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// Forming an Army 
// Story: Second Chance 
// by Subject 19 
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Matthew and Twilight were at the train station waiting to board the train to Canterlot. They had received a letter from Princess Celestia saying that she wanted to see both of them at the castle.
“So why do you think the princess wants to see us both?” Twilight asked curiously.
“Hopefully, she wants to see me about my proposal for an army. Why she wants to see you is beyond me,” Matthew replied.
The purple unicorn gave Matthew a reassuring smile. “I’m sure it is. I can’t think of any other reason Celestia would want to see you.”
Matthew gave a soft chuckle, earning a raised eyebrow from Twilight. “I have a very vivid imagination. I can think of quite a few reasons she would want to see me other than to discuss my proposal.”
The train arrived at the station in Ponyville shortly after and the two ponies quickly boarded the locomotive. The train ride to Canterlot was silent, the gray and purple unicorns not saying a word to each other as they looked out the window, letting their minds wander. When the train arrived at Canterlot, Matthew and Twilight were greeted by two Royal Guards, who then escorted them to the castle. For the second time, Matthew entered the large castle and was shown to the throne room where Celestia and Luna waited for their arrival.
“Matthew, Twilight, it’s good to see you again,” the sun goddess politely greeted, a warm smile on her face.
“It’s nice to see you too, princess,” Twilight said, giving her a small bow.
“Not to sound rude, but I’d like to know why you summoned us here,” Matthew said.
“I wanted to talk to you about the formation of an army,” Celestia answered.
The gray stallion chuckled at the answer. “Have things really gotten that bad with Prance?” he asked.
“I’m afraid they have,” she replied. “I’m unsure of what they’ll do, but I don’t want to take any chances. For that reason, I’m putting you in charge of forming an army for Equestria. You will be given command of the army as well.”
“How much convincing did it take for you to finally give in?”
“I will admit, it did take Lulu quite a while to convince me,” the princess said, earning a glare from Luna for using her nickname.
“With all due respect princess, why do you need me here?” Twilight asked.
“Because Tia thinks that you could help Matthew out with the geography of our land. That way he can better protect the kingdom if we are attacked,” Luna quickly answered. The princess of the night then directed her attention to Matthew. “How soon will you be ready to start getting an army together?”
“I can start immediately,” Matthew happily told her. “But I would like to discuss my plans with the two of you first, that way you’ll know what to expect and there won’t be any surprises.”
“Well then, let’s hear what your plans for creating an army are,” Princess Celestia said.
“First off, the Wonderbolts are all going to be trained for combat. I will divide the armed forces into three divisions: the regular army, the royal guard, and the elites. The regular army will be our normal soldiers. The royal guard will have no changes to their responsibilities. And finally the elites will consist of our very best soldiers. I’d say it should take about a month or two to get these ponies properly trained. When this is all done, you’ll be looking at the Armed Forces of Equestria, and me as the commander of it all.”
“Is that all?” Celestia asked.
“Actually, there is one more thing. I’ll need officers to help me make the armed forces more effective. I had quite a few ponies in mind to be given those ranks.”
“Who are they?”
“I want the Elements of Harmony as my chief officers. They seem to be quite used to protecting Equestria from enemies, and their knowledge could prove to be beneficial. I want them here inside the next forty-eight hours for them to be trained by me in combat and teach them what they need to know. When you send them the letters, only say that you wish to see them, nothing more.”
“Very well, I’ll send them the letters right away. In the meantime, you can stay in one of the castle’s guest rooms while you’re here.”
Twilight and Matthew were given separate rooms to sleep in for the night. The room Matthew was staying in was very luxurious to say the least. The room could easily rival a penthouse suite in a five star hotel. Matthew was getting ready to go to sleep when he heard a knock on his door. When he opened it he saw Princess Luna standing in front of him.
“What can I do for you, Princess?” Matthew questioned.
“Can I come in?”
Matthew stepped aside to let the night goddess in and closed the door behind her. “I know you’re not here just to be social,” the unicorn stated.
Luna sighed. “Is really that obvious?” Matthew simply nodded and waited for her to continue talking. “Are you sure it’s a good idea getting the Elements of Harmony involved in all of this? I seriously doubt that they’re ready for something like this.”
“I am trying to do what I can to prepare this kingdom for war. When your people learn of what we’re doing, do you really think they’re going to want to hear that somepony like me is the sole pony in charge of the armed forces?” Luna remained silent as he continued. “By doing this we will be able to accomplish two things. First, giving ponies peace of mind knowing that the armed forces is in trustworthy hooves. Second, if anything should happen to me, there will be somepony to take my place.”
“What if they can’t handle this kind of responsibility?”
“Then we’ll have to see what the public thinks of me being in charge. And if anything does happen to me, you will have no pony to take my place,” Matthew replied. “Why have you been so concerned about this lately?”
“I’m worried that when we do go to war, you’ll die,” Luna admitted, her eyes focused on the floor.
“Since when did you start having feelings for me?” Matthew asked, half jokingly. When Luna failed to respond, Matthew finally spoke again. “I’m not going to die,” Matthew said, trying to reassure the princess. “Now if you don’t mind, I’m rather tired and I would like to get some sleep. If you want, we can continue talking when I fall asleep.”
Luna gave a small smile and Matthew walked her over to the door and opened it for her. After Luna left the room, Matthew got into bed and fell asleep in the next few minutes.