//------------------------------// // Chapter 14: First Watch // Story: New Land Old Enemies // by Silent Scout //------------------------------// Name: MSG. Adam “Shifty” Smith Date: August 25, 2015 (December 12, Equestria) Location: ???? Time: ???? Adam found himself standing in the empty space as before, the weight of his back on his back, the vest on his chest and the weight of a rifle in his hands. Taking a look at what his mind had given him, he was surprised to find Steve’s rifle with the shattered scope. Looking back up he examined the vast expanses of nothing, quickly becoming bored. “I didn’t think I would be back here so soon and I don’t mind really but it is a little dull.” He heard a giggle come from behind him, so turning around he saw Luna standing there next to him looking up at him. “We are sorry for the sudden meeting but there is some things that we would like to discuss with the. As for the surroundings, it is you to chose where we shall be as this is your own mind.” “Nothings wrong with that ma’am, but I do have one question.” With her curiosity peaked she tilted her head to the side allowing him to continue. “Sorry if this sounds rude or anything but why are you speaking like that, you didn’t sound like that at the castle?” Huffing in irritation she replied, “We- I mean, I tend to fall back into the old habits if I am not paying attention to it. I have been away for a while and I have been getting some help to speak like everypony else.” Not really understanding how old of a habit it could be for her to speak like that, he had to ask, she couldn’t be much older than Twilight and the others. When he asked Luna raised an eyebrow, “Is it normal where you are from to ask a mare their age?” Sputtering, as he realized his error in asking, he tried to formulate a response never actually getting anything coherent out of his mouth. Luna had trouble holding back a fit of giggles at Adam’s embarrassment and his failing attempts to fix it. Having seen him struggle long enough she interrupted him saying, “1,678 years.” “Oh O- wait what?” “I am 1,678 years old while my sister, Princess Celestia, just recently celebrated her 1,954 birthday. Is it that strange for somepony to live that long in your world?” “Um yeah, I’m not aware of any human ever living that long. Ever. We generally live around 100 years or so, closer to 80 really. Do all ponies live for that long?” A sad smile formed on her face, “No, most ponies live roughly as long as you humans. It is only us alicorns that have been granted the gift of immortality.” “Not to be rude or anything, but that doesn’t sound like much of a gift as much as it is a curse. Seeing everything you know come and go for that long must be a rather large strain.” “Yes, when you put it like that it can be rather trying at times. My sister and myself have both learned to deal with it in our own ways and soon Cadence will too have to learn the same lesson as us.” “Alright lets change the subject away from this very uncomfortable topic. Here’s another question, why am I in this form rather than my pony form, not that I mind? Its nice being in my true form without the extreme pain when Twilight did it.” “Ah, that is a rather easy question to answer. It is due to the fact that inside this is who you are and who you feel yourself to be. In your heart you are the human soldier that you have been for many years.” “OK now what about what I’m wearing all this gear, I know from experience that this stuff is fucking uncomfortable. Sorry for the language, ma’am.” “It is quite alright, I very much like it when ponies or in this case people act like their normal selves around me and not scared, running away in fear. As for why you would imagine yourself wearing something that is uncomfortable, I would have to guess that it is from the feeling of safety your mind has given the gear. You feel protected and in control while wearing it so you mind has grown attached to that mental comfort.” “Well that makes sense, I guess. Alright since you seem to have all the answers, I have one last question for you.” “I will answer to the best of my abilities Adam, I have not once claimed to hold the answers but have only been able to tell you what I have determined from studying ponies throughout my life as a princess of the night.” “Why do I have this,” Adam raised the weapon up for Luna to closely scrutinize. Her face spoke of untold curiosity for the device and what secretes it could possibly tell her about him. He watched as her eyes ran along the rifle, taking in every detail that she could. Once her eyes came to the scope however, she stopped. It became the focus of her attention and had even gone as far as tracing a hoof along its edge until it came in contact with the exit hole on the side. After a few minutes passed before she stepped back a few paces and sighed. Her curiosity did not seemed to be quenched as a saddened expression took its place for just a moment. It too was shortly replaced with the same smiling calm expression that her sister always showed towards everyone. “I’m sorry Adam, but I do not know the answer to that question. I do have some theories but I do not wish to voice them until I am sure of whether they are accurate or not.” Understanding her position, he merely nodded his head and asked, "Very well, now that that is out of the way, how may I help princess?" "Yes, well the reason for this visit," she paused as a familiar box like object appeared before Adam. "When you left my sister and myself this gift, you didn't exactly explain to us on how to use the communication device. I was hoping that you would show me here so that I may teach my sister at a later time." Adam could only face palm at himself for forgetting something so simple. He had been treating them as if they were as technologically advanced as humans and had neglected on how to use his equipment. “Sorry about that, I’ll show you how that works.” Kneeling over the equipment he started going step by step on how to operate the radio and cycle through the different frequencies, he also told her which frequencies that he most often used if she needed him. The process only took a few minutes until he found himself staring at an awkwardly standing alicorn. This wasn’t the only thing she wanted. Slowly rubbing his palms together he waited as he watched as Luna seemed to have been suffering from some sort of inner conflict. He didn’t like what could possibly be causing such an old being hesitated with make a decision, though it was kinda cute in a way. “From the looks of things ma’am, this was not the only thing you wanted. Go ahead and ask ma’am, and I’ll see if I can help.” Seeming to have come to a decision she locked eyes with Adam and asked, “What is it like in your world?” Her question was not what he had been expecting, which left him without a clue on how to answer her. He stood there scratching his chin in thought before he finally came up with something to say, “Has Princess Celestia ever spoken about what she has seen in my world?” Luna gave an affirmative nod saying, “She has discussed with me many of the things that she has seen on her trips and has even gone as far as to show me by using the same spell we used on you. However its not the same as actually going or speaking with another being. All she sees are what she wants to see or what the rulers of your world want her to see. Its too filtered.” Her last statement coming out more as a huff of annoyance than an actual comment to him. “Well, I could talk to you about some of the things I’ve done, but the thing is,” he paused for a moment making sure to look her in the eyes to get his point across. “I have spent almost half my life serving in my country’s military. It is by far not what the average person lives like that is a civilian. For us military guys however, its pretty average, I guess. But that being the case, there isn’t a whole lot of things that I could tell you in order to give you a better description on how things are.” Luna stood in silence until she finally responded, “We- I mean, I understand and appreciate the warning but I would still very much like to learn what life there is like from at least your memories.” With a sad smile on his face Adam asked, “Very well ma’am what would you like me to tell you about?” A smile of her own formed on her lips as she looked up to Adam and said, “Ah, but thats just it Adam. Why tell me, when you can simply imagine it. This is your mind, you can think of anything or remember anything that you wish for me to see, all you must do is just think of it.” “Alright, I have something that comes to mind. Its from before my military career started. Keep in mind though I was in high school, so I wasn’t the most mature person at my age.” As the last word left his lips the white room changed to a near empty parking lot in the middle of a heavy rain in the middle of the night. There was not a person in sight, none daring to be out in the downpour of rain. "So Adam, where have you taken us this fine night?". Curiosity and wonder could be seen as clear as day on her face. She examined everything close enough to her, never going too far so that she may hear what had to say. "This my dear princess," he said as he swept his arm across in front of himself, "is the parking lot of my old high school." "And what, may I ask, do you park here?" "Cars." "Cars?" "Yes, cars. Here think of it as a carriage that is self propelled... if properly fueled of course. In fact there's the one we're looking for." Pointing in the direction ahead of them, the faint outline of a small pickup truck could be seen. "I recall seeing some of these in some of my sister's memories too as well as in the other memory that you showed us. I just didn't know what they were called." Taking a few steps ahead Adam stopped and turned to face Luna. "If you would follow me, I can show you a memory I have before I joined." Together the two worked their way to the truck, the rain passing through them as if they were not even there. As they approached the sounds of muffled laughter could be heard coming from inside the vehicle. The closer they got the better they could see three people crammed inside the truck like sardine, but none of them caring. “Now Adam, what is it that you wish to show me?” “Just an old memory, I’ll just make it so that we can actually hear them. I can do that right?” Luna failed to suppress the giggles from his question, “Yes Adam, it is your memory after all.” A moment later the sounds of rain stopped, but the rain itself continued to fall, and the sound was replaced by what Adam knew was the punchline to a joke he hadn’t heard in a long time. With the two of them now next to the truck, they were now able to see who was inside. It took only a moment to recognize the younger Adam sitting behind the driver’s wheel while another boy and a girl sat further down the bench seating. The boy in the middle had black hair with brown eyes, it saddened Luna to know what the boy’s fate would be, she wished to see Steve’s grave one day. The red-headed-green-eyed-freckled girl however she didn’t recognize, Luna had never heard Adam mention any females since they met. Luna looked over to Adam as he watched the three with an expression of longing, she hadn’t realized how painful it would be for him to show her something from his past. Wanting to know more however she went forward with her question, “I recognize the person in the middle but the girl I have not heard any mentioning. Who is she?” A few moments passed until he finally replied his eyes never leaving the three friends, “That is Sarah. We were kinda set, if you saw one of us, it was always a safe bet that the other two were nearby. We were practically inseparable, which is understandable since we knew each other since we were six.” He didn’t say anymore as he just stood there and listened to the laughter, he was in obvious pain for him to relive this memory, but he refused to say it. It was young Adam who next to speak once the laughter had finally died down enough to be heard, “So whose idea again was it to buy spray paint for the senior prank and do it in the middle of a storm?” “That would be this genius right here,” Sarah snarkily said at Steve’s expense. “How was I suppose to know that it was going to rain today, I can’t see the future,” Steve exclaimed in an attempt to defend himself. “Yeah, if only there was a magical box that played moving pictures and if you put it to certain channels would show you weather forecasts for the week,” sarcasm dripped off of everyone of young Adam’s words. Steve remained silent as the other two stared at him expectantly before bursting into laughter and slugging him on both arms. “Its fine, its fine,” young Adam said as he wiped the tears that had formed in his eyes from all the laughing. “Welp, what now? I’m up for anything.” Sarah tapped her chin with a finger looking at the others, “I never asked you guys this before, but what are you two going to do after high school?” The two of them looked at each other then back to her confused by her random question. It was Steve who voiced what was on their minds, “What made you think of life beyond high school?” “Well, I mean, the school year is almost over and everyone else I spoke to said they were going to various colleges, even I got accepted into Texas Tech. Are either one of you going anywhere?” Steve shrugged, “I don’t know, I’ll might go to a community college and get some basic stuff done before going to anywhere major. Saves me money that way. What about you Adam?” Young Adam was slow to answer, “I don’t know, I was never very studious in class, ya’ll have seen my grades. Don’t get me wrong though, I have been thinking about it, I just not entirely sure. I might join the army.” “Shit really man, the army?” Steve let out a sigh, his face in a hand until he startled the other two by exclaiming, “Fuck it, if you join I’ll be right there with you. Someone has to have your back after all.” His mouth continued but anything else was muffled as the rain once again resumed making sound again. Luna decided to break the silence between the two, “I’m sorry for making you show me one of your memories, but I think I now know for sure as to why you carry that rifle and I suspect you know as well. Guilt. You blame yourself for your friend’s death, don’t you?” From her lowered position she could see straight into his eyes and see the pain and sorrow that filled them, a shadow of a smile fading. “You don’t need to apologise, I chose the memory not you. Princess, I must call this meeting to an end, I suspect my watch is about to start. We can continue this conversation another time.” The surrounding slowly changed back to the familiar white room. Adam stepped away from Luna, his head turning from side to side as if looking but from his eyes said otherwise. “Very well Adam, we shall talk another time. Be safe and be vigilant,” shortly after speaking Luna faded out of existence as his dream came to an end. ---- “Now girls, Ah know Ah told ya’ll that ya could have this here sleepover but I’m afraid Ah can’t watch ya’ll tonight. That trip from Canterlot took a lot out of me and Ah need to get some rest for work tomorrow. Ya’ll will just have to do this another night.” The three fillies responded with gasps of shock and disappointment but they weren’t going down without a fight. “But they’re here and everythin’ Applejack. We’ll be very very quiet, Ah promise. We could even stay in the clubhouse and everything just in case,” Apple Bloom made it a point to use her best puppy dog eyes. She knew very few ponies that could resist the look and her sister was not one of them. Applejack let out a sigh of defeat, looking at the the three fillies, “Well alrigh, ya’ll can stay out in the clubhouse tonight fer yer little sleepover. Just don’t make too much noise, Ah still need to get my sleep tonight.” The fillies were out the door before she had even finished her statement, having heard what they wanted. She could only laugh at their energy. At the clubhouse Apple Bloom bounced with overflowing energy, “SO what do you guys want to do tonight?” Sweetie Belle sat amongst her bags rummaging through them, her muffled voice could just barely be heard, “Well we could tell scary stories or have a pillow fight. I have some games we could play in one of these bags.” “Oh oh oh, I know. My dad came home earlier before his shift to talk to my mom, saying something about a new boss. From what I heard, the pony wasn’t like any other guards pony he has seen before and had all this weird stuff with him. We could try to get our cutie marks as detectives by finding out who this pony is.” “Uh, Scoots, Ah don’t think we should go and get ourselves in trouble. You heard my sis, she needs her sleep and waking her up just so we can find out who yer dad’s new boss is doesn’ sound like a good idea.” Scootaloo just rolled her eyes at Apple Bloom, shaking her head saying, “Who said anything about waking up Applejack, let her get her sleep and besides how would we get our cutie marks if we just let her take us to meet him anyways. No, we should go and find him ourselves, like real detectives.” “Well alrigh’ as long as we don’ go waken up my sis, I don’t have any problems with the idea.” “I’m in too,” squeaked Sweetie Belle, “being a detective sounds like it would be a lot of fun.” “CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS DETECTIVES YAY!” ---- Adam awoke to the sound of someone trying to wake him but wishing they weren’t the one having to do so. “Sir. Um, sir its time to get up, its our turn to do the rounds.” He slowly opened his eyes and saw the grey furred bat winged armor clad pony next to him with an anxious look on his face. He felt rested, not one hundred percent but he had been through worse during his sniper training. "How long was I asleep for?" "About four hours sir. Our shift begins in about thirty minutes but I thought it would be a good idea to give you time to get ready." "Why thank you... Er. What's your name?" "My name is Corporal Shadow Wing, sir." Groggily getting off the bunk, cracking his back as he did he glanced over at the pony again saying, "Stop with the sirs already, you're going to give me a headache. Besides I haven't even started active duty yet, so stow it until then." "Then sir, if you don't mind me asking, then why are you going out on patrol?" "Easy, to learn how ya'll do things here." “I don’t follow, didn’t you learn this at the academy?” Adam couldn’t suppress the snort as he replied, “I never went to any of ya’lls academies. I'm not exactly from around here." "True enough, but you still had to be trained like the rest of us, I mean you are a guard pony after all." Slipping his protective vest back onto his shoulders, he felt the familiar weight settle back down. Grabbing the helmet in his teeth he flipped it too where it belonged and with a little adjusting had it right where he wanted it. "Wrong again actually." Taken aback Shadow stuttered, "Wh-what do you mean, are you saying you weren't trained as a guard, there is nothing else out there?" "Well I was trained as a soldier not a guard. While you are trained to hold and incapacitate wrong doers, I am trained to eliminate them if I have to. I don't always have to though, sometimes just severely injuring them suffices and on the other hand dead prisoners don't give very reliable intel." What Shadow heard horrified him to his core, "What in the name of Celestial would force a pony to kill another pony?" He spoke more to himself but Adam had the answer. "War." "That's not possible, there hasn't been a war in Equestria in over a thousand years. There is no need for such violence and I'm sure as tartarus that Princess Celestia would not train the ponies under her command to use such extreme measures." The more Shadow spoke the more aggressive he became and Adam didn't like it. Best I change this topic soon. "Before I end this topic of discussion I would like to point out that I never said that it was Princess Celestia that had me trained and neither for that matter Princess Luna either." "If not them then who, who else other then them has the authority to have such ponies trained to do such things?" "When I said earlier that I wasn't from around here I wasn't just talking about Ponyville, I was talking about Equestria in general." "Alright then, then where ARE you from?" "And that, Corporal, I’ll tell you another time because as you said we don't have a lot of time. Its our turn to go out on patrol and the quicker I learn how you do things here the better prepared I’ll be when I start actually working." Obviously not like being ignored like that, the only option he had was to wait until Adam decided to explain further. He was sure of one thing though, he was going to keep a close eye on this possibly dangerous pony. Grabbing the remainder of his gear Adam made his way to the door with Shadow right behind him. Making their way through the halls, Shadow stopped in front of a door that had a clear window that allowed people to see into an empty office. Tapping a hoof on the door Shadow said, “As our new commanding officer, this will be your office for when you are not out doing patrols or other tasks. For the past few months the sergeant has been handling the reports and other paperwork.” Adam’s ears flattened against his head at the word paperwork, “Thats a word I never liked.” Shadow chuckled saying, “The sergeant said the same thing, I think she’ll be happy to be done with it.” “Where is this Sergeant...” Adam let his sentence die hoping the pony would fill in the rest for him. “Oh sorry, Staff Sergeant Sure Shot. I would introduce you to her but she has been on vacation and isn’t due back for another few days.” “Alright, what she like, I take it you’ve worked with her for a while?” “Well, she is an Earth pony that is the only Lunar guard in our area that uses the new rifles that just came out of Canterlot. It's odd seeing an earth pony use them, you would normally only see unicorns use them, account of their magic, but then again she can use just about anything and hit a target with it. It’s her special talent.” “Sounds interesting, I’ll have to make sure to meet her as soon as she gets back. As for now, lets just start this patrol.” Stepping outside he could see his breath form small clouds in front of him as he exhaled, the chilled air caused an involuntary shiver to run down his spine as it passed by him. He didn’t remember it being so cold before leaving for Canterlot. “Hey, what’s up with this weather? When I left for Canterlot a few days ago it wasn’t this cold.” “Oh just a cold front passing through, we are going to have snow in a couple of days from now, its a little overdue.” “I never thought to ask this, but what is the date?” Raising an eyebrow Shadow replied, “Um, well the date is December 12, 1002. Why do you ask?” “Oh, well where I’m from it was the middle of August, just not used to the sudden change in temperature is all. I might need to see Rarity again.” Taking the lead on the patrol, Shadow was confused by Adam’s statement and asked, “Why do you need to go see her for? Its not that cold yet.” Adam only laughed saying, “Its not for the cold. If its about to snow here, then I’m going to need the proper attire. This uniform won’t help me much if my environment is covered in snow. I would stand out like a sore thumb.” “Uh, what’s a thumb?” “Sorry, I keep using bad expressions when I’m talking to everyone. Just forget it.” The discussion died down and was quickly replaced by silence as they walked through the emptying town square of Ponyville. Everyone must be going to their homes now. Not much of a night life around here I take it. “So how do ya’ll do your patrols around here?” “Well there are sixteen Lunar guards stationed here and we have that split into two different rotations. First patrol, this patrol, starts at seven and we split up to cover each area of town. We have it spit so that each of us are keeping watch over a sector of town and able to respond to any civilian.” There was a shift in the foliage behind them as they turned a corner. The sound of another bush being disturbed came again, after they turned the corner heading down another street. Whispering and the sound of hooves could be heard in between. “Hmm, OK. How do ya’ll keep in contact with each other if ya’ll are scattered like that?” “That is the only problem that we do not have a solution to other than running to find the others. For us pegasi it is easy, all we have to do is fly up to find anypony. I do have an idea for the others to use but I’m just not sure if it will work or not.” “After the patrol, give me a description of what you have in mind and I’ll see if I can get it put together.” “Sure thing, I’ll introduce you to the others while we’re back at the barracks. I’m pretty sure they--” “You noticed that we’re being followed too, I take it.” “How long?” “Oh, not that long, just a few blocks back. They aren’t very good.” The two turned back, Adam yelling, "You can come out now, we know you're there." Loud whispering could be heard from the bush before three small fillies jumped out. Adam recognised the red maned bowed filly, the other two he was at a complete loss for. "SCOOTALOO." While the orange one shrank back, Adam jumped up in surprise from Shadow's outburst. Vigorously rubbing his right ear to reduce the ringing, Adam asked "Hey Shadow, I don't think I heard you properly. Could you by any chance scream in my other ear, I would so much like to add 'hard of hearing' to my resume." "Sorry sir, its just I see a little filly who is in a lot of trouble." Scootaloo gave a weak laugh, "Hey dad, how you doing?" "Don't you 'Hey dad' me. What are you doing out this late, you're suppose to be behaving yourself with your friends... who are also with you. Why are you all here?" Scootaloo was the one to step forward and answer her father, "Well we thought we would try and get our cutie marks as detectives by trying to find out who your new boss was. Since we didn't have anything to go by, we had the idea to follow you and see where you might lead us." Shrinking back from the angry look her father was giving her, she glanced around trying to find anything that might change the subject away from her. Her eyes came to rest on Adam was stood back with an amused smug expression on his face as he watched Shadow try to discipline his daughter. “Hey dad, why are you walking around town with this pony?” It was obvious to everyone present what she was trying to do. Sighing, Shadow pointed to Scootaloo and said, “Lieutenant, this is my daughter Scootaloo. Scootaloo, this is Lieutenant Adam Smith, my boss.” Scootaloo scrutinized him from head to hoof, examining each thing he carried with him, the hint of curiosity and recognition in her eyes. “You’re the pony that beat up those ponies that were picking on Derpy. You don’t look like any guard pony I’ve ever seen.” Shadow’s head whipped over to Adam at his daughter’s words, this was something he wanted to hear about. If he didn’t hear it from him, Shadow would just have to ask the others if they had heard anything. Not wanting to talk about his choice in career with little kids, Adam chose to give the simplest of answers that came to mind, “I am newly appointed by the princesses. Corporal, why don’t you walk them back home, I don’t like the idea of them out by themselves. I’ll continue walking the town and when you’re done we can meet back up at the guard station, you can show me what you usually do on patrol next time.” Giving a quick salute, Shadow began to herd the girls back the way they had come, back towards Sweet Apple Acres. Adam stood and observed him lecture them as they went, an empty feeling forming in the pit of his stomach while the smug smile faded away. Yet another thing I will not be able to do with my son. Then again when was it ever fun to lecture your kid? Bah either way I still can’t do what every other parent has the right to do. With the four now out of sight, Adam turned back to continue on alone. With everyone having gone home and no one to talk to, the quiet caused shivers to run down his spine. It was odd to him not hearing at least some sort of sound, the lack of it made him very uncomfortable and the lack of a distraction allowed him to think but on things he would rather not. Adam hadn’t been by himself in years, there had always been a friend or family nearby to be with and now that there wasn’t anyone he felt that empty feeling spread. He knew that if he dwelled on his memories and thoughts any longer his mood would only get worse and so tried his best to push them to the back of his mind. Adam wandered the town looking from darkened window to darkened window, the only lights he saw were from the bar that he saw and even from looking inside he saw only a few ponies still there. A quick glance at his watch told him why such few numbers as it was already past one in the morning and was time for him to start making his way back for the shift change. As he got closer to the station he saw five other guards come down different streets, each catching sight of him and head towards him. Welp, time for more introductions... Great. Why the fuck does everyone of these ponies look the same. This is going to be a pain telling them apart. Looking over the five as the approached him, he noticed that among the stallion was a mare, but like the stallions, she too had the same features as them. It was this mare that spoke first in a perky tone, “Hey boss, you like your tour of town? Huh, where's Shadow, didn’t he go out with you?” “Hm, oh he is taking his daughter and her friends back. Apparently they wanted to meet me, he should be back shortly.” As if on cue Shadow came gliding in, touching down just next to him. “OK, now that most of us are here we can get some of the introductions out of the way. I would introduce the others as well but, like always there just isn't time at the moment.” In total Adam counted three of the guards were mares while the rest consisted of stallions. The only difference that he could tell was that they ranged in height and voice. If he wasn’t able to find a way to identify them in some other way, he was fucked. I really hope its just some sort of spell. The group lined up before him, Shadow stood next to him and went down the line telling him each of their names. “Lieutenant let me introduce you to Ponyville’s Lunar guard, each of our files are in your office if you want to read more about us later. OK lets get started, first off are Private Stormy Night and Private Rose Garden,” Shadow pointed first to the pegasus mare and then to an earth pony stallion. The mare seemed to have an energy radiating off of her that reminded him of Pinkie Pie but not at her level. Shadow continued on with the next two, “Next we have Private Morning Sparkle and Private Quick Note.” These two were both unicorn female, the first one held her head up high while the other was wearing thin rimmed glasses and rolling up a scroll and placing it into her saddle bags. The last name of Private Morning Sparkle made Adam’s ears swivel, “Private Morning Sparkle, you by any chance related to Twilight Sparkle?” The mare in question had a proud smile form on her muzzle as she answered, “Yes sir, she is my bookworm of a cousin.” Shadow gave coughed loudly to get everyones attention again before continuing on, “And last up we have Soft Hoof and Heavy Shield." As Shadow pointed at each pony, Adam made note of them being both stallions and though one was an earth pony, Heavy Shield was a unicorn that sported what appeared to be much thicker armor than the rest. "Lieutenant?" Hearing his rank Adam turned his attention back to one of the unicorn mares that had been identified as Quick Note. From the way that she spoke he had to guess that she was a well read pony like Twilight. "Yes Private?" "Um sir, sorry if I'm speaking out of turn but do you know anything about that weird-monkey-thing that passed through town a few days back? It was seen leaving Miss Twilight Sparkle's home before later leaving with her to Canterlot." Adam felt slightly offended at hear her description of him and said the first thing that came to mind, "I am not a weird-monkey-thing." The group before him froze at his defensive remark each one of them giving him looks of confusion. It was Heavy Shield who was the one to give voice to their confusion, "Sir, that doesn't make any sense though. I mean you're a pony, not whatever it was that ran through town." With all their eyes all trained on him in waiting, Adam was beginning to feel more and more uncomfortable, it wasn't like he planned on withholding any information about himself it was just a matter of when. "If you want to know about me then ya'll might as well go inside, because that's where I'm heading." Wasting no time, the group went into the warm building. Adam looked from one sign on the wall to the next in hopes of find what he thought he had seen the first time he came through here. "Is there some sort of mess hall open this late here?" Adam was quickly answered by the stallion introduced to him as Soft Hoof, "Hay yeah, and I so happen to be the best chef around. Just follow me and you won't be disappointed. While you eat we can listen to what you have to say." A few moments later they made their way into a well furnished dining area that looked like it was also doubled as the recreational facility. In one corner of the room sat a round poker table with a pool table and even a folded up tennis table not far away. In the back of the room was an open kitchen area with what appeared to be a projector pointed at a screen on the opposite wall. The dinning tables were in the center of the room so that those eating could watch whatever was playing while they ate. Adam could think of another use for the projector, if needed. Taking a seat at one of the well polished wooden tables, the feeling soft texture of the seat adjust to his weight was oh so relaxing. He had to get himself one of these chairs. Trotting over the the kitchen Soft Hoof said, "Alright, while I cook something you go ahead and explain what it is you said back there, because I don't think I'm the only one confused here." "OK I can do that. Let's start with the obvious misunderstanding, I wasn't born a pony." Quickly speaking up before any of the others could say anything he continued, "I was what ya'll have liked to call that monkey thing and it was only once I came here that I became a pony. And before you ask, no I cannot change between the two, that was only because of Twilight's spell and it hurt like hell. By the way its called a human, not weird monkey thing." Each guard took a turn at saying the unfamiliar word, and each one butchering it in their own way. "Yeah, close enough. Anyways to make a long story short I was brought here due to a side effect of Princess Celestia's visit to my world using her little spell. So, I am going to be stationed here until the princesses are able to send me back home. Shouting across the room Soft Hoof asked "Can I get the long version, because then short one didn't really explain shit sir?" Rolling his eyes he gave in"Fine, I'll tell ya'll the long version. But first.". Turn in his seat so that his head faced the kitchen he called back, "How's that food coming along?" "Just... About... There. Heavy, get your flank over here and give me a hoof. I can't carry all of this myself." Not batting an eye Heavy Shield gathered the energy into his horn and with it brought over all of the food. He even levitated Soft Hoof over, although upside down and dropping him into a chair head first. What was laid out before Adam amazed him. He had never actually see someone make a mountain of pancakes before other than the cartoons he had watched when he was little. There was even syrup to lather them up with and milk to wash it down. The smell of the melted butter on the lightly browned fluffy pancakes made Adam want to eat them all the more. It wasn't until food was laid out before him did he realise how long it had been since he last ate. The sounds of everyone around him grabbing a plate of their own, each one eager to get their own helping from the mountain. Once he saw that all the guards had a plate full, as well as his own, did he let out a sigh. He was about to do something he didn't generally like to do with people he didn't know so well, talk about himself. Using his previous experience with Twilight and her game of a million questions, he knew what to expect. Many of the questions he answered to his relief were the same, so they proved him right and were easy to answer. Adam abbreviated his visit to Canterlot, leaving out his little chase around the castle garden, near drowning and brief depression or anything that had to deal with his personal life. He didn't think that would sit too well with them and the last thing he wanted was for them to pity his situation. Finally having a chance Shadow could get some answers to his earlier questions. He wanted to ask them right then and there but he held his tongue. Shadow had become well known amongst the others for being able to read ponies. A pony's body always spoke louder to him than any words, when he wanted to know if somepony was lying to him. The lieutenant may not have been lying, but from his body language Shadow knew that something about the topic Adam didn't wish to talk about. No, he would wait until after Adam had settled in before asking any more on the topic. “OK, I will answer one last question before I go to my office, I thought I saw some,” he shuddered slightly at the next few words, “paperwork that seems to have been neglected.” Many of the ponies looked away at the mentioning of the neglected paperwork while Quick Note held her hoof in the air expectantly. “Looks like we have our winner. What do you want to ask?” “Well sir, this might seem a little random but I saw you messing with a strange rectangular box thing earlier and I wanted to know. What is it?” “Strange rectangular box thing? Could you describe for me? I own a lot of box like things.” “Well it was black, rather thin and had a silvery apple on the back that looked like it had a piece bitten out of it.” “OH,” Adam reached into his front pocket and pulled out the small device in question, “you mean my Ipod.” “Uh, if that’s what is called sir, then yes. What does this Ipod do?” Sliding the device over to her he stated, “It’s used for entertainment like movies and music.” “Ah so that little thing made that music play at Pinkie Pie’s party,” Morning Sparkle shouted while pointing at it. “When I was there I couldn’t figure out where the sound was coming from. Can we see one of those movies?” “I don’t see why not, you would just have to come bring it to me when you're done. It won’t be very fun to watch it as a group though, since the screen is a bit small.” Quick Note tapped her chin in thought before replying, “I think I can perform a small spell that can project the image on the wall there for us to watch. It shouldn’t be too hard to do.” “Thats pretty handy to do. If you have any sorta genre ya’ll want to watch, I’m pretty sure I can find something on here, just let me know.” The group discussed for a moment before coming to the conclusion that they would let Adam select something for them. “If that's what ya’ll want then alright then. I have something in mind too that is an old favorite of mine.” Scrolling through the list of names, he came to a stop once he found the one he was looking for and tapped it. Sliding the device back over to Quick Note he said, “Even though this is the fourth one in the series, it was actually the first one to be made and published. It wasn’t until the other two were made did they go back and make its prequels. I thought it would only be appropriate for ya’ll to see them as how I saw them growing up. There, now to view it just tap the filled in arrow in the middle of the screen.” With that done he left the room to the sound of tables and chairs being shifted around to make things more comfortable as well as shouts for Soft Hoof to pop some popcorn. The walk to his new office was short and uneventful as he quickly made his way down the corridors. When he finally opened the door the first thing that greeted him was the stack of papers that sat on the desk on the far side of the room. Looking around the room he saw that it was well furnished for whoever was to use the office. Against the wall on his left was a bookshelf that held several books that Adam would have to take a look at later while the desk in front of him had three chairs surrounding it. One was obviously there for him to sit in, as it faced the door, while the other two sat across from it and were probably meant for those he wished to have meetings with. Behind his chair sat what looked like an armor rack and a weapons rack for him to keep his things for when they weren’t needed. Taking advantage of the armor rack, Adam slipped the vest off and tossed it right on top of it. With the weight now off his shoulders, he stretched out his back and was rewarded with the satisfying cracking of his spine. Last thing in the room was a folded up cot that was resting against the wall, waiting to be used. Guess that is for the long nights. Hope I don’t need that. Taking a seat behind the desk, he pulled the first few sheets towards him and let out a loud sigh. From a quick glance over them, they appeared to be reports that he would have to read over and sign before they could be sent off to the princesses and with his lack of experience writing with his new hooves he could come up with one conclusion. This was going to be one long night. A few hours passed until it actually Adam actually felt like he was making any headway into the reports and memos before him. The sound of a loud crash caused him to jerk his head up from his readings and bolt for the door and open it. Peering outside nothing seemed to be wrong until he heard the sound again. Sprinting down the hall he thought he heard the sound originate from he came to a stop before the open doors of the dining hall. Looking inside he froze where he stood at the absurdity before him. Two of the larger tables had been turned up on their sides as mock forts facing each other while the two teams of ponies threw food at each other. In between the two were Heavy Shield and Morning Sparkle using spoons to have a pretend sword fight while making what sounded like light saber noises when they clashed. The two pegasi, Shadow Wing and Stormy Night, he watched as they had their own fight up in the air above everyone else. He heard shout of “You rebel scum” as it dawn on Adam. I’m in charge of a bunch of grown children.