In the dead of night, a group of ponies dressed in all black and hoods move quickly as they soon come upon a hidden trap door that leads further underground. The leader of the group places a finger to his lips to the other three as they quietly pull open the door and begin to descend down the stone stairs before they just as quietly close the door. It was in this very underground lair that two of the ponies had seen a short but burly looking figure come down here with what appeared to be rather priceless ore and jewel, and they wanted in on such things to line their pockets with.

The group crept slowly and stealthily through the stone corridors that looked like they had been drilled through with great care, the dim light of the wall torches lighting their way as they continued to press forward into the now open room. What appeared to be some kind of forge as they saw weapons and armor of all kinds lining the walls each separated into their respective sections. Swords, axes, hammers, shields and armor of all types of heft. It appeared that whoever was down here was a superb craftsman. The group had certainly hit the motherload. And it appeared that the creator was nowhere in sight.

As they began pocketing and stuffing whatever they could get their hands on, one of them noticed a rather beautifully ornate hammer sitting upon the anvil next to the forge. The pony in question saw bits in his eyes before he made his way towards the hammer and reached out to take it. Only to hear a suddenly loud thundering boom and a line of pure magic energy colliding with his hand and piercing clean through it.

The stallion let out a cry of pain before he dropped to his knees, falling back and clutching his now bleeding hand as the figure they had seen come into the underground lair slowly come into view as he was holding out a large magical revolver, the barrel smoking from the blast as he glared angrily at them “Ya take one more blightin’ step toward my hammer, ya will lose more than just that hand there, lad.” he said in his rather thick dwarven accent as he didn’t take his eyes off the group who was pillaging his precious creations.

That’s the thing about gray dwarves.They do not take so kindly to others trying to steal their hard work. And these poor fools happen to stumble across one who really didn’t take too kindly to that one bit. He then points his gun towards the group and fires a couple of warning shots at their feet, making them drop the sacks that they were carrying “You should know that taking things that don’t belong to ya isn’t very proper of ya…” He said as walked down the steps of where he was coming from.

Soon enough, the dwarf came into the full light of the forge as he maintained his aim on the group, the dwarf’s eyes glowing a fierce ice blue and his skin covered in glowing runes with the same color, the man was only dressed in pants,metal shin guards and tough hide leather boots.n The group immediately threw their hands up as they gazed fearfully at the unknown weapon in his hand before they looked down at their indisposed companion “H-hey…take it easy now..we got lost is all, we had no idea there was no one living here-”.

Another gunshot rang out as the swarf aimed for the on4 speaking, landing a clean shot through the pony’s knee, making them collapse instantly as they cried out in pain, clutching the bleeding and burning wound as smoke rises from the hole “If ya are gonna lie to a gray dwarf…make sure you do it right, ya stupid gobshite. Now then…” he said before kicking the writhing pony whose hand he had blown a hole in down from his forge and into the group who catches their comrade “Get the fuck out of my home.” he growled as he cocked the hammer on his gun.

Without hesitation, the two uninjured ponies abandoned their would-be treasures and fled the underground cave with their friends on their backs. Once he knew that they were gone, he locked the trap door behind them before making his way over to his anvil and picks up his hammer “Daddy’s here, me beauty…” he said as he gently rubbed the head of his hammer as if he was patting the head of his very own daughter.

The dwarf lifted his gaze from his hammer to his forge before making his way back to where his meal and mead were so rudely interrupted by the intruders before sitting down and taking a huge gulp of the drink from the tankard that sat next to a large bowl of beef stew. He placed the hammer in his belt and holstered his revolver on the other side before picking up his spoon and resuming his hardy meal for one.

–One Month Earlier–

Zargan! What’s the hold up down there, lad?! We gotta get this wall taken down before lunch time!” cried out a dwarf that stood on a higher ledge in an excavation site that he and a few other dwarves were working on. “Aye, just gimme a minute, bossman! Just getting o'l Biannca and Rosa ready!” he said as he slid what appeared to be two large drills upon his arms before slamming them together as they rotated causing them to spark up, his mana being the driving force to generate their spin.

These wonderfully crafted arm drills were a product of his own creation. The young dwarf, currently only at the age of fifty years made his way over to the wall before slamming the drill tips into it before the rotating bits began to tear through the rock like it was a hot knife through butter. His mind and body now solely focused on the work ahead as he began drilling through the wall to get onto the other side where there was rumored to be a treasure of unparalleled worth. As he pushed ahead, other dwarves behind him began clearing out the tunnel with regular picks.

The thing about Zargan’s devices is that only his mana could power them. Not only that, but his mana pool was abysmally larger than a dwarf should have. So it was perfect that he would be the only one to use them, as the flow of mana in his devices would easily drain most dwarves. It was no trouble for him though. In fact, he loved that only he could operate his tools. It meant that if they broke down, he knew how to fix them himself.

It did garner the jealousy of the other workers, however. As Zargan’s tools allowed for him to make ease of menial tasks such as clearing rocks and rubble with such ease. But at the same time, they were grateful that he so willingly helped out to make the work go by that much quicker. It wasn’t long until Zargan had finally breached the otherside of the wall, the mana reader on his right wrist going crazy as he got closer and closer to the breach until he finally tore a hole large enough for him and the foreman who had followed behind him into a large chamber where a rather impressive amount of gold ore and a rather peculiar looking ruby idol statue sat on a pedestal.

Zargan marveled at the idol’s beauty as he removed his wrist mounted drills and carefully took the idol in his rough hands. He admired its shine and splendor as he looked back at the foreman as he held it up to show the boss what he had found. “Looky what we have here, bossman! The mana reader is goin’ crazy here! This would make an excellent piece of crafting material for one of my machines. Would you be opposed to me taking this all for myself? You and the boys can have all the gold and jewels in here.”

The foreman thought about it for a moment as he surveyed the area. There was more than enough riches in this cavern for all his workers and himself to have a small fortune. So he smiled and nodded to Zargan “Aye laddy. I think we can agree to that. Ya’d get more use out of than any of us anyways. It is all yours.” he said as he waved his hand in approval at Zargan’s request. The young dwarf’s face lit up with a smile before he did a little bit of a miner’s jig before gazing upon his prize once more.

Zargan’s joy was short-lived however, as the whole cavern began to tremble and shake as the ceiling began to drop rock from above and the ground began to crack and crumble. Thinking quickly, Zargan leapt towards the foreman and pushed him through the opening he had created before the room had sealed him in. Soon enough, the ground opened up and a large swirling purple and blue portal swallowed him up without warning “Fuuuuuccckk meeeeeee!!!!” he shouted as he vanished from his world.

--Present Day–

Zargan continued to eat his meal in peace as he gazed at the ruby idol that sat in the middle of his table. It had been a full month since he was brought to this world and he had been doing his best to get by with the knowledge he had. Being a weapon and mason smith, he was more than capable of carving out a living from scratch once more. After all, this realm seemed to have an abundance of similar jewels and riches not unlike his own.

“I was too eager to claim ya for myself, darlin’. You were just sittin there on the pedestal. And like a fool, I pick ya up without even thinkin’. For being so well learned, it was a pretty dumb move on my part.” he said as he lifted his tankard of freshly brewed mead “Way to go, Zargan Runespear, ya fuckin’ idiot…” he said before taking a big gulp of the beverage.

He sat there and continued to eat and drink away, it wasn’t until he heard what sounded like the clap of thunder from down the stone hall that lead to the main chamber and the sound of pouring rain hitting the trap door heavily that he sighed in slight annoyance “And hereIi was plannin’ on goin’ huntin’ later. Some venison sounded amazon’ tonight…” he said as he looked over at the small chicken pen which had a few chickens clucking and pecking at the ground as they ate at the bugs on the ground “Sorry lasses. One of ya is goin’ on the choppin’ block tonight.” he said as he made his way over to the kitchen area and began washing some wild veggies he had found in the forest nearby.

As he listened to the rain and thunder, he noticed another sound coming from the trap door. It sounded like desperate banging and pulling as the metal latch langed down the hall. Did those thieves come back for a second round? Or perhaps shelter from the storm? Regardless, Zargan was about to make sure that they never came back. He grabbed his hammer from his belt and slapped the head of it in his palm as he made his way up the stairs and to the door.

On the outside, the one pulling and jerking on the trap door was a small yellow filly with a red mane and tail all done up in a neat little red bow. The poor girl was desperately trying to get the door open to get out of the rain. “Come..on! Open up, dangit!” she said as she started to get worried that she wouldn’t be able to get out of the rain. It was getting darker and the rain was getting more and more heavy by the moment.

The door suddenly flew open, knocking the filly on her rear and tumbling back as she let out a cry of pain as the door had hit her pretty hard. Zargan leapt out of the hole with his hammer lifted high in the air as he prepared to strike the intruder with deadly force, the lightning striking behind him as the filly stared up at him with fear painted on her face.and tears starting to well up in her eyes. It wasn’t until he was about to swing down that he noticed just who it was.

“...You are just a wee little lass. What are ya doin’ all the way out here in this weather, little one?” he asked before his facial features softened from the fierce look they had beforehand. He places his hammer back into his belt before offering his hand to the small family who scooted away from him in fear. He understood how she felt as he was literally about to bring the hammer down upon her.

“Please pardon me, darlin’. I had some unwelcome visitors here earlier and I thought they had come back for a second round. Please, come with me and let’s get ya out of the rain for now. I have a forge ya can get dry by.” he said as he inched closer, his hand still being offered to her. With hesitation, she placed a hand in his hand before he carefully led her into the stairs, closing the door quickly behind them so that the rain didn’t keep flowing in.

“Watch your step, lass.” he said in a fatherly manner as he led her down the hallway and into the main room. Once in there, he sat ehr down by the forge in a wooden chair before he opened up the furrance and fed in some mana, the whole thing catching fire and giving off a brilliant ice blue flame. The filly looked around at all the weapons and armor that the dwarf had adorned on his walls. Her eyes widened in amazement as she then watched him move around quickly before he brought her a piece of sweet bread and a glass of drinking water. He wasn’t about to give this little girl a tankard of mead!

“My name is Zargan Runespear. And what do they call ya, lassy?” he asked as he held out the food and drink to her. “Ah am called Apple Bloom. Thank you for takin me in, Mister Zargan…” she said as she nibbled on the bread, still a bit nervous around him. Little did they both know that this encounter was one of destiny. And a long time friendship was to be formed from this.

Author's Note

I am gonna be alternating between this story and The Ghostly Voodoo King. That way I don't get burned out on either one.

May the darkness grant you peace.