Spitfire could only look on as the crystal that she was trapped within was hauled up above the main deck of Canterlot. Her facial expression has been frozen into a look of fear from having dodged so many salvos from the modified anti-flight guns. But her mood wasn't fearful. She was angry. Angry at the fact that she was now a prisoner of war. Angry that this once proud battleship was now serving King Sombra and the Crystal Empire. And angry at herself for getting caught.

"So what do we have here?" one of the crystal soldiers asked as Spitfire's crystal prison was lowered onto the deck.

"From the looks of it....." another one said. "We got ourselves a military pegasus. That uniform clearly shows she's with those Wonderbolts."

"Should we take her to a holding cell?"

"We can't," the soldier replied. "No way that thing will fit down the corridors. We'll have to get her out of it before we can do anything else."

"Guess we'll have to wait for King Sombra to get down here then."

What that soldier said would've made the mare gasp in shock if she was able to. After all, she was under the assumption that Sombra was still in the Crystal Empire. The recon report that she had based that assumption off of was done yesterday. As she started to ponder just what exactly was going on, the soldiers in front of her crystal, without much warning, immediately began to bow.

"So....." a familiar voice that Spitfire had come to loathe said. "What do we have here?"

"Sombra," Spitfire said in her mind as the one and only ruler of the Crystal Empire slowly made his way into her field of vision.

"Your Majesty," one of the soldiers said before both got back up. "We appear to have caught a pegasus from the Wonderbolts. Judging by her uniform, she is a high ranked member."

"Yes," Sombra said before staring directly into his prisoner's eyes. "I'm well aware of her rank. Isn't that right... Commander Spitfire?"

"How the buck does he know who I am?" Spitfire mentally screamed as Sombra methodically walked around the giant crystal.

"Surprised that I know who you are?" he asked before chuckling sinisterly. "During times of conflict, if one wants to defeat their enemy, they must first know their enemy." Having no choice, Spitfire could only listen as the sound of Sombra's hooves on the wooden deck gave away where he was. "I've seen you in previous battles. I've seen the way you fight. I could sense your passion. Your hatred... for me." He then stopped just outside her vision. "But does that mean I hate you? No. Quite the opposite as a matter of fact. As much as you've proven to be a thorn in my side, I've grown quite the amount of respect for you. The way you inspire your troops in battle is admirable. And...." He then stepped back to where the captured mare could see him. "Now that I'm able to observe you up close, you certainly are quite the attractive mare as well."

"Just kill me now," Spitfire groaned in thought. "I'd never be with you. Even if you were the last stallion in this world."

"However," he continued. "Despite your attractiveness, my heart belongs to another. And she is the very reason as to why we are out here."

"Huh?"

"Now...." he said as his horn lit up in his red aura. Soon, the crystal surrounding Spitfire's body was shattered, allowing her to drop to the deck. She then felt something wrapping itself around her wings. Looking back, she could see a chain was now tied around her body so that her wings couldn't move. "Seeing as how you're a high ranking official of the Equestrian military, you are sure to have valuable information. Information that I would like to know."

"Forget it, Sombra!" Spitfire replied in a defiant tone as she glared at him. "I won't tell you anything." This response though only made the tyrant smirk as he stood in front of her.

"Is that so?" he asked in a sinister tone. "Well. I'm sure with what I have planned, your attitude will change." After saying that, he turned around and started walking away from her. He then unexpectedly stopped and looked back at her. "Oh dear. Where are my manners?" he asked in a sarcastic tone. "You must be tired after trying to escape from my new warship's guns." He then motioned for her to follow him. "Come. My soldiers and I will show you to your new home." With that said, Sombra simply walked away, quietly laughing to himself as one of the soldiers motioned for Spitfire to follow him by tapping her on the flank. This caused her to immediately jerk her head around to see which one of them did it. Upon seeing the culprit standing right behind her, she bucked her hind legs as hard as she could, sending him flying backward.

This action though, predictably, resulted in each of the remaining guards pouncing on her to subdue her efforts. As she struggled under their combined weight, she heard the tyrant snicker as he walked back up to her.

"You are a bold one," he said as he looked at her. "Be thankful that this situation has put me in a good mood. Otherwise, you'd already be dead."

"My liege. Should we alter our course back to base?" one of the soldiers asked as they all got off of her, making sure to keep her in check though in case she tried anything else.

"No," he replied. "Bring us back on our original course immediately. We still have our mission to complete."

"Yes, sir," the soldier replied before racing off to presumably tell whoever is steering this battleship Sombra's order.

"What is your plan, Sombra?" Spitfire asked bluntly. "What possible reason do you have for being out here in the North Equestrian Ocean?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Sombra replied. "I'll be sure to give you a front row seat for the... fireworks."

"Fireworks?" she asked in thought before Sombra just started to laugh again.

"But I'm afraid the time for talk is over," he continued. "Come. Your new room awaits."

As Spitfire was being led into the corridors of Canterlot, Steel had just finished plotting his liner's route back to Manehattan. If everything goes according to plan, they'd be back in friendly waters in at least 5 days. After double checking everything, he was satisfied with what he had done. Setting the map aside, he stepped out of the chart room and entered the wheelhouse.

"Cap," Port said as he stepped back onto the bridge. "All preparations have been made and we are ready to get underway."

"Excellent," the red stallion replied before he looked up at the clock. "And with just fifteen minutes to spare before the tugs arrive to take us out of here."

"We always do seem to cut it close," his First Officer said before chuckling. "Good thing my brother ain't here though. Otherwise we'd be in some serious trouble for being too relaxed about these things."

"Yeah," he responded. "We really should start doing a better job with these things. Can't afford to look sloppy when we're representing Equestria overseas."

"That's true," the green unicorn replied. "I'm just glad we're finally getting out of here. Mareseilles is a nice town and all. But I prefer being back in Manehattan."

"I just enjoy being out on the open sea to be honest."

"By the way Cap," Port said, gaining his attention. "This is probably the longest I've seen you without your sword. How come?"

"Oh!" Steel exclaimed before instinctively reaching back to where his sword would usually be only to find nothing. "Guess I just haven't had the chance yet to go grab it from my cabin. Couldn't really take it ashore with me when we went there for breakfast."

"I suppose so," his friend replied. "Guess I'm just not used to seeing Captain Steel Blade without his sword for so long." This made both of them chuckle for a bit before the room became filled with silence.

"You know what I just realized, Port?" Steel asked in hopes of breaking the silence.

"What's that, Cap?"

"Your name is Port Side. Yet your coat is green. The color of starboard." This made Port start to laugh.

"And Star Board's coat is red," he replied. "The color of port." This made Steel begin to laugh along with his friend before both of them heard a couple of small boat whistles coming from Mareitania's starboard side.

"The tugs are here already?" Steel thought while looking up at the clock. "First time they've actually been early." He then looked at Port before both unicorns walked out of the wheelhouse and onto the starboard bridge wing. From there, they could see the small boats lining themselves up along the side of the ship with a pony at each bow. After a minute or so, they heaved a line up to the ponies waiting for them on the main deck.

"Make sure those lines are tied tight!" Port called out to the group of ponies tying the bow's tow lines. As his friend watched over the bow, the Captain made his way to the stern to check the lines being tied there. As he passed by the lifeboats, he couldn't help but think back to the maiden voyage, and how he almost wound up in a situation that would've resulted in him being a prisoner/slave of Queen Chrysalis. But as soon as that horrifying scenario played out in his head, he quickly shook it several times before getting back to the task at hand. Once he arrived near the stern, he could see one group of ponies was tying the ropes from the tugs while another group was releasing the mooring lines on the other side. The moment the final mooring line was released, he couldn't help but smile. They were finally going back to Equestria.

Soon, the liner's whistle sounded, echoing all around. Hearing that, the stallion nodded to himself before starting to make his way back to the bridge. As he walked, the tugs all sounded their whistles in response and began to pull the massive liner away from the dock.

"Manehattan. Here we come," he said to himself as he walked. But as he got closer to the bridge, his mind began to wander with many questions filling it. Would it be another safe crossing? Or would they run into Canterlot? The battleship's last known location hadn't been updated for quite some time, hence the reason why she momentarily slipped his mind. As the liner was pulled clear from the dock, the smaller vessels soon changed their course to begin tugging the leviathan out of the harbor.

"Cap," Port said as Steel arrived back onto the bridge. "We are clear of the dock now."

"Alright," he replied. "All engines. Slow ahead." Port quickly nodded before his horn lit up and enveloped the handles on each engine telegraph with his green magic. Steel looked on as each lever was simultaneously pushed into position, sending his command down to the engine rooms. Soon, he could feel his ship begin to vibrate as the steam turbine engines began to slowly turn the four massive bronze propellers. Looking upward, he could see smoke starting to rise out of the funnels. "Sleeping time's over for you, old girl," he said in his mind before hopping up and placing his front hooves on the railing of the bridge wing. "Time to get moving."

"We'll release the tugs as soon as we exit through the breakwater," Port said as he stood next to him as they observed their ship being guided toward the opening of the sea walls that made the waters within so calm. "Sound good, Cap?"

"Yes," he answered. "That's fine. Once we do, we'll go to half speed until we reach the open ocean. From there, it'll be full ahead."

"Yes, sir," Port replied before he walked back into the bridge. As he did that, Steel looked out to the water ahead as the ocean liner passed through the breakwater entrance.

"I certainly do hope nothing will happen," the Captain thought as he looked out ahead at the ocean in front of him. "With Canterlot lurking out there somewhere, who knows what will happen."

"I must say that this is quite the welcome surprise," King Sombra said as he led Spitfire and one of his soldiers down a corridor that was lined with cells made for keeping newly captured prisoners of war. "If I had known that I'd be entertaining somepony of your status, I would've made your accommodations more suited for you." After saying that, he stopped in front of one of the rooms before using his magic to open the door. The iron bars creaked and groaned as the door swung open. "Please do make yourself at home, Commander."

"You can knock it off with the sarcasm," Spitfire replied before being shoved into the cell by the soldier. The sudden force from behind made the mare fall flat onto the floor before Sombra closed it with his magic. Turning her head, Spitfire glared at the soldier as he just stood there.

"Enjoy your stay here, Commander." the tyrant continued to say before turning to leave. "Because once we complete our mission and return to Horseshoe Bay, you and your soon-to-be cellmate will be transported to the Crystal Empire for interrogation and imprisonment." With that said, he slowly walked away, leaving the soldier that escorted her to her cell behind to stand guard.

"Cellmate?" she thought as she slowly got up. "Who's that going to be?" As she looked around at her new accommodations, she sighed heavily as the realization of her circumstance set in before making her way over to the thinly padded cot. Once she climbed on, she turned her head to face the wall. "Why didn't I just go with Tail?" she thought as a tear began to form in her eye. "I could've been back on the San Franciscolt by now. Taking a nice hot shower after a long flight." She then turned to look out the porthole in the room as the morning sun rose higher into the sky. "I just hope he made it back with the information that we got."

What's up everypony?

Sorry for the long wait in between chapters. I've been focusing on some of my other stories. Plus work and other things didn't really give me much time to devote for writing. Anyways, I hope that you guys are enjoying the story so far. Hopefully the next chapter will be out in less time than it took for this one.

Also, here is what the REN San Franciscolt looks like. She'll be appearing in the next chapter along with a few other characters so I just thought I'd give you guys a visual interpretation of her.