The fast approaching ship was terrifying to behold. Slim, slender, slight, sleek, and bristling with weapons, the main hull reminded Dim of a dragonfly for some reason. No smoke was visible as it slipped between the clouds, and the twin transparent sails that protruded from each side really did look like iridescent wings. Strong magic was at work here, Dim could sense it, but he did not understand the workings of the strange ship. The nacelle was long and quite thin, offering a poor target from a distance.

It was clearly a ship built for speed.

As it pulled up alongside, the sails retracted, folded in against the sides of the ship, and again, Dim was reminded of a dragonfly. There were ponies on deck, but also griffons, a minotaur, and creatures that resembled diamond dogs but were somehow just different enough to not be diamond dogs. Those on deck were hooting and waving as the ship pulled up closer, and Captain Melvin was waving back.

Dim did not relax his guard.

A griffon picked up a small bright red pony with a pale pink and white mane. With a few flaps of his powerful wings, the griffon was airborne with what appeared to be a rather foalish-sized earth pony, and Dim took note of the many guns and weapons the griffon had strapped to his body. The earth pony fidgeted, and for good reason, it was a long drop with quite a sudden stop.

Melvin had a crazy grin as the little red pony was flown over by her griffon guard.

“Jolie,” Melvin called out as he threw both of his hands up into air. “How have you been? I’ve missed you!”

“It’s only been a few weeks, you big suckup,” the little red mare replied with a heavy Fancy accent.

Dim blinked, having trouble with what he was seeing. The mare was no bigger than a filly, but there was something about her that was grown up—she had a maturity to her, even if her voice was squeaky. She was tiny enough to be fired out of a cannon, and Dim had never seen anything quite like her.

“Take on new crew?” the little mare asked as she was dropped onto the deck and right away, she turned to size up Dim. “Wait, I know you… well, I’ve never met you, but I know you. You’re wanted. Be careful, stranger.”

“I intend to be,” Dim replied as he tried to take in the tiny mare that was somehow bigger than life itself. If presense were size, she’d be the biggest pony he had ever seen. For some reason, he felt at ease around her, even though he knew that he shouldn’t be.

“Jolie, these are my guests, Dim and Blackbird.” The captain made a gesture with his hand at the small pony that didn’t even come up to his knee. “Dim, Blackbird, this is Jolie Rouge, Raptor of the Northern Expanses.”

“It’s all just a really, really fancy way of saying privateer,” the little mare offered as she batted her eyelashes at Dim. “Captain Melvin, want to take on a bit more cargo? We’re running heavy and it’s putting a real strain on the ship. After you sell it, I’ll know you’ll square up with me later.”

“That depends,” Melvin replied as he angled his horned head down at the little mare. “What did you take?”

“Ammunition, mostly.” Jolie let out a sniff and then began to study Blackbird while her griffon bodyguard stood beside her. “Lots of alchemical rounds from Menagerie. Destination unknown, but you’d think they were preparing for a war or something. There’s some guns too, and alchemical bombs.”

“There’s still some room in the hold,” Melvin muttered.

“Alchemical ammunition?” Dim found his interest piqued and he had to know. “What type? What sort?”

The little mare frowned, looking displeased, and Dim heard her respond, “Quite a few of them are the worst kind. Sodium potassium rounds. They ignite mid air and explode on impact. They carry quite a thaumaton charge too, so they’ll do a number on unicorn shields. The fact that there are so many is quite alarming.”

Now, Dim found himself frowning, but this was difficult because Blackbird had pointed out his dimples. Once one became aware of certain things, the knowledge was like having the plague. The big griffon beside the little mare was still as a statue and Dim could not help but wonder if there was more going on between the little mare and her bodyguard. With a turn of his head, Dim saw that Blackbird was standing right beside him, and she had much the same stance as the big griffon. Yes… bodyguards were good, because one tended to trust them.

“Also quite a number of anti-dragon rounds,” Jolie added and she gave her head a sad shake.

“I would like to study some of these.” Dim wondered how Blackbird might feel about him spending some of their money. “I could offer a little compensation, if necessary.”

“Sure thing, cutie, we can talk about it over tea,” Jolie replied and she gave Dim a grin. “So, Captain Melvin, what say you?”

The big, burly minotaur let out a sigh. “Let us discuss the transfer of cargo over tea…”

Jolie Rouge, the little mare, was prepared to do business and she packed her own tea service, which was brought over by some of her crew. Dim watched the entire surreal event in near silence, saying very little, and he kept an eye on Blackbird, who was conversing with the big griffon bodyguard. Based on how Blackbird kept turning to look at him, Dim could only guess that she was discussing the finer points of the care and feeding of a little pony. Or maybe they were exchanging pointers on how to kill those who menaced their little ponies, it was impossible to tell.

“—so I hit the ship before they even realised they were in danger and we had them boarded in record time. My crew is getting really, really good at what we do. We took their cargo, crippled their ship, and left them adrift as per the regulations of the Merchant’s Guild of Istanbull. We were polite and even apologised for the inconvenience. No one got hurt, which is just the way I like it.”

Melvin snorted. “I never understood the need for polite pirates—”

“Privateer!” Jolie demanded with good-natured aggravation.

“Ah, yes, my apologies, Jolie… I don’t understand what the Merchant’s Guild hopes to accomplish. If you ever get caught, you’ll see no such courtesy. They’ll either string you up by your neck or you’ll be used for some crew’s comfort. Neither is a good end.” Reaching out, Captain Melvin gave the tiny mare an affectionate pat.

Jolie snorted with laughter and shoved away Melvin’s hand with her hoof. “It’s the distinction, silly. Slavers die a horrible death and everybody else gets to live. We want everybody to be too afraid to haul slaves… it’s working too. More cargo captains have gone honest and have sworn off the slave transport.”

“And the slavers,” Blackbird said, cutting into the conversation, “what of them? How are they killed? Do they get a trial?”

“Get to Istanbull and you’ll find out.” There was something about Jolie’s mirthful expression that was unsettling.

Dim understood what was being done here. Cargo captains who worked for a rival nation or city state had nothing to fear, no worries of loss of life or limb, and it was of a benefit to them to peacefully hand over their goods. Slavers though, slavers had much to worry about. Fear was a powerful motivator to keep captains and crews away from the easy money of the slave trade.

Of this system, he approved.

Wearing his best aristocratic manners like a fine suit pulled out of mothballs, Dim allowed himself to relax a little. This wasn’t High Tea, these gathered creatures weren’t nobles, but he found that he could not hold their status as disgusting primitives against them. The tea, which was steeping, smelled delightful, what little he could smell with the gusts of wind stealing all scent, and quite a collection of cakes, cookies, and treats had been set out.

The conversation continued, but Dim wasn’t listening even though his ears twitched. They were discussing the transfer of cargo now, and he had no interest in that. What he did have interest in, was Istanbull, which had drawn a line in the sand and was sacrificing wealth for morality. Slaves meant easy money, both from the sale of creatures and their labour. Exploitation offered tempting returns for little investment.

“—Gratin over here, I saved him from an alchemist’s butcher block. So what’s the story with you and your little pony?”

Lifting a cookie, he nibbled the edge and found that it was somewhat stale. Why was it so hard to find good cookies here in the hinterlands beyond Equestria? It wasn’t a bad cookie, it just wasn’t fresh. He wondered if Blackbird could make cookies, and if so, what would it take for her to make cookies for him? When he turned and looked, he found that Blackbird too, was eating a cookie. As an omnivore she could eat almost anything it seemed, and that was just one of the many things he found fascinating about her.

“Oh, on the first day I met Dim, he threatened to boil a minotaur in his own semen.”

“Sounds like typical behaviour… for a Dark.”

Pulling the cookie away from his lips, Dim inserted himself into the conversation. “And just what do you know of the Darks, Jolie?”

The little mare bubbled with mischievous laughter and the wind tugged on her mane. Intelligence glittered in her eyes, revealing a keen mind, and Dim wondered what her talent was. Somehow, he had missed her cutie mark and he really should have been paying more attention. Her laughter was infectious and Dim found himself almost smiling.

“I know enough,” was her cryptic response.

Frustrated, Dim was not used to being denied, but he chose to let the issue drop. Meeting another Dark would be unfortunate, as it would most likely mean having to kill somepony. Still, if there were other Darks about, perhaps he should make an effort to find out what Jolie knew. He could ask… or he could just take… nibbling on his cookie once more, he let the issue drop, for now, though he felt some regret for doing so.

Dim was far too mercenary to miss an opportunity.

With the tea and pleasantries over, it was time for business. A small wooden crate stood open on the deck and within were several weapons packed in straw and sawdust. Blackbird seemed eager to have a look, but also hesitant to spend any of what money they had. Dim had a far more practical stance on the matter, and wanted Blackbird to be as well-armed as possible.

“Menagerie tends to favour the big rounds,” Jolie said as she stood on her hind legs with her front hooves braced against the top edge of the crate. “Their guns are a delivery system for alchemical rounds. They are well made—exceptionally well made—powerful, and when paired with the right ammo, turn the wielder into a force to be reckoned with. You don’t have to be a unicorn to cast spells.”

“May I?” Blackbird asked as she bounced in place, her claws and her hooves clattering against the hardwood deck.

“Go ahead,” Jolie replied with a polite gesture of her dainty red hoof.

Before the words were even spoken, Blackbird reached into the crate with her talons and pulled out a weapon. Straw and sawdust fell away to reveal a gleaming long gun. For a pony, this would have been a portable cannon, but for Blackbird, it looked like a rather petite handgun. It was, of course, terrifying to behold, and the fact that she held it with such relative ease left Dim feeling somewhat unsettled, though he could not say why.

“What is it?” Blackbird asked and she sounded gleeful.

“That’s a revolving ten gauge,” Gratin the griffon replied, and he pointed at the stock protruding up from the weapon strapped to his back. “I have one just like it. Good weapon. Versatile. Good for clearing crowds if you load it with shot, but can also be loaded with slugs or alchemical rounds.”

“Oh! Neat!” Blackbird hefted the ridiculously oversized weapon, held it up to her eye, and peered down the sights.

Her head bobbing up and down, Jolie laughed. “That’s a thirty three inch octagonal barrel that’s been hardened for alchemical loads. Most of my crew carry some version of one of these, they favour the double-barrel coach gun model, but that’s a long one. You’ll note that there is a bayonet mount on this particular model.”

Blackbird was biting her lip and Dim was feeling an odd sense of arousal. A happy Blackbird was an appealing, attractive Blackbird, and he squirreled away this important observation for later perusal. He marvelled at the ease with which she hefted the gun around, holding it in her right talons. It looked heavy and grossly overbuilt.

“How much?” he asked.

Jolie’s eyes met his and Dim felt a curious jolt. There was a look of cold, calculating cunning in her eyes, and he drew the conclusion that the tiny mare was far more dangerous than one might think. It appeared as though she was trying to peer through his goggles, or maybe she was trying to see right into his mind.

“Take it,” Jolie replied in a low voice. “I think my boss would want you to have it. You’ll be meeting one another soon enough. I’m not allowed to say more… I can’t say more. Even if I tried, the words wouldn’t leave my tongue.”

“Protection measures from interrogation?”

“Something like that.” Jolie’s nostrils flared and her ears angled down over her eyes. “Take this as a token of our goodwill. I think I can get away with saying that, and I guess I have. When you get to Istanbull, try to have a little trust.”

With a turn of his head, Dim looked up at Captain Melvin. “Were you to bring me to Istanbull?”

Rubbing the spot between his horns, the older minotaur nodded and before Dim could say anything else, he said in defense of himself, “We wish you no harm and only wanted to help you. Not everybody is out to get you. Too much has been said, I think, but maybe it is for the best. At least this won’t be such a sudden surprise when you get to Istanbull. Help is there.”

“It seems we are wanted, Blackbird. What shall we do? Shall I kill all of them right now?”

“Don’t kill them, Dim… I want to have friends. Even after everything that just happened, I want to be able to trust. I’m not ready… I can’t give that up like you have. I want to believe that others can still be good.”

Blackbird’s voice had a tremble to it that bothered Dim a great deal. He could kill them all with no effort. Even Gratin, dangerous though he might be, wouldn’t stand a chance. After a few moments of contemplation, he decided that he could forgive this initial treachery. Help would be appreciated—welcomed even—and anypony powerful enough to have taken an interest in him could make a potentially useful ally.

“If you wanted to kill us, we couldn’t stop you,” Jolie confessed and her voice was husky with fear. “We’re incapable of doing harm to you—”

“The same force that keeps you from talking also keeps you from harming me,” Dim said as his quick mind cottoned on. “You’ve been geased.” When he looked back into Jolie’s eyes, he knew, even if she couldn’t give him an answer. He was impressed with this level of magery and his initial assessment seemed correct: somepony powerful had taken an interest in him.

“Cat’s out of the bag, I suppose.” Gratin looked uncomfortable and he kept his eyes locked on Dim. “Jolie is very dear to me, just like Blackbird is to you. I’m not one to beg, but I do hope that you’ll keep that in mind.”

“Somepony knew where I was.” Dim said his conclusion aloud and glanced around at all of the various faces that were staring at him, waiting. “Somepony knew I was in Pteroșani… and knew I needed… help. This is quite curious.”

“I was on my way there anyway, to pick up cargo.” Captain Melvin shuffled a bit on his hooves, and his face was wizened with worry. “I really don’t want to die right now. I gave up piracy so I could die as an old bull in my bed. This really puts a crimp in my plans.”

With a sigh, Dim bowed his head. “It is too nice a day to go on a killing spree…”

Author's Notes:

Say hello to a couple of major characters. Remember them.