The assistant tapped the thin metal frame dubiously.

"Are you sure about this, Ottoman?"

"Positive. This will be a boon to all of ponykind."

"I don't know; I mean there are other ways that are just as good."

"Yes, but one is pretty slow and the other one costs bits to use."

"So will this, " the assistant said, tapping the metal frame again. "Quite a lot too."

Ottoman sighed. "Yes, but it'll be a one-time payment. It'll make that money back and it's far more efficient to boot. Anyway, I'm sure I can make it cheaper once I find a way to mass produce. And watch how hard you tap that. That's my life's work you're ponyhandling."

"This thing is awfully large, too. And that smell…"

Ottoman sighed again. "Now you're just looking for excuses, Steamer. First, it's a prototype; it's simply a proof of concept and I've done that. It works. You've seen it work. I don't plan for them to be nearly as big as this when I finally put them into production. Second, while I do admit the smell is a bit off-putting, I'm sure can come up with something that isn't so bad given time. The influx of bits will make that easier."

As his assistant mumbled to himself, Ottoman thought back to the time months ago when he had originally had idea that led up to the creation of the device. The thought had simply struck him out of the blue as he was taking a walk to the market to restock his larder. He rushed home as fast as he could, his grocery trip forgotten, and started on the blueprints that very day before he forgot his idea.

The design theory was solid, but it needed some work. Well, he had nothing but time. He was so overjoyed with this new project and the fact that his imagination had finally borne fruit that the time passed without him noticing. He wasn't that great an inventor; most of his inventions either didn't work properly or failed outright, but this...this looked to be the idea that would make up for all of his past failures.

It was brilliant, even if he did say so himself. Over the days and then weeks, he improved upon the design, and then improved further still. This needed to go there and that could be replaced with this, which would raise the efficiency by almost twenty percent...

Finally, after all his efforts the device was ready to be put into practice. He hired an assistant, Steamer, to help with the building of the very first model. Big solid fellow, Steamer; muscular and smart. When it had been finished, Ottoman activated it and stepped back. It came to life with a whirring sound, and Ottoman clapped his hooves on the ground in pure joy. It functioned. By Celestia, it functioned.

From that moment on, he worked on on creating the frame it would sit in and the controls for it. That was the hardest part and he was glad he'd hired Steamer; Ottoman wasn't the strongest pony in Equestria and quite a bit of heavy work was involved. He watched Steamer every step of the way, to ensure his assistant built it to his exact specifications.

"What about the controls?", asked Steamer, bringing Ottoman out of his reverie.

"Well, I think I've made them as simple as I can. You see, you push this and then once it gets going you pull this and turn that…"

"It seems.."

"'…a bit complicated'. I knew you were going to say that. It will take a bit of learning, I admit, but the benefits will far outweigh that."

Steamer trotted around the boxy machine, and gave it another dubious look. Ottoman shook his head and rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Relax, Steamer. I guarantee you this will not only put my name…our names in the history books, but will soon become something no land pony can live without! On top of that, my uncle Davenport will finally be proud of me I'm sure!"

He gave a wooden wheel a gentle stroke with a hoof. "And I shall call it: 'The Ottomobile'!"

"That's a bit audacious of you."

"Cut it out, Steamer."