//------------------------------// // What happens to Smaug's hoard is no one else's business but his // Story: The Greatest Treasure // by Evowizard25 //------------------------------// Many mortals, and even some immortals, would believe that being surrounded by gold and every gem known in existence would never tire. That you could gaze upon it for eternity and never lose sight of its grandeur. That’s fine and all, but gold is boring. At least, that’s what I thought of it. Gold had its uses, but I was never a material type of being. It was an object, so there was no reason to be attached. Staring off into heaps and heaps of it without pause made it an all-around uninteresting scene. Smaug was currently sleeping. That’s not surprising. Dragons, while fierce, are quite lazy creatures. They can afford to be and Smaug most certainly afforded it. His body was certainly strong and his armor could take many blows. I knew not how strong the hides of dragons were in this land, but my own, dragon scales were very difficult to pierce. Of course, I was not to fight him. He would not harm me when I was a part of his…hoard. Such a thing was inconceivable and made me feel sick to my stomach. I had to bear through it. Smaug had tolerated one outburst. I dared not anger him once more. Not in my state. Not in this world. So, I used the lazy nature of dragons to gain some alone time. ‘Perhaps I could find a way out of here.’ A fool’s hope, but a hope nonetheless. It was all I had currently and by my mother I was going to take the chance. I noticed with painful realization, that just moving took its toll. It had been so long since I’d seen the sun. Oh, just a few days, but in my current state, that was a century. My fur was dimming and my mane no longer flowed like it was caught in the wind. Yet, I knew I still looked well enough. I had been fed…adequately. That was enough to keep me alive…for now. While immortals could survive on mortal food, it would be only a half-life. Barring tricking Smaug into letting me go outside, escape was my only answer. Escape to where was, however, the question in the air. As I trudged through the gold, I again nearly lost traction in the piles of gold. Hooves were not meant to walk upon such uneven ground. At least, not the hooves of we ponies. I’m sure goats would have no trouble with their more versatile set. Then I saw something within the gold. A little jewel that caught my eye. I didn’t know why it did, but it held my gaze. Wiping away the gold and other jewels interrupting my view, I beheld a jewel like no other. It was a gem as pure as fresh snow and glowed brighter than sunshine. It was so strange and exotic, but this wasn’t the first time I had beheld such a jewel. I had lived a long, fruitful life and in that time, I had met my own share of immortals. In the early days, before I had stepped down from the astral plane to rule over Equestria, the gods interacted on such a regular basis. We were all kin, in one way or another. Even those of other dimensions, or different states of the astral plane paid homage to one another. One of them, a goddess named Isha, had presented me a gift when I first took up my spot in Equestria. She had been a good friend and mentor in my early days and this gift was to bring my nation peace and prosperity. The jewel was the Crystal Heart, or as it was known then, Isha’s Peace. It had warmed the hearts of my fair ponies, but eventually, I gifted it to our less fortunate neighbors of the north. I am surprised that they survived in such harsh conditions for so long, but Crystal Ponies are even sturdier than their Earth pony counterparts. A smile lit my face as I remembered everything. From Isha hugging me after I accepted the gift, to the happy faces of the Crystal ponies. Luna wasn’t thrilled about my decision though. She felt that it should have stayed in Equestria, that we needed it more. We didn’t and that’s why I made my decision….Looking back, I made quite a few choices for our nation without Luna’s consent. Granted, her choices usually were…violent. Case in point: she wanted to smash Discord’s statue and shred his soul. I chalked that one up to moon phases. I took another glance at the jewel and touched my hoof to it….’WHAT THE HAY?!!!’ I reeled back from it, almost as if it had burned me. It had not, but I felt hurt nonetheless. It was disgusting, revolting. Its aura was all wrong. Someone had taken such a thing of beauty and perfection and perverted it. This was a twisted mockery of the Crystal Heart. My very being screamed in silent fury as my body shook slightly as I tried to contain it.  I paid no attention to the sound of something large stirring in the gold near me. ‘Mockery! Evil! Abomination!’ I lifted my hoof with every intention to destroy the…thing beneath me. “What do you think you are doing?” Smaug’s voice was low, but threatening. I turned my gaze to match his. He held no emotion in his face, apart from his eyes. They dared me to try and strike the jewel. I knew there was no way I could destroy it before he himself strikes. While I am naturally immune to fire, dragon fire is enchanted so that would be painful. Not to mention his mighty jaws that could tear me to ribbons. I lowered my hoof and relaxed my face. “Good,” Smaug smiled. “I had thought you had lost your mind, my precious jewel. An attempt against my hoard is akin to an act of suicide.” “Do you know what this is?” I gestured to the jewel. “The Arkenstone,” Smaug seemed rather pleased with himself. “My most prized possession, until your arrival that is.” While I felt a little flattered by the praise, I knew it was both a mixture of a boast and humor. “From where did you get it and why…why does it hold such vile magic? Did you craft this?” Smaug proceeded to raise an eyebrow. “Do I look like a crafter?” “I have known many dragon crafters,” I said. “But you are right. You are a warrior, not a crafter.” “Right you are, my precious jewel.” Smaug smirked. I huffed in annoyance. His words were nice, but his tone belied the truth. He was mocking me when he called me a jewel. He thought it funny to see me as a slave. His slave! If I had the strength, I could have slapped him. “To answer your questions,” Smaug spoke, interrupting my ire for a moment. “I took it from the dwarf king as he fled the mountain. MY MOUNTAIN!” Smaug stood up, shaking away the gold from his body. He spread his wings out wide. “His army was naught but insects to be swat aside. His nation was folly into thinking it could keep what was rightfully mine. I saw the riches that the dwarvish king hoarded from the world. I saw his greed and I wished to…alleviate his troubles.” Smaug chuckled. “And alleviate I did.” He leant down and sifted his claws through the piles of riches. “This mountain is mine. This gold is mine. Not any dwarf can tell you differently.” “So you stole it?” I commented, waving a wing to encompass everything. “You stole all of this.” “Stealing begets that others had rights to these riches before me,” Smaug snarled. “All gold belongs to I, Smaug the Golden. Why, I would not be a dragon without riches. Surely you must see this.” “I see naught but selfish boasts of gain,” I replied. “You took away the home of these dwarves, everything they worked hard for, just for their gold. Selfish is a mild term I would use for such actions.” “The races of middle-earth are but mere fledglings,” Smaug growled. “They plunder, they mine, but they do not know why. They do not see the true potential and worth of riches. Their very definitions pale in comparison to what they actually are.” He glanced at the bright jewel. “The dwarf who dared to call himself the King Under the Mountain did not see the truth of the Arkenstone. He could not see the magic it held twist his mind and turned the righteous king into nothing more than a slave to his greed. I found it amusing.” “One shouldn’t find the misery of others amusing, Smaug.” I chided. “They are living beings the same as we.” “I find that hard to believe,” Smaug rolled his eyes. “They all will die, we shall not. Life gave us these gifts, Celestia. It would be folly to try and bring us down to their level.” “We have been given gifts,” I nodded. “But that does not make us better. The dwarves that lived here earned it. They built this home from nothing.” “They carved holes in rock,” Smaug tilted his head in confusion. “Am I supposed to be impressed by that? If so, then should I not be as well impressed by a simple woodpecker who carves his home out of wood?” “It is important to pay homage to any beings hard work, even that of a woodpeckers.” “Bah,” Smaug scoffed. “Tis idiotic to praise a mindless beast, who give no thought to the future. The races of middle earth are the same.” “Oh?” I quirked an eyebrow. “You give thought to the future?” “I need not, for the sole reason that my future is here,” Smaug raked his claws once more through his hoard. “My life and everything that is important lies within this mountain. No man, dwarf, elf, or any other creature can match my hoard.” “If it is so grand,” I tilted my gaze to the Arkenstone. Its twisted magic made my stomach churn. “Then perhaps the loss of one would….” Smaug thrust his head inches from mine. “I know what you ask. The Arkenstone is a work of what most would call, evil. A seed planted within the earth to tempt any who dared dig the vast riches of Erebor. The dwarves did and thus received their righteous fate in the flames of my fire. None but I can have it, for its magic has no effect on my heart. Greed is the motivation of dragons. I know and I admit that. This gem belongs to me, the last dragon. I alone deserve to hold it for only I am ill in its presence.” I was taken aback by his answer. It certainly wasn’t one that I considered, but still. He did not wish for its destruction, but perhaps there was something more. “It almost sounds like you wish to protect middle earth from its evil.” Smaug reeled back. “Protect? Protecting middle earth is a fool’s goal. It is always in danger, always in peril. The races that dare to call themselves master struggle to breath each day. I would not waste my time on such weak creatures.” I smiled. “They are not weak, Smaug. You simply do not give them enough credit. Where you see this ‘weakness’, I have seen greatness that rivals even we immortals.” “How could you know?” Smaug asked, narrowing his eyes. “You are new to this world. All you have seen are the vast riches of my home.” “Perhaps it is time for me to see then. It would not hurt to allow me to view this ‘Middle Earth’, you so hold in contempt. Maybe I’m wrong and you’re right, but I will never know whilst I’m stuck here.” “Do you take me for a fool?” Smaug snarled. “I will not let you out of my sight. You are mine, now and forever. You will never leave Erebor.” “Then you will lose me,” I glared at him. “I am the goddess of the sun. To be trapped here in the dark is like slow suffocation. My body is hollowing. While you may keep me ‘alive’ on mere scraps, my soul will drained. Do you wish for your ‘precious jewel’ to dim?” Smaug was silent for a moment and I thought I saw a flicker of consideration. “I will think on this….” “Thank you,” I sighed in relief. “Do not thank me yet,” Smaug snapped. “A dragon has all the time in the world to think. It may be next week, or in a century. Perhaps it will never come. That is your life, Celestia. I decide when and where you are given privileges. I decide what is destroyed and what stays intact.” One of Smaug’s claws gently pushed away the Arkenstone, and to my surprise, he softly brushed my cheek. I was surprised by his gentleness. He was a being of such great power and here he was, touching me as one would touch a lover. Of course, I was naught but a jewel in his eyes. I had to remind myself of that. Still…It was nice. “Your beauty is something I wish to keep,” Smaug purred, pulling his claw away from me. His eyes however, were still glued onto my form. “I have never before beheld such purity and who am I to tarnish it. If I must let you see the sun once more, I shall,” he narrowed his eyes. “But you are still a shining gem. There is still much time to ponder.” He grabbed ahold of the Arkenstone. The dragon looked over my form once more, which reminded me oddly enough of a stallion appraising a mare, before taking off. I glowered at his retreating form. ‘He thinks he can contain the Arkenstone? Tis folly. No doubt its influence draws in the gaze of others.’ I sighed and laid down. I was once more tired. Where I used to be able to go days upon days without rest, now I needed to sleep every few hours. ‘You invite your death, oh great Smaug…I wonder if he knows.’ As I drifted off, I couldn’t help but hope, if not for a moment, that I was wrong. That no other of middle earth knew of its existence. Smaug may be cruel, but I knew there was some good in him. No being is evil unless created from darkness itself and even then there was always hope. The dark is not always a place of dread. Smaug still had a chance and I was going to make sure he did.