The crickets chirped loudly as the wind blew softly in the night. Princess Luna’s moon had begun to set past the mountain horizon, signaling the approach of her sister’s sun. Although the glowing orb in the sky had begun to vanish, the stars high above illuminated the nation of Equestria below. One place in particular was the city of Canterlot. Despite it being large and the capital of the Equestrian nation, home to Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, the city was surprisingly quiet during the night. The only sources of light that could be seen were the multiple street lights and the buildings that started their daily business early in the morning. The lights glowed throughout the city, but became less frequent as the city limits gave way to the more rural areas of Canterlot.

Here were the homes of many of the city's citizens who preferred quieter living spaces in a more remote community. But even then the houses here were still expensive and looked beautiful. One home in particular definitely fit that description. It was two stories tall and the walls looked like pure white alabaster. The building itself had a simple architecture, as it looked more like a large rectangular cube. The front yard had a small grass field on it with a cobblestone paved path, leading from the front door to the exit gate, running through it bordered by a bed of bushes. The front door itself was colored white with black highlights and the house had several windows adorning it, one of them having a balcony.

If you were to gaze into this particular window, you would find a bedroom of average size. The room held a large queen sized bed, with black bedposts and a dark green comforter, where a certain stallion lay fast asleep. Aside from his light snoring, the room was silent. That silence was soon broken when the alarm clock on the nightstand began to ring once it hit 5 AM. The pony woke up from his sleep, using his tired gaze to try and find the alarm clock. He fumbled with the clock while it continued to bother him with its ringing. After a while he managed to turn it off. The shadowy figure stretched out his body in the faint starlight that was cast through his window, letting out a yawn and scratching his head. He reached for the lamp that sat upon his nightstand and turned it on.

The sudden light revealed a Pegasus stallion of average build with a sepia colored mane, tail, and goatee that blended well with his light brown fur and grayish-green eyes, wearing only a set of pajama pants. Most citizens knew this particular stallion as Caster Forge. Caster was your typical pony and real nice to be around. There wasn’t much special about him aside from his job. He and he alone worked as the Royal Blacksmith for the Royal Army. It was a wonder he was even able to think of having such a position. Caster became a blacksmith at the mere age of twenty, earning him the title as the youngest professional blacksmith in history, and has happily been working for the army for the past two and a half years now.

Although his job brought on new responsibilities as well a high place in upper society, he preferred the simple life. It pleased him to know that he never had to bother being like one of those sophisticated nobles that felt like they had to act superior to everyone around them. Caster only wanted to be who he was and not what others expected him to be. It had been a lonely life at first, but he had managed to make a few friends along the way and that was fine with him. Caster was never very good at socializing and having a small circle of friends made things easier for him. All in all, it was a perfect life for him.

Already feeling wide awake, Caster went ahead and got out of bed to stretch out the rest of his body. He looked across the room and soon his gaze was caught by his reflection in a nearby mirror on the wall. Taking a moment to flex his lean muscular build, admiring the work it took at the forge to get this way. One thing he took special note of were some of the scars that he had attained over the last few years, either from when he was learning to use the forge as well as when he began working as one. Some were small and almost unnoticeable, though one in particular was long and thin, which stretched across his back from his right shoulder to the left of his waist. After giving his arms and legs a chance to stretch, Caster moved to his dresser to change.

The room itself was fairly simple, having only a few pieces of furniture, leaving plenty of walking space, and walls colored with a steel gray finish. Caster then opened his drawer, flipping through his clothing until he found what he was looking for. He pulled out a pair of sweat pants and a sweat shirt, both colored black, and quickly changed out of his sleeping attire into his work out clothing. He didn’t bother putting socks or shoes on, not needing them for what was to come.

As he finished, Caster took notice of the tiny sofa bed nearby that held his pet, Nina, a female squirrel with a crimson red coat, currently still asleep. He couldn’t help but awe at how peaceful she looked while asleep, just like when she was once a baby all those years ago. Not wanting to get too distracted, Caster gave the sleeping squirrel a little scratch on the head before heading to the window paned door to his balcony.

He opened it, letting the cool breeze chill his body. He grabbed the railing and gazed out at the small community of houses leading toward the city. During this time, no one else could see how peaceful things were. Ready to get an even better view, Caster took a few steps back, then ran back toward the balcony, jumped onto the railing, and leaped forward. He quickly spread his wings and took off into the air. This was what gave Caster the most joy in life: going on his daily early morning flights. The thrill of being lifted off the ground, feeling nearly weightless, was a sensation unlike any other.

He always took the time to fly around the city of Canterlot, taking in the view and strengthening his wings. The thrill of flight was always something that made him smile. Truth was that he would’ve been fine if he was either born a Unicorn or an Earth Pony. But nothing could ever beat the feeling of flying whenever you wanted. Caster put that to use as he flew toward the city. Flying lazily about over the buildings, he watched as the many stores and businesses opened for the day. Occasionally, he would fly outside of Canterlot and through the forests. For now though he felt the need for some excitement and dived into the streets. Caster pulled himself up before he hit the ground and began zooming through the streets at an agile pace. He passed a few other ponies, obstacles, and even into a narrow alleyway. It was tricky at first, but years of practice allowed him to make it through all those sharp turns unscathed.

He came to the end of the back alley and quickly pulled up before hitting a large brick wall. Caster ended up getting launched toward the sky, getting several feet above the city. He soon stopped to look down on the city below, admiring its beauty even in the dead of night. The castle even came into his view, though he dared not to fly over there as he did not want to appear as a trespasser. Casters’ gaze then turned to the large mountain, which the city rested upon, that went even higher up than where he was.

“It has been a while. Might as well make a quick stop,” Caster said, in a slightly deep voice, looking at the top of the mountain.

With that he flapped his wings and went up higher and higher. The more he flew up the more the temperature dropped. It didn’t bother him too much of course, being a Pegasus allowed him to endure the cold weather when flying in the sky. It kept getting colder as evidenced by the snow line beginning to form. His wings were getting a little tired but Caster eventually made it to the top of the mountain where most of the snow had accumulated. When he slowly floated down to touch the white freezing snow, his feet were met by the soft feeling of well-kept grass and a rise in temperature that warmed his body.

Caster looked around at the area before him, the starlight allowing him a better view. Rather than being covered three feet in snow, the very top of the mountain was laid with soft grass and beautiful flowers here and there. The area expanded into a large circle with a large, healthy ash tree at the very center of this anomaly of nature. Caster went over to the tree and sat down next to it, resting his head against the trunk. The tree also made it easier to breathe at this altitude as it provided oxygen.

The reason for this puzzling situation was still a mystery to Caster. He had found this place a couple of years ago, when he was about a teenager. When he first found this place he kept thinking of how this was all even possible. He thought perhaps one of the Princesses used their magic to create this beautiful haven so as to get rest from the world around them. It certainly made a bit of sense, but Caster decided to just leave that question be and merely enjoyed this spot. Since then he had kept this place a secret, mostly coming here to relax while other times he needed to think on problems he may have been facing.

Lately he had been facing a problem, not a big one but it still bugged him. Looking down at the side of his waist, Caster slightly moved his sweat pants down and looked at his cutie mark. It was the same as always, an iron shield with two crossed hammers behind it. But what was really drawing his attention was the roman numeral 15 engraved on it, which was well known by other ponies as the lucky mark. The lucky mark was a rare form of cutie mark that gave whoever had it better luck revolving around what the mark signified. In his case, anything that involved the number fifteen.

The reason it was so rare was because no one else has had it for over five hundred years, until now that is. It was quite a wonder as to why this phenomenon occurred but it was still a marvel to see it reappear after all this time. But the enjoyment didn’t last too long, during that fateful night many years ago. A couple of months after Caster had gotten his lucky mark, he had been kidnapped in the middle of the night. The attempt was foiled and the culprit turned out to be a changeling scout. Caster and his family met with Princess Celestia and demanded to know why the changeling tried to take him away.

She wanted to keep the truth away from them at first, for the sake of keeping their son safe. But after hearing of this event, she thought it would be a waste of time to keep the charade going. So Princess Celestia decided to just tell them the truth. She told them all of the hidden power the lucky mark possessed. About the changeling war that occurred long ago. Of how dangerous the power would be if it fell in the wrong hands. And of the true nature of its disappearance. It was all so much to take in at once that Caster couldn’t even accept it at the time. He ran away before anyone could try to calm him down. He just kept flying and flying until his wings nearly broke from exhaustion. It was on that day he found the very place he was resting at.

Caster of course returned home, and was met by support and comfort from his friends and family. They did not know why he was given this power but they promised to help him through it. Since that time he has continued to ponder over the lucky mark he was given. Why he was given it or what he was meant to do with its power, Caster may never know. But he made a vow that he would never abuse its hidden power for his own selfish reasons, even if he did discover its meaning one day.

Caster spent a good half hour thinking about his lucky mark before the sun began to rise over the mountains. He stood up from the tree and walked toward the edge of the grass, watching the beautiful sunrise before him. Whether he found out what his other purpose was or not, it didn’t matter to him. As long as he could continue to be who he was now, he would face whatever came his way. For now though Caster had to be getting to work soon.

So with that in mind, he went into the air again, ready to fly back down. Feeling a bit adventurous, Caster decided to get a little dangerous. As soon as he was a couple feet away from the mountainside, he closed his eyes and folded his wings in, letting his body fall to the Earth below. Casters’ breath was calm and controlled as he felt the wind brush past his body at an immense rate. Free falling was something that few Pegasi ever did out of fear of possible death. But for some, like Caster in this case, it was the greatest thrill you could ever experience. It was only for a minute or two before his eyes snapped, seeing the ground getting closer and closer. He waited for the right moment, spread out his wings, and pulled himself back up to glide over the city.

Caster let out a holler of excitement as he managed to perform that stunt almost perfectly. It wasn’t every day you could cheat death after all. Having had his fun for the day, he flew back towards his home. He soon landed back on his balcony and went into his room. Not bothering to change out of his workout clothing, Caster simply went to the door to his room and out into the hallway. He opened the door quietly as not to disturb everyone else from their slumber and silently walked down the white colored hallway towards the bathroom.

The bathroom wasn’t very luxurious but it was spacious at least, with only a the few necessities such as a single sink with a large mirror above it, the toilet, and the shower. Turning on the light and closing the door behind him, Caster quickly disrobed himself and turned on the shower. He spent a good fifteen minutes washing and cleaning himself before turning off the water and stepping out to grab a white towel. After drying himself, he wrapped the towel around his waist and headed back to his room.

Caster moved back over to his dresser where he pulled out a pair of gray boxer briefs and some black socks. Then he opened the closet door and grabbed a pair of black jeans and a white tank top. As soon as he finished getting dressed, Caster saw Nina slowly waking up in the corner of his eye. And so he went over to give her a light scratch on the belly.

“Good morning Nina, sleep well?” Caster asked, smiling at his little companion.

She responded with a few chirps of gratitude from the scratching.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” he said, ceasing his ministrations. “Well time to get moving.”

At those words Nina climbed up his arm and perched atop his left shoulder. The two went out and back to the bathroom. Caster set Nina onto the sink counter and grabbed her favorite brush. He began brushing out any tangles in her fur without hurting her too much. Nina relaxed into the treatment as it went on for a while before ending. Caster then set about fixing himself up, fashioning his mane into its usual brushed back style and trimming his beard for any unneeded hairs.

After they deemed both of themselves presentable, Caster and Nina exited the bathroom, went down the hall and down the stairs to the first floor. It was divided into three major sections: the kitchen, the dining room and the living room. Though all of them had the same light green painted walls. Caster then made his way into the kitchen, which had brown cupboards, granite countertops, and wood floors that continued into the dining room.

Caster’s family was moderately wealthy thanks to all the business his parents have done as professional jewelry makers. That was fine with him as it kept him from ending up a spoiled child when he was a little colt. Caster brought his attention back to the kitchen and turned on the light switch. Nina landed onto the counter as her owner went to prepare some breakfast, grabbing some supplies from the fridge and pantry.

After gathering some cooking gear, Caster started preparing breakfast. However, his progress was brought to a halt when something snuck up from behind him and covered his vision with their hands.

“Guess who,” a familiar female voice said.

“I’m going to take a wild guess and say it’s my crazy sister-in-law, Hotpop?” Caster said, a small smirk growing on his face.

“Aww, how’d you know?” Hotpop said, teasingly as she moved away from him.

“Probably because you’re the only pony in this house that even does the guess who game,” he said, turning around to see the pony.

“Maybe,” she said, giggling.

The mare that stood before him was his sister-in-law, Hotpop. She had been married to his older brother for the past four years now and had become a lively active addition to their family. She was a unicorn with light blue fur, emerald eyes, and a yellow and green mane and tail that was cut short. Her cutie mark showed a large sun with a smiley face on it. Hotpop had an exceptionally curvy body, with barely any sign of fat, as well as a medium sized chest. She currently wore a plain white t-shirt and a pair of knee high purple pajama pants.

“So where’s Jack? I thought he’d be up by now as well,” Caster said, curious as to where his sibling was.

“He’s upstairs trying to wake Vicente up,” Hotpop, leaning back against the countertop and petting Nina on the head.

“That son of yours really loves to sleep,” He said, returning to making breakfast.

“Yeah, I’d say he takes a bit after his father when he was younger,” Hotpop said, watching him cook.

“Though the rest he takes after you when he wakes up,” a stallion said, coming down the stairs.

They both turned to see two ponies walk into the kitchen. The taller pony was Caster’s older brother and Hotpop’s husband, Jack Spirit. Unlike the rest of his family, he was born a Unicorn and had bright orange fur and a golden brown mane and tail styled into a Mohawk. He wore a thick framed set of glasses over his deep blue eyes. Though he was about an inch shorter than his younger brother, Jack made up for it with his more muscular body built from his time spent in the Royal Guard. But lately he had been acting as the army psychiatrist who helped treat the traumatized soldiers who suffered in battle. His cutie mark showed a red chaise lounge. Jack wore a pair of blue jeans and a black shirt.

Standing next to him at a shorter height and holding his hand was his and Hotpop’s son, Vicente. A unicorn colt of only three years old and certainly took after his mother as he was already wide awake. He had lime green fur, a messy dark brown mane and tail, and bright turquoise eyes. He was currently wearing a set of one-piece pajamas colored dark blue with pictures of fluffy white clouds adorning it. While Vicente was a very active pony most of the time, he suffered from a condition of narcolepsy. Even though it was a minor case, he still randomly fell asleep at times. Yet that didn’t stop him from having a good social life with a few friends.

“Hey Jack, sleep well?” Caster asked, making idle chit-chat.

“Relatively well. How about you?” Jack replied.

“Good I guess. Yesterday was a real busy day for me and I’m pretty sure today will be as well,” he said, stretching his neck.

“You shouldn’t work yourself so hard uncle Cast,” Vicente said, gaining his uncle’s attention. “You’re already an amazing pony as is. And I’m sure everypony knows it.”

“Thanks for the pep talk squirt,” he said, chuckling as he ruffled the colt’s mane. “Just to let you know I’m making your favorite breakfast: blueberry pancakes.”

“Awesome!” Vicente exclaimed, hugging his uncle’s legs as best he could. “You’re the best uncle I could ever ha-”

He was already out faster than a light bulb, still hugging Caster. The three ponies simply laughed as Hotpop picked him up and took him into the living room to rest until breakfast was ready. Said living room consisted of a tan colored rug a few chairs, a couch and a coffee table, a TV set, and a small fire place. Hotpop went back to the kitchen and helped Jack Spirit set up the dining table while their little brother continued making their meals. It was about twenty minutes later that Caster finished up making breakfast, which consisted of blueberry pancakes, scrambled eggs, small bowls of fruit salad and glasses of fresh squeezed orange juice. It was all finished just in time as Vicente woke up again and Caster and Jack’s parents came down the stairs.

“Hey son, something smells good,” Copper Gold said, noticing the plates of food on the countertop.

“That’s our little boy, always thinking about everypony else,” Amethyst Emberglow said, admiring her son’s culinary work.

“Though I’m not so little anymore am I?” Caster said, giving a know-it-all grin to his parents.

They both rolled their eyes as they helped him bring the food to the table. The stallion was Caster and Jack’s father, Copper Gold. He was the one that started up the jewelry business that today took up half of their home. Like his name suggested his fur was a dark shade of copper gold. A Pegasus like his son, had yellow-greenish eyes, an average body frame, and a curly brown mane and tail with a few lighter streaks. His cutie mark had two gold bars side by side and he had put on a button up long sleeved white shirt, a blue tie, a pair of gray khaki pants and some black polished shoes.

The mare was Amethyst Emberglow, their mother. Like most of the family she was also a Pegasus and had violet fur, blue-green eyes, and a straight crimson red mane and tail. She had a very slim body and her chest was a bit smaller than Hotpop’s. She was wearing a blue blouse with little ruffles, a black skirt that went down past her knees and red high heel shoes. And her cutie mark consisted of three large gems, one red, one blue, and the other green. Amethyst began working at her husband’s shop years ago, offering her services in cutting and fitting gems. Eventually the two of them fell in love and went into business together.

A few years later they had gotten married and, after starting up a full family, moved down from Cloudsdale to Canterlot for better business. Since then their self-run jewelry store has become one of the top rated jewelry stores in Canterlot and very well-known across Equestria as well. Today they hoped business would go well as usual, but for now they needed to eat up for the day ahead of them. So Amethyst and Copper went over to the table and took their respective seats along with everyone else in the dining room that had a large black wooden table, a small chandelier above it, and a few windows across the walls. They all thanked Caster for the meal before digging in, Nina having a small bowl of acorns.

This was another thing that gave Caster some comfort in his personal life: being able to spend time with his family like this. It was nice to see all of them with smiles on their faces and conversing with one another. But the fact that some of those smiles were caused by his cooking made him even happier. The best part was that they all lived together under one roof. It wasn’t that they couldn’t afford to live on their own, far from it actually. They just all preferred to stay together as a family.

They all continued eating and having their conversations, with Caster chiming in a few times. As the food slowly disappeared, Amethyst looked toward the clock on the wall to see what time it was. She grew concerned as it was nearly seven thirty and didn't want her son to be late for work.

“Caster, dear, it’s almost 7:30. Shouldn’t you be heading to work by now?” she said, gaining her son’s immediate attention who then looked at the clock.

“Oh shoot, you’re right!” Caster said, wolfing the rest of his meal down as quickly and politely as possible. “Here, let me take care of the dishes and I’ll be on my way.”

“Don’t worry about it Cast. You go, we’ll take care of it,” Hotpop said, wiping pieces of fruit and pancake off of Vicente’s face with a napkin. “It’s the least we can do for this breakfast you made us.”

“Thanks Hotpop, I owe you one,” he said, giving Nina a quick nuzzle before grabbing a pair of dark colored tennis shoes by the front door.

“I’ll see you later at the castle when I’m on break, little bro,” Jack said, waving him good bye.

“See you there, bye,” Caster said, waving back as he closed the front door behind him and locked it.

After heading out the front gate, Caster started to walk at a brisk pace towards the Castle, wanting to keep the rest of his body in shape.

===============================================================

Caster had made it into the city in no time at all and was currently taking in the sights. The buildings all around glowed with a prestigious shine and showed how wealthy the city truly was. The streets were nearly crowded with many other ponies, all of them from different social classes. A majority of them were from the upper class and nobles, though some, like him, were more common folk wearing average clothing. It made him glad to know that Canterlot wasn’t completely populated by snobby ponies otherwise he’d would’ve found it impossible to tolerate this city. Caster Forge also saw all the different businesses that he passed by. One of them being Donut Joe’s donut shop, which had also recently been expanded into a coffee house as well.

‘Can’t have a donut without a cup of joe after all.’ He thought, smiling as he remembered the store's new slogan.

During his walk, Caster even passed by Canterlot University, the very place he learned to become a blacksmith. He remembered that contest he entered in years ago soon after he moved to Canterlot. He had made an almost perfect miniature replica of Canterlot Castle out of scrap metal he had found around the city. It may not have been up to higher class pony standards but the Princess admired the creativity and effort that Caster had put into it. Not only did his entry win him first place and admittance into the school, but it got him his cutie mark as well. His time at the school was definitely well spent, learning all the proper ways to forge metal and even getting the chance to learn the art of fencing as well.

After graduating and becoming the Royal Blacksmith, Caster got the chance to be a guest speaker at certain classes. It was interesting to actually see other ponies wanting to hear about what he had learned in years past. Those times would always remain in his heart, as they were what made him who he was today. He continued his walk toward the castle, passing by other places like Hoity Toity’s dress shop and a couple of his friends.

As he kept going towards his destination, Caster soon took notice of a few ponies whose gaze were directed at him. What made them more apparent was the fact that they were mostly mares. Some were of the common class, others were higher up. Yet they all seemed to carry the same look of attraction as some of them would either give him a slight wave or a flirtatious wink that went almost unnoticed. While their gazes may have appeared affectionate from any other stallion’s view, Caster knew all too well it was not the truth.

Aside from the mystery behind his lucky mark, this was another problem he faced: having difficulty finding love. When he was a younger colt, Caster always used to chase after other mares, trying to find that one true special somepony in his life. But no matter what he tried they would never even bother to give him the time of day. They never bothered to even get to know him more personally. Caster thought of just giving up at one point, but his friends kept encouraging him to keep going. That he’d find that one mare out of all the others.

And so he did just that, though instead of continuing to chase other mares he figured he’d just wait. Wait until the time was right. The only reason that the mares around him started paying attention was because of his fame from being the only pony with a lucky mark. His high position in society as the Royal Blacksmith. And apparently for his natural good looks. All this self-processed information let Caster know that these mares didn’t truly love him for who he was. They only saw him as an object to boost their social status and for their own personal pleasure. So he decided to turn away from these selfish mares and bide his time until his true love would cross his path.

Not wanting to be late for work, Caster sped his pace up a bit. He soon came to the drawbridge of the castle, which was already lowered. He gazed upon the polished gold and white of the castle walls and went across the bridge to find two Royal Guard stallions, one a Pegasus and the other a Unicorn, standing guard at the front gate. They both looked at him with a serious expression and Caster just gave them a blank stare. They all kept this up for about a minute or two before their faces started creeping up into grins. In a flash they were all laughing hysterically, losing their composure as well. The three of them took a moment to catch their breath before Caster spoke up.

“Oh that was priceless, right Swift Wind?” he asked, wiping a tear from his eye.

“He he, yeah it never gets old,” the white Pegasus said, doing his best to regain his composure.

“I swear if this keeps up, nopony will take us seriously,” the gray Unicorn said, sarcastically.

“I doubt it, Spell Weaver. With that new armor I’ve made for you guys, you can be sure that you’ll be given the respect you deserve,” Caster said, admiring his work.

“I must say it is some fine craftsmanship. So light and yet so durable,” Swift said, stretching his arms a bit to test its movability. “Plus with this mark, we’ll always know we’ve got the best.”

Swift Wind turned to show the small, but recognizable, carving that resembled Caster’s cutie mark on the collar of his armor. In recent years Caster had started labeling his work with his cutie mark, though in an inconspicuous fashion. It was mostly a way of telling the guards that he was the one keeping them safe in battle. During his time as blacksmith he had made friends with many of the guards at the castle. They never hung out but they still talked to each other every now and then, usually about any specific gear modifications.

“Just making sure you remember that I always have your back,” Caster said, scratching the back of his head.

“Indeed, by the way I had a favor to ask you, Caster,” Spell said.

“What is it?” he asked.

“My armor is feeling a little sticky in a way. When I tried swinging my sword at practice yesterday, my arms felt a little held back. It was like they slowed down or got stuck or something,” Chuck said, demonstrating the problem by moving his arms around.

“I see. Well then, once your shift ends for the day bring it to my forge and I’ll take a look at it when I can. If I’m lucky I may be able to have it back to you by tomorrow morning,” Caster said, assessing the repair work.

“Awesome, can’t wait for it. Thanks again Caster,” Spell Weaver said, shaking his hand.

“No problem Spell, it’s what I do after all,” he replied, moving past the two guards as the gates were lifted.

Walking through the courtyard, Caster soon made his way into the castle. The next couple of minutes consisted of walking down hallways and a few flights of stairs. With how long it always took getting to his work station, he always thought it was a wonder how rarely anybody got lost in these corridors. Eventually he managed to reach his destination, a large set of wooden double doors with a lock by the handle. Caster dug through his pockets and pulled out a ring of keys. He unlocked the door and walked into the dimly lit room.

It was a masterpiece of a forge if he did say so himself. The room itself was circular with six columns spaced evenly apart from one another. The walls were made of polished marble and the columns had carvings of golden leaves imprinted on them. The room was about a story and a half high, giving it plenty of flying space for what Caster needed. Near the double doors was a rack filled with clipboards and different pieces of armor or weapons. This was where guards would leave their equipment if there were any problems with it and he would take care of them accordingly. Though it was also where they put in special requests for a specific weapon or unique set of armor.

Around the room were the tools and devices that Caster used in his work, such as work benches, grinding wheels, a tool rack, a shelf filled many materials, and a large forge in the center filled with coal, ready to be warmed up.

All around the higher parts of the room were shelves that displayed the many different pieces of work he had completed over the years. Some were pieces meant for soldiers, others were designed by other countries that he made out of interest. At the other end of the room was a large circular window that was open by a crack, which gave the room its dim light. Going over to it, Caster opened it up and took a breath air as he looked down on the city below. Very few ponies got the chance to get a view like this and he was lucky to be one of those few.

But the sight-seeing would have to wait, for he had a job to do. Going back over to the doors, Caster closed them and grabbed an apron, some gloves, and a pair of goggles from a nearby coat hanger. He started up the fire in the forge and saw as the clock had just hit 8AM. Caster contemplated on what to do first with his day. Being his own boss in a way he had his say of what he could do in his own schedule as long as he kept working. He decided to work on a few of the special requests, since they were sometimes the most challenging part of his job. So Caster went over to the rack with clipboards and pulled out the first one. The request was from a mare of the Pegasus division. She had ordered for a blade that was light but had enough durability to survive most fights.

“Heh, and I thought this would be a tough one,” Caster said, putting the clipboard back on the rack and moving over to the material shelves.

He pulled out a long piece of steel and placed it onto the pile of coal in the forge. It sizzled atop the intense heat as Caster let it stay there for a while. During this time he went over to the tool rack and grabbed a set of custom tools he had created. They were a set of wing attachments that he used to handle multiple tools at once. Caster may not have been strong as an Earth Pony or as magically adept as a Unicorn, but he managed to make due and used what had been given to him. So he attached the metal like contraptions near the ends of his wings and fashioned in the tools he required.

When it had reached a yellow-orange glow Caster removed the piece of steel from the heat and brought it over to the work bench. He began pounding the heated material in various places, using his wings and free and to speed up the process. After a couple well placed hits, Caster ceased the hammering and moved the newly shaped steel to the water trough and watched as fire and steam rose from the water. Once it had cooled down enough it was again placed onto the forge where it embraced the coals heat once more.

This process was repeated over and over for a while, letting the material be folded over itself to increase durability but keep off excess material. Caster soon stopped when the steel bar had become flattened enough for the next step. He went over to the grinding wheel, sat on the seat in front of it and pressed repeatedly on the pedal while holding the bar against the now spinning wheel. There were a couple of sparks as the flattened material began its sharpening process. For Caster this was one of the most crucial parts, making sure the blade was evenly sharp on every part. Not only the sides, but from the edges to the very tip as well. He moved the steel back and forth watching as it began to thin out while the material was shaved off.

Eventually he ceased the sharpening and took a chance to examine the newly forged blade. It was nearly flawless as it shined in the light coming from the window, though it was narrower for the sake of making it lighter. He ran a finger gently on one of its edges and could tell, even without cutting himself, that it was as sharp as could be. A few test swings proved that it was also very light. Caster grabbed another steel bar and swung the blade against it, with enough force so that it wouldn’t break. A reverberating chime echoed in the room as he looked to see the blade was intact while the steel bar had a small groove carved into it. At least now he knew it was durable enough for the guards’ request.

All that remained was to make the hilt and handle. So he did just that and grabbed some more materials and going over the same process. Though this time it required more elaborate bending and sharpening.It took a while but Caster had managed to make a brass hilt with some intricate designs carved onto it. The handle was shaven down to meet the grip of a hand, before wrapping it in leather to make it more comfortable to wield. He took the piece to the blade, fit its tang into the small hole of the handle and pressure fitted them together. Ultimately making one beautiful piece of artwork that was both practical and had style as well as being up to the guard’s specifications.

After engraving his cutie mark onto the hilt, he quickly grabbed an already prepared sword sheath from a barrel nearby and put the sword into its new home. Caster put the finished project into an empty numbered shelf, which would be there for the guard to pick up whenever she pleased.

“Phew, I guess that was a bit more difficult than I thought it would be,” Caster said, wiping a bit of sweat from his forehead. “Well anyway, I’d best get back to it. It’s going to be another long day.”

===============================================================

The rest of his day proceeded as it always did. Ten hours a day with a two hour break whenever he chose to use it. It was always a very busy and demanding job but he had grown accustomed to it. He continued making supply orders, repairs, and requests, which the Pegasus mare had picked up earlier. It kept like this for a while until the clock hit noon, as Caster went on his break. His job allowed him access to the Royal Guard food court, though he never imposed by eating too much. Unless his work got the best of him of course.

Caster found his brother and the two spent some time talking to each other along with some of the guards. After Jack went back on duty, Caster used the rest of his time to walk around the castle. There was never much he could do with his spare break time, so he always tried to find something that would sate his boredom. He was currently walking down the hallway, heading back to his forge. He rounded a corner when he suddenly bumped into something and fell down. Caster looked to see that it was Princess Celestia, covered in a pile of papers that she was previously holding.

“Oh, your highness! I’m so sorry, I didn’t see you there,” he said, giving a small bow before helping her pick up the papers.

“It’s quite alright Caster, I was so busy reading these documents that I wasn’t looking where I was going,” Princess Celestia said, using her magic to grab most of the papers.

There were plenty of pages as the two ponies worked to clean up the mess they made. Caster stole a glance at the outfit Celestia was wearing. Like her fur, it was pure white, made of the finest silk royalty could buy. A bright yellow sash wrapped around her waist, which matched the dress gloves that she wore. The whole ensemble clung smoothly onto her body, defining all of her curves and showing a small portion of her noticeably large cleavage. The dress matched nicely with her gold colored slippers, purple eyes, and wavy multi-colored mane and tail. It also went well with the golden crown that rested on her head.

“I assume you remember the meeting we have scheduled later?” she asked, picking up the last of the papers.

“Oh right, I almost forgot!” Caster replied, handing her his stack of papers. “Don’t worry, your majesty, I’ll be there soon. I just need to head back and collect some of my documents.”

“All right then, Caster, I’ll be sure to let the rest of the council know,” Celestia said, showcasing a comforting smile as she held the stacks of paper in her magic.

“Very well then, see you soon,” he said, giving a quick bow before dashing off to his forge.

After gathering some important papers of his own from his desk at the forge, Caster cleaned himself off a bit before heading off to meet with the others. It took a bit of time to navigate through the endless corridors but he finally managed to reach the doors to the inner council chambers, currently guarded by two Lunar Guards. After confirming his identity with them, Caster went inside taking in the view of the marble columns, stained glass windows, and long table with several rows of chairs, where he was met with the faces of many ponies. Some were of noble lineage and well respected, though he only seemed to truly recognize the two Princess’, Celestia and Luna, seated at the far end of the table.

Walking in, Caster took his place in one of the only seats available as the meeting commenced. While Princess Celestia began the usual formalities of starting the meeting, Caster Forge thought about some of the ideas he might be able to propose. As Royal Blacksmith, his opinion in terms of arming soldiers was highest and he was entrusted with finding new solutions for improving the standard equipment of the army. Yet despite being the only blacksmith working at Canterlot Castle, Caster did not truly work on his own. There were many other army bases around the major cities of Equestria and each one had their own blacksmith that took care of their armories.

The Royal Blacksmith, however, provided armor and weapons to all of them, but only when there were times for mass production. This was due in part to the fact that he had to learn more advanced techniques and produce armor at faster rates. And if other bases wanted his more durable armor and weapons, they had to pay a higher price. Needless to say, this earned them a seat on the inner council after a few years of debate and Caster was certainly lucky to be able to achieve such a point in his life. His very first proposal was the opportunity for special requests by guards, which ended up taking off like wild fire. After all, he believed that armor and weapon must match the talents of its wielder. Caster was soon pulled out of his thoughts when someone called his name.

“Caster?”

“Oh, um, yes?” he said, seeing that it was Princess Luna calling him.

“I believe you had a proposal you wished to share with us today?” she said, wanting to see what he had planned.

“Of course, your highness,” Caster said, shifting about a few papers before finding what he was looking for. “Now as I recall we’ve been getting some reports on criminals being able to escape too easily when the guards try and catch them, or that the shackles provided aren’t very effective. With that said, I took some time to work on a new design for some shackles and cuffs to help restrain offenders better. I managed to find some old designs that were pretty effective in the past and by adding some runes and having somepony enchant them, we can nullify a pony’s magical abilities, no matter their race.”

“Hmm, but what of the cost of these things? Surely they sound like they’d take a chunk out of our revenue,” a mare said, who he recognized as the treasurer.

“That won’t be a problem, the texts I’ve read and tests I’ve performed show that these things can be formed with the simplest materials, even iron or steel,” Caster stated, showing the blueprints for them.

“What about public appearance? If they’re being drained or their abilities, they’d be acting zombies when we cart them off. I doubt anyone would feel so cheerful around guards after seeing that,” a stallion claimed, known as the head of the PR department.

“Not to worry, sir. These things work like any other standard cuff without any excessive restrictions. And I didn’t say they drained a pony’s magic, they nullify them,” Caster pointed out. “Meaning Unicorns can’t magic them off, Earth Pony’s can’t break them with strength, and Pegasi can’t fly away.”

“Well, you’ve certainly thought this out thoroughly, Caster Forge,” Princess Luna said, examining the design sheet. “We’ll look it over and see what we can do about your request.”

“Thank you, your majesty,” he said, tidying up his shuffled papers.

And so the meeting continued on, with everypony brining about new topics and proposals, ranging from budgets cuts to public affairs. This went on for about an hour before the Princess’ declared the meeting be adjourned for now. As Caster was getting ready to head back to his duties, he found himself being approached again by Princess Celestia.

“So, you and your family will be attending the coronation tomorrow I take it?” she asked, holding a few documents in her magic.

“Of course your majesty. We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Caster replied, straightening his own stack.

“That’s good, I’m sure that everypony will enjoy the event,” Celestia said, giving him a warm smile.

“Without a doubt. Well I guess I’ll be seeing you then,” he said, getting ready to head back to work.

“Before you leave there’s one thing I would like to ask you,” Celestia said.

“What is it?”

“Cheer up okay?” she said, looking at him sincerely. “I know you’ve been having some personal problems lately. But at least try to be happy for the sake of others. Who knows, the answer may come to you very soon.”

“All right, I’ll try. But I can’t make any promises,” Caster said, chuckling a little.

Princess Celestia gave him a quick hug before they both went their separate ways. She looked back at Caster as some thoughts went through her mind. One of which was of a certain new Princess that reminded her a bit of him on a social level.

“Hmm, I have a feeling tomorrow will be more interesting than expected,” she said, to herself, smiling as she went about her business.

And so Caster returned to his duties, filling out the day’s quota. At one point Spell Weaver dropped off his armor to be repaired as requested. Caster soon found the problem, that being a few misplaced rivets and some pieces of leather that turned out shorter than he anticipated. After rearranging the rivets and replacing the pieces of leather, he put it on a shelf for the guard to pick up. The time ticked by as the sun traveled along its path across the sky. Day soon gave way to early evening and Caster had noticed that it was almost 6PM. He just finished a new set of armor and boxed it up like the rest to be delivered to the supply room. As he was about to call it day, Caster took a glance at a nearby black colored wardrobe.

‘Wonder how my set is doing? he thought, making his way over to it.

He pulled out his ring of keys and fumbled with them a bit before finding the right one. Caster turned the silver key in the lock until the door unlocked with a click. Opening up the wardrobe doors, Caster set his sight upon what was before him. Inside was a set of armor made of reinforced leather with an image of his cutie mark at the center of it. It went up from foot to the neck, no helmet whatsoever, as he didn’t care for them too much. It looked rather light but felt very durable as he ran a hand across it. At its waist was a short sword with a golden bronze handle that had a two onyx’s and a white moonstone on each side, an ebony carved handle, and a pommel designed with a golden star and an emerald in its center. He took hold of the blade and pulled it out of its sheath, admiring its beautiful sheen and razor sharp edge.

This was Caster Forge’s own personal set of armor with custom blade. Like a lot of weapon smiths, he too had his own personal project that was made just for him. It was something he started when he was still enrolled in Celestia’s school for artistic ponies. Even though it was merely meant as his graduation project, which let him pass with flying colors, Caster thought it was meant for so much more. He was allowed to keep it and thus spent the last few years continually improving both armor and blade. But even now he still didn’t think it was perfect, heck, he hadn’t even come up with a name for his sword yet.

But that wasn’t truly important right now. Really the only important thing at the moment was getting home to finish his other project. So putting the sword back in its sheath Caster locked the wardrobe. After making sure everything in the room was back in order, he locked up the room before heading home. Caster once again walked through the streets, as it was a bit simpler than flying, and enjoyed the sunset that was bathing Canterlot in a warm glow. Plus it gave him a chance to clear his thoughts and relax. Unfortunately that didn’t last too long when something caught his attention.

To his right were a mare and a stallion, holding each other close as they walked past him. They were simply talking to each other about little things in life and were laughing like two little school foals. While Caster did find the scene cute and romantic, it stirred up some old feelings. He may have promised himself that he would wait until the right mare came along. Although lately he was hoping that day would come sooner rather than later. Hopefully his day off tomorrow at the coronation would give him a chance to socialize and meet a few new ponies.

Caster’s walk continued on that note until he made it back home. Opening the front door, the familiar smell of dinner greeted his muzzle. Taking off his shoes he went to the kitchen to see Copper and Amethyst making some boiled vegetables and pasta.

“Hello Caster, you’re just in time. Dinner’s almost ready and Jack, Hotpop, and Vicente will be down in a few minutes,” Amethyst said, while she ladled out some white pasta with red and green peppers onto some plates.

“That’s great Mom. But would it be all right if I took my dinner upstairs with me?” he asked, yawning in the process. “I want to put the last few touches on my project before I turn in.”

“Are you sure Cast?” Copper asked, hoping his son would reconsider.

“I’m sure Dad. I’ll be sure to bring down my dishes when I’m done,” Caster said, grabbing his plate.

“Well, all right then. Just don’t stay up too late,” Copper said, giving him a pat on the back.

“We’ll see,” he said, giving both his parents a hug before heading upstairs.

Caster entered his room to find Nina resting on his bed. He went over and petted her as she woke up. She chirped a bit before Caster took a seat at his work desk, setting his dinner plate down. This was where he occasionally partook in his hobby of building miniature figurines out of the scrap metal that his parents left behind. It was a simple hobby, but one that managed to get him into Canterlot University. But for right now, it would be used for a different purpose.

Turning on the desk lamp, he brought out some materials, tools, and what looked like an unfinished amulet, beneath the light. After taking a few bites of his food, Caster went over to a shelf where he kept some comics and book, some of them romance novels. Currently he grabbed a small book on craftsmanship and flipped it open to a bookmarked chapter. He then moved a desk magnifying glass in front of his face and set to work. This little project he was currently working on was meant for tomorrow’s coronation. The coronation of Equestria’s newest Princess.

It had been a little over a year since the incident with Tirek and already Equestria was getting a new Princess. Apparently this mare was a personal student of Princess Luna. Caster did not know all of the details, but the point was that tomorrow was a very special day. So he took it upon himself to make it even more special. The amulet he was in the midst of making was meant as a gift to commemorate the Princess’s ceremony. It was also technically a way to promote his family’s jewelry store. What better way than to give a new Princess a gift such as this. Caster may not have been as skilled as his parents when it came to jewelry, but he knew enough to help them in the shop when he had the time.

Night began to descend upon the land as the moon rose into the night sky. By that time, Caster had already completed his little gift. It was an oval shaped, silver amulet with elegant carvings and a long, thin chain. The front of it was circled by tiny, finely cut sapphires and had a large ruby in the center. It was simple, but for a Princess sometimes simplicity was all you needed. Caster scrutinized his creation to make sure there were no flaws. He turned it one way and another and watched as the jewels caught fire in the light. After a half hour of studying the amulet, he felt it was worthy of a princess. Once he deemed it relatively perfect, he grabbed a small box, some white wrapping paper, and a red ribbon.

After finishing up his project, Caster decided it was time to get some shut eye. So he brought his dishes back downstairs and then made a quick trip to the bathroom to brush his teeth and take care of other business. He then headed back to his bedroom, shut off all the lights, tucked Nina into her little bed, and rested onto his own after changing into some PJ's. As he stared out the window and at the countless stars in the sky, he wondered what tomorrow would bring. Would their new Princess be a kind ruler? Would he be able to make one or two new friends at the coronation? One thing was certain for him, after tomorrow he would go back to the same routine. Another average day, in an average life.

Author's Notes:

And so it begins, my newest story. Love at Second Sight. It's taken a while but it's finally here. I hope you all enjoy the first chapter of my shipping between my OC and my girlfriend's. Her OC is not in this chapter yet of course, but she will appear in chapter 2. So until then please enjoy.

Edit: Change to the back story of his position as Royal Blacksmith, the scene where he makes the sword and fixes the armor, and an added bit to his physical features in the beginning. You'll know it when you see it.

Edit 2: Cured this chapter of it's LUS and changed Jack Reels' name a bit as well as his profession.

Edit 3: A few grammatical changes.

Edit 4: The new version begins.:D

Edit 5: Jack Spirit is now a Unicorn.