Not something that was normal to see in Equestria. A lone zeppelin remained moored above a very beautiful island, nearly blocking out the setting sun in the distance. And just like the shadow it cast, the massive zepp was coloured in midnight black.

But the most tell-tale thing about this particular zeppelin was the logo that was emblazoned on the sides of the zepp. What appeared to be a changeling lamia coiled around a Royal Flush hand of cards, composed of the 10, Jack, King, Queen and Ace of Spades.

The logo of the Stacked Deck pirates. This was their home zeppelin, the Royal Flush.

What were this band of swashbucklers doing in the middle of the ocean? Well, the answer to that was simple. It was known that the crew of the Stacked Deck were known to be friendly with the crew of the Sirens, another pirate gang. And as such, the two crews had gotten together for a nice party.

Of course, being Sirens, they were not only able to provide some nice drink and food, but were even able to provide themselves. And that was definitely a welcoming sight for the members of the crew, some of them not actually having been with a mare at all. So, the party on the little speck of land was absolutely bumping. But that didn't mean that all of the gang was down on dry land, chowing down and getting laid.

Well, all but one of the crew. For still on the Royal Flush, was not only the best pilot in the gang but the captain of the Stacked Deck. Cooped up in his little study room just near the massive hangar, with a window looking on at the various, brightly-coloured aircraft that his team operated. A lone unreformed changeling, heavy covered in dried blood, stood before his main table, looking down on a map of nearby island to the one that the zeppelin was currently moored at. He was deeply focused in the current map and a much older map that seemed to be from before Equestria's founding.

His focus was shattered when a particular voice came over the radio in his room. "Hey, Akula... er, boss. Are you still alive in there?" The voice of King Sombra asked.

"Yeah, I'm still up here," Akula replied.

"Jeez, Akula. You're missing out on the best things down here. The food, the party, the mares. When are you going to join in?" He pestered, wanting his new boss to join in.

"I'll be down in a bit, just be patient," Akula told him, not wanting to come away from his work.

Sombra just sighed. "See? I told you he was being stubborn,"

The line was followed by a bunch of audial bumps, followed by a different voice speaking on the radio. "Give me that!" The voice of Queen Chrysalis demanded, before she switched to a much more sweet tone, "Akula, my love. You've been stuck in that room of yours for too long now. Come on down, the food and my coils are getting cold,"

Akula smiled to himself. Chrysalis always knew how to turn him on, those shapeshifting powers of hers always coming in handy for seducing him. And the feeling of being hugged on all sides by snake-like scales was... oh so nice to the changeling. But still, he was working on something and he needed to get it done by morning.

"Come on, you spent one night with me this whole week," Chrysalis continued to urge.

"I know and it was the best night I have ever had in a while," Akula admitted, remembering that night very well.

"Exactly! Blowing off some steam is healthy for you!" Chrysalis exclaimed, "I get it has been a tough few weeks. I get that you're still a bit sore after Gladmane betrayed us in Griffonstone. But now, he's been buried in a metal coffin on a Griffin mountainside. And I just know that you are cooking up a plan to bring us back into the riches,"

"My Queen, never bring up Gladmane's name again," Akula told her, his tone switching to serious, "I'll be down in a few minutes, but I need to work on something first,"

Chrysalis sighed. "Okay, just don't take too long,"

Just as the words had left the changeling queen's mouth, Akula got back on the radio, "Chrysalis, one more thing,"

"Yes?"

"Can you go get Caballeron? I need to speak with him," Akula asked of his lover.

The was a long few seconds of silence, before Chrysalis confirmed this request and went off the radio. A few seconds later, the voice of Dr. Caballeron replaced her voice. "You called for my voice, Akula?"

"Yeah, I did," Akula replied, "You know about the tale of Chancellor Puddinghead?"

"Of course. One of the founders of Equestria. Who wouldn't know about him?"

Akula turned his gaze towards a book that he had left on his desk. "Well, I got this book about him a few days ago. Reading Maps With Holes. Basically, his autobiography,"

It was then that Caballeron went 'ah' at the name of the book. "Yes, I have heard of this book. But I never read it. Couldn't make out what all of the sentences meant,"

"Exactly," Akula stated, "The wording of the book was so difficult to understand, unless you were either Puddinghead himself or even Smart Cookie. But I think that I have managed to decode what Puddinghead wrote and there is something very interesting I found in Chapter 6,"

This peaked Caballeron's interest. "I'm listening,"

"Well, everypony thinks that the royal sisters discovered these islands about 70 odd years after they came to power. But according to the book, Chancellor Puddinghead lead the main fleet of the earth pony tribe through this area on their jouney to find a new land in the same month of events that led to the very founding of Equestria itself. His fleet was caught in a massive storm and the largest cargo tender in his fleet, the Rocksteady, got separated from the fleet and disappeared, all hooves presumed lost," Akula told his treasure-hunting crewmate.

"Really now? Why, that is very interesting,"

"But here's the kicker. Remember that map we picked up in Klugestown a few years back?"

"Of course! Old, leathery and filled with a few holes. How could I forget it?"

"I finally figured out what it is. It a map of the Rocksteady's last route. Caballeron, it was filled with gold, jewels and treasure. Stuff that has never been found for hundreds of years. Not only would we be getting rich, but we would be making history. This is the one artifact and treasure that even the great Daring Do couldn't find. And I think that I have tracked it down,"

That was music to the old archeologist's ears. This was the one piece of ancient history that even Daring Do, his old enemy, hadn't figured out and taken for herself. An opportunity that he was more than willing to take. "Oh, you sly little changeling..."