The scene inside Steel's cabin was tense as the stallion continued to hold this new prisoner of his against the wall with the blade of his sword against the changeling's neck. The look on the stallion's face was one of anger. Yet he seemed to be restraining himself from taking any further actions than what he was already doing. The look on Scythe's face however was one of shock and fear. He never thought he'd be in this position so quickly. As he tried relentlessly to escape from his captor's grip, the sound of the stallion clearing his throat made the changeling stop struggling and look directly into his eyes.

"So," Steel said. "Are you gonna answer my questions?"

"Scythe!" the changeling blurted out. "My name.... is Scythe!"

"Scythe huh?" the stallion replied while maintaining the pressure of his blade against the changeling's neck. Not enough to slice through the skin, but sufficient enough to get through to the changeling not to try anything. "Alright then, Scythe. Why are you-"

"Captain? Are you alright in there? I could've sworn I heard something hit the wall." Port's voice called out from the other side of the cabin's door to the bridge, interrupting Steel's question.

"Port! Get in here!" Steel ordered, prompting his First Officer to open the door and come in. Once inside, Port gasped at what he saw.

"Captain! What's going on?"

"This changeling here was impersonating Dotted," Steel replied. "And now I'm trying to get some information out of him." He turned back to look at Scythe before narrowing his gaze. "Why are you here, Scythe?" he asked. "And where is Dotted?"

"Your friend... is with the others," Scythe replied, struggling to speak as the blade against his neck was making it difficult for him to breathe. Sensing this, Steel released his grip and allowed the changeling to fall to the floor with an audible thud. Scythe instinctively gasped and breathed heavily before coughing a few times. "My Queen has him as her prisoner," he said as he looked up at Steel.

"And where would they be?"

"They're close. That's all I'll say."

"Port. Summon the Master-at-Arms," Steel said while keeping his eyes on the changeling. "I want him in shackles and his power blocked with a dampening ring."

"Yes, sir!" Port replied as he looked at Scythe. "Should we also take him to the Princesses and the Bearers? Surely they'll know what to do with him. And they can help us get Dotted back too."

"That's not a bad idea," Steel replied. "But we don't want to alarm the passengers by taking this changeling through the corridors. Get the Master-at-Arms. Then get the Princesses and the Bearers and have them all come up here."

"Aye, Captain!" Port said before rushing out of the room, leaving Steel alone with the changeling. Steel's eyes continued to watch Scythe, who just remained still on the floor.

"You're smarter than you appear," the changeling said before looking up at the stallion in front of him. "It's no wonder my Queen is interested in you."

"What are you talking about?"

"The reason we're here in the first place," the changeling continued. "It's you. You're the one my Queen wants."

"Me?" Steel asked while raising an eyebrow. "Why me?"

"I wasn't sure to be honest," Scythe replied. "I was questioning it myself until now." He then looked up at Steel who immediately pointed the tip of his sword just mere inches away from the changeling's face. "You seem smarter than the average pony. But then again, I wasn't really giving you a challenge since I don't know anything about ships or this... pony that I was pretending to be."

"That's true, I guess," Steel replied. "You clearly weren't prepared at all. Dotted would've easily had answers to the questions I asked." He then shook his head a few times. "What the fuck! Why am I giving you advice?!" he shouted. "Where is Dotted?!"

"I already told you. My Queen has him as her prisoner." One of Steel's eyes twitched as his patience was wearing thin.

"You realize what's gonna happen once the Princesses and the Bearers get here. Right?" he asked.

"I know exactly what's gonna happen, pony," Scythe replied. "My Queen's plan for you and this ship will succeed."

"Oh yeah? How so?"

"You'll see," Scythe replied before looking down toward the floor. Sensing that the changeling wasn't going to continue talking, Steel just kept his sword ready in case he tried anything.

---

As the situation in Steel's cabin was progressing, Port was making his way through the corridors of the ship. Following close behind him was a gray colored earth pony mare in a black colored uniform with a MPD badge pinned to it. On her back was a pair of satchels containing various tools to do her job. As they passed by the passengers, they made sure to keep their expressions calm. But some of the passengers could be heard whispering as they went by.

"I don't like this," Port said as he walked. "Something's off. I can feel it."

"What do you mean?" the mare behind him asked as the two ponies stopped in front of a door leading into a cabin.

"This feels... too easy," he replied while making sure that no passengers were around. He then knocked three times on the door before stepping back. Soon, they heard hoofsteps on the other side before the door opened. Both ponies were soon surprised to find Princess Celestia standing in the doorway.

"Can I... help you?" she asked in a confused tone.

"Sorry to disturb you, Princess," Port replied. "My name is Port Side, First Officer. And this is Detective Copper Top, Master-at-Arms."

"Greetings, your Majesty," Copper Top added before taking her hat off.

"Again. Sorry to bother you," Port repeated. "But Captain Blade requires you, Princess Sparkle, and the rest of the Bearers on the bridge immediately."

"Oh? What for?" Celestia asked while raising an eyebrow.

"Well," Port replied before once again making sure that no passengers were around. "We've got... a changeling... being held by Captain Blade as we speak. He's requested your assistance."

"I see," Celestia replied. "Well then. Let me get the others and we'll meet you there shortly."

"Yes, ma'am," Port replied as Celestia closed the door leading into her cabin. "Come along, Detective. Let's get going."

"Right behind you," the mare replied as the two began walking away from the door. "You know. When I volunteered for this assignment from the MPD, I never thought that something like this would be happening. I figured it'd be an easy gig."

As the two ponies walked away, Chrysalis dropped her disguise and pressed her ear up to the door, making sure that they had indeed left. She then walked back into the parlor room where the rest of the changelings she had brought with her were. Inside, the seven remaining changelings were seen just sitting around on the furniture.

"Not even two hours," she said as she entered the room. "Scythe couldn't even last two hours out there."

"Yes!" one of the changelings blurted out before pointing to another one. "You owe me fifty bits!" Chrysalis cleared her throat, making the excited changeling freeze before looking back to her with a feared expression. Meanwhile, inside the small closet, Dotted Line's ears had perked up when he heard that the changeling who replaced him was caught.

"Ha! I knew making Steel Captain was a good idea," he thought while pressing his ear up against the door, trying to listen in on the conversation.

"Who was at the door, my Queen?" another changeling asked.

"Two ponies who claim that Captain Blade has Scythe in his custody. They're requesting that we go up to the bridge."

"All of us?" another one asked.

"No," she replied. "Just the Princesses and the Bearers." She then pointed at the one sitting on the couch in front of the blocked door leading into the room where Dotted Line was being held. "You will stay here and guard the prisoner. Make sure that he stays in there."

"Yes, my Queen," the changeling on the couch replied.

"Right," Chrysalis said before transforming back into Princess Celestia. "Let's not keep the Captain waiting." Hearing her say that last sentence in Celestia's voice made Dotted's spine shiver. One by one, he could see green flashes through the keyhole before listening as all but one changeling had left the room. Soon enough, the only sounds that could be heard were the waves and the occasional groaning of the ship's hull.

"Now. How can I get out of here?" Dotted thought to himself, sensing an opportunity now that there was only one changeling in the room instead of eight. As he thought of ideas, one suddenly came into his mind. One that should work. "Hey uh... changeling?" he called out through the door.

"What do you want, pony?" the changeling replied.

"I had a big breakfast with a few mugs of apple cider before I came here," he said. "So I uhh... need to use the bathroom."

"Go in there then."

"I really would advise against that. This whole room would smell awful then." After saying that, he could hear the changeling sigh before the couch in front of the door could be heard getting moved.

"Fine," the changeling said. "But don't tell the others that I let you out. I'm supposed to keep you in there."

"You have my word." Dotted replied as he was getting into position for his next move. Soon, the latch on the door was undone and the changeling opened the door, only to receive two back hooves to the face as Dotted bucked as hard as he could. The changeling was flung across the room, crashing into the wall on the other side. Dotted turned around to find the changeling had been knocked out and seemed to be not getting up anytime soon.

"Excellent," he thought to himself before he quickly rushed out of the room, making sure to stop in the bathroom to use a towel to wipe the goo off of his horn. Once done, he tried picking up a toothbrush on the counter. As expected, with the goo off, he was able to use his magic once more as the toothbrush was held in a blue aura of magic. A smirk appeared on his face before he went back into the room where the unconscious changeling was. Seeing that he was still out cold, Dotted wasted no time in exiting the cabin.

"Gotta warn Steel!" he said to himself before he began running as fast as he could toward the bridge.

---

Despite what was happening, everything else seemed to be going on as normal. The ship was still plowing through the waves at 24 knots but was off course. With Steel distracted by what was going on, he wasn't in a position where he was able to tell the helmspony to return to the heading for Mareseilles.

Inside the cabin where everything abnormal was happening, Steel still had his sword at the ready in case Scythe tried anything. The changeling hadn't moved at all since Port left. The silence around the two was deafening until it was broken by three knocks at the door.

"Captain!" Port called out from the other side. "I'm back with Detective Copper Top!"

"Enter!" Steel called out in response, prompting Port to open the door and allow the mare to step inside before entering himself. Once both were in, Steel used his magic to close the door.

"Alright changeling," Copper Top said while reaching into a satchel before pulling out a set of shackles. "You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford one, one will be provided for you by the country of Equestria. Do you understand these rights as I've read them to you?"

"I suppose," Scythe replied before Port used his magic to place the shackles onto the changeling's legs. His eyes then watched as a magic dampening ring was placed onto his horn before it started producing a yellow glow.

"Now that he's in shackles, what do you want done?" Copper asked while turning her head to look at Steel.

"We'll let the Princesses decide that," Steel replied just before another three knocks on the door leading into the cabin could be heard.

"Captain Blade?" a familiar voice could be heard asking through the wood. "You asked for us?"

"Yes. Come in," he replied as Port opened the door and allowed Princess Celestia and the Bearers of the Elements of Harmony to enter. Once inside, all eyes were on the now shackled changeling as he was surrounded on all sides.

"So how exactly did this happen, Captain?" Celestia asked. "How did you discover that this changeling was aboard?"

"He was impersonating Dotted Line, our Chairpony," Steel replied. "Quite poorly if I might add. He clearly didn't know how to behave like him at all." The changeling could only produce a sheepish smile as he watched Celestia circle around and stand beside the Captain. Steel looked up at her as she gave a stern look toward the changeling. "He was also saying that Dotted was still on board. Though he wouldn't tell me exactly where he was."

"I'm... right here, Steel!" a voice called out from the door, prompting everyone in the room to look in that direction. Standing in the doorway was Dotted Line, who was clearly out of breath from having sprinted all the way to the bridge.

"Dotty!" Port exclaimed. "Is that you?"

"Of... course," Dotted replied while gathering himself before looking up at all of the ponies in the room. He then turned his attention to Copper Top. "How many shackles do you have in those satchels of yours?"

"Just a few left?" Copper replied. "Why do you ask, sir?"

"I want all of these changelings placed under arrest!" he ordered before looking directly into Celestia's eyes. "Especially her!"

"Change...lings?" Steel asked before looking around to find Princess Sparkle and the rest of her friends having panicked expressions on their faces. He then looked up at what he thought was Princess Celestia, who only glared back at Dotted.

"The jig is up, Chrysalis," Dotted said before pointing a hoof at Celestia. "For you. And the rest of you lot." Steel could only look back and forth between Dotted and Celestia before he heard her sighing, making him look up at her.

"I should've known better than to leave you with only one incompetent guard," Celestia said in an angered tone before Steel watched her horn light up in a greenish glow. Immediately afterward, he could see green colored magic around the necks of Dotted, Port, and Copper Top. Each of them began struggling as Steel watched on, seeing the Bearers reveal themselves to be changelings. He stepped back in shock and awe as he watched what he thought was Princess Celestia, the kind ruler of Equestria, reveal herself to be none other than Queen Chrysalis.

Soon, the small group of changelings turned their attention to Steel. They all pounced at him at the same time. Seeing this, he tried his best to defend himself with his blade. But one of them spat some green goo onto his horn. Steel's eyes grew wide as the blue aura of his magic around the handle of the sword disappeared, making it drop to the floor before he was overwhelmed by the small group of changelings. The stallion struggled as best he could, but he wasn't strong enough to resist the combined strength of six changelings.

"What... are you doing?!" Steel grunted as he looked at Chrysalis before seeing that each of the ponies she had in her magic were struggling to breathe. "Let... them go!"

"In due time," Chrysalis calmly replied. "But first I want you to promise that you will surrender and not resist me."

"Steel!" Dotted grunted. "Don't.... do it!"

"If you don't," Chrysalis continued saying. "Then you will watch as your friends perish before I unleash my changelings on every other pony that is on board this vessel."

"Steel!" Port cried out as his hooves flailed around, trying desperately to get free.

"Enough!" Steel cried out. "I surrender!" Hearing this, Chrysalis smirked before releasing her hold, allowing the other ponies to gasp for air. She then signaled to the group of changelings to get off of him, which they did immediately. After they got off of him, Steel only glanced up at the goo on his horn. It felt warm and slimy, which made him feel uncomfortable. He then looked over at his friends, who were still catching their respective breaths. "Are you all good?"

"Yeah..." Port replied. "I think... we're good."

"Now," Chrysalis said, gaining everyone's attention. "I want all of you ponies, every passenger, and any other crew you have off of this ship." She then turned to look at Steel. "Except for you, that is."

"No!" Dotted protested. "We're not going to just abandon this ship!"

Chrysalis glared at the pony who dared to defy her before her eyes landed on Steel's sword. A smirk appeared on her face before she grabbed Dotted by the neck once more. Only this time, she also took hold of the blade and placed it against his throat.

"You will do as I say," she said in a commanding tone. "Otherwise this one will perish." Steel could only look on as a changeling spat more goo onto Dotted's horn before another did the same to Port's. With all the unicorn magic in the room now nullified, the sense of danger was increased.

"I'm still down here," Scythe said, making Chrysalis look down at him. She then used her magic to remove his restraints before letting him get back up. Once back on his feet, Scythe turned his attention to Steel and just winked before joining the rest of the changelings. Steel merely just glared back at him in response before looking back at Dotted and Chrysalis.

"So how exactly are we going to get this ship completely abandoned?" Port asked. "Yeah we have 16 lifeboats. But that's not enough for all of the passengers and crew on board."

"Not to mention the fact that it would only be a matter of time before they'd get picked up by another ship," Steel added. "Then you'd have every possible ship in the Navy out looking for this ship." After hearing this, Chrysalis rubbed her chin in thought while keeping the blade against Dotted's neck.

"You have a good point there, Captain," she said. "I knew I wanted you for a reason."

"What exactly... do you want me for?"

"You'll find out. In time," she replied. "But first. I want you to stop this ship." Steel just stood there for a bit, prompting Chrysalis to motion with her eyes at his sword against his friend's throat. He then sighed before nodding.

"Very well," he said before exiting the cabin with Scythe and another changeling escorting him. Once on the bridge, he looked at the helmspony before whistling to get his attention. The helmspony looked over only to audibly gasp at the sight of the changelings. Steel signaled for him to remain quiet, prompting the pony behind the wheel to nod. Steel then went over to the brass engine telegraphs before getting up on his hind legs and moving each lever to the 'Stop' position before moving them to the 'Finished with Engines' position. As he was doing this, Chrysalis turned her attention to Port Side and Copper Top.

"Now I want you two to follow me," she said before exiting the room with Dotted and her remaining changelings in tow. The two remaining ponies did as requested and followed her out onto the bridge. Chrysalis then stepped out onto the bridge wing with Dotted and the blade at his throat next to her. Once out on the wing, she looked up at the wireless telegraph cables that went up to the transmission lines strung up between the masts. With one magical blast from her horn, she vaporized all of the cables. "Wouldn't want any unwanted messages getting sent out now. Would we?" she asked rhetorically.

"So how exactly are you going to have all 2,000 passengers and 799 crew members get off of this ship then?" Port asked. "Since using the lifeboats is no longer an option."

"Simple," Chrysalis replied before she then used her magic and shot at one of the doors on the boat deck. "Go see for yourself." Tilting his head in response, Port obliged and went down the stairs before going over to the door. Once he got there, he opened it to find a field full of grass on the other side. "Now," Chrysalis called out. "You and this mare here will get every pony on this ship and send them through to that location. And make sure to tell them all not to try anything heroic. Or else," She then motioned with her eyes down at the blade. "Is that understood?"

"Yes.... ma'am," Port replied before he and Copper Top began doing as they were told, with the remaining five changelings following them to make sure that they didn't try anything. As the liner drifted to a halt, Steel, the helmspony, Scythe, and the other changeling stepped out on the wing and saw what Chrysalis' plan for getting the rest of the ponies off was.

"You do realize... how long it's going to take them to get every pony through that one portal?" Steel asked. "We're going to be here for a while."

"I've waited for weeks to get to this point, Captain Blade," Chrysalis stated as she watched the first ponies go through the portal. "What's a few more hours?"

Next Chapter: Chapter Eight Estimated time remaining: 1 Hour, 12 Minutes