//------------------------------//
// Chapter 17 
// Story: From The Gates 
// by Dirty Bit 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 17


On Command


Meanwhile, at Canterlot Castle, several of Celestia's guards stood outside on the castle's training grounds and awaited their captain to come out and supervise their exercises. All of them share the same stoic expression as always while they stood and waited patiently for Wrath to show himself front and center.

Some of them were about to falter for a moment before they noticed a door leading outside opened to reveal the furious pony trotting outside with no armor on his being. The guards quickly stood back up in their authoritive position and stared forward while Wrath passed by some of them. When he stood at the center opposite to the guards, he faced them with stoic gaze of his own as he spoke up "Greetings to you all! If some of you are unaware of my presence on Princess Celestia's training grounds, it is my duty to inform you that your former captain Shining Armor shall be out of commission!" Some of the guards were almost taken by surprise at the announcement "Do not despair, for until then, I shall be your new ranking officer until Shining Armor is met with full recovery! You shall refer to me as Captain Wrath from this point on! Are there any questions?"

A guard stood forward and spoke "Captain, can you explain why you lack armor or consider yourself in proper health to train us with a wounded wing?"

Wrath nodded "An excellent question, soldier. During my time, I did not rely on armor, but more on my skill and nothing more. As for my wing..." He turns to it with his expression unchanged "This is only a minor technicality that you all will have the pleasure of dealing with during our session. You will begin with your daily exercises followed by sparring matches under my supervision. Am I clear?"

All of the guards present saluted "Sir!"

Wrath smiled to himself after the guards' reply 'Hmhmhm...Such dedication. They will give me a good amount of purpose here.' The furious pony was happy to be met with a familiar job in a new world. It felt good for him to at least live out his new life doing what he does best. His expression changed into a stern gaze "Very good! Begin!" At his command, the guards began running laps along the training grounds.

From one of the castle's towers by the training grounds, Princess Cadence was watching Wrath and the guards from her bedroom window. She hummed to herself when she took in the current activity after expecting something different from the furious pony.

"So how is it out there?"

Cadence turned to see her husband lay in bed with parts of his body bandaged and looking at her with serious eyes. The princess nodded "He's monitoring the soldiers accordingly. So far he has assigned them with the basic exercises they're familiar with." Cadence turned back to the window "Hopefully the Royal Guard is in capable hooves for the time being..."

Shining Armor looked a little angry "They better be. I didn't get defeated by a strange pegasus just to see my soldiers crumble in their formation! I can't believe that he was issued my position ever since he defeated me!" The guard captain was miffed to receive the news on Wrath filling his position too late, and by Princess Celestia herself.

Cadence trotted to her husband's side and softly nuzzled his cheek "I know it bothers you, and I feel your pain, but he gave the princess his word that he will manage the Royal Guard to her liking. He also said he will return the position to you once you're back on your feet."

Shining Armor was confused 'Is he serious?? So he really wasn't trying to seize my rank as captain? I wonder what he plans to gain from this...More importantly, why does he think so highly of me despite beating me in that match back then?' Wanting to save that thought for another time, he nodded "I see..." He answered in a neutral tone "Well, let's just wait and see if he's actually fit to lead the Royal Guard and meet Celestia's expectations."

Cadence smiled "I'm glad you're not acting rashly like this. You're so cute when you're calm and collective..."

Shining Armor blushed a little and looked away with a smile "Thanks."
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After the time has passed with the guards exercises, they picked their partners when it came time for the sparring session. As he mentioned beforehoof, Wrath supervised their combat activity while each of them fought with their own skills 'Hm...They show discipline but they lack proper technique...' He noticed that the pegasi were relying on their spears rather than their own wings. The unicorns were limited in their magical prowess and used them as melee weapons instead. The earth ponies made due with their naturally-born strength, but a small amount used spears like the pegasi.

Wrath hummed to himself and he held up a hoof when he had an idea "Cease your sparring!" The guards did as they were told and stood about face when the furious pony trotted up "It has come to my attention that while your military experience is showing, it is not at the expected potential! We shall commence certain exercises to better your born talent!" He points a hoof to the pegasi "We shall cover the full use of your wings before you will be taught how to use a spear in a better fashion." He then points to the unicorn "As for you, while it is convenient to use your horn as a weapon for close combat, you as unicorns must rely on your magic as well. You are to hone your magical abilities to where your limit is met!" He then turned to the earth ponies "The rest of you will perform basic exercises to enhance your strength. You along with the pegasi and unirocns will be taught how to use the spear once all of you have met your respective goals! Am I clear?"

The guards were a bit nervous at what Wrath had in store for them, but they were not about to question his authority. They stood and saluted "Sir!"

Wrath nodded "Now each of you separate yourselves in terms of race and commence your exercises! The pegasi shall be monitored by me!" At that, the pegasi, unicorn, and earth pony guards all separated and began their own assigned tasks.

The furious pony made sure that the pegasi treated their own wings as weapons and even sparred with some of them effortlessly to guide them along properly. The unicorns pushed their effort to the limit by levitating several of the equipment around the training grounds. The earth ponies continued their basic exercises at an acceptable pace. Some complained, but others were happy to see that they were slowly progressing with their skill.

Cadence saw this from the window and was surprised "Shining Armor, Wrath is performing a routine of his own right now!"

Shining Armor looked over intently "What's going on out there? What does he have planned?"

Cadence turned to Shining Armor "Apparently he placed the guards in different groups by race." She looked outside to confirm the activity "It seems he's training the pegasi to rely more on their wings than their spears as well. Perhaps his past experience in battle was dictated by his use of wings and nothing more..."

Shining Armor was silent about this and wondered how Wrath would fight with a spear in his hooves. He then looked serious "I'll talk with him after he's finished training the guards..."

Cadence looked concerned "But your legs-"

The guard captain waved a hoof "I'll manage...I have you at my side, don't I?" He smiled at his wife, who returned it with one of her own. The two were indeed a lovely couple.
_____

At the changeling hive, Chyrsalis was busy discussing Equestria with Father, who listened intently to every detail, especially on the topic of Princess Celestia. The pale alicorn was so enraptured at the thought of realizing his goal for the second time. But he wanted to make sure that his children were there for him to realize it firsthand.

Chrysalis concluded the latest topic she covered "-thus that is the reason why griffons are hard to come by. They're such savage beasts and you can only dig so much out of them in order to overcome them in battle. I hope that this is beneficial to your ambition...Father." She was reluctant to consider that an alicorn was given such a name.

Father only nodded with a small smile "Most definitely, your majesty...But I would require more knowledge if I am to see my plan through."

Chrysalis raised an eyebrow "Why must you stall for time when you can easily storm the gates of Canterlot yourself with your own power? It is only a day's flight from here and Celestia's guards are less than competent!"

Father tilted his head "Then how were you defeated, if I may ask? How have you gathered this knowledge?"

The changeling queen flinched and grunted when the pale alicorn decided to poke a hole in her logic "Th-That is none of your concern!" She snapped.

Father gave an unamused glance "Oh? And why is that? If anything, it is as much my concern as it is yours..." His gaze became grave "I do not wish to walk in blind without proper knowledge of my enemies or the destinations they reside in..."

Chrysalis was almost phased by Father's mood shift, but she glared "Fine...If you must know I was able to beat Celestia with my own power. However...that same power had defeated me and my changelings..."

Father was now curious "And that power is?"

Chrysalis sighed "The same energy that we as changelings feast off of...Love. It gives us the energy needed to conquer any impudent being that wishes to defy our power!"

The pale alicorn went silent with disbelief, then spoke "How droll...To think you were defeated by a petty emotion. Are you sure you are not trying to incite a clever joke?"

Chrysalis fumed at the pale alicorn's defiant behavior "Silence, you cur! I may have been defeated by the very source of my power, but that does not mean I can rise above it the next moment!!"

Father gave a light scoff as he looked away with a bored expression "You haven't explained the one responsible for defeating you..."

Chrysalis hissed "Two, actually...The captain of the Royal Guard Shining Armor and his newly-wedded wife Princess Mi Amore Cadenza. I disguised myself as her and fed off of that foolish unicorn's love before they've managed to expel us from Canterlot with a shield spell." She gritted her sharp teeth at the memory "I will make the two of them pay!! If not for them, Canterlot would have been mine for the taking!"

Father nodded "I see...Then perhaps it would be best to send in spies to do away with them?"

Chrysalis scowled "You would think that would be easy! I doubt that those miserable ponies would fall for the same trick twice..."

Father waved a hoof "Given your prolonged absence from Canterlot, I'm certain that their tension would subside for the time being. Unless you have another plan, I'd surmise this option to be the most desirable..."

The changeling queen thought about this. It has indeed been a few months since her last invasion and she could only provide her children with so much. She then sighed "Very well, we shall do it your way..." She gave stomp and summoned three changelings "You are to sneak into Canterlot and study its activity and report back to me when you have enough information!"

The three changelings bowed and changed. The first one transformed into an earth pony guard in golden armor. The second one turned into what appeared to be a dashing noble unicorn with a tophat. The last changeling turned into a zebracorn wearing a black fedora. When they finished, they galloped out of the hall and made their journey to Canterlot.

Father watched them and smiled to himself at how the changelings were so obedient to their master. The smile then left when he thought about a certain avaricious homunculus rebelling against him. He shook it off as he looked away 'I wonder what Envy is up to...That one is more obedient...'
_____

Envy looked up at its destination, dumbfounded at the structure. It was as if it were completely made of candy. There were some ponies mingling out along the area surrounding it "No...No way in hell..." Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash turned to the jealous pony as it backed away "I'd rather get eaten by Gluttony again than go there!" The voracious pony in question was being held back by Lust when he couldn't control himself on how delicious the candy house looked.

Pinkie hopped to Envy's side "Awww Envy, don't be shy! That's Fluttershy's job! You're going to love it at Sugarcube Corner! I live here with the Cakes, you know!"

Envy sneered at Pinkie "That doesn't help me at all..."

The party pony pulled Envy into a hug "Don't worry, I'll make sure to help you! That's what friends do!"

The jealous pony grunted and pushed away Pinkie "Last time I checked, we AREN'T friends!"

Rainbow Dash trotted up and glared "There you go again, pushing Pinkie away! She's only trying to help you, you know!"

Envy glared back at Rainbow Dash "She's helped enough, I'm fine on my own!"

Fluttershy saw the conflict from a distance and drooped her ears. When she built enough confidence she trotted over to the three ponies to chat "Umm, girls? Maybe we shouldn't smother Envy too much..." Envy turned to Fluttershy with a raised eyebrow when she decided to cut in.

Rainbow Dash turned to Fluttershy "And leave this jerk unattended? Sorry, Fluttershy, but I gotta make sure that Envy learns some manners before I can let that pony go alone..."

Envy looked away from Rainbow Dash with a sour expression "Bite me..."

Pinkie Pie smiled "Okie Dokie Loki!" She opened her mouth wide and bit Envy in the flank, causing the jealous pony to jump and yell. It then turned and fumed at Pinkie Pie "What? You said to bite you! I just wanted to help!"

Envy growled "You little-" It went to strike, but Pinkie hopped away.

Pinkie giggled obliviously "Wow! You and Gluttony sure love to play tag! Okay then..." She booped Envy on the nose "Tag! You're it!" She then hopped away giggling while Envy gave chase with an indignant growl. Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash soon followed after the other two and made sure nothing big happened.

Greed trotted up to Twilight with a smirk "Say, Twilight! Mind coaching me on Princess Celestia while we're enjoying this party?"

Twilight chuckled "Nice try, Greed! I should keep my distance if I were you..." She trotted away with an innocent smile.

Greed watched the lavender bookworm trot off and then remembered what Celestia mentioned in the letter 'Does she think I'm flirting with her!? What the fuck!? When did this happen?' The avaricious pony then remember who wrote the letter and remembered how mischievous she was. He then scowled at the one responsible 'That clever bitch...'


End of Chapter 17