September 5, 3095 Imperial Calender (1522 AD)
Ponyville Regional Junior University
Depressi sat down in his History class, pulling a pen and his folder from his pack. His day had been quite dull, and he was eager to work on a subject on which he was plenty capable of working on.
Around him, he noted the other students seemed to lack his interest in the current class. Already, before the bell signaling the start of the final class of the day had even rung, several of them were already goofing off. A few of the colts were tossing a small ball between them, talking amongst themselves, or were staring off into space. The fillies were no different. In fact, as he looked around he saw that he was the only one who was fully prepared for the start of the period.
Next to him sat a filly he had met on the first day of school. She was a light tan unicorn with a blue and white mane along with a cutie mark of a piece of Equestrian candy. She was an acquaintance; someone he was on decent terms with her, but she was by no means a friend. The teenage filly, named Peppermint, asked, "So, ready to get this dungshow on the road?"
"Dungshow?", Depressi asked.
Peppermint nodded. "Yeah. Most of these guys I remember from Ponyville Elementary. History was the least favorite subject."
"I would've assumed that'd be math. Or maybe that's just DJ", Depressi said.
"That was a close second", Peppermint said. "But yeah. It's not all that popular a subject, is what I'm sayin'."
Depressi shrugged, chalking it up to another Equestrian quirk. Soon after, the bell rang, and Mr. Time Flow dinged a small bell on his desk. "Alright class", he said. "We're ending our Geography assignments and will be starting with our first main unit today. Due to the schooling system here, you will have two years of world history, and-Oh, what the buck. You should've read that on the Syllabus. I'll get onto the main point. Now, there are assignments up here on the desk next to me. Please fill them out as best you can. May I have a volunteer to pass these out while I take care of some things in the back?"
A hoof shot up, drawing Depressi's attention. Said hoof was connected to High Society, who he had forgotten was in the class with him. She said, "I'll take care of it, Mister Time Flow."
"Thank you, Miss Society", he said, slipping past the desks on the edge of the class and heading for a small table at the back of the room.
High Society stood up and levitated over the papers to her, passing them off as she walked through the halls of the desks. As she arrived at Depressi, she shot him a sneer. The paper was placed on his desk with a slight slam, before moving past him. Depressi simply shot her a contemptible look of his own, readjusted his folder, and picked up his pen.
He looked over the assignment, seeing that it was a basic review test. At the top, it said Pryhan History: First Review Test. The questions were a bit basic and were mostly about things that would be somewhat common knowledge to most Imperials his age. Events that shared a connection to Equestrian history, important locations, a few dates, and things along those lines.
He shrugged. Equestria was a bit new to the World Stage, and they apparently weren't all that into history from the looks of things. He supposed that it was fine. He quickly filled out the information indicated at the top of the sheet, before moving onto the questions. He soon finished, before setting down his pen and leaning back in his chair.
After a few minutes, Mr. Time Flow finished setting up the projector and headed back to the front of the room. On his way, he noticed Depressi simply sitting with his paws on his desk, and walked over to him. He asked, "Are you finished?"
"Yes sir", Depressi said. "Most of it was pretty basic, and we went over it in school."
"Got it, just wanted to make sure", he said. "Just hold onto it. You'll all be turning them in at the end of class."
"Might I ask what the projector is for, sir?", Depressi asked.
"Oh, I'm not setting up a presentation. I used it for the class a grade below you. I'm just packing it up to take back. Now, since you're done, maybe you could go check out a textbook?", Time Flow suggested.
"Of course, sir", Depressi said.
"Oh, and you don't need to call me sir", he said. "You can just call me Time Flow."
"All due respect, sir, but I feel that would be unprofessional", Depressi said. "You're a superior, and as a subordinate, or the equivalent of such, it is my duty to follow directions and to address you with the appropriate honorifics."
Mr. Time Flow just stared at Depressi, somewhat disturbed. "Oh... Ok. That's a... I suppose that's something I'd expect, given your culture."
"It's kept the Fatherland alive and prosperous for over three-thousand years", Depressi agreed.
Time Flow just nodded, before pointing a wing to the back of the room. "On the table by the window is a sheet of paper on a clipboard. Write your name, the date, the number of the book you take, and your student ID number on the sheet. You'll find the book number on the inside of the front cover."
"Gratias", Depressi said, standing up and heading for the back as the teacher went past him.
Time Flow said, "Now everyone. Like Depressi is doing, once you finish your test, I want you to go to the back and get a book. You'll see a sheet with the relevant information on it. Fill it out and grab a book. You'll turn your test into the basket as you leave. We'll be starting our first lesson tomorrow."
++++~++++
The Next Day
Depressi slid back into his seat, once again pulling out his folder and a pen. The other students filed in, and Mr. Time Flow stood by his desk at the front of the class. As the bell rung and the last of the stragglers took their seats, Mr. Time Flow grabbed a pointer.
"Now, due to a few issues, I have yet to finish going over all of the starter quizzes", He said. "However, as they don't have any real significance, I'll just be ignoring them for now and starting with our first lesson. This is a simple overview of early Pryhan history, before, during, and just after the Great Unification."
He pulled a map of the Pryhan Empire down from a roll above the chalkboard. "Now, while Pryha is a nation with many different creatures, the original three were the Demigryphs, the Caragors, and the Bighorns. Each inhabited a different area of what would become the Modern Day borders of the Empire. The North of the Demosian Peninsula, the Archipeligo, and the Spina Mundi Mountains, respectively", he said, pointing to various points on the map.
Another student, Pen Knife, asked, "So, who lived in that southern part, by the mountains bordering Zebrica?"
"That was disputed territory for much of the recorded history of the three nations", Time Flow said. "That region included two of the three major rivers on the Demosian peninsula, and as such was home to bountiful farmland. All three of these states wanted the land, and it led to several large wars over the region." A small scoff was heard in the gap when no one was speaking, and several eyes turned to High Society. "Is there something you'd like to share, Miss Society?"
"Oh, no sir", she said. Depressi did note the look she shot him out of the corner of her eye.
"Anyway", Mr. Time Flow said. "The three groups were divided by several major differences and weren't willing to work out a compromise. A Demigryph historian after the Unification named Dedius actually had an interesting record about this. Quote: 'It was simple. We didn't like the Caragors because we saw them as superstitious and cowardly, and we saw the Bighorners as barbaric and weak. The Caragors saw us as unindustrious and as warmongers, and the Bighorns as downright heretics. The Bighorns saw both of us as weak for they both lacked the magic that made them strong in battle. In the end, we each proved ourselves right in many regards.'" Peppermint raises her hoof, drawing Time Flow's attention. "Yes, Miss Peppermint?"
"Sorry to interrupt", she said. "But, is it just me, or does that sound a bit like Equestria?"
This time, instead of a simple scoff, High Society let out a full-on laugh. "Really?"
"That's actually a point raised in my own class, back in the Empire", Depressi cut in. "My teacher raised the point that, while not entirely dissimilar, the three races of Pryha have a certain similarity to the three tribes that would form your nation. Strong and industrious? The Caragors and the Terrans. Prideful and possessing a warrior culture? The Demigryphs and the Pegasi. Wielding magic? The Bighorns and the Unicorns."
"Thank you, Depressi", Mr. Time Flow said. "That is an excellent point, and something that would be brought up later."
"Seriously?", High Society asked. "The situations are nothing alike!"
"What are you talking about, Society?", Peppermint asked.
"I mean, I may not know all that much Pryhan History, but I know they 'United' with a war. We came together in friendship! How are these situations alike!?", she asked, looking around the room for support. A few of the other students nodded or muttered something to themselves.
"I wasn't saying alike", Depressi said. "I was saying comparable. There is a difference."
"That is enough", Mr. Time Flow said. "This is a conversation you can have outside of class, but we are not going to be talking about it here. All of you, understand?"
"Yes sir", Depressi said. The rest of the class echoed his reply in the affirmative or simply nodded.
"Thank you. Now, Back to the Overview", Time Flow said, turning back to the blackboard. Behind his back, Depressi and High Society shared a glance at one another. After a brief occular war, both turned their attention away from the other, back to the front of the class in Depressi's case, and to a page of notes in the case of High Society.