Off To The Forge
Ulfgar stood with Rainbow Dash as he observed Spike and Twilight heading towards them. Spike was at a full out sprint towards him while Twilight was following behind at a brisk walk.
"Looks like someone is popular." Rainbow Dash commented to Ulfgar.
Spike stopped himself in front of the Nord and gazed up at his face. "Wow, you are tall..."
"Good morning Ulfgar! It's good to see that you’re already getting comfortable with the town!" Twilight chimed as she approached.
"You should have been at the markets this morning Twilight! Ulfgar here took down three guys by himself!"
"Really..." Twilight mumbled to herself as she scribbled something down on the board.
"What are the notes for?" Ulfgar questioned as she finished up a quick note.
"Well after you and Applejack left, the Princess asked for me to keep an eye on you. Add to that the fact that you said you're from a land that does not exist here and you’re a person with certain set of... talents, makes you a person of interest here in Equestria." Twilight Sparkle explained with a smile as she looked up at Ulfgar.
"So...what’s with the notes?" Ulfgar questioned again , adding a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"It is so that I can attempt to get a better idea of who you are. With these I can not only know who you are but also what the world you lived in was like." Twilight answered, not seeming to acknowledge his frankness. "So what are you guys up to?"
"I was just giving Ulfgar here a quick tour of Ponyville before hitting the blacksmith. You thinking of tagging along?" Rainbow Dash replied as she gave him a slap on the shoulder.
Ulfgar sighed mentally before Spike spoke up. "That would be awesome! So Ulfgar, what is it like to be a guard in..."
"Spike!" Rainbow Dash and Twilight simultaneously shouted.
"Um, is there something else I missed while I was away?" Ulfgar questioned.
"No, nothing at all. Just the idea of not mentioning where exactly you’re from!" Twilight quickly replied as she quickly showed a large grin and pulled the board close to her chest.
Ulfgar stared at her for a few seconds, knowing full well that she was holding something back. He was going to investigate further but felt a tap on his shoulder. Turning his attention away from the lying mage, he looked up at the floating woman.
"Maybe we should get back to the tour. The blacksmith is just down this way. But before that, we'll pass by the town bakery. I'm sure Pinkie Pie would love to see you again."
"She was the energetic one, correct?" He half asked to remind himself.
"Yeah. Don't worry though, you'll get used to her in no time!" Rainbow Dash replied as they began walking down the road again.
"Is she also a mage like Twilight?" Ulfgar questioned.
"Pinkie? No she just a regular person like you and Applejack. It is just a case of getting used to her, that's all." She answered as they passed by a fountain.
"So what were you mentioning before Rainbow?" Twilight asked as she walked up on the other side of Ulfgar.
"Oh right! You should have been at the markets this morning! There were some guys with Roseluck that weren't from town. They were all standing around her herb stand when Ulfgar went in. I didn't hear what they were talking about but all of a sudden, Ulfgar just takes down all three of them at once! He was like 'BAM' and 'SMASH'!" She exclaimed as she retold what happened.
"Wow! That sounds so cool! I wish I could have seen it!" Spike shouted out as they came up to a wide intersection.
"Are you even trying to adjust to Ponyville?" Twilight shot at Ulfgar.
"Well I'm a head taller than most people here and larger than most of the townsfolk. Not to mention how everything seems more... 'colorful' than my home." Ulfgar casually countered.
"Well maybe if you tried they would look past those things." She replied seemingly intent on her notes on Ulfgar.
"Maybe you could explain why they are backing away from me as if I were some daedra?" He questioned her.
"You're just... different from what they are comfortable with." Twilight Sparkle answered after some thought.
"I swear this place is peaceful version of the Imperium..." Ulfgar mumbled to himself as they continued on.
Just after his comment, Ulfgar's attention was pulled away towards the most interesting building he had ever seen. The entire building looked like a giant sweet roll that had a candy covering nearly every single open spot. Quickly his thoughts rushed to images of the lady in pink that seemed to just appear out of thin air. Subconsciously he looked over his shoulder to make sure she wasn't there. A small wave of relief washed over Ulfgar as he turned back towards where the building was. The only problem was that a certain someone's face was all that he saw.
"Good Morning Ulfgar!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed.
Ulfgar simply stood there as he waited for his heart to start beating again.
"Good morning Pinkie!" the other three responded.
"Hi guys! So are we giving Ulfgar here a tour? You must be new, how can I be so silly! Why else would we be out here? Unless we're doing that one thing we promised not to tell Ulfgar about." Pinkie Pie rambled to her friends.
"Pinkie!" Twilight Sparkle and Rainbow Dash simultaneously shouted out.
"By the Gods, hopefully this is all just some horrible dream." Ulfgar whispered to himself as he felt as if the gods were just playing some horrible trick on him.
'No need to worry about that Ulfgar. I can assure you that all of this is real! You just need to hold in there for a few moments longer.' Morrigan's voice stated inside of his head.
'And why would that be? This already seems like insanity to me, and I've not even been here for five days!' Ulfgar quickly shot back at Morrigan.
'I've been taking a look at other things happening around here and it seems like you might become the man of the hour!' She cheerily replied before becoming quiet again.
At that moment, Ulfgar could see two figures off in the distant crowds a few roads down that appeared to be just standing there. From the eyes of any of the others that stood around him chatting to each other, they’d look to be a part of the crowd. From what he saw it was a different matter. They were definitely following them, there was no doubt about that.
"These packs are getting heavy here. How about we continue this tour?" Ulfgar urged the others.
"So why are we heading down to the blacksmith?" Twilight Inquired.
"Ulfgar has some stuff he needs fixed up so I decided to make a small tour out of it. I mean, how could you pass up a tour with one of the coolest people in Ponyville? No, in all of Equestria!" Rainbow Dash boasted as she floated a little bit higher into the air.
"Oh, why didn't tell me about that then? I have a spell that I can use to restore items back to tip-top shape." Twilight questioned Ulfgar.
"I don't trust magic." Ulfgar stated as he could see a building with a horseshoe hanging out above the door.
"What do you mean you don't trust magic!?" Twilight interrogated him.
"Such raw power shouldn't be in the hands of anyone that wants to change the world. Next thing you know there is an army of undead just walking around." Ulfgar replied, growing more infuriated at the mage.
"Well it looks like we're finally here! How about we get inside." Rainbow Dash quickly commented as the tension between Twilight and Ulfgar grew.
The group moved inside as Ulfgar took one last glance down the street. The two figures were still the same distance behind them as before. His intuition was telling him that they weren't just some curious townsfolk. As they entered the blacksmith’s shop, Ulfgar had to stop to take it all in. Out of all the places he had been here in this world, this one seemed to make him feel right at home. The dark inside of the smithy and the cold hard stone felt just the same as the ones back in Skyrim. The only thing that seemed out of place was a pair of bells that hanged just at the edge of the front door. From out of a doorway a child walked into view before leaning on the doorframe. This one wore tan shorts with a simple orange shirt on. The child’s hair was a very deep purple that was barely light enough not to be mistaken as black. She seemed uninterested with them for only a few seconds before her eyes light up.
"Hi Rainbow Dash, I didn't think I would see you here!" The child replied in a gravelly girl’s voice.
"Hi Scootaloo, I have a friend here who has some stuff that needs fixing." Rainbow Dash replied as she looked over at Ulfgar to check that what she said was right.
"No problem. What would it be today? A mailbox or a broken weather vane?" Scootaloo replied seeming to know what usually comes through the door.
"I have nothing of that sort with me." Ulfgar began.
"Scootaloo, who's here?" a deep voice asked from deeper in the building.
"We have a traveler here, says he has something out of the ordinary!" Scootaloo shouted deeper into the building.
Footsteps could be heard coming down the hallway. A man soon appeared with a red flannel shirt and a pair of navy blue pants. His face consisted of a pair of rosy cheeks, a pair of sparkling blue eyes, and a large black beard. His skin was the skin of a blacksmith, tanned by both the sun and the forge. Muscles could be seen wherever clothing didn't cover up the skin. With a quick glance at the group his eyes landed on Ulfgar.
"So you got something different for me to work on? I hope so, or that is one ugly cat scratch you have on your face there." The man replied as he cracked a smile underneath his beard.
"It's just some shaving razors and some throwing disks." Ulfgar replied as he followed along with the blacksmith.
"Those don't really look like razors there..." Twilight commented with neither of the two men taking a notice.
"Well let’s set your stuff down over here and see what we have to work with. The name's Iron Anvil by the way." The Blacksmith said as he motioned over to a large, fairly open work counter.
"It's just the ones that needed some attention. Wouldn’t want them getting dull now." Ulfgar mentioned as he rolled the blanket out onto the table.
There, laying out in front of them, was a Nord steel sword and hand ax, a variety of daggers. Along with those was a pair of steel Nord gauntlets, steel shin-boots, and his Guard helmet. Ulfgar also tossed up the shield that he had on his arm. He took a glance over at Iron Anvil to see the man's face light up at the sight before him.
"This is more like it; I feel like a kid again on Hearth Warming Eve! Now tell me this; you mentioned that you had other things?" The man chuckled as he picked up the steel sword.
"Of course." Ulfgar answered. "I'm guessing you wouldn't mind working on a suit of steel plate armor if I happened to have one?"
"Oh, you don't know how much you have made my day. Now let’s see what we can do with these." Iron Anvil replied after letting out a hearty laugh.
"Well look at that, you came into town and already made a friend!" Twilight Sparkle commented.
"Oh, can I see?" Spike asked as he attempted to look over the edge of the table.
"It looks you have yourself a little following there! What was your name again?" Iron Anvil asked as he set the sword down.
"My name is Ulfgar. I hail from a city in the far north." Ulfgar answered as he lifted up his helmet to check the dent again.
"Well Ulfgar, I am glad a man like you stepped into my shop today! Well I can just take these here..." Iron Anvil began.
"Why?" Ulfgar inquired as he watch Iron Anvil move to take the items.
"Well I was just guessing that you would leave these with me so that I could work on them while you go do other things in town." Iron Anvil replied, stopping where he was.
"I had to do other things in town to get here! I would never miss out on a chance to put the sword to the wheel." Ulfgar explained as he set the helmet back down with the other pieces of equipment.
"Well I guess I shouldn't be surprised. You have the body and mind of a guard. I'm guessing that was what you were back up north." Iron Anvil said as he waved them further inside.
"I was, and I could guess the same for you." Ulfgar replied as he rolled up his equipment before following the burly man inside.
The sounds of footsteps behind Ulfgar told him that the others had decided to stay. When he entered the forge room, Ulfgar noted two things. First was the beaten-up golden armor that stood silently in the corner. The armor was almost exactly the same as the guards that he had seen when the chariots had arrived. Second was that the forge fire did not burn a warm orange but rather a cool blue. As Ulfgar set down his things, Iron Anvil came up and unwrapped the items from the blanket.
"If you don't mind, I think I'll start with your helmet here. It looks like it has seen the most action out of everything here." The blacksmith mentioned as he lifted the helmet up and looked into the empty eye slits.
"Go ahead, I just feel good working with my equipment again." Ulfgar replied as he lifted up the steel sword.
"This will be interesting, I never seen a blacksmith at work!" Twilight Sparkle exclaimed as she flipped to another page on her clipboard.
"I'm not too sure about that Twi. I think it might get a little bit dull watching two men beat away at some stuff with a hammer." Rainbow Dash commented as she floated in the doorway.
"Hey, Rainbow Dash! If you’re getting bored here, do you want to see some moves I've been working on?" Scootaloo immediately asked after Rainbow Dash's comment.
"Sure, that sounds good. Let’s go see what you can do!" She replied as she followed Scootaloo back out of the doorway.
"Can I come too?" Spike questioned as he quickly followed them out the doorway.
As they made their way out of the room, Ulfgar spotted a pair of small wings on the child's back.
"Where in Equestria did you get this helmet? It's tougher than most things around here." Iron Anvil asked between the strikes of his hammer.
"It is made out of a type of iron only found in the north; although I’ve made improvements to it here and there." Ulfgar answered as he sat himself down in front of the Grindstone.
After that the room stayed mostly silent, other than the sounds of the two men working and the scribbling of notes. Once Ulfgar finished up with the sword, he moved on to the ax. As he slowly moved the blade of the ax up and down the spinning wheel, he found his gaze settling onto the unusually mesmerizing shower small sparks. The sparks slowly turned to embers before growing into roaring flames. Ulfgar then found himself standing in the middle of raging inferno. He was surrounded by a burning building only barely managing to stay upright. Support beams were falling left and right while the wooden walls were groaning under the pressure. His mind raced trying to come up with an escape route. Strategies flooded his mind until he heard a familiar scream. Without another thought, Ulfgar raced through the burning building to find a woman dressed up in an outfit of the Dark Brotherhood. She was pinned underneath a fallen support beam engulfed in flames.
The woman turned her hidden face and looked over to him with frightened eyes. "Ulfgar!"
He wasted no time running up to her and grabbing hold of the burning beam. As heat burned its way through the simple gloves that he wore, the beam was lifted off of the woman. Once the beam was high enough, Ulfgar tossed it to the side. He picked the woman up as he barreled straight through another door. A mental sigh of relief swept through his head as he found himself out in the bittersweet grasp of a Skyrim snowstorm. Ulfgar fell to his knees as the adrenaline began to wear off. The woman that he still held leaned in closer to give him a hug.
"Thank you Ulfgar, maybe some time I should be the one do the life-saving!" she quietly chuckled into his ear.
"Maybe someday..." Ulfgar began as he relaxed with the woman snuggled close to him.
"Are you alright?" A new voiced asked as the snowy world began dissolving away.
"What?" He replied as he found himself back in the smithy with a madly spinning grindstone in front of him.
He found the ax he had been working on in his lap while his arms were shaking slightly. He flexed the one arm that once held his childhood companion. He felt the small hope that was just inside him float away as he realized she was just a memory. He quickly got up and dropped the ax with his other things. He didn't care that it clattered against the various daggers and armor. Ulfgar leaned up against a wall as he delved into his mind. All he was thinking about were two things; why was he beginning to suffer from these flashbacks and why did she have to be the one that was gone. These thoughts seemed to drown out the hammer blows and the questions of the curious mage. With all that he had been through, this one thing had already caught him off guard twice already. He felt a soft hand grab onto his arm, trying to get his attention. Quickly he pushed himself away from the wall and the maelstrom of thoughts. The room had gone eerily silent as he began focusing on the reality at hand. The hammer blows had ceased as Twilight looked up at him with a questioning gaze.
"Are you alright Ulfgar?" She asked him again as she gave him another shake.
"I'm fine." Ulfgar simply stated as he finished pulling his mind back together.
"Well I fixed up the armor you brought in. Your helmet here was the trickiest thing to put back together." Iron Anvil commented, directing the conversation elsewhere.
"Nicely done, it looks as good as new!" Ulfgar chuckled as he glanced over where the dent used to be.
"I have to say I'm glad to have worked with something out of the norm!" Iron Anvil replied before he heard the chime of bells.
"Well it sounds as if my time is up here. I guess I should be heading back to the farm." Ulfgar said as he began rolling up his equipment with the exception of his helmet.
"Oh, don't you worry my friend. I'm sure we’ll be seeing each other again!" The burly man chuckled as he patted Ulfgar on the back.
"How much do we owe you?" Twilight Sparkle asked as she began moving towards a pocket on her shirt.
"Owe me? Working with such unusual equipment like this is payment enough!" The man answered before slipping into a bellowing laugh.
Ulfgar smiled at Iron Anvils’ cheery personality as he slipped on his helmet. Once he’d secured his helmet, he felt as if he had rediscovered a part of himself. He slipped on his shield as he moved towards the front door. There in the lobby was Rainbow Dash, Scootaloo and Spike. Scootaloo was trying to impress Rainbow Dash with some of her own stories of 'Awesomeness' as Spike followed along.
"So that's how I tried finding my cutie mark in being a Ranger!" Scootaloo finished with a smile as she looked up at Rainbow Dash's face.
"Equestrian Rangers, hmm? I never heard of them." Spike commented.
'Ah kids, you have to love them. So filled with raw excitement.' Morrigan said in his mind.
'What I would love more is to get these memories to stop haunting me.' Ulfgar stated to her.
'That you're going to have to do yourself. I don't have any control over your mind.' She replied.
'So I'm guessing you're not here to just to talk about children.' Ulfgar said after a mental sigh.
'Oh you don't have to be so serious all the time when you talk to me! Just think me as a friend helping you out every now and then!' Morrigan suggested in her usual cheerful, casual tone. 'Anyways you are correct. It seems like your little vigilante justice episode in the market has the guards riled up. I would suggest doing those other things you do best!'
'Well I guess the Brotherhood taught me some other useful skills.' Thought to himself.
"We can still go around and do some other activities. No need to head straight back to the orchard just yet." Twilight suggested as she stepped up next to him.
"I'm fine, Applejack wanted me to get back once I was done to help out around the farm." Ulfgar lied as he headed out the doors.
Once he was out of the building he retraced his original route until he found himself an alley way. From there he melted away into the shadows and began his improvised way back home.