The Great Gadget Giveaway! (Open to All)

[Pretzelparty]

 

 

Being stuck in ponyville was proving ... frustrating. The incredibly difficult "landing" of her ship on the Castle that wasn't there on the map she'd been using, and then the second landing when she managed to get the ship off the spire and land again the damage resulted in it coming apart at the middle... now she had to wait for the postal service to send word to her benefactors and then for her benefactors to arrive and help her out of this and assist in the restoration of her vessel. There was just one problem... well technically three problems: 

One: The ship needed replacement parts and materials.

Two: Replacement parts and materials cost bits.

Three: SHE DIDN'T HAVE ANY BITS!... well at least not enough to buy everything she needed on her own.

Why'd she leave her checkbook back at the lab in  Talonopolis? Well, no point in looking back in regards to that Misstep; she'd have to rectify it in the future.  For now she needed to Find someway to remedy the previously mentioned trio of obstacles. What did she have at her disposal besides the dimensionally transcendent briefcase? The Portal devices she'd been working on that would take her back to her lab weren't working yet... still only functioned in short distances. That was when it hit her; she had a multitude of gadgets in her briefcase alone and thats not getting into the nostalgic things she'd built as a filly. Maybe a few adjustments and she could give the Ponies of Ponyville some interesting knick-knacks or conversation pieces.

And So here she was; having used some of the broken lumber boards from her ship to make a stall and painted the words "Gadget Sale" on the top with the subtitles below saying, "Cheap in price, not in quality"

Behind the stall were a bunch of blankets with various devices and machines that had a motif that could best be described as "Clockwork" With various glowing gears and a pleasant magical hum coming from each device.

 

 

 

 

 

[Lyipheoryia]

Steam Metal~  

What an interesting mare...

 

Three days in Ponyville for vacation, and she was already thinking of new investment opportunities.  She saw it everywhere, actually: small carrot stands that could sell the distributors all over Equestria, that fashion store with another one in Canterlot could be expanded into a chain corporation, and that mare over there looking frustrated.  

Wait...what?!  She shook her head furiously, before turning back to the frustrated mare.  She seemed...upset over a few pieces of perfectly good-condition clockwork.  She scanned the scene, taking in the small "gadget" sale that seemed rather overloaded for a little flea market stall.  She trotted over to the mare to inquire over the strange situation, 

"Good afternoon-may I ask: What exactly is going on here?"

It wasn't the usual stall that she saw in the Baltimare streets, filled with colorful scents and wonderful pieces of jewlery.  This was different.  Something about this...it was like the mare was rather...

She paused, not quite sure which word fit into her assuming description

...desperate.

[Pretzelparty]

Finally! someone who might buy something. She then tugged somethign out of her saddlebag: a small piece of paper which she began to read aloud, "Good Afternoon... Miss. I am your na-- ugh Darn it. My name is Bevel Gear. Would you be interested in a device taloncrafted by the best claws in engineering from Aquellia?" The Mare looked up at the customer, then back to the paper. This process repeated a few times before she took a deep breath and tossed the paper away. "Worthless prepared salepitch speech..." she thought to herself as the crumpled ball of paper soared off to griffin knows where.

"Good Afternoon, My name is... well I've already gone over that, and I am an inventor and researcher for the illustrious Silverbeak Family of Aquellia." She admited with a faint hint of a pride meddled in with that prench accent of hers. 

"Due to a teleportation Miscalculation in my Equation regarding the Location of certain Newly...'built' landmarks I have found myself stranded in ponyville while I attempt to remedy my primary method of transportation."

[Lyipheoryia]

A young entrepreneur!  Steam was most excited now~. 

 

"How much is...well, everything?"

 

As the mare's wayward story unfolded, Steam realized that she was in a much more dire situation then she had realized.  She didn't quite know what to think, or how to help.  A money donation might have been good, but it looked like an act of pity mixed with charity.  If she bought everything, though...

She inner toy shook her muzzle.  She would have no need for the used gadgets, nor could she place them to the resale with their used value.  She sighed,

 

"What's your plan to get home right now?"

[Lux]

 

Spoiler

Bringing back an OC.

The creaking squeaking sound of a wagon heavy laden with goods heralded the arrival of Russet Apple. The Blacksmith pony had spent his life in Solstice Heights making and repairing new things, but now there was only so much he could do in the sleepy town near Canterlot. He didn't feel yet ready to venture into the capital city with his wares since there was so much competition, so he chose the next best place: Ponyville. Surely there were some ponies there who would need something mended or purchase his forged items.

As he approached the town there were two things that caught his eye. One was the magnificent castle that looked like a tree/ crystal cluster/ building. The other was a ship that used the castle as a landing pad? Well that was strange, and somehow the ship looked familiar.

"Well there's two things you don't see every day," he said in his country drawl typical of the Apple Family before he noticed an interesting stall selling gadgets.

"Those don't look like things Ah've ever seen in Solstice Heights. maybe they'll be useful fer mah house or forge."

He trotted over to where the stall was, unhitching his wagon close so her could keep an eye on it. The owner of the stall was a mare with flight goggles, but there was a second mare who looked like she was in the thick of negotiating.

"Howdy Y'all. Ah hope Ah'm not interrupting any negotiating goin' on."

Spoiler

Accent wise, think deep voiced like Johnny Cash.

 

[Pretzelparty]

 

"Everything? If you mean everything on the carpets I laid out it would probably be two hundred and fifty bits. If you wanted all the stuff I intended to bring out afterward I'd need time to think up a price for all of it. As for my plan..." The mare blinked once and after a momentary pause in speech, "I will make money to buy parts, will get a headstart on the repairs and once my benefactors receive my letter they will arrive and assist me on my way home."

The mare in the goggles perked up a moment, "Nono, not at all!  May I help you, Sir?" She asked, mustering up a passable smile. The mare gestured to the various items she had on the carpets, "If there isn't anything here you like I have some other things I can get that I'm sure we could reach an agreeable price on."

[Lyipheoryia]

Steam watched the young entrepreneur with renewed vigor.  She loved buisness, especially the buisness involving investments.  She gave the mare a smile, before deciding to assist, "I don't think this is the most effective, efficient plan~  This will take a long time, and your ride back home might cost a lot more than you imagined.  Listen here-I know of a market fair coming up near the outskirts of Ponyville.  As one of the co-hosts, I can easily plug you a stall there.  Now, I don't do anything for free-so let's see here:  If you manage to sell at least sixty-percent of all your goods here for sale in that one night, I'll pay for all of the fees required to set up your stall.  I love helping out new entrepreneurs, even if I'm on break," She ended on a wink, smiling.  

Another pony arrived, this one looking more interested than she was in the goods for sale.  She politely walked a few steps behind to give the potential customer space.

[Lux]

Russet didn't know if he heard the conversation correctly. Did the other pony ask for everything in the stall? No, this was merely the owner with high hopes of paying for repairs to what was confirmed as her ship. Why the ship was parked on the castle Russet couldn't tell, but it sounded like it was an accident. Instead this was a very interesting proposal the mare requested regarding renting a stall to help the pony get more funds to fix her ship.

"That sounds like a great offer you're providin' ma'm," Russet Apple said, "and a very generous one at that."

"Nono, not at all!  May I help you, Sir?" She asked, mustering up a passable smile. The mare gestured to the various items she had on the carpets, "If there isn't anything here you like I have some other things I can get that I'm sure we could reach an agreeable price on."

"Well, miss, Ah' feel that some introduction is in order. Mah name is Russet Apple, and as you can see from mah wares over there Ah'm a blacksmith creatin' an' mendin' things for ponies whether they need them for house, farm, or business. Mah forge is small but boomin' if Ah do say so mahself. Ahm' not afraid of modernizin' mind you and am always looking for things to do so. doy you happen to have tools or machines for forging iron? Oh and where are mah manners! What are your names you two?"

[Pretzelparty]

 

Bevel thought for a good minute or two. A market fair would make things relatively easier, but even then there might be a better way she could make bits fast enough that she could fix this ship. The ship in the distance behind her however certainly didn't look fixable to any professional Shipwright who might have been in the area: given how far they were inland though, it was unlikely a shipwright would stop by at anytime soon.

"I'll... accept that offer. But for the moment is there anything you may need? I should clarify though, I am a magical researcher and engineer so... business ventures are hardly my end goal."

"Hmm... " Bevel looked over some of the wares and thought a few seconds, "Let me check back here a moment." The Inventor took a step back from her desk and unfolded something beneath it. She took a carefully step forward and then another, as if she were descending into a staircase. If either of the two looked behind her little stall they'd see an open briefcase but before they could get a better look her head popped out as well as the rest of her but this time she was pulling out what appeared to be a large smithing hammer with a strange pattern over the hammer part that looked almost like glowing papier mache. Once the pony fully puled herself out she placed the hammer on the table before her. 

"This is a project I had been working on for aquellian blacksmiths. It uses an ethereal transmutation circuit to change the density of the metal on the hammer's... er striking part so it can be used on any metal and not break provided it's on the correct density setting." The inventor gestured to several dials on the handle of the device. "I remind you that these are copyrighted and patented and all that junk so attempts to sell this device again with permission from the magitech division of the Silverbeak family in Aquellia will result in litigation. What is your offer Mister Russet?"

[Lyipheoryia]

She smiled at the mare, "Matters not your knowledge in the area, but only how much you're willing to learn~" 

Okay, she knew it sounded very cheesy, but that quote was a headliner at a recent conference.

She turned away to tend to the other pony, and she gave a small smile, "I'll be back later.  I'll give you some time to think about my offer-meet me in Ponyville Square in two hours if you're willing to finish the deal,"

With that, she sauntered off, trying to enjoy as much of a vacation as she could without...overthinking things.  She did have a habit of doing that~

[Lux]

Russet was more than happy to wait for the stall owner and business pony to complete their negotiation, but Bevel was ready to accept. Strangely as Bevel went to see if there was anything for the stallion, the mare made a quick exit. Perhaps she had somewhere else to be, but now Russet waited for the mare to return after ducking behind a curtain. When she did return, the blacksmith looked at the strange glowing hammer. All of her fancy sciency words flew over his head, but when he heard that the hammer could change to suit certain metals, he was intrigued.

"Well miss, Ah' certainly wouldn't want to start a legal issue with another kingdom, an' Ah' wouldn't use this other than to help forge mah own wares. Ah'm an honest businesspony an' certainly wouldn't be pawnin' off anypony's work as mah own. As fer price, takin' mah profit minus any travellin expenses and expenses fer raw ore an' fuel for the forge, Ah'd say Ah can afford to pay thirty one bits. If, however, this is too low, then perhaps somethin' from mah' cart can cover the price gap."

[Pretzelparty]

The only response that Bevel thought would be fitting was a nod. Internally memorizing the meeting place, she turned back to look at The stallion. The mare coughed once and returned her focus upon him.

"Thank you, Sir. You'd be surprised how much of a problem such things can be back home." The mare thought a moment about his offer. "Well... the expenses required to make this piece was... about Fifty-five bits." The stallion's offer to his own wares to cover the price gap was intriguing and potentially useful. If he had enough ore or tools she may be able to speed up the repair of the Zephyr! "Well... It'd be rude to just go rooting through your cart. What on your cart are -you- willing to sell?"

[Lux]

Russet Apple knew that the hammer would be costly, but he wasn't phased by the cost of fifty bits. He still had his cart, and hopefully there was something there to cover the balance.

"Well Miss, practically everything is fer sale on the cart... err... minus some of mah own things that is travellin'. Everythin' Ah' have is cast or forge ironed. There's housewares things like pots an' pans, small furniture items like umbrella holders an' stools, and tools too! Is there somethin' that Ah' can help you find? It might be a little easier seein' as Ah' can quickly find mah way around the cart!"

[DerpRavener]

Rex looked at the stall, and the blankets behind it, with a frown on his face.  Whether the frown was sad or thoughtful, not even he could say.  There was a lot of metal there, that could have put to useful things such as weapons, armour, or metalworking or farming equipment.  It seemed wasteful, somehow.  And yet, he couldn't help but be a little intrigued.  Ponies clearly took some interest in these things, and there was a lot the diamond dog still didn't know about ponies.  Was there something to discover in these little things?  For that matter, what even were they?

 

Only one way to know for sure.  Since the shopkeeper appeared to be in conversation in another pony- or so Rex assumed at least, he couldn't tell which was which- Rex decided to inspect the wares himself while he waited for opportunity to ask questions.  He walked over to the blankets, setting his 'sword' down in the grass near the stall, before leaning down and beginning to poke at the wares on display.

 

Rex only had a vague idea what he was looking for.  Which was perhaps just as well, since he wouldn't recognize anything he might find here even if had an idea.  He browsed the wares aimlessly, running his paw over one or two that caught his attention as being vaguely weapon like, before picking up one of the smaller things.  He squeezed it a little, trying to see how it felt in his paw, only for it to creak and bend slightly.  Rex blinked, setting the thing down and hoping nopony would notice the difference, before moving on to the next thing that caught his eye.

[Pretzelparty]

 

"Hm, quite a good supply of raw metal here." thought the mare to herself, "Hm... Do you have any blow torches? I could use them for  the repairs to the Zephyr." She looked back to Russet a moment as she effectively dug into to his cart, levitating several things until all that was visible as she routed through those wares were her haunches. "Uh oh..." The mare pulled and pushed and tugged. Her hindlegs planting themselves on the wooden wagon carrying the stallion's inventory before she flew off of it in a tumble, rolling until she was flat, vertically on the edge of her own stall''s edge. 

 

The mare's found herself in an embarassing position, with her face in the ground and backside in the air. The dreaded locks of her tail flipped over to lay across her spine and obscure her face as she righted herself in a huff. " If you can provide me with a new large socket wrench and a Blowtorch, we have a deal... also I'll take any scrap you have with Iron in it. I'll do my best to sweeten the deal if need be."

 

Bevel's ear's shifted to the sound of a creak... She looked over and went wide eyed a moment. A diamond dog? In ponyville? She heard this place was accepting but she'd never thought to the extent they'd let these canines in to interact. After a bit of thought, Bev realized the dog was actually rather cute in a way... she hadn't gotten to see a dog in any shape or form since she stayed with the Silverbeaks; they were very keen on not allowing dogs, diamond or otherwise in their property for two reasons. 

 

1: They had a tendency to try and chase them sometimes.

 

2: (although this was limited to the place bevel stayed) They weren't allowed because someone on the premises was allergic. 

 

Just like that, a tickle appeared in her muzzle and Bevel froze in place, her expression looking increasingly irritated before she sneezed into her coat's sleeve and coughed. Darn allergies. Despite how dour the mare always looked, she always seemed to brighten up a bit around canids. They were sweet loyal( at least to eachother in the case of diamond dogs) and could occasionally be rather clever... sometimes too clever. She waved to the canine, "Excuse me, If you have a particular device you're looking for... I can help you.

[DerpRavener]

A sneeze beside him caught Rex off guard.  Ordinarily he would have noticed the pony approach, but he was distracted by worry over having broken something he perhaps shouldn't have been touching.  Again.  He whirled to face the pony, his expression like that of a pup caught stealing treats.  He stood frozen like that a few moments, until he realized the pony hadn't confronted him about the broken thing, though whether she genuinely hadn't noticed or was merely ignoring it for the moment he couldn't tell.  If anything, she seemed to be happy to see him.  This was good!  Rex liked when ponies were happy.  He smiled back, though his grin was unintentionally a little more toothy than hers was.

 

Then he remembering the pony had asked him a question.  “Thing?” he said, head tilted slightly, before shaking it side to side.  “Don't know,” he added, before launching into a proper explanation.  “Was play-fighting...” Rex thought for a moment.  That wasn't the right word.  “No,” he corrected himself, “PRACTICE-fighting, with a cat-bird and a wing-pony.”  That was what it was.  Alright so there was an audience, and the fighters got paid for it, but it was basically practice.  Not a real fight, or the medics would not have been there, would they?  “Good fights, but I had trouble with flying things.  Need something to hit hard from far away.”  He turned, and gestured to the devices laid out on the blankets.  “Any of these hit from far away?”

[Lux]

"Hm, quite a good supply of raw metal here." thought the mare to herself, "Hm... Do you have any blow torches? I could use them for  the repairs to the Zephyr."

 

"Well miss, Ah' often do have a blowtorch or two with me in case I need to make minor repairs to things. Trouble is Ah' can't seem to find it, but if you find one in my cart, Ah'd be happy to sell it to you."

 

He watched as the mare literally dove into the cart and began plucking out different items. Some things were tools that he fashioned, others bits of scrap metal that he found in his travels to take back to the forge and melt down. Before he could ask if she needed help them are tumbled out of the cart in a very compromising position! The stallion was caught with trying to help her and not get accused of staring. But in this case, help superseded modesty.

 

 "Here Miss Gear, let me get you down from the cart. Ah'm just going to lift your back legs from the cart and back on the ground." 

 

The earth pony knew this would be very risky essentially being in an uncomfortable position while helping her, but he hoped that keeping the mare's mind off the issue by talking business would work. She certainly was still interested in what he had despite the embarrassment. 

 

 " If you can provide me with a new large socket wrench and a Blowtorch, we have a deal... also I'll take any scrap you have with Iron in it. I'll do my best to sweeten the deal if need be."

 

"Well Ah' certainly have all those. So, with the wrench, blowtorch, and scrap metal, what would you reckon the remainder price would be?" 

[Pretzelparty]

 

 

After having received the assistance from Russet she bowed her head politely to the smithy. "Merci." She said, a blush on her face for a few seconds before she mentally chased it from her face and looked back at the stallion.  The inventor thought to herself as she calculated the proper amount of bits that should be paid in accordance to this agreement. The serious faced unicorn toook a deep breath, "Um... I'd say fifty bits. Does this sound about right, Monsieur Apple?"

 

The inventor listened carefully to the diamond dog's words. Practice fighting, hm? Interesting. It could be some sort of diamond dog thing she couldn't really understand unless she spent more time studying the culture of the canine creatures. Well, it was hardly something she needed to worry about, a customer was a customer. "Hm... something non lethal that can hit from a distance..." The mare scratched her chin with the tip of her hoof, "I think I that momentum dampening grappling hook that would be the closest thing to what you want, it could also be used to pull and move heavy objects easier..." 

 

A hoof fumbled about in her briefcase before she pulled out a curious looking object, it looked somewhat similar to a harpoon launcher but smaller in scale. The device had a few straps and small belts on it, clearly meant to be worn on the foreleg (or arm depending on your species). Over the metal of the weapon there seemed to be magical markings engraved into the metal and there was a faint hum coming from the gadget. 

"I could provide a demonstration of it's capabilities if you wish, Monsieur... um... Merci, but what was your name again?" she said, her head tilting slightly in the dog's direction.

 

 

 

[Lux]

With the embarrassing moment off their minds momentarily, it was back to business of trading with Bevel Gear. There two types of buyers that Russet Apple would see visit his shop and cart: those that were just perusing until they found something they liked or those that had a set plan of what to buy. While he didn't shy away from any opportunity, he did like that Bevel had a game plan in mind as to what to get. 

 

"Um... I'd say fifty bits. Does this sound about right, Monsieur Apple?"

 

Fifty bits was a steep price as the stallion calculated the amount in his head. A typical pot or pan cost a pony about ten or so bits due to the metal and the time to forge it. Still, what he was getting was something he might not have a chance back home or even Canterlot. 

 

"Well Miss Gear, Ah' think we have a deal there! Let me get my bits from my cart and we'll take care of it." 

 

He made his way to the front where there was a hidden safe and retrieved the money. 

 

"Here you go, fifty bits! Nice doing business with you an' making your acquaintance. Next time you're heading to Solstice Heights, feel free to stop by my forge. I have much more than what Ah' can fit on this cart." 

 

He noticed the other pony was there working with Bevel or asking for some demonstration? Well, he had his reasons. 

 

"Well sir, not to barge into Miss Gear's negotiations, but if you wish to peruse my cart for anything forged you're looking for, Ah' can stay some more here." 

 

Spoiler

I realized I jumped ahead. Hope you don't mind DerpRavener.

 

[DerpRavener]

Rex's ears perked up as the pony running the stall started to describe the 'momentum dampening grappling hook'.  He only knew what two of those words meant, but he hadn't been sure the pony would have anything for him.  And that description had a lot of promise.  If the pony was right, Rex wouldn't need to hit things from far away, he could just pull them close!  Then he could hit them the way he normally did!  The hum was also somewhat enticing, he'd never seen anything that hummed before.

 

The pony offered to demonstrate, which caused Rex to nod vigorously.  “Yes yes!”  He hadn't imagined there would be something like this, and while he was excited he would probably need it demonstrated before he could completely wrap his head around it.  So focused was he on the device that he almost didn't hear the pony ask for his name.  He lifted one of his paws and pointed at himself, saying “Rex!”  Then he pointed at the pony.  “You?”

 

Rex was briefly interrupted by the other pony, one who'd been talking to the device-pony about something earlier though Rex hadn't really listened to what, offered Rex another set of wares, though all Rex could immediately tell was that they were forged.  Rex wasn't sure he particularly needed anything forged, at least not at the moment.  As such he was mostly still focused on the device-pony, but he did turn an ear toward the other.  “Forged...” he repeated after a moment, before asking hopefully, “Can you teach?”

 

Spoiler

I don't mind, I think we're actually back to the original order now.  The one thing I will note though is that Rex is a diamond dog, rather than a pony.