Congratulations!
The October Labor Lottery is now complete. Your name was pulled. For immediate placement, visit the Ministry of Admissions at Manetin Border Checkpoint. An apartment will be provided for you and your family in East Manetin. Expect a Class Eight dwelling
Glory to Arstrotzka!
The charcoal stallion folded the letter in his hooves and stuck it in his saddlebag. He stared up nervously at the East Manetin Ministry of Admissions Office. It was a tall grey, squarish building with small windows in tight rows, similar to his apartment building. The stallion's family consisted of his uncle, mother-in-law, wife, and his son. They had adapted surprisingly well to the small apartment. It was much warmer than their cabin in Neighrsk at least. The stallion shook his brown mane out of his green eyes and adjusted his tie as he trotted up the steps to the Ministry building. He reached out and opened the door. The stallion hopped inside. He moved with haste. His shift was to begin at 6:00 AM and it was already 5:40. He could not be late for the first day on the job. Inside, the Ministry was as grey as it was on the outside, the only source of color being from the red Arstrotzka emblem behind the front desk. A bored looking mare with a curly yellow mane and equally yellow glasses sat at the desk, reading the paper.
The stallion cleared his throat. "Er, excuse me," he said, his voice quavering slightly. The mare looked up at him. "I'm here for the, ah, customs inspector position at the Manetin Border Checkpoint."
"So you're the new guy, huh?" She peered over hes spectacles at him.
"Er, yes, that's correct." the stallion responded. "From the Labor Lottery." he added.
"I see." The mare reached down under the desk and pulled out a bag with a green Ministry of Admissions uniform folded neatly inside. The bag had his name on it. "Is this you?"
The stallion nodded "Yes, that is me."
"Very well." The mare said in a bored voice, as if she had done this many times before. "Go into the restroom and change. The uniform is to be worn with a white shirt and black tie, which I see you do not need provided for you. You may keep the bag. Hurry up, at the rate your going at, we'll have to shuttle you to the checkpoint."
"Thank you." The stallion took the bag in his teeth and entered the door marked "Stallions" on the other side of the room. He entered a stall and locked the door. He removed the uniform from the bag. There was a thick suit jacket and, strangely, a pair of military dress pants. Both were a drab olive green color, and the pants had a patch of a shovel on them, like his cutie mark. There was also an olive green military cap with a black band and a red Arstrotzka seal across it. He put on the pants first, wiggling his tail as he tried to poke it through the hole in the garment. Next came the jacket, which went over his shirt and tie. It was slightly too big, but he figured it wasn't too noticeable. Finally, the stallion set the cap on his head. He unlocked the stall and looked at himself in the mirror on the way back to the lobby.
Not too shabby, for a customs inspector he thought as he left the restroom.
After going through some regulations, the mare escorted the Inspector to a carriage that was waiting out front. The carriage was Equestrian, white, elegant, and trimmed with gold, unlike the boxy metal horseless varieties used by Arstrotzkans. A Royal Guard opened the door for the Inspector. He quickly got inside and shut the door, the carriage wobbling slightly as he did so. He didn't like the Equestrian carriages, they seemed too ornate and shook too much.
"One more thing, Inspector." The Inspector looked out the window. The mare was still standing there. "Remember to keep a professional appearance and demeanor at all times. And be vigilant. This job can get dangerous very fast, and without warning. You may be the only pony who can stop it, so watch out." The mare placed her right hoof over her heart. "Glory to Arstrotzka!"
"Glory to Arstrotzka!" The Inspector repeated the gesture, and the carriage sped off towards the checkpoint.
Not more than two minutes later, the carriage arrived at the checkpoint. Good thing too, the Inspector thought. The checkpoint opens for the very first time in five minutes! The door was opened by a guard, and the Inspector hopped out.
"Your shift ends at 6:00 PM," the guard informed. "You must walk here from now on. Be prompt or you will be fined. Additional instructions will be on the bulletin inside the booth. Now go." Without a word, the Inspector walked briskly towards the brown booth at the end of the checkpoint. He stepped inside. The office was larger than he had expected, but it was by no means roomy. It consisted of a desk that had a slot for the rulebook, a recorder that had a blank bluish piece of paper in a slot under it, and another slot with a white piece of paper in it. A clock and scale were both built in to the desk. Underneath the desk, the Inspector found a photography trigger, a red button marked "ALARM", and a printer like device marked Diverse Small Customs Slip Distributor with a set of buttons and a light that was unlit. A set of red and green stamps were on a slider to his right. There was a black button and a microphone on the far left of the desk. A brass lever was situated high on the right wall. Now having familiarized himself with the booth, the Inspector examined the white piece of paper in the slot. He discovered that it was the bulletin the guard had mentioned. He read over his instructions for the day.
Dear Inspector,
Today is the first day that the checkpoint will be open. Eventually, we will open it further to everyone, but for today, only allow those with an Arstrotzkan passport to enter. Deny all other entrants. Equestria wants to make sure as many of the native Arstrotzkans get back to their homes and families. They probably missed them over the course of the war. There's also the fact that this city is being split between Arstrotzka and Gryphonia probably doesn't help either.
I assume you have already familiarized yourself with your new workspace. Use the button on the left to use the microphone and usher in ponies. The lever on the right will operate the booth window. The window will close automatically if the alarm sounds, so watch your hooves in case it drops down suddenly. Ignore the instruments under the desk, you won't need them unless things get really hairy. Other than that, have a safe day.
Oh, I almost forgot! Be sure to check this bulletin in the morning. A new one will be placed every day telling you what needs to be done. You will be paid depending on how many ponies you process that day, so try to process as many as you can. Your pay will be delivered to your apartment. You may do whatever you want with this bulletin after your shift, as long as you do not leave it in the booth. Be patient, be professional, and above all, be vigilant.
For the Glory of Arstrotzka and Equestria,
Princess Twilight Sparkle.
Temporary Governor of Arstrotzka.
The Inspector chuckled to himself. What a charismatic little pony that Twilight Sparkle was. Well, regardless of how charismatic she is, it's time to start. The Inspector pressed the black button and spoke into the microphone.
"The checkpoint is now open. Please enter the booth." The Inspector reached up and pulled down the lever. The window opened with a clang. A magenta mare with orange hair entered the booth.
"Papers, please." the Inspector requested. The mare slid him a dark green Arstrotzka passport.
"It will be so nice to finally return home!" the mare beamed.
The Inspector pulled out the stamp slider and flicked through the passport. Indeed, this mare was Arstrotzkan. He pushed down the green "Approval" stamp and brought down the stamp into the entry visa box in the passport.
"Glory to Arstrotzka!" the Inspector said as he handed the mare her passport.
"Oh thank you so much!" The mare smiled and left the checkpoint. One down, Celestia knows how many left. The Inspector thought as he leaned over to the microphone.
"Next." he called. A green stallion approached the booth. "Papers, please." the Inspector requested again. The stallion handed him a blue passport. He opened up the booklet. This was an Equestrian passport. The Inspector took out the stamps again and put down a red "Denial" stamp.
"Arstrotzkans only today," The Inspector handed the stallion back his passport. The stallion opened his mouth to say something, but a glare from the Inspector kept him quiet. He exited the booth.
"Next." The Inspector called. A cyan pegasus with a rainbow mane entered the booth.
"Hey buddy." the mare said before the Inspector could ask her for her papers. "I'm a friend of Twilight Sparkle, so hurry it up. She slid a blue passport to the Inspector. He opened it to see it was another Equestrian Passport. Not Arstrotzkan, not allowed.
I'm sorry, miss..." The Inspector looked at the passport again, "...Dash, but only Arstrotzkans are allowed through today." He stamped the passport with the red stamp and handed it back.
The mare protested. "Hey, do you know who you're messing with? I'm the Element of Loyalty, you let me in to see my friend right now!"
The Inspector held his hoof over the alarm button, but thought better of it. He had to be professional, he could not call the guards on every pony that caused him trouble. "Then return when the border opens for Equestrians. Now leave, you're holding up the line."
"You can bet your front hooves that Twilight will hear about this, buster!" The mare grabbed her passport and stormed out of the booth.
The Inspector sighed. He doubted that this would not be the only problem today.
"Next." "Papers, please."
"Here you are. I cannot wait to see my wife again."
KA-CHUNK "Glory to Arstrotzka."
"Thank you so much."
"Next." "Papers, please."
"This better have been worth it. I've been waiting in this line for too long."
KA-CHUNK "Arstrotzkans only, today."
"Go to Tartarus!"
*sigh* "Next."
The cycle continued for eleven more long hours. It was almost 6:00 PM, the time that the Inspector's shift ended. "Papers, please." He asked the stallion in front of him. The stallion produced a purple Gryphonian passport. Like clockwork, the Inspector stamped it with the red stamp. He had recognized that all Arstrotzkan passports were the dark green, so whenever he saw a passport of any different color, he knew that it had to be denied.
"Arstrotzkans only today." The stallion nodded, took his passport and left without a word. A loud horn sounded. The Inspector leaned over to the microphone and spoke into it.
"The Checkpoint is now closed." he said. "It will reopen at 6:00 AM tomorrow." The Inspector breathed a sigh of relief as he depressed the button. He closed up the window, put everything back in order, and exited the booth, taking the bulletin with him.
A twenty minute walk was all it took for the Inspector to arrive at his apartment building. The structure was a bit taller than the Ministry of Admissions office, but other than that, looked very much the same. The Inspector entered the building and climbed the stairs to the fifth floor. He walked to apartment number C8-52, and pushed open the door.
"Papa!" A young yellow-green maned emerald colt ran to the door and gave the Inspector a hug. "You're back from work."
The Inspector lifted the colt onto his back. "Yes I am, and it's good to be back! How is your mother?"
"Mama's very worried about you." The colt said. "She says the border is dangerous to work at. Is it really dangerous? Did you have to fight a bunch of bad guys?"
"No bad guys today." The Inspector said as he walked into the main room. The walls of the apartment were concrete ricks, and the floor was covered in hard floorboards. A coffee colored unicorn mare was in the kitchen, making soup. A blue elderly unicorn was sitting in an armchair listening to the radio, and a dark red stallion was laid down across the couch, snoring gently.
The coffee unicorn looked up at the Inspector. "Darling!" She ran to him and embraced him, like his son. "You are back! I was worried about you, I heard how nasty the border could get."
"Do not worry, honey." The Inspector reassured his wife. "Nothing serious happened today. Just a few complaints upon being denied."
"Quiet you two," the elderly unicorn snapped from the living room. "I'm listening to the radio!"
"Mother, it's almost dinner time anyways. You better get up if you want food." the Inspector's wife replied.
"Would you also be so kind as to wake up my uncle as well?" the Inspector asked. The Mother-In-Law poked the red sleeping stallion, who woke with a start!
"What? Is it dinner already?" The red stallion peered over the couch into the kitchen. "Ah! You're back from work at last! how was it, my boy?"
"Uneventful." The Inspector replied. He wanted to eat as soon as possible, he'd had a small breakfast that morning, and his shift did not include a lunch break.
"Oh, one thing, dear." The Inspector's wife replied. "A small package came from the Ministry of Admissions." That sounded like it was his pay. "You can open it after dinner, you must be starving." She has no idea. The Inspector thought as he and his family sat down at the dinner table. Dinner consisted of a vegetable and bean soup. It was more filling than it sounded. The Inspector told his family about work, including his encounter with Rainbow Dash.
"What a despicable mare." The Mother-In-Law remarked. "I cannot believe the likes of her are the Elements of Harmony."
"Isn't Governor Twilight one of the Elements?" the colt asked. "She's good, isn't she?"
"Hrmph. Maybe not all of them are."
After dinner, the Inspector sat at the dinner table with the bills while his wife cleaned the kitchen. The Mother-In-Law and the Inspector's Uncle were busy tucking his son in. The Inspector looked through the bills. Rent, twenty bits, Food, twenty bits, Heat, ten bits. Why is it so expensive to live in a place like this? I don't think my savings can cover this. Hey, what about my salary? The Inspector took a letter opener and slit open the M.O.A package. Inside was a bag with seventy bits in it. This will work. The Inspector set aside money for the bills and gathered the rest to put into his savings. He put the bills by the door for the collection officer in the morning.
"Ready for bed, honey?" The Inspector's wife asked. She put a hoof on his shoulder. "You know you need to get up early for work."
"Yes, you're right." He kissed his wife, and they went into the young colt's room to say goodnight. At last, they entered their own room and slipped into their own bed, with its stiff mattress and thin blankets. As the Inspector fell asleep with the warm body of his wife next to him, he prayed that the next day would be as easy as today had been.
It would not be so.