//------------------------------// // A cold burial // Story: Sargasso // by Goldymarg //------------------------------// - Eighty Miles off the Coast of Baltimare, 1:31 pm Fifty Years Ago This was supposed to be my day. The day when I finally went out to sea to start my life's dream. Sure, it was just some boring courier job, but whatever! Sailing the high seas is who I am! The taste of salt in the wind, the rough waves, the sense of companionship from my fellow sailors, it's all I've ever wanted! “Hurry it up gang! You're not getting paid to just pussy hoof around!” And I can't even enjoy a lick of it. This isn't what I had in mind at all. My boss is a total square, this dinky ship is a joke, and everypony else lazes around here doing nothing but staring at the sky and playing bridge! Where's the adventure, where's the romance?! Instead all I've been doing is mopping up the deck all morning with this mop handle in my teeth... “C'mon Briney, you can do better than that, can't ya?! Put your back into it, scrub those barnacles!” I spit the stupid thing out of my mouth, letting it clatter to the floor. I wanted to toss it overboard, but that would probably get me fired. I'm still on probation and all. “Aw gee whiz man, I told you to stop calling me that! Didn't ya hear me when I told you my name was - ” “If ya got time to talk, ya got time to mop! Ain't that right, pal-sy?! Hey you! Don't be such a slouch, get your flank movin'!” I was thankful he wasn't hassling me anymore, but the sound of him trying to be buddy-buddy with everypony was just as annoying. I learned real fast that he was one of those kinds of bosses. The kind that barks orders all day long while wearing a fake smile, trying to look like he's pals with you. Yeah, fat chance. I'd rather jump overboard on down to nowheresville. “Ah, don't let him get to ya Briney. We all learned to tune out the slob eventually.” I turned around to see another one of my 'crewmates' playing solitaire on the deck with soggy cards, even with the ship rocking about. His playing partner must have wandered somewhere else. “Ugh, how can all you louts act so lazy?! We're out sailing the high seas! Don't ya feel any kick from it?! Any pride?! I came aboard this boat because I wanted adventure, but you guys are all so...uhh...laid back!” He didn't even bother looking at me when he talked, he just kept playing cards. “Think the word you're lookin' for is 'jaded'. And yeah, you're right. Nopony on the Ironside really gives a hoot about nothin'. All we do is show up for work and hope for a decent paycheck at the end of the week. Besides, you really think this tugboat's any place for adventure?” He's got a point...when I heard the ship I was going to be employed on was called the S.S. Ironside, I was expecting somethin' as tough as nails, somethin' that's battered and worn, but still standin' tall like, oh I dunno, an iron wall. What I really ended up on was the smallest boat in the harbor...darn thing looked like a pooped out tuna compared to the other ships. I could already feel the other sailor ponies there jeering and sneering at me. (“Well, I gotta start somewhere...even if it's the bottom of the barrel.”) The deck was swabbed enough, so I trotted over to the utility closet and swung the door open to put the mop away. Got a little startled when one of the hinges broke and crumbled apart from rust, but I soon realized I should have expected it, all things considered. I'm startin' to wonder how this tub's still floatin'. (Bleh, air feels kinda thick...wait, izzat a fog bank rollin' in? Looks pretty big too.”) I went back to that solitaire pony, nearly tripping on a loose floorboard on the way. “Hey, where's the pegasus on duty? We got some fog rollin' in on the starboard bow.” He took a second to place five of diamonds over a six before he even bothered responding. “Don't have one. Only guys we got here are earth ponies.” “Huh – what?!” I wasn't sure if I should be angry or terrified. “Hey you yankin' my chain, pal?! That's a serious safety hazard! What happens when we run into a thunderstorm, or, or if the winds tear the mast apart?! Or how bout' that fog bank, huh?! We could hit somethin'!” “Re-lax, Briney. We don't need a pegasus on board, nothin' ever happens out in these waters. All important nautical traffic's a few hundred miles north from here. Nopony ever bothers comin' out this far.” Okay, this was gettin' ridiculous. Actually, we're waaay past ridiculous! How and why did I have to end up with the dumbest crew in the world?! (“Alright, that's it! The second we get back to shore, I'm reportin' this! No way I'm gettin' stuck with these squares!”) I found myself going back to the front of the ship to stare at that huge, white cloud of fog flooding in. The closer it got to us, the worse I was starting to feel. That guy told me I didn't have anything to worry about, but it's kinda hard to think that when you can't see your own hoof in front of your face. Maybe he was right though...I mean, I haven't seen another ship for over an hour now. I wouldn't bet on us hitting anything. But still... (“...somethin' don't feel right...”) The temperature dropped like five degrees the second we were covered in fog, making me shudder. Was that normal? I didn't think fog was supposed to be this cold. I started rubbing my elbow while staring into the cloud, not really sure what to think right now. Was this really how things were? I mean, I've always wanted to live out here on the high seas, but not like this. What if it wasn't any different on the other ships in the harbor? (“No way man! It's my destiny to be out here, I'm not gonna let it get ruined!”) So what if I'm at the bottom?! I'll just work my way to the top! I'll show the rest of these clods that I've got what it takes to be a real captain! *KA-THUNK* The deck tilted downward towards the port bow a little as the ship slammed into something on the opposite side. I nearly slipped on the wet wood, but managed to not embarrass myself. Nothin's out here, huh?! Shows what you all know! “What's goin' on out here?! I nearly got soup all over me cause' of that!” “I don't know, boss! That other ship came out of nowhere!” (“Other ship? What other ship?! Even if these guys are lazy, you'd have to be blind and in a cave to...huh?”) I wasn't expecting to see anything, but there it was. It's three masts were sticking up over the edge of the Ironside, clear as day. Well, as clear as things are gonna get in this fog. I trotted over to the railing to get a better look at it, feeling something in my throat. Really hope there wasn't a hole in the hull... “...what the?” Scratch that. Our ship wasn't the one that needed help. Here I thought this old pile of wood I'm on had seen better days, but that mess of a boat down there looked like melted swiss cheese. The dark brown wood it was made of was worn and rotted, even worse than ours. The sails were pulled in, but even from here I could tell they were full of holes. Planks were split and torn up all over its deck, and I think one of their masts was cracked at the base. But the thing that stood out the most, and the first thing anypony would notice, was the entire bow of the ship was smashed in. At first I thought it was our fault, but soon figured out that couldn't of been it. We hit them on the side, nowhere near the bow...so how was this thing still floating? “Ladle...give us a ladle.” Wait, was somepony down there too? Thought I heard a voice. I squinted, trying to see past the fog. It took a second, but I manged to spot a stallion down there. He was wearing a yellow raincoat with the hood pulled over his head. Either than that, I couldn't see what he looked like. “A ladle. Please give us a ladle.” What's he goin' on about? Doesn't that guy realize that he's got bigger problems than tryin' to eat some soup?! “Hey, you need help down there?! We're sorry for bumpin' into you! Gimme a sec' and I'll see what I can do about gettin' you back to shore!” “Hey, what's the big idea ya mook?! Watch where ya goin'!” “Yeah! Shove off! Get lost in a whirlpool or somethin'!” I was gonna start galloping on towards my boss, but it looked like the rest of the ship's crew didn't take too kindly to bein' rammed into. Psh, too lazy to work, but not lazy enough to yell at somepony in a raincoat, huh? *fwooohhhh...* “Give us...a ladle.” A cold wind bit into my back, sending a chill down my spine. Where'd that come from? And why's that guy so obsessed with getting a ladle? Is he crazy? “Give...us...a...ladle.” *KRA-THOOOM* A bolt of lightning came down right next us near the port bow, making me jump and fall forward on my face. What the heck was that all about?! I started to get up to shake off that scare, only to feel raindrops on my face. The drops turned into a drizzle when I got to my hooves, and turned into a full on downpour when I got back over to the railing. Dark clouds covered the sky, powerful winds started shaking our mast, and rolling waves shook the boat back and forth, forcing me to wrap my forelegs around the supports so I didn't fall again. “Thunderstorm! Reel in the sails!” No way this was just a coincidence! That pony in the raincoat must be a unicorn! He's conjuring this storm all because he wants a stupid spoon! “Man, you really are nutso!” Only one way to shut him up now. Last thing I'm lookin' for is to sink on my maiden voyage. I galloped past my scrambling crewmates and straight towards the galley, being careful not to slip on the wet deck. Ramming the door open, I immediately noticed a stock pot of soup spilled all over the floor, with a ladle laying right next to it. Good thing the boss was having this, since I wasn't too keen on goin' through all these drawers looking for the stupid thing. I snatched it up in my mouth the second another wave crashed into the ship, sending me flying into a closed pantry door and smashing it. “Arrrgh – grrr!” Can't scream out and let go of this thing...I gotta make that guy stop before it's too late! I waited a second until the floor was level again before galloping right back into the rain and over to the railing again. Turning my head to the side, I threw the ladle overboard in the general direction of the pony in the raincoat. If he was so desperate for a dumb ol' spoon, he'd catch it. “There! I got your ladle! Now stop tryin' to sink us you crazy idiot!” The ladle clattered and rolled in front of him, stopping at his hooves. His head lowered and he stared at it, but there was sign of the storm goin' away. “Aw jeepers...I gave you what you wanted, man! Why won't you leave us - wha?” I didn't care to look when this storm started, but apparently there was at least ten or so other ponies standing there on that ship, and all of em' were wearing the same raincoat with the hood pulled over. They were hiding in the fog the whole time. The ladle floated up in front of one of them as he raised his head towards me...and that's when I saw it. His face...dear Celestia, his FACE. “Yeeessssss...” He wasn't a unicorn. He didn't have a horn. He...he didn't even have eyes. All he had were black, empty sockets, dripping red like he was crying blood. His skin looked all wet and white and clammy and...rotted. His mouth was hanging open and dripping saliva, showing me all five of his teeth. “No way...no way, man! That ship can't be what I think it is...!” The ladle vibrated and blurred like a messed up photograph before it multiplied into at least a hundred more, spread out all over the side of their ship. I felt my knees buckle and my heart in my throat as each one of them slowly raised their heads towards me, their mouths creasing into a half-smile. “...join us.” “JOIN us.” “jOIn uSSS.” “JOIn uus.” Each and every single one of those ladles dunked into the sea like they were possessed and started scooping water into the Ironside. That flood of rain from the storm wasn't nothin' compared to this – it was like somepony took a firehose the size of the moon and started spraying me with it. I think I heard one of the guys screaming to get to the lifeboats, but by then it was already too late. Our ship took on too much water and split in half right from under my hooves. Nopony even had a chance to get to safety. “We're goin' down! Abandon ship!” “Boss, what do we do?! BOSS!!!” “NOOO! Get offa ME!” I tried to hold onto the railing, but the water was too strong. I was forced backwards right into the split. I couldn't see anything. I couldn't say anything. All I could hear was the rush of water and my crewmate's screams as they fell into the ocean. And all I could do as I fell was curl into a ball and hope I didn't hit my head. As I fell into the waiting waters, my eyes shot open. I didn't even care that the salt stung my eyes or that I couldn't see anything. The only thing I could feel was cold. (“Gotta get above water! Gotta find something to – urk!”) This wasn't the same as going to the beach. Something was different, wrong. I couldn't explain it, but it was like somepony was strangling me from the inside. I knew if I stayed down here even a second longer, I could die. So I pushed every muscle in my body and swam back to the surface, gasping for air and coughing up water the second I got above. There was no way I could hold out like this with the waves pushin' me around, so I grabbed onto the first thing I could find, not even knowing what it was. As I pulled my belly over the thing, I realized I was laying on a piece of the mast. “W-what happened?!” I looked around myself, desperate to find out what was going on. That other ship was gone, and so was the Ironside. All that was left was pieces of wood floating on the waves. How's that even possible?! I wasn't even down there for a minute! *KOFF* “Briney! Briney, is that you?!” I recognized that voice coming from behind me! It was the solitaire pony! “Briney, you gotta help me! I-I can't swim! Don't let those freaks take me too!” Looking back, I saw him desperately clinging to a plank of wood. He was breathing hard and his eyes darted back and forth over the waters like he was looking out for something. I could see him flailing and splashing around, doing everything he could to stay above water. How could that guy be a sailor and not know how to swim?! “Uh – just stay there! I'll get ya!” “Hurry, HURRY! They'll find me! They'll kill me! They're coming for – AHH!!!” Two of those ponies in yellow raincoats sprung up from underwater and grabbed his forelegs, hissing at him with toothless smiles. I felt another chill go down my spine as I laid there, watching him try to thrust them off. “LEMME GO! LEAVE ME ALONE! N-NOOO!!!” A third one came up and grabbed his neck, finally dragging him under. My limbs went prickly and limp. I felt my spine shuddering and shaking. I would've slipped off the mast if the waves didn't keep me awake. “I...I could've saved him...” But I didn't. I was too scared. And now there's nothing left but this mast. I'm all alone.