Part 16 - The Next Guardsmare
The Equestrian Armed Forces are not for everypony, I tell all those who ask if they should join.
The rightful purpose of a military is to defend its parent nation and fight on behalf of those who cannot, to spare them the burden of the warrior and allow them to live in peace and harmony. ’Twas an explanation I first heard from Sundiver and later Sirocco, and one I have repeated myself many a time since. ’Tis a fine sentiment to be certain. But one that in the end would not be met. Not for Equestria. And not for me.
For the time would come when the armed forces could not keep Equestria’s enemies at bay. A time when the horrors of war would reach deep into the heart of Equestria and spare none its wrath and ruin; a time when all ponies would be severely tried, a time when both soldiers and civilians would be presented with a stark choice: fight or fall. I would have spared them the agony to arrive if I could, and indeed, at this point in my tale, ’twas still my hope that such days would never come. And yet somehow, the thought of war with the Gryphons still paled in comparison to that of watching my beloved friend willingly undergo the same ordeal I had…
Windshear told me that one of the worst moments of his life would be when he saw his son walk through the gates of Fort Spur. And ’twas only as I stood outside the base with Wind Whistler waiting for those gates to open that I knew he was correct.
Standing outside of Fort Spur again was an interminable time for me, even more than it had been when I was but a cocky recruit impatient to begin her training.
’Twasn’t just me and Wind Whistler waiting, of course. Nearly eight hundred ponies were mingling outside the gates as the hour of induction approached, both the new recruits and their friends and family there to see them off. Some wore the uniforms of other service branches, others the attire of nobles. Some were nervous, others were cocky, eight were mares, the rest were stallions. But whatever their gender or demeanor, all wondered what the next few minutes and months would bring…
Whether they would not only be able to endure basic training, but how it would change them after.
I wondered and worried as well, not for me but for the sake of my sister. There were but five minutes before the gates were scheduled to open at exactly 1600, which would be announced by the toll of the bell in the distant Town Plaza. This meant I had little time left to spend with Wind Whistler, after which our relationship would forever change. We could no longer be but friends and sisters; I would instead become her superior and her, a mere recruit I could give no aid or comfort to. I knew this moment would come, and I had spent as much time with her as I could over the previous week in preparation for it. But ’twas still a very hard thing to accept.
“This is it, my friend,” I told her as I heard activity inside the base and sensed the ultimate moment approaching, my heart beginning to race for it just as it had when I had been in Wind Whistler’s place. “Once you pass those gates, you are on your own. I cannot aid you in any way, except to promise you will be in my thoughts constantly.”
“Our hearts go with you, my dear daughter, always,” Silent Night added, wearing her Corps uniform just as I was in my armor, the latter at the order of Lieutenant Ironsides. As I was invited to watch, I expected he was going to make some use of me, perchance to present me as a model Guardspony as Windshear did before.
“I know,” she said, the barest of tremors in her voice. Though always reserved in her emotions, certainly far more than I, she was visibly anxious, and I worried it would make her an instant trainer target when they saw it. I knew from my own class they tended to concentrate their initial abuse on those who were visibly uncertain, and for good reason—if you weren’t sure you wanted to be there, the chances were very good your heart wasn’t into it and you would crumble quickly, for you knew in that same heart you did not belong. “And I thank you both for it.” she told us both, keeping her eyes fixed on the gates, anticipating and dreading the moment that they opened.
Silent Night noticed as well. “You are ready, my daughter,” she reminded her again sternly, walking around to face her and placing her hooves on her shoulders, looking her in the eye. “You can do this. You triumphed over my training, harsh though it was, and that means ’tis certain you can triumph over this. ’Twill be difficult at first, but if you remember our lessons and your love for us, you will persevere. Remember that whatever happens in there, ’tis all a game, and you must simply play it. They will be very hard on you, but also remember that they are doing so to make sure you are worthy of standing with them… and worthy of standing at your sister’s side.”
She said it knowing that if there was anything that would steel Wind Whistler, it was that, and it had the desired effect as my friend closed her eyes and took a deep breath, reminding herself of why she was there. When she opened them again, they were clearer and more determined, and the tremor in her voice was gone. “Thank you, Mother,” she acknowledged, sharing one final hug with her.
At that moment, two Guardspony sentries exited the base through side doors, standing to either side of the gates. They were trainers dressed in their armor and chosen for their size and demeanor, with the aim to intimidate new recruits right from the start.
“Attention, new recruits!” Storm Sergeant Skystrike called out in a booming voice with the aid of a blue command crystal. A younger pegasus Guardspony who had seen some action with the Corps fighting harpies in the western badlands, he had been one of the first trainers I’d been able to defeat during my own basic, though I had a much harder time with him when they started ganging up on me two or three to one. He actually came into his own when fighting as part of a flight or squad, and to that end, he tended to teach team tactics during the second half of basic.
Such thoughts and memories were lost, however, as he went on. “Welcome to Fort Spur! When these gates open, you will proceed inside in a quick and orderly manner! You will not hesitate, and you will not fail to obey any instructions given you!” He repeated the exact same words said to me but a year earlier, but for all I’d been through since, it may as well have been a lifetime. “And your first instructions are these! You may not speak unless spoken to! You will address your superiors as ‘sir’ or ‘ma’am’ at all times! Only walking is allowed—pegasi may not fly in, and unicorns may not teleport! Say your final goodbyes to friends and family now, for once the gates close behind you, you will have no contact with them until you graduate… or quit!”
“Sergeant First Class Firefly!” Corporal Mainmast, the other flanking Guardspony and a recent unicorn graduate who, somewhat surprisingly, had come from the Navy, called directly to me. “Lieutenant Ironsides requests your immediate presence inside!”
“Understood!” I answered instantly, then turned back to Wind Whistler for the last time, ignoring the eyes that had turned on us. “This is it. Whatever happens or is said in there… remember I am always with you in spirit, my sister.”
“And I now do this to make sure I can be with you in more than spirit,” she told me back, and we shared a final, heartfelt hug before I took off and landed at the gates. I did not look back as I was admitted through the same small side door that Mainmast had exited, afraid if I did my heart would break once more.
Greetings, one and all. To this point, I have declined multiple invitations from my beloved friend and sister to pen my own passages in this tale. But she now insists, reminding me yet again that her story cannot be told without mine, that she would never have been able to accomplish what she did without me… that indeed, Equestria itself might not have survived without me.
Though I think she exaggerates my role, I will indulge her. In truth, I have never sought the spotlight; I have always been content to let my sister have the honor and glory she has so greatly earned. But as she wishes me to have my own share, perchance it is now time for my own tale to be told.
I am Wind Whistler, and though I would one day bear the title of Bolt Knight and become an officer myself, my story is nothing more than that of a mare who wished to help her friend. A mare whose heart agonized to know the trials her friend faced without her; a mare who decided that if the only way she could help her friend was to join her and fight by her side, then she would gladly put herself through the same trials to do so. Though I would never say I was the born warrior she or my mother was, I do not regret becoming one, save that I couldn’t always be there for them even when I finally succeeded.
I am lucky in so many ways; raised by loving parents who, even if they didn’t initially approve of my friend and future sister, at least saw fit to allow me to be friends with her. I am luckier still to have had a mother who could train me and would support me in my efforts to join the guard, for without her I could never have succeeded. But I am luckiest of all to call Firefly my friend and sister. The bonds we forged have not only endured, but strengthened; not even war could keep us apart and by the time it ended, neither of us could imagine going into battle without the other.
Firefly has spoken of me as being the voice of reason to her impulse-driven life, and perchance there was a time I was. But she affected me also; her passion and determination to achieve her goals touched me even from the time we were foals, as did the many trials she endured. I will allow myself one small moment of boasting to note that I alone saw her enormous potential long before my parents or anypony else did, and in the end, I chose to help her realize it. In the end, I simply decided that if she, like my parents, chose to bear the burden of the warrior, then for the sake of our friendship, I could do no less.
I still remember the day of my induction into the Royal Guard quite clearly, as I’m sure Firefly herself does. When we shared that final hug, I wanted to cry, needed to cry, and certainly had more than my share of second thoughts as the plaza bell rang and I watched the gates drawn open; saw for the first time what awaited us inside.
But I had not been through so much already, enduring months of my mother’s tough love and training to give up now. “Recruits! Your training begins! Move forward!” the four-stripe pegasus Storm Sergeant ordered, and we obeyed instantly, entering the base at a trot. At least one nervous pegasus stallion started to fly only to catch himself; the narrowed eyes of the two gatekeeper Guardsponies told me he was going to be in for it in very short order.
We had barely passed the gates before the yelling began, so much of it we couldn’t hear individual instructions and as a result, confusion reigned as the trainers none too gently shoved us towards individual holding areas depending on whether we were pegasi, unicorns, or earth ponies. Those who were slow to obey or just unable to hear got quickly singled out for special attention, as did a pegasus stallion who made the mistake of flying to his company. He was immediately knocked to the ground and screamed at nonstop for the better part of half a minute by a slate blue pegasus who wore the rank of Sergeant Major… who then saw me.
So this was Windshear. A massive and intimidating pegasus stallion whose reputation as a Defender of Harmony winner preceded him, I felt myself being appraised the instant his eyes fell upon me, judging my worthiness right then and there. I believe he found it wanting at first, for he did not hesitate to get in my face and tear me down, asking me what in the name of all three tribes a pony as unquestionably weak and unwarlike as me thought she was doing in the Guard.
“Sir, I am here to help my friend, sir!” was the only reply I could initially give… which, to little surprise, only set him off further. Despite that, my own words gave me comfort, and I did not flinch further from his presence despite a steady stream of invective and some very inventive insults. As he turned away with a promise to me that I would be spared no quarter for being Firefly’s sister, his voice caught for just a moment as he spotted my mother watching him through the gates as they were shut. ’Twas only then I realized he knew her when his gaze lingered on her in surprise and uncertainty for a moment; I even caught the barest of nods pass between them before the gates closed with a resounding clang.
Firefly herself was not idle during this time, watching from the sidelines at first, though she apparently couldn’t resist getting in on the action as well. As I watched, she dressed down a cocky earth pony stallion who was wearing an Army uniform and a smirk, staggering him with a hard blow to the chest and then bodily throwing him backwards into line—in truth, methinks she was doing it for distraction so she didn’t have to think about me. Her expression turned hard and stoic as she watched me be interrogated, though I knew her too well to not be able to tell how torn up she was inside to see it.
Finally, when they’d separated us by tribe into hundred-pony companies and shoved us all into a loose formation, a call for attention was given. An earth pony bugler then played a short melody I knew from base visits when I was younger meant a high-ranking officer was present. And indeed, all the trainers snapped to attention as well as a new figure appeared, a large white-maned, green-furred earth pony stallion with officer’s bars who bore several scars on his flanks and face.
“Recruits! Welcome to Fort Spur and the start of basic training! Or as we like to call it, the worst day of your life!” the base commander, a First Lieutenant by his collar insignia, greeted us. He was dressed not in armor but an immaculately pressed day uniform, his creases so sharp they could have cut through parchment. If possible, he was even more imposing than Windshear and the other two Sergeant Majors, who having had their chance to yell at us for a bit, now stood in front of their new companies at rigid attention along with the rest of the trainers whilst the already-dazed recruits stood behind them at a far more ragged one.
“I am First Lieutenant Ironsides, commanding officer of Fort Spur! And ’tis certain I am not a pony you want to see more of during your time here!” he told us, and none of us doubted it, especially given that his voice was carrying throughout the parade grounds even without the help of a command crystal.
“We are here to test your worthiness of becoming Guardsponies, and be assured, ’tis a duty we take very seriously! Before your time here is done, you will be tested, and every last one of you will be found wanting!” he all but sneered, making sure his words had sunk in before going on.
“Know that the title of Guardspony is not easily given! It must be earned in blood, sweat and tears! Know that no matter who you were before, who your parents are, or what rank or title you may have held, it matters not! For you are nothing now!” he looked pointedly at the new recruits who were wearing the uniforms of the Corps or other service branches, many of whom frowned back. I had no doubt from my mother and sister’s stories that if they thought their existing experience meant they were already good enough to be Guardsponies or would be treated differently, they would be quickly disabused of that notion.
His voice then dropped somewhat, turning a tone I could only describe as sly as his gaze fell on the mare recruits. “That said, I am well aware that some of you are here seeking to follow in the hoofsteps of others! Seeking to duplicate their feats, and accomplish what they have! If that is the case, then I pity you—for ’tis certain such shallow motivations as envy or glory will not avail you!” he told us, locking eyes with each of us in turn.
“It does not for stallions, and it will not for you! But in case you are not convinced, allow me to present her!” Lieutenant Ironsides boomed as my sister stepped forward in gleaming armor, her medals prominent on her chest; she also now wore a Guardspony wingblade harness on her back. She had not had either on outside; I guessed she had been told by Ironsides to don them. “This is Sergeant First Class Firefly!” He paused to let us see her up close as my friend presented herself for inspection. “This is the mare and warrior you all aspire to be!”
I was surprised to see she bore no less than four awards now on her chest armor; I recognized the Royal Guard’s Guardian Garnet and Aerial Corps Sapphire Star in addition to her Wing Warrior and Commander’s Cross medals. The Guardian Garnet was somewhat rare; ’twas only given to Guardsponies who completed combat deployments with the Army or Corps whilst the Sapphire Star was granted for more minor acts of heroism—in her case, for defeating enemy Ravens and protecting her gryphon charge, perchance?
“A mare who has done her armor proud, and brought great honor to us all! A mare who succeeded where you are certain to fail!” he proclaimed. “Or are you foalish enough to think that you can follow in her hoofsteps?” he all but snarled at us, a look of contempt etched on his face.
“Sir, yes sir!” we all replied as one.
“I wonder…” Ironsides said as he stalked down the line of eight mares, who had been singled out and pulled forward into a separate line. “Sergeant First Class Firefly! Perchance you wouldst care to offer an opinion of our highly questionable recruits?”
“I would indeed, sir!” she instantly replied, and stepped forward to stalk down the line of mares herself, starting at the other end from me. Her face was harsh, her manner severe, and I sensed that she wasn’t just affecting airs as she stopped before the first new mare recruit, intimidating in her battle gear. She was going to test each of us in turn, and I knew then with no small amount of trepidation she would be no easier on me than the rest.
She then sized up the first mare, an earth pony with a bright pink coat and light blonde mane paired with a flower-and-stiletto cutie mark. She wore the rarely seen green dress uniform of the mare-only Plainclothes Security Division of the Guard, or PSD for short, which was responsible for protecting nobles and securing the capital against spies and assassins, carrying out their duties disguised as attendants and maids. As such ’twas rare to see them in uniform and rarer still for them to see action, which is why Firefly wanted nothing to do with them originally.
“What is your name, recruit?” she asked the uniformed mare in an imperious tone, who stared straight ahead like she was used to inspection or standing at attention. A quick glance told me she was older than me and Firefly, and had likely had been in the PSD for eight or more years given the six stripes on her shoulder.
“Ma’am, Master Sergeant Tulip Vale, ma’am!” she answered with an acquired Canterlot accent that marked her as belonging not to a noble family, but more likely a mining one from the outskirts of the city. She sounded none too happy about being forced to go through basic again or that she was being addressed as an inferior by a lower-ranked mare much younger than her.
Trust my already hard-bitten sister to notice and respond appropriately. “Tulip Vale? Such a inspiring name! No doubt our enemies will be intimidated by the mere sound of it! And Master Sergeant, you say? Methinks not!” She tore the other mare’s rank insignia off and trampled it underhoof before getting back in her face. “Once you passed those gates, you lost your previous rank; you are now a mere recruit! So tell me, recruit, just why do you seek to join the Armored Guard?”
I heard the undertone of anger in the other mare’s voice at her treatment, but she answered swiftly and clearly, some bite in her voice. “Because ’tis certain I’ve had a bellyful of watching over stuck-up nobles who can’t even be bothered to dress themselves or draw their own baths, ma’am! Because I’m tired of awaiting action that never arrives, ma’am! Because I’m a warrior and I want something more out of my career than tending tea parties and arranging floral bouquets, ma’am!” she spat out the address like it was a curse, which made me certain she would be in for it from her trainers that evening.
“A warrior? Hardly!” I could all but hear my friend’s sneer. “If that were true, you wouldst have just joined the Army! If that were true, you wouldst have been wielding a spear and sword instead of a mop and feather duster!” she dug her hooves into the other mare more deeply, though I wasn’t certain why Windshear suppressed a smile in front of me. “Perchance you instead joined the PSD because you wanted a life of luxury! And perchance you should go back to that life, because you’re clearly too cushy to be a Guardsmare! I give you a month before quitting at most!” she said.
’Twas an insult designed to earn an impulsive response, and she was indeed rewarded with one. “If you think that, perchance you wouldst care to test me, ma’am?” she challenged in all but name. “I’ve already had two months of basic, ten years of experience and plenty of advanced bodyguard and weapons training! I’ve guarded the Prince and served at the side of the Princess herself! And methinks unlike you, I am trained to detect and slay assassins… ma’am!”
“Oh really?” my sister all but scoffed. “And methinks unlike you, I already have! I’ve fought Gryphon Ravens and won!” She tapped her sapphire star in a boast I knew she would not otherwise give. Perchance she would have when she was but a year younger, but not now. “On the other hoof, ’tis certain they’d have slain you within five seconds… after spending the first four laughing at you!”
“Enough!” The other mare could take no more, losing all bearing and stepping out of formation to face Firefly directly. “I’ll show you what a ten-year veteran of the plainclothes division can do, ma’am! And once I do, I’ll happily accept my armor and rightful rank here and now, ma’am!”
Firefly regarded her almost lazily for a moment, then glanced back at Ironsides. “Sir! With your permission…?” the rest went unspoken, but the base commander simply grinned and nodded in reply. “Very well, recruit. Your challenge is accepted. And when you lose, I simply leave the terms of your defeat to them!” she motioned around her to the other trainers, who were watching the scene through narrowed eyes. “They do not take kindly to such insolence and disrespect as you have shown, recruit. Lose this fight, and methinks you’ll be in for a very fun first night!” She removed her medals as she spoke, stowing them in a hidden uniform pocket beneath her chestplate.
“What are the terms of the duel, ma’am?” the PSD mare ignored the dig. “You can fly and use your wingblades, I don’t care! Don’t think for one second I’m not trained to take down aerial targets, ma’am!” she goaded.
“As you wish,” my sister said with a predatory gleam, deploying a pair of sharp and polished blades from her harness and causing some consternation from the stallion recruits, who were audibly whispering to each other, having not expected to see a duel so quickly, let alone one involving the most famous mare in the military! I was scarcely less shocked; I couldn’t believe she would so casually do this, or risk a humiliating defeat in front of everypony! “The terms of victory are simple, recruit: I have to knock you out, but all you have to do is draw blood or simply put a scratch on my armor to win! And you can use any weapon or tactic you wish to do so!”
The pink-furred mare stared at her, then smirked. “Too easy,” she announced, then drew a hidden blade with a glittering green hilt from her uniform tunic and wielded it in her mouth. She’d broken the rules by bringing her own weapons onto the base, though the question of how she’d slipped them past the security enchantments would have to wait for another time. A duel circle was cleared between the three companies, and Lieutenant Ironsides, though frowning at the presence of her blade, did not forbid it and himself gave the signal to start. “Combatants! Begin!”
Far from the initial burst of speed that marked the start of Firefly’s duel with Sky Sentry, the pair did not immediately engage. They merely circled each other instead from twelve feet away, the PSD mare at a low crouch, her emerald-hilted blade held at the ready. I knew from another PSD mare my mother had once been friends with that for her to hold such a blade meant she’d completed a series of advanced bodyguard courses known collectively as the “Emerald Edge”. It was not an easy curriculum, designed to teach superlative blade combat and threat detection skills, and that she was now wielding a weapon that was awarded only upon graduating it meant she was indeed a force to be reckoned with.
I could only hope my sister realized that as well. “So what are you waiting for? Attack me!” Firefly ordered, her wings flared for instant takeoff but otherwise relaxed in stance. “Or for as much time as you’re taking, methinks whatever noble you’re guarding would already be dead!”
“Methinks you wouldst do well to watch your tongue and be careful what you wish for, Sergeant…” she all but hissed through gritted teeth, then suddenly raised a hoof and fired a miniature crossbow attached to her left forearm, hidden within her uniform sleeve.
There were shouts of surprise and outrage at the resort to potentially lethal force, but Firefly dodged the dart with a single rapid wingbeat, taking to the sky and causing the arrow to pass harmlessly beneath; at least her opponent had sense enough to make sure there was nopony behind her when she fired! The other mare then followed up instantly by going for hidden pouches in her uniform, producing a pair of very lethal-looking stilettos. I barely had enough time to recognize them as she drew and launched them at my sister in rapid succession whilst her wings were still on the downstroke, limiting her mobility.
’Twas a perfect means for taking down aerial targets, and seeing it left me certain my sister was in trouble, as no doubt it did the other recruits. But to our astonishment she recovered very quickly, deflecting the first thrown dart, then the second with her wingblades. Her flying form was perfect, her reaction times incredible, and the skill required to intercept the blades with her own in midair was unbelievable! ’Twas only then I realized just how good my sister truly was and how much she’d held back on me during our spars!
Surprised but not yet panicked as her opponent parried her initial attacks and began to close the distance, the PSD mare reared up and drew two more blades, these long and slightly curved, standing on her hind legs like a Minotaur whilst she somehow spun them with dizzying speed around her forehooves. As they got within melee distance she caught them and then leapt forward, making several rapid and very practiced slashes at her pegasus opponent with them and the one in her mouth—she hadn’t been lying; with such superb form and speed, able to attack with three blades at once, she was clearly very well-trained in her craft! Firefly, however, was just as fast, alternately dodging or blocking her efforts with wingblades, keeping her skin intact and silver armor pristine. The action between them was so fast I could barely follow until my friend found an opening and staggered the other mare with a hard hoofstriker hit to the chin, causing her to drop her emerald blade and stumble backwards onto her haunches, holding a single curved blade in front of her at a slightly shaky guard.
I had the feeling my friend could have knocked her opponent out then or even earlier but was prolonging the battle to make a point. My hunch was confirmed when she made no move to follow up her advantage; she instead allowed the other mare to regain her bearings, who stared at her in surprise, panting hard and trying to blink away her dizziness. “Not bad…” she grudgingly admitted, pulling herself back up. “For an ignoble orphan who got lucky!”
For her part, Firefly’s only response was a raised eyeridge. To her opponent’s annoyance, she wasn’t even breathing hard, just wearing a sly smile. “Flattery gets you nowhere, recruit. Just know I learned from the best!” she glanced over at Windshear as she spoke, who couldn’t suppress another smile of his own. “Sorry to disappoint, but ’tis certain your cheap tricks won’t work here. You’re outclassed and can’t win, recruit. I’ll accept your surrender at any time!” she crossed her forelegs from her hover in a mocking manner, barely five feet away from the other mare.
“The hay I will!” Tulip Vale spat out some blood, then suddenly raised her right arm—I realized an instant too late she had a second loaded crossbow on her other foreleg! But Firefly was again the equal of the threat and by the time the bolt reached her, she had looped in the air, causing the arrow to pass harmlessly through the space she’d just been. She instantly swooped down on the other mare, knocked her down and pinned her to the ground, using her wings to anchor herself to the very air… and in an incredible feat of strength for a pegasus, forced the earth pony mare’s hoofheld blade back against her own throat!
She held the pose for a moment to make sure the PSD mare’s defeat was driven home. I couldn’t see her face, but I heard the quickening of her breathing borne of fear. “You lose,” my sister finally announced, then put her opponent down with, of all things, a headbutt! Some of the male recruits couldn’t resist stomping their hooves and cheering at that, but were quickly silenced by the barked orders of their trainers.
Leaving her vanquished opponent in the dust, she trotted over to Lieutenant Ironsides and saluted. “Sir! My apologies for making a spectacle, sir!”
“Not at all,” he said with a pleased grin, saluting back and raising his voice again so everypony could hear. “A finer demonstration of Guardspony combat abilities we could not have asked for, Sergeant First Class! And as the victor of the duel, I would leave the choice of her disposition to you,” he invited. “As she has broken the rules by smuggling in illegal weapons, we would be within our rights to not only kick her out, but arrest her and pass her over to the PSD for court-martial.”
“’Tis not necessary, sir.” To my surprise, Firefly looked back at the other mare and grinned. “Methinks it made for a more interesting duel. In truth, methinks I rather like her. She has potential and with her defeat, I daresay motivation. Punish her for rulebreaking, of course, but give her the chance to complete training. And for additional incentive, tell her I will only grant her a rematch if she does!”
“My pleasure, Sergeant!” Ironsides nodded to two lower ranked Guardspony aides who quickly took the unconscious mare to the infirmary. “Before you proceed with your inspections, have you anything else to say to our hapless new recruit class?” he invited her to continue.
“I do indeed!” Firefly accepted a blue command gem and spoke into it. “So tell me, recruits! Do you see what it is to be an Armored Guardspony now?” she asked us, her voice echoing across the entrance grounds, not looking like she’d just been through a battle in the least. “None of us were born with this level of ability! No matter how hard we trained or what we did to prepare, none of us came in here able to bear our armor, or fight at this level!” she told us, and after what we’d just witnessed, we believed her.
“The fact that we can is a product of our intense training and willingness to endure it! That we were willing to pay our dues in sweat and blood! That we would not break no matter how badly it hurt or how tired and discouraged we were! That we were willing to accept many hard lessons and painful defeats in order to learn! So make no mistake, and be under no illusions, recruits! As of this moment, none of you are Guardspony material! In the course of the next six months, you will either be forged into one… or fail trying!” she said, and I caught nods and smiles from some of the trainers. “You’re about to experience the depths of Tartarus itself, recruits. Consider it a form of purgatory; the price you must pay for reaching the Summerlands!” she finished, then proceed to interview the rest of the mare recruits no more gently than she had the first.
The Corps Sergeant and combat veteran from Outpost Alpha? “Your Wing Warrior badge cuts you no slack here! Just to look at you, ’tis certain you’d be at the bottom of my readiness rankings were you stationed at Epsilon! You’ll last but two weeks!” she told her.
The unicorn daughter of a noble who sought personal glory? “Showing up so soft and unprepared? Do you think combat is a game? And just who did your sire bribe to get you into the Guard? ’Tis clear you have no chance! Methinks you’ll quit in three days!”
The naval pegasus who proclaimed she wanted ‘to see real action’? “Then why didst you not join the Corps? Perchance because you wanted the benefits of a uniform but not the risks? Methinks you should have just stayed on your airship! Then again, when do they ever fly? You’re clearly not even up to Corps standards, so how do you think to meet the Guard’s? Ten days at most!” she sneered.
The Army earth pony mare from Stalliongrad? “Methinks the last Army mare I met had to cheat to gain her rank and post! Then again, at least she still managed to slay a Gryphon Raven despite taking a crossbow bolt to the shoulder! But you? Methinks you couldn’t even slay the weeds in your garden! Two weeks or less!”
Finally, she arrived at me. “And you!” she got into my face, her expression forced into a snarl, though I could see the agony in her eyes. “You’re a scholar and a craftspony, not a warrior! You belong in your shop or a library, not Fort Spur! So tell me, recruit… what business does a maker of whistles and wind chimes have in the Guard?” she demanded to know, and I sensed again she wasn’t just making airs.
“Ma’am, I am here to help my friend and sister, ma’am!” I told her, struggling to keep the tremor from my voice, knowing that if I broke bearing and locked eyes with her, we could both break down. Or at the very least, I would!
“To help her?” she gave a short, bitter laugh. “Such foalish sentiment! Tell me, recruit… did it ever occur to you that perchance she does not want you to be here? That she does what she does so peaceful ponies like you are spared the horrors of battle and do not have to suffer the agony of combat and killing she did?” she asked me, and I knew then she was speaking from the heart. “So why then, knowing that and all she has been through, would you still seek to join her?”
“Because I wish to help her shoulder that burden, ma’am! Because I cannot sleep at night to know that she faces it alone, ma’am!” This time, ’twas me who spoke from the heart, unable to quite keep the trembling of my lip at bay.
I could sense her heart breaking along with mine, but she still did not relent. I understood she was making clear to myself and all present that I would not be afforded any favorable treatment by her or anypony else, but ’twas still hard to hear these words coming from her. “And why? Why wouldst you do this?” she challenged. “Why would you throw away your life, your comfort, and even your business just to help one pony?”
This time, my voice did break. “Ma’am! Is that not what friends do, ma’am?”
Neither of us could say another word after that.
Thank you for your contribution, my sister. Though I cannot help but note you have, to no surprise, made it more about me than you. I know you do not seek the spotlight, but I do not wish to have it alone. The honor I have won was not possible without you, so I ask that you share it with me, and let your story be heard. ’Tis my hope you will pen many more sections to come, and readers will come to know you as well as me.
Despite my triumph in the duel, methinks I left Fort Spur that evening a broken mare.
’Twas late in the evening when Silent Night found me inside the nearly deserted Aching Drum, nursing my third apple ale. I’d not eaten, only drunk, trying to dull the pain I felt, wondering if my friendship with Wind Whistler would survive what I’d just done to her. Deep down, I knew it would, but I still felt awful for it.
I’d accomplished what I set out to do that day, but at wrenching cost. I’d said goodbye to Wind Whistler and ’twas certain I’d made a strong impression on both the stallion and mare recruits, though ’twould be a lie to say I was impressed with the latter. Aside from Wind Whistler—who I gave but a thirty percent chance of making it through at best—only the PSD mare struck me as having a chance of completing training; the motives of the rest were simply too shallow and selfish to survive. The former Master Sergeant might make it for no other reason than to spite me… if she managed to survive the first week. I had no doubt that Sergeant Major Metalbender, the head of earth pony training, was coming down very hard on her that night for insubordination and smuggling weapons into the base.
“I thought I might find you here,” my adoptive mother told me, ordering her own mug from the bar and taking a seat opposite me. She’d gotten out of her uniform, just as had I once I’d left the base, not wanting any reminders of what had just happened. “You seem troubled, my daughter. Did something happen inside the gates?” she wanted to know, a sympathetic look on her face.
“Much,” I told her dully. “Eight mares were there, and I tore down all of them. Even my own sister,” I admitted bitterly, taking another swig of drink as I spoke.
“’Twas the first day of basic. ’Tis expected that you do so. ’Tis hardly the time to be encouraging or pleasant,” Silent Night reminded me, but I only shook my head.
“I yelled at her, mother!” I answered, my voice beginning to break. “Told her things I didn’t even mean to; things that just spilled out. Told her that she was a foal for doing this, and that she belonged in a bookstore or her windchimes shop, not in the Guard. That I didn’t want her there and that I sought to protect her from the life I lived,” I gave a choked sob. “Worse, methinks I meant every word of it! And now I feel like the worst friend in the world for it.”
She stared at me for a moment before reaching out and taking my hoof in her own, placing her second over top of it. “Methinks you can be forgiven, my daughter. Methinks as well she understand and forgives you far more readily than you may think,” she patted my hoof. “Perchance you should know her decision to join the Guard was not lightly given; that we had many a long talk about it even before the holidays. In fact, ’twas word of your first battle that finally convinced her to do so; she simply could not bear the thought of you facing such peril alone whilst she sat safe at home.”
I looked up at that, blinking some tears away. “Truly?”
“Truly,” she confirmed with a smile. “Understand, your father and I were every bit as reluctant as you to support her in such an unlikely endeavor, and at first, we made much the same arguments against it as you. And indeed, she did waver for it. But when news broke of your border battle, she became far more determined. ’Twas only then I saw the necessary resolution in her eyes and knew that she would be up to the challenge. That was when we made the decision to support her. And though it may pain me greatly this night, ’twas still the right decision to make.”
She saw the continued uncertainty in my eyes, so she went on. “I know you have doubts, Firefly. ’Twould be a lie to say that deep down, I don’t as well. But I make this promise to you now—she will succeed. And I do not just say that because I am her mother or because she passed my training,” she told me, taking another sip of her drink. “Methinks I’ve been in the service long enough to judge not just strength of body, but strength of will. She will make it because, as I once told you, she has now something and somepony to fight for. She will make it because she has purpose. ’Tis thoughts of you that will sustain her during these long months, and the simple desire to stand at your side once more.”
She raised her eyes to meet mine before she spoke again. “She loves you, daughter. Loves you as both a friend and a sister. Never doubt that, or what that love can enable her to achieve.”
My eyes only got more teary at her words. Words that left no doubt as to the truth, or her mother’s feelings on the matter. “Thank you,” I acknowledged, squeezing her hoof back. “Methinks I still feel awful, though.”
“Because you love her back,” Silent Night quickly noted. “Because it hurt you to have to hurt her like that. I do not hold it against you, and in the end, neither will she. Sometimes being a friend or parent means you have to apply some tough love,” she looked down ruefully, perchance remembering what she’d put her daughter through during their three months of training. “I cannot say this enough, Firefly—I am proud of you. Proud of you both, for all you have accomplished, often for each other’s sake. A pair of finer daughters a mother could not imagine, and I look forward to seeing you both in your armor, standing together as you were always meant to.”
I hugged her hard, sniffling, letting her hold me and provide me the mother’s comfort I’d never before known. It truly did help as I felt some of my fighting spirit and appetite returning, my heart soothed at least slightly by her fervently delivered words. Pleased at my change of demeanor, she ordered us food and then sought to change the subject. “So what’s this I heard about you fighting a duel? I’m curious as to who was foalish enough to challenge you on the first day of basic?” she wanted to know when dinner arrived.
“A mare recruit from the Plainclothes Security Division,” I answered with a grin, and then proceeded to tell her the tale as we ate. “She was good—far better than I initially gave her credit for, methinks. But once I got past her blades, she had neither the strength nor speed to stand against me.”
Silent Night chuckled at that. “Methinks you shortchange yourself—and her. To defeat a mare of her rank and station so easily is an impressive achievement, daughter. Perchance you didst not realize this, but the PSD is not to be trifled with. Though they rarely see action, they train constantly and are very good at their jobs, working closely with the EIS to root out any threats to their charges and the capital itself. To that end, they have an array of toys and tricks at their disposal, many of them given by the EIS. ’Tis likely how she smuggled her weapons in, if they were in fact EIS issue, which are designed to escape magical detection. In fact, the EIS not only works closely with the PSD, they readily recruit from them… as do the Lances,” she told me, signaling for a fresh round of drink. “’Twould not be surprising to learn, therefore, that she is already an EIS agent… which may in turn mean she has an ulterior motive in joining,” my mother mused.
“’Tis a possibility,” I granted, making a mental note to pass her observations to Windshear first chance I got, for if true it implied the EIS was trying to keep tabs on the Armored Guard. “Regardless, when I get back to Epsilon, I must remember to thank Swift Strike for his training. ’Twas what enabled me to block her thrown daggers and defeat her on the ground in a blade fight so easily. But a few months earlier, I might have had more trouble.”
“As suits his name, there is none swifter than he,” Silent Night agreed, taking a gulp of her own drink. “When we were in the same unit, I sparred with him regularly and can count the number of times I bested him on just two hooves.” She chuckled and shook her head.
I looked up sharply at that, my morose mood abruptly forgotten. “You bested him?” I was astonished. “After nearly three months of daily training in blade combat with him, I still can’t!”
She raised an eyeridge back, the barest hint of a smile cracking her lips. “Of course you can’t. Methinks you don’t survive sixteen years in the Lances and scores of covert missions without reaching some very rarified levels of ability, my daughter!” she noted with some humor, then smiled more openly like an idea had just occurred to her.
“’Tis nothing to be ashamed of. So come with me, Firefly. You need some distraction, and methinks so do I. So let us leave this place and find a quiet but moonlit field with no ponies around.” She put some bits down on the table as she spoke, settling our bill.
I blinked as I got up. “For what?”
Her grin turned sly. “So that you may finally face a proper test, Sergeant First Class,” she told me simply, though I didn’t immediately take her meaning, uncertain what her suddenly addressing me by my rank meant. “After all, you’ve only fought raiders and ravens. But such enemies pale in comparison to the Lances!” she proclaimed. “Methinks ’tis time I test you, daughter. You were worthy of the Guard and Windshear, and you’ve even held your own with Swift Strike and the PSD. But let us see if you are in fact worthy of the ultimate test—that of the former commander of Lance Team Two, Sky Sergeant Silent Night!” she bared her teeth in a grin. “And besides, if you’re anything like me, then methinks you’ll agree ’tis no greater balm to a troubled mood than a rousing duel.”
Though surprised at the invitation, I couldn’t help but chuckle. “’Tis true. Aye-aye, ma’am…” I took her invitation as an order as I walked out the door with her. I knew she was right—that a good fight with somepony who could test me was probably exactly what I needed at that moment to break me out of my depression and burn off some tension. But I still couldn’t help but wonder what ordeals Wind Whistler was going through at that moment…
And if she would yet forgive me for all I’d said to her.
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Your story got featured again. Congrats.
Holy throne, that mare would have fit in with the Assassin's Creed universe if she had those hidden weapons!
Yo, Firesight, You're on the front page! And an amazing chapter, as always.
~DD
Another enjoyable chapter which adds more lore to boot. I have a feeling that there will be more of the PSD mare in coming chapters, perhaps even as a training nemesis or friend of Windshear.
Going to need to call in for backup on this one... Roseluck, Lily Valley, Linky and Twinkleshine panel discussion time!
By Molyneux's feathered crown! I am summoned at last.
Hope you're doing well, Linky!
Always! But what are yeh two doing here? Not a naughty scene t' be found!
Lily's idea. Said after all the stories I've dragged her into it was her turn to do the dragging. Can't really argue with that...
Aw, cheer up, Rose! We'll be done before you know it and you can get back to doing what you do best.
Well it's abou' time yeh started slingshooting again! Winter is coming and we need our sniper back.
I don't think that's what she meant, Linky. But I'll come back this year. (Going to have to face Blossomforth eventually...)
Well said, sister. But as yeh later point out, sometimes, no matter how well yehr intentions, war comes to everypony.
I couldn't do it.
Me either! Slinging snowballs and dodging the occasional spell or thrown object from a jealous rival is one thing. Hating somepony enough to actually kill them? Nope!
If it came down to it, I'm afraid I'd have to fight. After all my study in defensive magic, I'd be drafted on the first call to arms. (sigh) So much rather do my fighting with a keyboard...
Or kebab is being removed. But that's usually accompanied by a Casio keyboard and an accordion
Ooo! I'm imagining Steelhooves before he got turned into a ghoul pony.
derpicdn.net/img/2016/5/31/1167080/large.png
Luna help us, not that story! How in tartarus did you make it through that without feinting!?
I imagined I was Homage during the implied sex scenes...
Ha! I like the cut of yehr jib, Lily!
So many dead ponies...
All that death and no explicit description of sex! Useless... USELESS!
Rose, you need to let it go...
Well I'll be...
Lily is that... you?
Heh... yep, it's me, everypony. Or rather my great, great, great... you get the idea.
I kin totally see it! The ability t' blend in with yehr surroundings; the quiet demeaner; the inner rage... yeh've a warrior's soul very, very deep down.
I DO NOT HAVE RAGE ISSUES!
Imagine having to regulate such things in a universe where Pinkie Space exists.
vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/cottitans/images/6/6b/Atlanta.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20100801142000
Energy version aside, I had this character in mind when considering how an earth pony crossbow would work. As an aside, the first season of Class of the Titans is pretty cool. It also got me accustomed to flash animation in cartoons which came in handy when MLP came into my life. Thanks Canada!
i742.photobucket.com/albums/xx61/aaramsch/CanadanceSaysThanks_zps6f5f7aca.png
Back to the pony panel...
She found a box of sharp objects. What a beautiful thiiiing!
To think all these years I was risking a sharp, pointy death at the hands of her descendant!
Who says you've managed to escape me entirely?
Touche!
If it wouldae been anypony else, they'd be dead as fried chicken. Dagger Lily fought very well and displayed an unusual, but promising, tactic that not on'y overcame equine limitations, but accentuated her strength by allowing her to strike down on her opponent at melee range while affording her the ability t' maneuver — albeit more clumsily than if she were charging on all fours. Pure, dead brilliant!
Ooosh!
I'm sure I could last for at least a month. I've slain all kinds of weeds!
Woohoo!
Yeah she is pretty cool. Wish I was that cool...
Maybe it's for the best you aren't that cool, Lily.
7702162
You girls forgot the linked bonus chapter didnt you?
7700695
7700782
Seriously guys, we've had the update feature for years now. Once you make it on that you'll likely always make it on it when you update. I know you guys mean well... But you're going to be a broken record if you post that every time.
I always like seeing this update. I just wish you'd update at some point that's convenient for me. I always have to wait to read this, usually because you update this before I go to work and can't give it the attention it deserves.
7702247 Not part of FoE proper and therefore not canon. A Mare Worth Fighting For was written by Pacce. Don't get me wrong, I did enjoy it. In my favorites, actually.
7703302
it DID get included in the second printing though
7700695
Thanks! Nor for long this time, unfortunately. Stayed on the list for just half an hour. When I've been lucky or timed it right, it's stayed up for several hours and get at least a handful of new likes out of it.
7700729
You know, I honestly wasn't thinking of Assassin's Creed when I wrote this, but you're right. it's right out of it! Guess that's one more thing I've accidentally referenced in addition to Fallout Equestria...
7702069
You think correctly! Though I would imagine her relationship with Firefly would be more adversarial to start. Firefly may like her, but right now all Tulip Vale is thinking is "I'll show her!" If she can make it through that first week of training, accept her defeat and lose her ego, she might just have a chance...
7702316
Thanks! But what am I do with a hundred million spikestaches?
7702162
Welcome, and have a seat, ladies! I just hope you're far less liberal and catty than the four girls on The View...
Actually, Queen Molyneux will be invited to watch a special viewing of the first movie when it's completed! Celestia will come on a state visit for the occasion and visit their war memorials, both old and new...
Yeah, what's up with that? It's not like there's any interest here in shipping, say, Firefly and Blindside...
Wrestling fillyfoolers and pretending you're not one?
Be very afraid, Rose!
I tried joining the navy once. I didn't belong and my reasons for being there were poor. It ended badly. But having had the experience, I have a lot more respect for those who can and do.
DItto, girl. I'm only lethal with words. But I've also found that arguing online with people is a battle that should generally not be fought because it's almost impossible to win.
Cannot unsee Milosovic endlessly sipping his water...
I was actually thinking more along the lines of Patton, but that version of him works too! Wait... ghoul pony...?
Ah. FoE yet again. The story I seem to unintentionally reference repeatedly without even having read it...
Now now, I think I've given you plenty of explicit descriptions in other stories, fillyfriend! And just for you, I'll do an explicit pony/griffin scene! *ducks for cover from slingshot-fired snowball*
*begins to sing before Linky slaps a hoof over his mouth*
Couldn't be! Surely I wouldn't go so far as to claim a fainting florist had a badass ancestor, would I...?
You're taking this surprisingly well, Lily! No scream, faint, or horror pose. Could it be that you're... proud?
*holds up hands defensively* OKAY! Okay! I believe you, just... please stay from that cutlery drawer!
There IS no defense against Pinkie Space! Not even Phoenix Wright could escape it on Earth!
I know! Where would we in the states be without Poutine?
I've seen just two episodes of that series. It was interesting. Kind of surprised it hasn't been tried down here.
I just know I'll never see her with clipping shears or even a butter knife the same way again!
Well, what's to say I don't have an ancestor in mind for you too, Rosy?
True! After all, Tulip Vale was a very patient predator...
Don't have an ancestor in mind for you, Linky, because the Caleponians don't exist yet, but fear not. I'll find a way. I'm sure you've seen enough of my writing by now to know I always do...
*Lily rears up and takes her horror pose* Humans fry chicken???
Now that's the Lily we know and love!
Thanks for saying so! You'll get to see the PSD in action as the story progresses, and not just this mare. I have a plan for their best use and disposition in the conflict, and it is one the gryphons will NOT like...
Really? I thought you were just a stallionslayer, Rose...
But you know she's going to start practicing twirling knives around her hooves now...! Hey, Lily, the movie is still casting! So maybe you should try out for the role of Tulip Vale...?
7703401 Huh. Didn't know that. I really only know the story from the internet.
7703473 I was half asleep writing that comment. Took me forever to type that out!
I agree, I probably should have thrown in a bit of "le horror" from Lily at the fried chicken bit. But as an avid comic reader and lover of strong mares — she did fall for Golden Harvest, after all! — I do think at least my version of Lily Valley would be secretly proud of having a warrior ancestor. Just so long as Lily herself wasn't expected to live up to her legacy!
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7704289 Kkat said the bonus chapter is canon
7724104 Alright! Alright!
You've already heard the accolades for your admittedly good writing, so I won't waste mach time trying to add to an already old chorus. HOWEVER, you've used "pegasi" in a lot of places where the singular (pegasus) is needed instead. Especially here:
Please keep an eye on that.
9208710
Thanks! But you’re right.
Using Pegasi instead of Pegasus is another bad habit of mine. I’m going through and looking for such occurrences now.
9208710
I’ve gone through all the chapters and, I believe, fixed them all.
It's nice to see things from Wind Whistler's POV I hope that there will be more of that later on.
9428785
There will, but in context of her character, she’s modest and unassuming; doesn’t like to draw attention to herself. For that reason, she’ll contribute only infrequently, but when she does, you know it’s because she’ll have some serious war stories to tell.
Video link for "To share a burden" is broken.
Damn... The Royal Guard are highly trained and go even so far as keep EIS out of them... Damn nice!
To beat a Assasination trained enemy. Nice!
11134330
Yep. Needless to say, this isn’t the modern Royal Guard whose function is ceremonial and skills are rather suspect, but an olden, far more effective one meant to serve as shock troops.
That’s how good she is by now, as our anything-but-hapless PSD mare found out.