merely stared at the assorted fruits and veggies on his plate while Thor'lok scarfed down multiple plates of food in individual bites.

Thor'lok paused for a moment before turning towards Software. "Friend going to eat?"

Software hummed for a moment before looking at Thor'lok confusedly. "My databanks read that the consumption of food by ordinary means would be a bad idea. Therefore, I must wait until none are present before absorption of nutrition is applied."

Now it was Thor'lok who stared at him confusedly. He then looked at Maud and scratched the back of his mane. "Um... Thor'lok have a headache... Thor'lok go to other table."

Software hummed before replying, "My scanner indicates that your headache is the cause of-"

"I think you merely speak over his head, for he is troubled at knowing what you said." Zula commented from in-between the giants of the group. She lifted a mug of tea and took a sip before turning towards Software Patch. "Though I am rather curious about how you eat. What makes your methods different? Do you only eat meat?"

Software shook his head before replying, "Negative. The crystals inside me absorbs the life force of the targeted food item, and leaves behind any and all biodegradable materials."

Fire Wing, who sat on the other side of the three, rubbed his snout in thought. "So you're saying that you absorb the nutrients, and pretty much leave... you-know-what... on the plates?"

Software turned towards him before asking, "If by 'you-know-what, you mean fecal matter, then that would be correct."

Zula sputtered the tea in her mouth back into the mug and groaned. "Great... now I have lost my will to drink. Please, Software, before you speak, think!"

Software sat there silently before replying, "I did think it through, and replied the facts as they were asked. Is that not what this is about?"

Zula groaned before shaking her head. "Honestly, is your knowledge of manners unstable? Do you not know what to keep from saying at the table?"

Software rubbed the lower end of his snout in thought before replying, "My memory banks do not apply to such knowledge. Please, do explain how I may avoid this issue, so that they may be added for a future reference."

Zula opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, the door to the dining area opened up, and in walked a peculiar sight that even Pinkie Pie did not expect to see.

"Well howdy, y'all! Got room fer one more?"

From on board a nearby single-room submarine, a black-coated Bat-Pony stood in the center of a pile of corpses wearing Black Wings uniforms with a wicked smile on his face.

He had a blood-red mane, tail, and eyes, and wore a black hooded jacket over black jeans and a black t-shirt. In both of his hands, he held a black-bladed scythe with red symbols on the tip of the blade, and on his back he wore a black backpack with a black strap that held both flaps over his shoulders in place. There was another strap at the left corner that he folded his scythe and strapped it into. Hanging from another strap between the backpack's exterior and his back, a black wood and metal rifle hung loosely, with more red symbols embroidered on the outside of the barrel of the rifle.

He smirked at the corpses lying on the ground before shaking his head. "Honestly, Black Wings? You guys will have to step it up a notch when trying to ambush me!" While shrugging his shoulders, he walked up to the driver seat of the submarine and lifted the head of a minotaur off of it, then stared into its cold, dead eyes, and rubbing the hole on its forehead with his right thumb. "And you should've minded your head, buddy... would've probably lasted at least another five seconds!" He then chuckled before throwing the head over his shoulders and sitting on the seat casually. Then he gripped onto the steering wheel and set the course for Atlantis.

"This is the Atlantis Port District calling. Please state your identity and your intentions." the loudspeaker stated on the intercom.

The stallion tapped on the microphone button and replied, "The name is Crimson Shadow. I'm just here to visit for a few days... and to drop off a few bodies from a group of bandits."

"Black Wings?"

"Yep. So, do I have permission?"

The male on the other side of the radio hummed for a moment before replying, "Well... as long as you park in the Slums District, then it should be fine. We'll send a group of cleaners to... take care of the mess."

Crimson chuckled before nodding his head. "Alright, then. Don't worry, it's only seven Minotaurs."

He heard the male on the other side gasp before he tapped on the communication button again, and ended the conversation there. Then he sat back, folded his arms behind his neck, and placed his hooves on the counter. Sighing contently, he looked up at the red-soaked interior and asked, "Something's off, though. Usually the Black Wings would send more after me... but for some reason, their numbers must be going down... did that Alicorn have anything to do with it?"

He hummed before shaking his head left and right. "Nah. Might've been her father, or something. That guy looked like he knew how to handle himself... and after hearing those rumors in Druid Lake, I wouldn't mind asking if I could tag along... might even be able to run into more of these clowns to kill!" He turned towards the head he threw earlier, and smiled at it while it continued to look directly at him. Then he stuck his tongue out before turning back towards the radar. Sure enough, Atlantis was nearby for him... and the huge transport ship that was already ahead of him by perhaps a mile or two.

"Now to see what kinds of challenges Atlantis has to offer!" he told himself before speeding the submarine up towards the massive bubble with giant but distant pointy-roofed buildings in the shadows.

Author's Notes:

Still kinda-sorta on my break, but decided to give y'all a quick update on this one, as per popular request via PM's. I'll try focusing on this story primarily once again, after my break is done!

On a side-note, Crimson Shadow is another character that was applied for, and belongs to "mad haxz".