"wake up!" I was hit in the head as I fell backward in the chair. Soon hitting the floor as I groaned from the pain in my head as I heard loud footsteps until I noticed Golden Will standing above me. "we reached an island young bull... and your not going to like where we are..." he pulled me to my feet and thrust the crutch under my left arm before he took a few steps back. "follow me..." I nodded drowsily as I followed him out onto the deck. My eyes widened as I looked out over the harbor.

"Golden Will... we are?"

"in a pirate town? Your right about that. Had no choice but to dock here." I looked over the badly built buildings. "thankfully they haven't heard the news yet about the ponies. But as a just in case only you and I are leaving the ship to purchase supplies. Everyone else is below deck with makeshift weapons. Except for the young calf and filly for obvious reasons." he stated. "from what I figured out... we were turned around in the storm. We will have to stop at several more islands until I got a good enough heading to figure out which way to go."

"should I have my armor?" I asked him as he shook his head.

"nope... anything shiny might attract unwanted attention. I suggest you bring one of your weapons as a just in case." I noticed he had a large ax on his back. I nodded at him as I went back inside and quickly grabbed my P9, as well as two expanded magazines for them, and hid it in the back of my pants. Walking back out of the cabin with my crutch I found Golden Will had finished lowering a gangplank. Approaching him he gave me a nod as he went first as I soon followed. "from what I know about the town... they respect power... if your ever in a pickle simply kill quite a few of them and they might possibly stand down." nodded at his words as I got a good look at another species... what I believed to be a griffon. Their different colored bodies with clawed hands, wings, beaks, and the average bird head... we walked past a few of them as I noticed another species.

Zebras resembled the ponies greatly but only had coats the colors of white, black, gray, and anything in between those three. "careful young bull... they might take your staring with offense." I looked away as I followed him through the town. I watched as Minotaur's, zebra's, ponies, and griffons all walked around. A zebra was pushed to the floor by a griffon as I watched and he laughed... before his own throat was cut open by a dagger.

I watched the zebra loot his body, kick it, before walking away as if it never happened. I narrowed my eyes as no one else reacted to the death of the griffon. Soon we reached a building. "wait out here..." I nodded as I leaned against the door. He walked in at a hunch while I looked around the busy area... I could find myself being watched by at least one of each of the races. The griffon had a bloodthirsty grin, the Minotaur looked at me in confusion, the zebra in interest, and the pony with a happy grin... to be honest, it was only the happy grin from the pony that set me off. I stood out there as I heard a small scream before watching a young Zebra, about Bell's age possibly younger by a year or so, run out of a building. Everyone stopped and watched as she was pounced on by a griffon with a grin that just set me off.

I watched as the zebra struggled under the griffon before she pulled a dagger off of the griffon's belt and stabbed him in the head. He struggled for a second before his body was thrown to the side. There were large amounts of yelling as the zebra quickly scurried to her feet and ran off into a nearby alleyway as two griffons charged after her from inside the building. I gave a saddened smile as the body was pulled away by another griffon. "young bull." I jumped at Golden Will's voice. "it is not wise to not know your surroundings in a town like this."

"sorry, Golden... everything set up?"

"aye..." it will all be brought to the ship in an hour... long enough for me to look around to see where we ended up..." I nodded. "I suggest you head back to the ship before a pirate decides they want to have a look around." I gave another nod as I leaned forward onto the crutch and began to quickly get back to the ship.

After a few minutes, I made it back to the ship with no problems... which is what worried me as I stepped onto the ship and noticed a few things... some of the stuff was moved around... a crate I remembered being closed was opened. My eyes widened as I quickly went downstairs into the hull and towards the sleeping quarters. "hey! It's Paul!" I started knocking on the door as I heard shushing before quickly paced footsteps. Bell was the one who opened the door a crack as I gave a sigh of relief. "is everyone alright?" she only gave a confused nod. "someone came onto the ship while me and Golden Will were getting supplies... be wary of anyone coming to the door..." she gave a frightened nod as she closed the door. I narrowed my eyes as I turned around and looked among the crates. It was only just now that I realized that this ship didn't have cannons. It had the places for them but I don't truly believe that there were any here.

I quietly moved with caution in my steps as I pulled out the P9 and cocked it on my side. I kept it up as I searched room after room... soon finding that stuff down here had been searched as well... but nothing appeared to have been taken from them as only the bigger crates had been opened. Why?

I made my way to the deck as I saw a griffon on the gangplank. I glared at him as he paled. I aimed the P9 at him as he cocked his head confused a little before he got a smug grin... as soon as he took a step onto the deck a bullet entered his head... and he tumbled down into the waters below. Griffons were apparently the ones I should keep an eye out for as I quickly made my way over to the cabin and slowly opened the door. I observed the room from right to left before I approached the desk and looked around on it. Finding nothing was moved I sat down in the chair and laid the P9 down onto the desk close by. I leaned back in the chair after I moved the magnum I left behind closer to me as I watched the cabin door.

Until I heard a small creek behind me as my eyes widened a little. I played it out as if it was nothing as I gave a fake yawn. " I should go check on the others." I said before I quickly stood up... and whipped around picking up my magnum and pointed it at the intruder. My eyes widened in surprise as it was the zebra from town. The same one who had stabbed the griffon in the head to escape. She looked at me with horror as she eyed my magnum. She looked to almost want to scream. "whoa... hold on..." I stated in a calm tone. I held my hands open with the magnum pointing towards the ceiling. She had confusion now in her fear filled eyes as I slowly crouched down, trying my best to ignore the pain in my right leg, and set my magnum on the floor... before sliding it back underneath the desk. She looked at me with her mouth open. "I'm not going to hurt you..."

she looked from right to left as if searching for a way out as I took in what she looked like. Her hair was shoulder length and was covering her left eye. Her right eye though showed a beautiful crimson red. Her hair wasn't straight by all means but that was understandable with what's she been through today. "my names Paul..." I told her keeping my hands up. I still had my P9 on the table behind me. " I swear I am not going to hurt you..."

"h-h-how do I know you not lying?" she asked in a scared tone. Her voice was like Bell's but hers held fear in it... she was definitely younger then Bell though now that I can take the time to see her fully... "Zebra!" I heard behind me. My eyes widened as I gasped as a pony leaped over the desk and tackled her to the floor and began to beat her. The knife that was in her hands having been thrown away as the three other ponies swarmed her.

Quickly thinking I fell onto my back and grabbed the magnum and fired into the ceiling. They stopped as I looked at them. "are... you..." I slowly got to my feet using the desk to help me up. "fucking... kidding me!" I yelled. "get the fuck out of here now!"

"but what about-" I pointed the magnum at the ponies head who spoke up.

"out..." I snarled as they quickly made their way out of the cabin. As soon as the door closed I fell to my side next to the zebra, finally giving into the pain my leg was giving out as I looked at her now beaten body. She was breathing heavily as I struggled to move over to her. After a minute of moving, I checked over her body and found she wasn't as badly injured. Mostly just bruises with just a few cuts here and there. " it's alright..." I rubbed her face as she pulled herself up and held onto my waist. I shook my head inside of my mind... first Bell and now her...

just what was this world coming to that it made me meet two people almost exactly alike in just a couple days... I heard the door open slightly as I held onto my magnum tightly. "P-Paul?" I gave a sigh of relief.

"behind the desk Bell... do you mind grabbing a roll of bandages?" I asked in a pleasing tone.

"O-ok." I heard her say as the door closed before it opened up an again almost a minute later. She quickly made her way to the desk as she gasped seeing both me and the zebra.

"mind bandaging her..." I asked her as she gave a nod while she herself saw the damage. After a few minutes, she was bandaged up over her stomach, chest, left shoulder, right arm, and her left leg. She had fallen asleep in my arms as Bell looked at me worried. I followed her eyes and found that the wound on my left leg had opened up... I was bleeding slowly so that meant it had most scabbed over overnight which kind of surprised me.

She slowly took the zebra out of my arms as she started to unwind the bandage on my leg. I flinched for every few inches of bandage she took off until it was all the way off. I grimaced seeing the cut as my mind went back to how it happened just a couple days ago if the sun outside was any insight. She then quickly cleaned it up with a clean rag that was on the table before she quickly began to bandage it tightly starting up at my thigh and working her way down to the bottom of the wound. "Bell..." she paused as she looked at me. "when I'm off ship I want you to look after her as well." she looked surprised as I looked towards the zebra that was now leaning against Bell. " I no longer trust the ponies at the moment... besides Soft Heart for obvious reasons..." Bell only nodded as she finished bandaging me up.

"why did they attack her?" Bell asked in a soft tone as she moved her hand through the zebra's hair.

"they were afraid. And fear at the moment would not be a good thing. I am going to try and convince Golden Will to allow her to stay on the ship. I saw her kill a griffon out of self-defense. Why? I have no idea. But hopefully, she will tell me."

"would that even be a good idea?" Bell asked. "it could possibly be a trick."

"possibly? I don't believe so. Her eyes held true fear when I found her Bell. Just like when she was attacked by the griffon in town and was chased by two more. I believe she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time." she only gave me a nod of understanding. Soon though the door burst open to show Golden Will with eyes filled with rage but they softened when he saw the three of us.

"glad to see you two are alright. I saw a griffon corpse in the water so I expected the worse," he said.

"he tried to come onto the ship. I ended him before he could get any ideas." he nodded as he eyed the zebra on Bell.

"any reason why there's a zebra on my ship now?" he then asked with a raised eyebrow.

"there was a commotion soon after you walked into the shop. The zebra killed a griffon to get away from them. She looks to be younger than Bell." he sighed as he walked over and took a knee next to us. He slowly moved his hand towards her and moved the hair out of her face and behind her ear.

"My guess... shes at least 17 years old."

"two years younger..." I heard Bell whisper. So I was right about her being 19.

"can she stay on the ship?" I asked him as he looked at me before looking at the zebra. His hand on his knee.

"you already have the young filly to watch over do you not? Are you sure you can take care of her as well?" he asked. "she may be above the legal age limit but her innocence seems to still be intact. Are you certain?" I blushed when he said above the legal age limit but I gave a nod. "very well then. But if she causes any problem on my ship..." he lifted his ax towards my face as I stared at him impassively. "she either gets the plank or put on the first island we come across."

"noted." was all I said.