Flash took a deep breath, letting the crisp and clear ocean wind soak into his sinuses and lungs, and then exhaled again. The last hour had been spent in a police station being debriefed by a rather exasperated unicorn with a scowl that could melt steel beams. Vanhoover had, apparently, a sudden surge of "disappearances". The civilian populace was understandably concerned, the politicians turned that concern into leaning on the chief of police, and he in turn leaned on his men.
So they were understandably worried to hear that their had been a murder on the train, and their concern only rose as Flash told them his story. They had wanted to hold him longer- but he was a ranking military officer, a simple flash of his military ID had him out the door in minutes, and there he stood now, suit flapping in the cold ocean wind. He glanced around, noticing one pony taking a particular interest in him- and trying not to. Still, he was right next to the police headquarters, so he shrugged.
Vanhoover was definitely a beautiful city. Low buildings haphazardly built on the low sloping hill that rose into the mainland from the ocean, and a few islands out to sea that had small houses or the odd lighthouse built onto them. Every road inevitably led down towards the shoreside docks, and from almost any position in the city one could glance to the west and see that never-ending expanse of deep blue water. The salty smell of it extended well within the city, and the squawking of gulls was a nearly constant drone in the background, along with bells in the docks and the sound of carts hauling fish.
Flash pulled his ill-fitting suit down on himself and started down a dirt road towards the sea. The academy stuck out like a sore thumb- it was recently constructed, following Luna's return she was displeased with the state of affairs and had personally ordered the school established here. So it was that a gleaming expanse of concrete and steel had risen up over the city, with two tall concrete towers flanking it and piercing the sky. Normally just for decoration- but these days they houses anti-air weaponry bristling outwards, as if taking sky-piercing literally.
Even Vanhoover, far from the front lines as can be, the signs of Equestria's situation were apparant. Posters appealing for volunteer aid- alongside posters that angrily declared the penalty for dodging conscription (hard labour). Appeals for buying war bonds, pasted beside Luna's scowling face decrying anyone that "valued their pocketbook over the safety of Equestria." The carrot and the stick, and each of them bore along the bottom the now-common stamp: "OFFICE OF THE MINISTER OF STATE FIRST CLASS."
Nopony had even known of her until months ago, but nowadays it seemed like she was running Equestria. Flash didn't really care for politics, but abrupt shifts in power like that had a way of causing problems. He just hoped he wasn't around to be part of them.
On his walk he also passed a few vendors selling fish, but was keen to note that their pricing was all standard now- only rations, and only with a ration card.
He passed by a rather gruff looking stallion trying to explain to what appeared to be a tourist that, unless the mare was dying, there would be no fish beyond what her ration card stipulated. "Need the fish for the war you know, can't kill griffons on a hungry stomach!"
Flash chuckled and continued on his way. At least the populace seemed to be dealing with it. He wasn't sure how much longer they would go before they started to question things, but for now- they had peace within their borders.
In general, anyway- Night Guard coup excepted.
As he strode up to the academy building itself, rather impressed by the architecture. A giant, gleaming building made of white concrete. The facade was made of steel and glass and formed a beautiful face towards the city, hiding the utilitarian and brutalist architecture within. Before it a wide courtyard, which functioned as an outdoor track, filled most of a grassy opening. Flash glanced behind him as he admired it- noticing a pair of familiar eyes.
Flash hastened in his pace towards the gate to the academy grounds-which were surrounded by an impressive black fence- and halted before the guards. Realizing he was out of uniform- and now three steps away from trespassing on military property- he quickly moved for his military ID in his pocket.
He was then tackled by one of the guards and driven to the ground. He grunted in pain as his face was smashed into the dirt. The brass armour that the large stallion was wearing was brutal to be hit with at that speed.
"Hey wh-" Flash protested, but found himself unable to speak with a face full of dirt.
He realized his mistake at this point- with things as tense as they were an unknown reaching for his pocket at the gates to a military installation was perhaps an understandable thing for the guards to take issue with. So he relaxed his body on purpose, allowing them to roll him over and pad him down. The guard found his wallet then- and flipped it open.
He then glanced from it, to Flash, and back again- several times. The large stallion, rather well muscled and behind one of the older brass sets of armour the Royal Guards had worn (abandoned in favour of lighter composites- but they sure looked good), did not look happy. He seemed to be willfully driving it against Flash, and did it ever hurt.
"Colonel Flash Sentry?" he asked.
"The very -urgh- same," Flash grunted.
"You're not in uniform," the guard stated, squinting at Flash suspiciously. His comrade had unholstered a sidearm at this point, and was holding it in the safe position.
"If I was, I would be dead," Flash retorted dryly, or as dryly as he could while gasping.
The guard blinked, "What the hell does that mean? Don't play with me 'Flash'."
Flash sighed, the guard was right- as much as his position laying ontop of him was uncomfortable, now wasn't the time for sarcasm.
"Contact the police, there was an incident on the train ride here and I almost lost my head- and the rest of me. I'm expected at the Academy, Director Commodus can tell you more."
The guard thought on this for a few moments, and then shuffled off of Flash, "we had heard about that, Colonel- but I had to make sure it was you," he said, and helped Flash to his hooves before returning his wallet.
"You should know better than to play games with the gate guard," he admomished, and Flash blushed like a school filly caught out of homeroom.
"Yeah, yeah. I guess being deployed so often makes the lines blur- I apologize."
The guard nodded, and his partner opened the gate for Flash. "Well see that those lines sharpen- Sir. You might think I'm an ass, but the director will flay you alive if you're anything but the perfect officer inside.
Flash nodded, "I'll see to it that I..." he sighed, "... find a new uniform I guess."
He strode past the gate, and it clanked back shut behind him as he entered the grounds. While he should have relaxed- he was certainly safe here- instead he tensed up more, knowing that his every move and subtle action would be viewed and judged by both the students and the staff. He was here as the prime example of what a modern (or to the students- last generation) officer was supposed to be. He was here to try and blend his training with the new ideas being taught to the students, and to take away some of their radical ideas.
A few of them watched him already- there was a drill instructor parading around a group of pegasi in the courtyard. They jogged in a circle shouting some indecipherable slogan. A glance towards the gate, and Flash could see his shadow watching from far enough away the gate guards didn't notice, creepy.
Flash then kept his gaze forward, looking towards the glass doors that opened into the complex, while a rather gigantic image of the academy logo was painted above. Luna's moon, on a background of blue, with sixteen stars- each representing a great Equestrian strategist.
He must have looked somewhat strange- wearing a suit and lugging along a briefcase- but the students were disciplined enough that they noted him, but didn't stare. When he opened the doors to the inside he found himself in a wide and tall lobby, with ample room above for awards to be displayed in time. The wooden floor looked brand new, and the white stucco walls were absolutely spotless. A grey carpet filled out the centre of the floor and led him onwards, past the lobby and to a junction. One way towards classrooms, the other towards "Restricted Access" and the third towards administration. That seemed the obvious choice, and he practiced his march as he pivoted to the right.
The hallway led towards another four-way junction, and he could see his destination at the end of the hallway before him. Interestingly, the walls curved inwards from a much wide hallway across the junction, and then abruptly settled into the normal width. Flash trotted forward through the gateway, and found the other side was a smooth right-angle on either side before opening up again. He supposed it was set up to give defensive bias towards whoever happened to be on the side of the offices. One could get their back up again the wall- but the other side couldn't.
At the end of the hallway he came to a small clerks office beside a door, and an open window towards the hallway with a metal curtain drawn back. A uniformed mare- rank of sergeant according to the shoulder- in a dull green uniform sat back in a chair behind the counter, idly paging through a military trade magazine. Interestingly, several of the rifles on the cover hung on the wall behind her.
The cover story read, in bold font "OUTDATED AND OUTMODED: EQUESTRIA BARGAINS WITH LIVES"
Flash halted before the counter and she eyed him over the magazine. Her name tag, he could see now, gave the name of Dusk.
"Get lost on the way to the graveyard? Wrong hallway, spooky."
Flash blinked, he had absolutely no idea what the hell she was talking about.
"Uhhh... Flash Sentry.. h-"
It was the mares turn to blink, and she- amazingly deftly- flicked the magazine closed, kicked her chair back, came to attention, and saluted all in one fluid motion.
"Colonel Sentry, Sir!" she reported, and then squinted at him as Flash met her salute.
"...you're out of uniform, uh, sir."
Flash sighed, "I know. It's a very long, and probably classified, story."
The mare shrugged, "Hey it's not any of my business, Sir, but the director doesn't care if you're an Alicorn- she'll keelhaul you for breaking regs."
Flash rolled his eyes, this was supposed to be a relaxing outing to expand his mind, not almost getting murdered and then a wonderful adventure in over-dramatic regulation worship.
"Look just tell her I'm here," Flash said, and mumbled under his breath, "...faced down Griffons, not gonna let some director..."
Ten minutes later he was in the directors office, finding that Director Commodus was a rather rotund pegasus mare- which seemed rather ironic given her demeanor and position- and by Celestia was she fiery. She had not taken lightly to him arriving out of uniform, and had been on an angry rant about how little the "last generation" cared about regulations. On and on she went, chin jiggling slightly. Her uniform bulged around her large figure, the orange mare almost seeped out of the dull green uniform- newer, probably because none of the old blue ones fit her.
"... and those Wonderbolt guns? Tell me, Colonel- thirty millimetre or twelve-point-seven?"
Flash squinted, "Twelve-"
"No, both! Because somepony didn't care about paperwork we've had units given one, the other, sometimes both! Regulations /matter/!"
This continued on for another ten minutes as she prodded his chest and went on about how hard it was to get this obscure item, or (hilariously, in his mind) how difficult it was to get a good meal served around here. Flash had half a mind to tell the tubby pegasus that if she went on a diet maybe it wouldn't be, but kept that to himself.
Flash was had learned how to drown out white noise by retreating into his mind, and took the time to set his mind on anything he could in the room. It was bare, absolutely bare except for the desk ahead of him, so that didn't really work.
Eventually his salvation arrived, as the clerk opened the door and interrupted Director Commodus.
"Ma'am, Spitfire's on the line- wants to confirm with you that Colonel Sentry arrives. I guess somebodies got it out for him,"
"...other than yourself."
Director Commodus nodded, and paced around her desk to pick up the black phone that lay beside her neatly stacked paperwork. "Thank you, Sergeant."
She picked up the phone, sat her rear down in a cozy looking chair behind her desk- which creaked slightly under her weight- and Flash was treated to one half of a conversation.
"I am well, how is the Magnificent? ... Well, that's distressing- I'll have to double the guard ..." at this point she glanced at Flash and squinted "... it's still no excuse to be out of uniform, he should have packed a spare. ... yes I realize he perfomed admirably at Waylay Island- but need I remind you that it was your signature that signed his ... You reinstated him? How thoughtful. ... Yes I realize regulations are quite specific, I will see that it is done."
Commodus then hung up the phone, and looked up at Flash. "Well, my dear Colonel- I had no idea you had been reinstated into the Wonderbolts, we have a few spare flight suits in the gym so that takes care of that. Not the... most digified uniform on a day-to-day basis, but within regulations."
She then stood up from the chair, eliciting a creak from it, but Flash flash just continued looking ahead stupidly. "... reinstated?"
"Yes, to the Wonderbolts. That doesn't excuse you to get your head into the clouds."
Flash blinked. Regardless of formality- he was a Wonderbolt now. Without much pomp or circumstance to it, but it was special for him. He had so long ago been dismissed- dishonourably- and had totally given up hope of ever receiving that honour again. The hairs on his chest bristled slightly with pride. Being a Colonel was one thing, being an officer another... but a Wonderbolt...
Reinstated by Spitfire herself...
Flash regained a lot of ego in those few moments before he turned and followed Commodus out of her office. His mind was foggy and his body dragged along behind her as if attached by a cable, as he just kept repeating it in his mind.
Wonderbolt.
Sure, he probably wasn't actually going to serve with them- he lacked the training, and quite frankly he felt more attached to the marines now, but it was an honour and a privilege to call himself that. He felt like all his efforts, all his hours and days spent fighting had finally realized his true potential, and he walked with his chest thrust out proudly and his chin high. He felt, in no uncertain terms- like a stallion.
Sergeant Dusk was chewing bubblegum as they walked by. It popped as soon as she saw Flash striding by with a confident poise and a swing in his hips. Flash glanced back at her and winked- she promptly fell out of her chair.
Towards the back of the gym the pair went, and Flash quickly removed his suit- it was a good looking suit, but clearly designed with an eye towards cheapness and durability, no name brands or anything- basically just a thick coat shaped like a suit jacket. He put on the flight suit, gleefully slipping it over himself, and then struck a pose for Commodus.
"Please, you'll have to put on a few pounds before you catch my eye... might look good on you though, Colonel," she responded.
Flash blinked, "A fe-"
"Comments like that are to be left hanging, Colonel. Now I need to prepare some things- be in auditorium one in twenty minutes," she commanded, and then sauntered her robust frame out of the gym.
Flash wondered if this was the first time she had ever been here. He stayed for a few minutes, checking himself out and striking valiant poses- flapping his wings open and rather enjoying the fact that he was going to be infront of a student corps wearing a Wonderbolt flight outfit. Seemed brand new too- these only came from Cloudsdale itself as per the law, and it had been well taken care of.
Oh ponies had tried to counterfeit them, but only a true flight suit made by the craftsponies of Cloudsdale could really fit a pegasus right and weather the strains of aerial perfomance. The inherent pegasus magic that flowed through him meshed with the suit, and it became a second skin. The fit was absolutely perfect, and yet they only made one size. No creases, always seemingly newly pressed. Magic.
Flash strode off then- judging by the clock that hung over the basketball net that he had five minutes left, and trotted out from the gleaming shine of the gym floor into the carpetted hallway, and then took a left according to the red and blue lines painted on the opposing wall.
He followed the blue line- auditoriums- down a few hallways. He encountered the odd student skipping out on the assembly- giving them a wink before they made haste like he was Tirek, and had a great grin on his face as he walked along.
Once he arrived at the main entrance he followed more signage to a smaller single door up a flight of thin stairs, and opened it into a projector room at the rear of the auditorium. Right now it was displaying the latest war bulletins onto the far wall.
"Waylay Island: Only the first to fall! Wonderbolt and Marine forces press their attack, taking an island every week from the Griffon menace! One step further, one step closer to victory!" the speakers boomed.
Commodus was there, along with a few of what he assumed was her senior staff. All uniformed ponies, older stallions and mares with more mission decorations on their chests than his career tripled. Their uniforms could be called ancient- mostly green with a few of them in blue, at least twenty years old at the newest. Flash exchanged respectful nods with the staff, and then Commodus turned to him.
"On time, good. Now take the side stairs- I assume you have a speech planned so..."
She rambled on about some specifics as Flash blinked mindlessly. A speech, he had to deliver a speech.
He wasn't told about any speech!
The projector stopped and the lights went on immediately, blinding Flash for a moment.
"... well? Get on with it Colonel, these students have classes!"
Flash took a deep breath, shared a look with a bearded stallion that seemed to sense his dread- and smiled like a lunatic back at Flash- before passing Commodus and striding out of the booth to a series of carpetted stairs that led down the far wall towards the stage at the bottom.
"... where's his index cards?..." is the last thing he heard before the door shut behind him and the crowd applauded.
Flash walked on down, managing to fake a confidence- the fact he had been reinstated helped there, but didn't help him with the speech itself.
When he arrived at the stage he slowly, confidently, and with a delibrate pace to his step (actually a desperate attempt to simply will this away), stepped up to the microphone. He coughed- which was echoed through the speakers, along with a rather mind-shattering speech. A hundred eyes on him, eager to hear what wisdom he had to give, along with four more eyes above and behind them staring into his very soul.
So he took a deep breath, and winged the hell out of it.
"Students of Princess Luna's, uh, Military Academy... I stand before you today..." he paused, brain trying to speed ahead of his tongue- and rather failing in that regard- before continuing onwards "... a victor, and a fighter. I have seen a great deal, and experienced a great deal..." he found he was actually getting the hang of this now "... but experience isn't the only teacher. Experience teaches us what to do when plans fail- but the best teaching allows our plans /not/ too fail. You are the next generation of soldiers, the next generation of generals and commanders, and it is you who will plan the actions of tomorrow. It is by your plans and guidance that the soldiers of tomorrow will fight the threats of tomorrow, but good teaching and exceptional planning rely on experience to guide them away from the failures of the past. I have been victorous, and I have failed, and it is by both of these things that you will better fight the battles of tomorrow. That is why I am here, today, so that I might impart some amount of my experience to you, so that you don't need to learn the lessons I have first hand."
He sighed, "I made this speech up on the fly, so I'll tell you right now that the best thing I learned in the field is how to adapt. Learn how to pull a new plan out of your ass students- that's the greatest skill in life."
To that, he recieved a standing ovation. Swollen with pride, he strode back up the stairs to the projection booth. Commodus looked at him- her face a little softer than it had been before.
"Never let me play poker with you."