Chapter 22: Opening ceremony
Chapter 22: Opening ceremony
Day One Seventy-six, has been a great day for Slate, Starry and Cory.
Just as he said Slate made the flight to the nearest town in under six hours, drank every single bit he had, which was not much to begin with, met a cute mare that was in the mood for some fun. He even made it back to camp during the night, and caught about two hours of sleep before First Call.
Cory and Starry not only did have a little adventure of her own, but each of them got something they never thought they will get.
Most young ponies get their marks during their school years, and only a few late bloomers a few years after, but only donkeys, mules, sheep, goats and cows were the only adults that did not have their marks, and only because their races never got them. Starry was a stallion, a young stallion, but a stallion nonetheless, and he did not managed to get his mark, and nopony knew why. Most thought it was some kind of new disease, and alongside him being an orphan and his lack of mane, ostracized him even further. A great weight was lifted from his chest that glorious morning when Cory told him to look at his flank.
Cory, was a pegasus. When she was younger an accident took her parents away from her, as well as her wing, and for a young pegasus, there is nothing worse than knowing you would never be able to fly. And yet, on Day One Seventy-six, for the first time in her life she flew. She was not carried by another pegasus, she did not ride a sky chariot, she flew with her own two wings. It did not matter for her that one of them looked like it was ripped from a giant bat, it did not matter that her and the wing’s colors were nothing alike, it did not matter that it was made from either, all it matters was that she could use it, and she could fly. It saddened her that she could not use it or show it to anypony, especially to Slate, but graduation was only a week away, and after that there would be nothing that would have stopped her from flying ever again.
For six months the intensity of the training constantly increased. Day by day the recruits were expected to become stronger, faster, more agile, and more disciplined. This process will peak during The Week of Pain, when after six long months of growing, the time came for the weeds to be plucked out. Only twenty-one of the thirty recruits that were in their platoon, passed, with two more quitting, their wills completely broken by the trial, and did not want ever to have anything to do with the Guards.
All three of them passed. Slate was among the firsts of his platoon, Cory scoring above average, and Starry barely passing, in no small part due to the fact that the drill sergeant’s opinion was worth half their final score. But all that mattered was that they all passed, and the following week went by as a breeze. Most of it consisted of ceremony drills and “light” exercise, all done in preparation for the Graduation Ceremony.
“Congratulations to all of you,” drill sergeant Lance said to the remaining nineteen members of the platoon.
Everypony was standing in attention as the sergeant spoke. All were dressed in armor, had their swords at their side, spears in their hooves, held exactly two inches from their shoulders, ceremonial blue cape on their back, and weapon of choice somewhere on their body, hidden from sight. The suits of armour had been checked and rechecked, and checked again for any scratch, dent, speck or dent, their gems charged, and checked by a senior unicorn officer. All had to be perfect because attending their graduation ceremony would be no other than Princess Luna herself.
“Tomorrow will be the greatest day of my life, because tomorrow will be the last day when I have to put up with you. After tomorrow you will be some other pony’s headache. Now... Right, FACE!”
The entire platoon executes a ninety degree turn to their right.
“We’ve got a full day’s march ahead of us, and I don’t want a bunch of smelly meatbags with me. Platoon! Route Step, Forward MARCH!” he ordered and everypony started walking forwards at their own pace.
Along with them from the training camp departed other platoons all heading for the assigned destination, the city of Lilyblue.
Eight hours of marching, followed by an hour for dinner. Then eight more hours of marching, and one for lunch. And they could sleep for two whole hours. Six hours of marching through the night, breakfast and the city was only a few more hours away.
Nopony remembers who created the original armor enchantment spell, but every Guard that had to perform in a parade hated him for having the foresight to make the armor hide the bags under a pony’s eyes, as well as any other signs of sleep deprivation. No matter how tired a pony was, how much time he went without sleep, if he could contain his yawning, nopony could distinguish him from one that just woke up after a full nights sleep in the most comfortable of beds.
Despite the presence of the Princess nothing really changed about the ceremony. The recruits would march, stand in formation, present arms, and do a choreographed drill they had been practicing for the past week, recite the oath, salute and be dismissed. Normally they would return to their barracks pick up their stuff, and be shipped out to the recruitment center they signed up with, where they would be asked if they wanted proceed with a military career and go to the Royal Guard Academy, be hired as a security guard or be put in the reserves. No pony ever choose the reserves but it was still an option.
The outer gates of Lilyblue’s military district open, and the platoons marched in. The trio’s eyes darted from building to building wondering if anything had changed since they were gone. Only six months have passed, but six months of military camp seemed a lot longer. For the most part the military sector looked the same as the rest of the town, old buildings, crammed together, narrow streets passing separating them. Nothing was changed, nothing above ground at least. There only thing that was different from when they left was that there were many more storm drains and sewer lids. Apparently the city’s sewer system received a major upgrade.
“All right meatbags, fall in!” the drill sergeant ordered and the privates closed formation.
The three ponies were standing in front of one of these gates. Ponies from other platoons were brought in to fill for the missing ponies until they formed a five by five square.
“Just as we practiced. Platoon, Forward MARCH!” The recruits rested their spears on their shoulders and the drummers started beating their drums.
The platoons marched one after another, all in sync, all to the rhythm set by the drummers. From the military district, they passed through the inner gate, and onto the central square where a crowd of ponies were eagerly awaiting to see the military parade. From an elevated platform decorated with blue orchids and yellow and white ribbons, Princess Luna stood next to the mayor of Lilyblue and his assistant. Two Royal Guard making sure nopony bothered them.
“Platoon HALT,” drill sergeant Lance yelled at them. At the exact same time, the drill instructors of each other platoons did the same.
“Right, FACE,” they ordered and all the recruits turned to the right so that they would all be facing the princess.
“Present arms.” The instructors called out, signaling the start of the exercise.
While the recruits were busy performing for the crowd, a small filly made its way up the ramp that lead to the platform.
“Hey you,” one of the guards said as he grabbed the filly. “You are not allowed to be here.”
“But I wanted to see the princess,” the filly said with a teary face.
“Sorry little one.”
“Awww...” the filly said disapointed.
“Guard, what seems to be the problem?” Luna asked the Guard, as she looked at the little pony he had in his hooves.
“I just wanted to give a flower to the Princess...” The filly’s eyes were wide and teary, and she had a small blue orchid in her hooves.
“Let her pass,” Luna told the guard.
“Yes Princess.”
Luna lowered her head to the the filly’s level and she walked up to her and placed the flower behind her ear, before letting out a large toothy smile and running away. The princess chuckled and returned to her spot overlooking the exercise.
“It does smells beautiful,” she remarked before turning to the mayor. “Was this also part of your plan to gain my favor?”
“Princess, I would never resort to such despicable tactics to impress your highness,” the mayor said before turning to his assistant and whispering, “make a note of this.”
The exercise lasted only a little while longer after the filly placed the flower in Luna’s made.