All was eerily calm on a lonely island far beyond the borders of the Griffon Kingdom.
The birds softly chirping in the trees above, the timberwolves howling in the distance, the waves crashing against the beach. It all seemed normal on this bleak piece of land other than the…sound of a foghorn?
This nostalgic sound caught the attention of a wild and mangy-looking creature. Curiosity welled inside it and it began to search for its source. Panting heavily, it seemed that finding this sound was its sole purpose to be alive. Adrenaline furiously pumped throughout its body as it finished climbing up to the highest hilltop it could find. It then focused its sight to the direction of the sound and saw what appeared too good to be true.
A large crab-fishing boat not far from the shoreline of this jungle prison.
"Finally," it spoke in a gruff but refined male voice.
Without another thought, he sprinted off the hill and bolted through the dense forest with quiet grace and swift precision. His green body cloak shook violently from the force of his galloping, his self-made longbow and a quiver of arrows matching his body's rhythm. Arriving at a cliff side, he saw his destination right there in front of him. He leaped off the cliff, landing perfectly with a roll at his rendezvous point and drew his bow and an arrow with his magic. Striking the clothed arrowhead across the ground he set the projectile on fire before fixing it to his bowstrings. Taking a few deep breaths and aiming very carefully, he thought only of what he had to do. With this in his mind, he let go and the arrow flew. It sailed across the sky to the other side of the shore where it struck a pile of wood that exploded with heat.
The captain of the ship was checking his inventory when he heard the explosion. His instincts told him to look towards the shoreline where he spotted the green cloaked pony.
"Bless me eyes. Bring 'er about, lads! Some poor bastard's been marooned on that hellhole!" the captain shouted to his crew.
At that sound of those words, the cloaked pony knew his ordeal was over at long last. Exhausted from the run, he slowly trotted towards the bonfire. Needless to say, he was unbelievably relieved that someone had come to his aid. He dropped to his knees when he arrived at the fire. The captain and his first mate had come ashore to check on what caused the fire, but they couldn't believe what they saw.
The pony was disheveled, dirty, and much leaner than your average stallion. His fur was unkempt and grayed from dirt, and his hooves were severely calloused over. The only sign of him being a normal pony was the unicorn horn peeking out through his messy mane.
"What in blazes happened to ye, lad?" the captain asked.
The pony answered, "My ship. It went to the bottom of the ocean. It was called the Majestic Prince, but I managed to swim here. I've been stuck here all alone ever since it sank."
"That's impossible. I heard about the Majestic Prince and that happened half a decade ago. Even so there weren't no survivors, not even-
"Jet Set, Upper Crust, Florina Tart, Rainbow Shine, Holly Dash, Royal Ribbon. Or even Fleur Dis Lee."
The captain was shocked. Had this stallion memorized the names of the dead? "How do you know their names?"
The pony gave no answer. All he did was remove the cloak from his face to reveal himself. Amidst the dirt and grime, the captain saw one very distinctive feature: eyes with the most beautiful shade of blue. He hadn't seen such eyes ever since he saw…
The captain finally realized who this pony was. "By the gods. It's him."
Now knowing the truth, the captain and his mate lifted the pony onto their backs and sprinted towards their ship. The rest of the crew saw this and quickly helped their new passenger on board. He was given food and water from every crew member and even given a place to sleep in the cabin. He ate ravenously as if he hadn't seen a proper meal since he was born. The captain ventured into the place where the survivor pony was in, but was only greeted by an empty plate.
"And I thought me wife ate too fast," the captain joked.
Forgetting his manners for a second the pony wiped his mouth, looked at the captain the pony said, "Thank you."
But the captain waved him off. "No need for it, lad. 'Snot every day I get to meet Canterlot royalty."
"Please do not treat me as such. I am merely another pony as you are. I'm not like I was before."
"Well, a week in that place and I'd have lost me mind. But, we won't talk about that now. Ye get some rest. It'll be a long trip back home." The captain was about to leave, but turned back. "Almost forgot. I know yer name, but ye don't know mine. Seven Seas, Captain of the Queen's Gambit. I know these waters like the back of me tail." Seven gave a hoof out to the pony who stared at for a while. The pony quickly bumped it and went back to his meal. "And don't ye worry about payin me back. The only thing ye owe me is a drink when we get to land."
"We will get to land, right?"
"On me father's honor, oh ye of little faith!"
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The name of the island they found me on is called Lian Yu. In the Lijiang language, it means "Purgatory". I had been stranded there for five long years. I had dreamt of my rescue every cold, black night since then. And for those five years, I had only one thought, one goal--survive. Survive and one day return home.
The island held many dangers. To live, I had to make myself more than what I was, to forge myself into a weapon. I am returning not the stuck-up colt who was shipwrecked but the stallion who will bring justice to those who have poisoned my kingdom.
My name is Prince Blueblood.