The Dark-Dream Pony

by thesilentpony

Chapter 6

I went to a dozen blacksmiths before stopping at the final one in Canterlot before I would have to go to an entirely new city to look.

“Hello, I’m Hammer how can I help you?” A green mare asked, the soot on her made dark patches in her coat. I set my armor on the counter and she looked at me.

“Whoa, that’s some really bad repair work on a very expensive armor set, how did that happen?” I set my helmet on the table as well and she eyed it. “Really what in the world happen to this set? I mean my work is good but this was made by a master. Not even I can crown gold this well, and I’m the best in all of Canterlot.”

“Can you repair it? I have literally gone to every last blacksmith in Canterlot.” She looked at it.

I was lucky in some way, any good blacksmith would be open all night long because it took days and nights of nonstop work to make good armor pieces. She picked up my helmet with her hoof, she was an earth pony, a rare one at that if she was able to be a blacksmith.

“Well I can fix you main body piece very nicely, it might not look without a small flaw or two, but it can be done. Then your helmet, if it was just cracked or even if it was just bent and crushed, I could fix it easily, probably in a few hours at most.”

“Please don’t say a but, please.”

“But,” she said with a sad expression. “This helmet was remolded to fix whatever was wrong with it, then quenched several times before they stopped. The gold, was mixed too heavily to even attempt to retrieve it, at least not without completely melting it down, and even then, I couldn’t completely unmix it. The onyx steel is separated, which I didn’t even know was possible to do, at least not without really, and I mean really screwing up. I would literally have to recreate this piece.”

“I was afraid you would say that.”

“I’m sorry, but had you come to me in the first place I could have repaired it, I might have even been able to improve it, but.” She sighed. “This is just how it is, of course I’m sure which ever pony made this for you could repair it.”

“It was made by my parents when I became a guard, they knew I would become a guard caption one day and made it to shine. My parents passed some time ago and I was not raised in the art of blacksmith to be able to do it myself, or at least not well enough to my liking.”

“I see, I am sorry about your helmet, but there is nothing I can do there, I would literally have to start with new material. I cannot save it.” I sighed.

“Very well, I'll have it as a keep sake, how much will it cost to repair my other armor and create me a helmet of the same style?” I pulled out a picture showing my helmet and armor on a dummy in its original condition.

“Ooo.” She said picking it up with a bit of pleasure. “No one has ever brought in a picture of what they wanted before, this must have cost a few bits.”

“And it was when pictures took weeks.”

“Whoa, you don’t look that old.”

“It doesn’t seem like that long ago, but yes I am probably your father’s age.”

“He’s forties.”

“Okay older than your father, grandfather.”

“Fifties?”

“Great grandfather.”

“He’s in his seventies.” I sighed.

“I’m a hundred and thirty four, maybe I should just go at thirty four from now on, eh it doesn’t matter.”

“Whoa, you age really well, how are you alive?”

“I live on magic energy, if I don’t use my magic in theory I could live forever, but I’m a royal guard so, how much?”

“Ah, well the helmet will cost about, around five hundred bits, the onyx steel is not cheap to make.”

“That’s extremely high.”

“The price is justified, the onyx coal alone for this is though the roof in price, just a pound is a hundred bits and I need three of them. Then probably fifty gold bits for the gold edging plus another fifty for the steel to mix. Taking into the account of craftsmanship and the need for time, this is not going to be a simple project, a hundred bits for the work is a little low all things considered, but I'll be learning from it, so justified.”

“And the repair?”

“The repair will be a hundred bits, I'll have to remove what’s been added and then reforge parts as well as remaking a piece or two, but I’m sure I'll have enough extra from your helmet to med it properly.”

“Sounds good, how long?”

“Well probably around six weeks.”

“What?!”

“Well you have to understand, creating a helmet that is not only this fine, but this strong is hard. Onyx steel is not used by anyone because mixing it is extremely hard, just try mixing metal and stone and you tell me if you make something strong. While this makes you magic resistant, it also makes you expensive and time consuming.”

“I don’t have a choice do it?”

“Not unless you want to add another two hundred bits for more onyx coal. Then I could afford to waste some of it and get it exact without worrying about wasting materials to create the helmet.”

“How about I get you the onyx coal, would that work?”

“Well if you got it today I could have it ready in two weeks maximum. I would have to wait mostly for it to come in.”

“Now that is much better, wait could I pay you in onyx coal if I got you enough?” She thought for a second.

“Yes I would accept payment in that because it’s so rare.”

“Can you start work or do you have to have that to start?”

“Well I can get everything heated and start the steel, as well as gold melting, but I will need the gold bits to smelt, or it’ll take me a few days to get from the bank.” A bag appeared having fifty bits in it.

“There, is that enough.”

“It should be, if I need more I'll tell you, also I can do about half of the needed work before I need it.”

“I'll be back maybe in a few days then.”

“Wait where are you going to get it?”

“San Palomino Desert.”

“There’s onyx coal there?”

“I’ve traveled all over Equestria, I know a few things most don’t, also my parents used to take me when they needed to gather materials.”

“I'll buy as much as you can get, the only place I know that has it for sure is Smokey Mountain and that place is dangerous.”

“Really, I didn’t realize anyone was stupid enough to steal from a dragons roost.” I chuckled a little. “Though not that a dragon would be a problem, eh, they are about the same distance now that I think about it, but for the dragon I would not need to go get an armor set to get it.”

“You can use one of mine.” She came around and started measuring me. She stopped after a few seconds realizing she hadn’t asked me, and that I was in perfect condition, I was also larger than most colts in many ways. “Um, sorry.” She said blushing.

“It’s fine.” She kept going and went into the back bringing up a tan set of armor. She came over to me putting it on. It was considerably lighter than most, and seemed to be unnaturally cool to the touch.

“This is my desert armor, it’s light but has a special magic weave so it’s cooler in the day time, but keeps the heat in the night. The armor is slightly reflective so it dims in light, at a hundred or so feet you’ll appear as a mirage to most things.”

“This is really good work, you should come and be the royal blacksmith, he was the one that did this to my armor.”

“Ouch, but I turned that down long ago, I make way more money this way.”

“Oh.”

“But if you send anyone my way I'll give them a discount.”

“Alright.” She set a helmet on me. “This is very comfortable armor, how is it that you have such fine thread without having it rip?”

“Magic weave is a special that my sister makes, I buy from her because it’s the best fabric out there and she only sells in Canterlot or I would be all over the place, anyway she sets it with magic and gets an one of a kind fabric, of course those she can do it again and again so it isn’t really one of a kind, but enough so that no one else gets it.

“That sounds interesting.” She smiled.

“Anyway, since I’m doing a job for you I'll loan it out to you, it’s only simple steel so even if you screw it up big time I can easily fix it, just try not to do that, I loan one of five out to anyone needing it right away.”

“So this armor isn’t your best work?”

“Well certainly not my best work, but it works for basic combat, now off you go.” A backpack appeared on my back.

I teleported appearing in Ponyville and then teleporting again appearing on the tracks over the Ghastly Gorge before teleporting again appearing at the edge of the San Palomino mountain. It was a rather wild area. Colt eating monsters often trailed in the area with kill on sight feeding habits. Considerably more dangerous than a dragon’s nest because the threats weren’t always clear.

I started walking as the sand turned to glass. I had to hoof it from the bottom of the mountain, because of the minerals in this area of the mountain could block magic and turn it against the user hurting them.

Onyx coal was one of the few minerals which had a very high magic defense, I could stand against any magic user in full onyx coal armor, but it was brittle and easy to break, so mixing it with steel or other things was needed.

“I told you this was the wrong way!” I looked at a two colts arguing on some kind of contraption of some sort. We were in the middle of the desert, not a simple place you wanted to be, especially this area.

“No look it’s this way.” One said pointing toward Apple-Wood. I walked over to them and they looked at me, on jumping into the other’s arms. It was night and I was wearing color matching armor along with my dark fur, so it was understandable.

“Let go of me!” One of them said letting the other fall out of his arms. “Can’t you see that’s a pony.” I eyed them, they were odd for sure, wheat weave hat, black and blue bow ties, white shirt with a blue and white vest, and red and white manes, one had an apple with a cut missing and the other one had piece missing.

“What are you two doing here?” I asked a little unsure if I wanted to know the answer to it.

“We are lost my friend, because my brother Flam can’t read a map and we lost our compass.”

“It’s not my fault you can’t keep track of it Flim.” Flam said and they pressed their heads together growling.

“Where are you headed? I know this area very well.” They jumped off their contraption showing me the map.

“We are headed to Apple Loosa, then Ponyville,” Flim said. “We came from Apple-Wood, but as it turns out they don’t actually have any apple fields.” He said chuckling and Flam frowned. “You wouldn’t happen to know the way would you?”

“Taking a single short cut can be deadly here, next time take the tracks, anyway we are here.” I pointed at the map and they looked at the mountain. “That way is north, you were about to head back west, you want to go east which is behind me over Ghastly Gorge river and then straight till you get there, probably a few days by hoof, I hope you have food.”

“Of course we make delicious apple cider, we have plenty for the trip.” Flam said. I made a compass appear.

“Take this and you’ll be able to get on your way.”

“Thank you kind sir, would you care for a glass of apple cider?” Flim asked. “As a way of showing gratitude for helping us?”

“Sorry I can’t, I have a long trip ahead of me, and if any of the creatures smell food on me I'll be ripped to pieces.” Their eyes went big. “I wouldn’t suggest you eat anything too good smelling till you reach the river, beasts hide in the sand here.” They got back onto their contraption. “Actually wait, would you come with me? That thing has wheel and I’m sure it could drive nicely.” They looked at each other.

“It would be wise brother.” Flam said.

“Very well good sir,” Flim said. “We will keep eating to a very minimum as we travel with you. Hop on good sir.” I got on and we got up the mountain much easier than I thought we would.

I looked around, I had somehow gotten here unnoticed, or either that or that machine had somehow scared the beasts away with its noise. It was the first time in a long time that I had been here, but I should have been attacked by at least a few groups. This was almost boring at how easy it was.

“I will be a while, an hour at most, do you mind waiting, this arch will protect you, it has something of a repeal to monsters.”

“Very good sir,” Flam said. “We will wait for you, please just do not take too long we have much to do and this area makes me nervous.” I walked a ways away from them going past many cave and stopping at one.

“Hello?” I asked and my voice echoed, this was the right cave. There were thousands of them in the area carved out by monsters, this was the only one large enough to have an echo from water carving.

Rocks fell from above me melting the ground a little, making me look up at a large rock spider about three times my size.

“Hello there little Bolder hatchling, where’s your mother?” It hissed at me. “Not very nice are you? Eh you’re a harmless grump aren’t you? At least till you get your teeth in, now move on I’m not a prey of your mothers.” It made a whining growl and moved away running making me run as well.

Bolder spiders were about the size of small mountains, not only that but they grew massive gems. Just one piece from their back would be worth some serious money, but that was if you didn’t get eaten first by the hatchlings it normally carried on its back. I would say from the size that one was about thirty years old, living for around four thousand normally. The mother would normally have thousand of offspring which would sooner or later eat her before turning on each other and dying off to only a small few.

I looked around at the blue light of the water pond at the bottom of the cave. I stopped at the water and a slow stream from several spots in the wall were clear, but not large enough to fit more than a hoof.

The blue water lit up showing gold and large gems. I chuckled a little. Talk about the cash pot of cash pots. This pond as my father told me was the pond of richest, it was plenty deep, but no know knew how deep because the creature living under the gold silver and gems would eat any pony greedy enough to reach in to grab something.

“Still alive in there Mingo?”

I kicked a rock in and teeth came out of the sides of the pond closing a large mount around the rock, making the light go away, but then opening again. The light came back lighting up again nicely, and brighter. I chuckled going over to a wall and moving it with my magic, walking down a hallway that my father had craved himself entering into a massive secret chamber.

Large gems of every kind lined the walls with dozens of veins of gold coming from large protruding rock. I zapped a magic light stone and it lit up along with hundreds others along the massive cavern. I was at least a good thousand or two thousand bits underground. So the fifty bit high ceiling was easily stable.

I walked for a while looking at all kinds of metals and gems, this amount of wealth was more than all of Equestria, with it I could easily afford building several Canterlot cities. Heck I could afford an army if I wanted.

I stopped at a large gray stone and tapped it a little. It sounded hallow and I smiled turning around and bucking as hard as I could cracking it.

A massive pain sent me to the ground rolling around sick to my stomach. I clearly wasn’t ready for that. I looked at my leg and felt it, it was fine but I couldn’t do that again for a long time or I was likely to break it. I got up pulling a hammer and chisel out of my bag using my magic. I put it into place hammering hard as I could breaking open the rock.

Hallow rock, one of the densest rocks known, while it wasn’t the strongest by far it was darn close. It naturally had a octagon structure so it created a hollow sound when knocked on, but that just meant that the first few didn’t have anything in them, if it didn’t sound hallow then that meant that there were just a few in it and not worth the effort.

I pulled out with my hoof a few rather shiny pieces of onyx coal, it looked something like a badly cut black gem ball with dozens of smooth faces on it. I loaded up my bag with about fifty pounds of it. I then went around collecting another thirty of other metals and good gems.

“There we good.” I said sitting down a little tired. This place drained my magic, so it was like moving through water instead of air, much more tiring for me which relied on magic to live and breathe.

I got up after a few minutes and started out closing the hallway before throwing a small piece of meat from my pack into the pond. It closed its mouth opening it a few minutes later humming a pleasant melody.

The melody of a pond trapper, could calm the most fierce hearts and mend the most broken relationships. It truly was the only thing I knew that could destroy evil, though it had lost its affect on me over the years.