//------------------------------// // A Shooting Star // Story: Before the Dawn // by Thunderblast //------------------------------// Weeks passed following Thunderblast's transfer to Manehattan, and soon the weather was beginning to turn colder and more stormy. Frequent squalls of blowing snow blanketed the land with just over three inches worth, already enough to cause problems across the region with more predicted to be on the way. One cold morning, before the trumpets sounded, Thunder was already wide awake and shivering under his blanket. Overnight, the temperature had dropped dramatically, which left him wondering how everypony else was able to sleep like a foal. Yawning, he slowly sat up, glancing over to his tent mates with his eyes half closed and almost completely bloodshot. He was unsure what time it was, but he was certain he had only gotten a few minutes of sleep and was awake the rest of the night. Grumbling to himself and cursing mentally at his body for being sensitive to temperature when sleeping. He slowly laid his head back down and pulled the blanket over his entire body, facing the wall of the tent. Unlucky for him, his hind hooves were slightly peeking out from under the bottom of the blanket, once again cursing to his body for not being small like the others to fit on his bed. Thunder shut his eyes in hopes of falling asleep until the trumpets sounded. That was, until they went off literally one minute later. He jumped up, panting, and his heart raced for some reason. Staring in front of him and out the tent exit, he noticed there was very little light outside and could hear chatter coming from other tents. Thunder grumbled again and slowly stood on all fours out of bed, his back aching a bit from the rough bed. He trotted to the coat hanger, picking up a green cold-weather jacket with his name just above one of the pockets and zipped it up around him, then put dark green gloves on his forehooves. Unlike most of his clothes, he loved the cold weather gear for how warm they were. Thunder walked back to his bed and picked up a dark green beanie, fitting it perfectly on his head, covering most of his mane and ears. He glanced over to his tent mates, surprised to find they were still asleep. He was worried that they froze to death overnight, but he quickly noticed their chests expanding and contracting, relieving him to know the cold didn't overcome them. Instead of waiting like he usually did, Thunderblast trotted out of the tent, his hooves' normal clop on the dirt muffled by the soft, cold snow. The sky was just a shade lighter than his coat, but still extremely dark as it was still very early in the morning. The brisk wind blew quickly across the base, sending a chill up every pony's spine who were in it's path. The day before, Thunder was informed of a new arrival coming later that day, and was given the day off of training to welcome the pony, whoever it was. He hoped the pony wouldn't be like Flashpoint, but knew with his luck, he would be. "Well, well, well. Look who is up bright and early," a familiar voice caught the attention of Thunderblast, who's ear swiveled a bit. He turned his head, mentally facehoofing when his eyes met the face of Flashpoint's, who was grinning in amusement for a reason Thunder didn't know. "Yes Flash?" "What's got you in a rush?" Flash asked jokingly. "Oh you know, early bird catches the worm. At least I didn't take five minutes past the trumpets to get up," Thunder smirked back. Flashpoint blushed in embarrassment, then glared at Thunder. "Well, at least I rely on my hooves instead of stupid old wings!" "Really Flash? That's the best you got? Seriously, you're acting like some whiny foal with these poor comebacks. You don't even have a valid reason to be attacking me in the first place with these so called comebacks of yours! Now, say it to my face. What, is, your problem?" Thunder glared straight back, staring Flash dead in the eyes. "I, um," Flash started, then actually ran off. Thunderblast stared ahead, surprised. Flash actually ran away from him. "That's what I thought," Thunder rolled his eyes, trotting off to the mess hall for breakfast. After being served cereal and a small bowl of oatmeal, he sat down inside at one of the many tables and started to eat. For once, the mess hall was warm, proving the heaters were finally fixed and working well, or were just replaced. While eating, the thought that his day, other than not getting much sleep, was suddenly going how he hoped. He was the first out of bed, managed to scare Flashpoint off, and was one of the first to get breakfast. Thunder hoped and prayed this would be the start of a new trend of luck during his time in the army. Although, he knew getting through to Flashpoint would be one of the greater challenges. "Hey Thunder," another voice broke his trance, the voice of Skillshot. "Hey Skill," Thunder smiled faintly at the pony who sat in front of him, and also started eating. "I heard about Flash, finally got through to him did you?" "Not exactly, I just made him run away. I'm unsure of why what I'm saying he is just now hearing. Awfully strange if you ask me." "Yeah, kind of. Oh well, some progress is better than none," Skill lifted a spoon full of cereal up towards his mouth, taking it in. "I guess so. Either way, I'm satisfied with all that's gone on today. Best morning I've had in over a month," Thunder rubbed at his eye with a hoof, which were both still partially bloodshot. "Don't jinx it, things usually get worse after someone brings them up," Skill gulped the cereal down and pointed his now empty spoon towards Thunder. Thunder sighed. "I probably already have," and continued eating. "Only time will tell, I suppose," Skill also continued to eat, both ponies soon finishing and turning in their empty dishes. Afterwards, both Thunderblast and Skillshot decided to hit the shooting range for arrow practice, although both were already moving on to modern gun training. At the nearby train platform, the next passenger train pulled into the station with a screech. Two digital-camouflaged earth ponies stood outside one of the cars, one with a pitch black rifle hanging in front of him, the gun strapped around his neck. Both stared forward, watching the doors of the train open. Inside, a navy blue pegasus rounded the corner, stopping just before the door and eying the two soldiers, his eyes obscured by silver aviators with darker lenses and neck wrapped in a blue striped scarf. "So, you're my escort, huh?" The pony said to the two soldiers, who both nodded. "Mister Shooter, we were given orders by Princess Celestia herself to bring you to base. The base captain will have a word with you there on your relocation, sir," said one of the ponies. The pegasus nodded. "Lead the way," and stepped out of the train, wearing dark red saddlebags. The doors behind him shut, and soon the whistle of the locomotive sounded as it pulled out of the station. Moments after, the three ponies made their way towards Fort Fetlock. The blue pegasus glanced around, only seeing bushes and pine trees, as well as snow which obscured the green grass. He gulped quietly, looking between the two soldiers escorting him to base nervously, who were on both sides of him. Some time later, the three approached the front gate where two more soldiers guarding it stood, one up in a completely wooden watch tower, the other on the ground operating the gate, both wearing helmets rather than caps or beanies. One of the guards then stepped in front of the three, staring between them. "Identifications please?" He said. The escorts pulled out their military identifications, showing them to the guard. The guard turned to the pegasus, glaring a little. He stepped forward, and the pegasus stepped back nervously, before one of the escorts stepped in front of him. "He is with us, Corporal," the other escort spoke. The guard nodded, then walked over to the gate and began turning a wheel with a lever, winding the gate open under his strength, granting them entry. The escorts and the pegasus entered, the gates shutting behind them slowly. "So, er, where is the base captain?" The pegasus asked, looking around at the massive base. "He is in his personal office. For now, your base tour will be here any moment to show you around," one of the escorts said, the other cantering off in the direction of the shooting range. The pegasus nodded in response. "Alright." At the shooting range, Thunderblast leaned against a bar with an arrow-loaded crossbow in his forehooves. He kept one eye shut as he concentrated on a distant target, which had three other arrows sticking out of the far edges. "Easy does it..." Skillshot whispered. "Shush," Thunder whispered back, shifting a little. He gripped the crossbow tighter and shifted some more. "Your aim is off, Thunder." "I said shush," Thunder shifted some more. "You're gonna miss it by a mile," Skill said. "Damn it Skill, I said shush!" Skill stayed quiet and continued to watch, overlooking Thunder's setup. "You're going to miss it." Two moments later, Thunderblast fired the arrow. The arrow ended up flying seven feet in another direction, just barely missing another soldier changing a damaged target, who never noticed. He turned around and shoved Skill a bit. "I said to stay quiet, you threw me off!" "Eh, not really. You weren't at a good aim to start with," Skill replied, adjusting his cap. "I'd like to see you do better," Thunder smirked. Skillshot shrugged. "Alright," and took the crossbow, swapping positions with Thunder and loaded it with one arrow. Leaning down on the bar, he shut one eye and eyed the target ahead of him. Behind, Thunder grinned. "Your aim is off," Thunder mocked Skill's voice. Instead of replying, he simply continued aiming. "You're going to miss it by a mile." Once again, Skill didn't reply, and instead fired the arrow. Standing up completely, he stared forward at the target, then smirked back at Thunderblast, who stared at the target with a wide-open jaw. The target was just two inches from center, and was right in the center dot. "You were saying?" Skill grinned. "Shut up," Thunder's face turned to a scowl as he looked at the earth pony, grabbing the crossbow from his hooves. "Give me that," then turned around and reloaded it to aim again. Before he could fire, however, his shoulder was tapped by a hoof. Thunder stood up straight and turned, meeting the light blue eyes of another armed soldier, his rifle strapped around his neck. "Recruit Thunderblast, the transfer is here and waiting for you, sir," he spoke. "Already?" Thunder glanced up to above him, which read just past nine. "Alrighty, you'd better take over Skill. See you," and handed the crossbow back to him, then walked out with the other soldier. "Have fun," Skill chuckled a little, then went back to shooting targets. Near the flagpole, the blue pegasus sat patiently on a slab of concrete not covered in ice or snow. His scarf fluttered somewhat in the wind, which he then wished he had worn a coat. He looked around as different soldiers trotted past, keeping an eye out for the base tour. Soon enough, he spotted Thunderblast approaching. Standing up, he stared with a near-blank, but also nervous expression towards him. "Star Shooter, I presume?" Thunder extended a hoof out, the blue pegasus taking it and giving it a friendly shake. "Mmhmm, are you the tour or the base captain?" The blue pony pulled his hoof back after shaking. "Just the tour," Thunder smiled faintly. "Though the base captain will want to see you later on. For now, welcome to Fort Fetlock, mister Shooter." "It is an honor. Although, I am still a bit unsure as to why I am here," Star replied. "You aren't enlisted?" Thunder raised an eyebrow. Star Shooter shook his head. "Nope. You see, the Royal Guard has me under some kind of witness protection. I'm uh, new to this land. I'm not sure what is so important about me that I need to be under careful watch though." "Witness protection? Strange...I will have to talk to the base captain about it." "I would greatly appreciate that," Star replied with a faint smile, removing his aviators. His eyes were pure red, which startled Thunderblast a little. "So, what do I call you? What is your name?" "Thunderblast. Just call me Thunder, it's a short name I prefer," Thunder smirked. "Let's go, shall we?" Less than an hour later, both Thunderblast and Star Shooter walked into a large two story building made of brick and stone with a large glass entrance in the center, the main base operations office. Trotting upstairs, the two remained silent as they made their way down one of the hallways, towards the base captain's office. "So, Thunderblast. I never really got a response, did you say earlier you were in the Royal Guard?" Star Shooter asked, looking at Thunderblast curiously. Thunder nodded in response. "Technically I still am, just under military training. I'm supposed to return to Canterlot sometime between six months from now to a year. I guess we could say we're in the same boat when it comes to being sent places without prior consent, although in your case, it seems there's a real reason behind it. "Maybe...I don't know to be real honest with you. I hope no one is after me or anything," Star turned, now staring forward. "As do I. Better safe than sorry though." "Of course," Star replied. The two then stopped in front of an office door, the silver tag on the center of it reading the captain's name in bold. Thunderblast knocked, and soon the pony inside asked for them to come in. Both pegasi entered the office, Thunderblast saluting the larger earth pony as he stood up from his desk. Star didn't know what to do, and instead saluted as well. The faint tan earth pony stallion chuckled. "At ease, civilian," he spoke with a rough voice. "Oh...o-of course, sir," Star blushed awkwardly, lowering his hoof, as did Thunderblast. "Have a seat Star, I want to have a few words with you, then I'll send you back out to Thunder so he can show you where you will be sleeping." "Yes sir," Star Shooter then sat himself on one of the chairs across the base captain's desk. "Colonel Glass Kicker, permission to remain in the office, sir?" Thunderblast spoke up. "Permission granted, soldier. Have a seat as well. In fact, I was hoping you would ask," the Colonel replied, putting his hooves together on the desk, staring between the two of them. "Now, I bet you are wondering why you are here, Star Shooter..."