• Published 29th Oct 2012
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Big Mac's Dream Journal - Trevosta

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A Heading

The second day of the National Rodeo Championship began, and this time, Big Mac was prepared. Shortly after he awoke he pulled out some paper and a pen, determined to get some more chapters down for his Dream Journal.

As he transferred his dream to the pages in front of him, he realized that at some point, he would need to transfer them back into his book. He would just have to cross that bridge when he got there.

He slung his yoke onto his neck and kicked the foot of his cousin’s bed, causing him to stir.

“No... No, Little Strongheart, I don’t want to... Everypony will make fun of me...” Braeburn muttered in his sleep, before rolling over.

Mac sighed, then shouted, “Braeburn!” which quickly gained his cousin’s attention.

“Ahhhh! Don’t judge me!” he said, while pulling his sheets up to cover himself. Big Mac just shook his head.


Later that day, back in Ponyville, Rainbow was returning from a surprisingly long day at work. She slumped down on her bed after a hot shower, and pulled Big Mac’s Dream Journal out and began to read.


I awoke early from my slumber, like I would on the farm, and I rolled out of my hammock. I proceeded to pop many of the joints in my back and neck, as I hobbled over to don my false leg.

Once I could walk again, I put on my cape and hat, filled a small pouch with bits and tucked it under my cape. I began to think about what I would need as I looked around my quarters, realizing that the room was painfully bare.

There was a large map table, covered in nicks and scratches. There was a window to allow light in during the day, and some lanterns for nighttime cartography. There was an abnormal amount of clothing storage, more than I could imagine ever needing, especially seeing as ponies barely ever wore clothes.


Rainbow thought back to her own room, realizing the abundance of unused storage. She had a large dresser, and a huge walk in closet, and they were almost empty.

“That is weird...” She observed, “Why do ponies even have dressers? We barely even have any clothes to put in them...” Then she rolled her eyes, “Well, except Rarity.”


Looking back at the map table, I realized the most important thing to do before I shoved off, would be to find a location and a map for how to get there.

Perhaps something would come to me if I looked around town for a while.

As I trotted off onto the empty deck, I saw Smoky Mirror sitting on a bench at the end of the docks. I realized that she might be able to help me.

I trotted up to her, realizing that she was actually sleeping. I decided to help her out a little.

I nudged her shoulder lightly, causing her to stir and look into my face with a mix of confusion and exhaustion. I then said to the tired mare, “Hey, ya can sleep onboard tha’ ship if ya want.” I gestured to my boat, “It’s the one on tha end there.”

With that I left her, and she looked around still confused, before heading off to the ship.

I continued into town, searching the shops, stopping by some stands and stores to purchase supplies for my ship and crew. I ordered barrels of fresh water, some rum, dense bread that apparently kept well, and some pickled vegetables. I also bought plenty of rope, cloth, and plenty of lamp oil to keep the ship and crew sailing at ship-shape.

I decided, based on the position of Celestia’s sun in the sky, that it was time for me to meet up with Sea Dog. The diamond dog could probably better inform me on the necessary items for proper care of a ship.


“Ugh.” Rainbow sighed to herself. “I really hope that this chapter picks up soon, because if it just follows him going shopping with his pet puppy I might not be able to finish it.”


As I was on my way back to the docks where I was supposed to meet him, I was stopped. A dirty old stallion grabbed my cape and yanked, causing me to stop. I looked back at the old earth pony and asked if I could help him.

“Help me?” He muttered through a mouth with no teeth. “Ye sure can.” He used his eye that wasn’t covered with an eyepatch to scan the streets for eavesdroppers. He then pulled me in close and whispered in my ears.

“Ah need a captain ta foller in me hoofsteps.” He pulled an old weathered scroll out from a pack. “This be a map, it shows where I hid me ship...” he faded off a little bit, and scanned the ponies, to be sure that none could hear him. “And me treasure.”

“I be not fit ta search after it, an’ me crew left me, but ye be a fit young lad. Go. Git me ship, and me treasure and make a name fer yerself as the greatest pirate to sail the sea!” the old stallion almost shouted, forcing the scroll into my possession; then he broke down into a violent coughing fit.

“Ah’ll do what Ah can.” I promised the geezer, just trying to get him to let go.

“Jus’ be sure that The Flying Crab doesn’t disappear into history.” He said, with a tear forming on his eye, “That ship was like a foal ta me, she deserves a better fate than ta rot in a cave.”

The old coot then let go of my cloak and hobbled off into the crowd.


“Wait, what?” Rainbow asked herself, “Some strange old guy just gives him a map to his treasure? Just when he needs a direction to head in? What are the odds of a coincidence like this?” She finished, rolling her eyes.


I looked down at the parchment in my hooves and unrolled it. Sure enough, there were coordinates for the island that was drawn, and two markings. There was one “X” and one small drawing of a ship.
I decided that, once I got my crew together, I would have somepony teach me how do read this map.


Rainbow Dash facehooved at the stupidity of the last sentence.


I tucked the treasure map away and headed off to find Sea Dog, which wasn’t too hard. I found him swimming just off of the docks, right where we agreed to meet. I called to him, and he climbed on deck, with a fish of some sort hanging from his jaws.

He dropped the fish to the planks and proceeded to violently shake himself, coating myself and everything around us in the salty spray.

“Thanks...” I said, while wringing out my hat.

“No problem, I thought you could use a bath.” He then bit into the fish at his paws, causing my stomach to do a somersault.

“Hey, listen, some crazy ol’ pony gave me this map, says it’s to his treasure.” I pulled the parchment out from my wet cloak. “What do ya think?”

He took it in his massive paws and began looking it over. He scanned every detail of the map, looked over the coordinates, and even sniffed it a few times, before he gave it back to me. “It looks ta be real, an’ I think that I remember there bein’ an uncharted island at those coordinates, but we never landed on it.”

I explained everything that the old pony said to me, and then I asked Sea Dog, “Do ya think that should be our first stop?”

Sea Dog was deep in thought, “If that old pony really was tha cap’n of The Flying Crab, and this really be tha map ta find it, then we should certainly go after it.” He looked into my eyes and explained, “The Flying Crab was the most feared pirate ship on the seas. It was the demise of many of me sister ships, as a sailor. The crew of the Crab would plunder a ship, an’ sink it; sometimes without the crew knowin’ but sometimes they would simply destroy it. The ship itself used to belong to the Equestrian Navy, it was a destroyer, it was the most threatening ship on the seas, and one day the stories just stopped. People thought that it went to the other side of the ocean, some thought that it had finally met its match, and others believed that a giant sea monster took it under. But I had always known that she was jus’ hidin’, tucked away somewhere, while the captain spent his loot.”

The look in Sea Dog’s eyes while he explained this was slightly unsettling, he appeared manic, and lustful. “If we find it, we will inherit the fame of the Crab. Captain, I believe that should definitely be our first stop.”

“Alright, let’s gather the crew, and when the supplies come in, we’ll shove off.” I said, before heading into town, to meet up with the rest of the crew I had recruited at the tavern from the day before.


“Well, other than the coincidences, and the plot developing too fast, it is a pretty good story.” Rainbow marked her page and settled into bed, before falling asleep and drifting into dreams of the ocean, pirates, and captaining The Flying Crab.