• Published 15th Jul 2019
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The Centurion Project - TheEighthDayofNight



Elias "Rubrum Aquilae" Bright, the former leader of the Legio I Americana, on the run from his past, finds himself thrown into the conflicts of Equestria.

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Chapter 36: Training Begins

Elias walked calmly, moving at his casual pace. Nobody was at his side, and if all things were well, the ponies that were supposed to be would be standing with the rest, their armor polished till it shined in the early morning sun. It was going to be a very long day, but Elias would be lying if he said he wasn’t a bit excited. It was time to get started, time to start breaking his recruits. After he and Book Binder had went through the stack of applications case by case, they had come up with no less than six thousand recruits. It had surprised both Elias, as well as the other generals, that his recruitment had been so successful. Not a single other guard force could boast the fresh numbers he could, and Elias still wasn’t quite sure why his campaign had been so successful. He had brought in a few recruits for interviews, but their answers had been vague, and they seemed more in awe of his facial scar than anything else. Only after a talk with Celestia had he discovered that his name had become attached to a silly rumor that was quickly turning into a small legend. Elias Bright, the Human Hero of Canterlot they were calling him, and a quick glance at their recruitment posters showed that he and Book Binder had used his full name under the contact information. Apparently, it gave credibility to their recruitment statement; “Serve with the best!”

Either way, after weeding out those with existing guard family members, as well as those who didn’t meet the health requirements, Elias had an army of recruits, and so the true tests could begin. Much like the test his fledgling legion was currently taking, that of patience. On the battlefield, waiting for the enemy to appear was common, and if the ponies fell asleep on their feet waiting for a measly three hours before dawn, they wouldn’t be fit for him. All of the veterans should have lasted easily, but the fresh recruits… Elias had a plan. All was going to go well. He had accounted thoroughly for every occurrence, every little step they would need to take to become masterful fighters. He had their training planned out to the second, and every single instance would be punishing, driving them toward their breaking points. Only the strong would be beside him at the end, and Elias knew that this time, he would get it right. He had to.

Elias pushed through the doors leading to the training yard. Under one arm was his helmet, its bright red plume straight and clean. The silvery steel shined in the morning light, as did all of his armor. His bad eye was out for all to see, and as he took the long way toward the stage set above the training grounds, he made sure every pony in the front row of the legion could get a good look at it. The set of glasses Luna had commissioned for him waited on the table on the stage, but Elias wanted everyone to see his bad eye, wanted them to know exactly what their “legend” looked like. There was a time and a place for hiding the thick black scar, and the blue changeling eye, but it would not do to hide it in front of his potential legionaries. By the end of training, he would know them all by name, and they would know him personally as both friend and commander. It was the only way he knew to make sure he had absolute command in their minds, above even the princesses.

As Elias stalked past the ponies, he saw more than one set of nervous eyes follow his movement, but they wisely didn’t move their necks. No doubt the work of Night Flash or Book Binder. Still, it was a positive sign that they were showing initiative to improve the discipline of his recruits, even on the first day of training. Elias reached the end of the line, then grunted in a mild display of satisfaction. He turned on his heel and walked briskly to the stage, taking the steps two at a time. Book Binder, Night Flash, Ice Blossom, and Gray Granite waited at the top, all decorated fully in their legionnaire armor. None of them moved as Elias cast an inspecting eye over them. Picking one at random, Elias stared down Gray Granite, and when the pony simply stared back without flinching, Elias nodded and moved to his table, setting his helmet down. He pulled his illusory glasses from their carrying case and put them on, feeling a slight warm sensation roll down his face. Though he couldn’t see it, Elias knew that his bad eye now mirrored his normal one, and that the scar was no longer made of chitin. Instead, the long cut was merely pale scar tissue, marking his face clearly, just without the changeling-esque enhancements.

Elias had actually gotten used to the eye already. Waking up with the strange looking thing had become a norm, and with his focus on being a general, he had become used to the stares he received. Fear on first contact was a useful weapon, and when he didn’t get something he needed, he could intimidate whoever denied him into submission. On top of that, Elias noticed subtle things about the eye. Luna claimed that it would function just as his other eye did, yet Elias swore he could see better in the dark with his bad eye. In addition, Elias began noticing slight ripples around the royal guards whenever they had their illusory enchantments activated. It wasn’t like he could see through the magic, but he could definitely tell it was there. He had told Scalpel about it, and the unicorn had set up a few tests. Through trial and error, the pair had theorized that Elias could only see illusion magic through his bad eye, something that made Elias incredibly happy. There would be no more replaced friends on his watch, and any changelings that tried would be dead before they knew what hit them. It was a useful tool.

Elias looked over his equipment for a moment, inspecting his wrist guards to ensure that they were on straight. He needed the ponies to sweat, needed them to realize he neither valued them, nor their time. They needed to be nothing before he could make them something. He would say so in as many words of course, but they needed to come up with the idea first, needed to learn that they didn’t matter to him, not yet.

Quietly, and without turning around, Elias asked;

“Adiutor, have all of our training uniforms been delivered?”

Book Binder nodded.

“Yes General, the Manehattan blacksmiths delivered everything yesterday. Anyon tried to stop them, and then when I told him why we went outside the castle for the gear, he huffed but accepted my response. He lodged a formal complaint with me and wishes to know when he’s going to receive the armor order for the rest of the legion.”

Elias nodded as he massaged a callous on his hand.

“Tell him in approximately two months. I should have the early weapons estimates in three weeks, but the armor needs to wait. It’s going to be costly stuff, and I don’t need him wasting his time and talent on armor for soldiers that don’t exist. Not even half of this lot will last the week.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Elias noticed a few ponies bristle at the insult. He made note of their faces, made sure to remember them in detail for when they failed. Failures deserved insults, and until any of them proved they could succeed, he would insult them freely. Just another way to break them down.

Book Binder made a quick note in her leather-bound appointment book, then quickly slid the book back into her saddlebags, straightening back to attention as soon as she was finished. That was good, he wouldn’t have to single her out yet. The first time it happened to his old friends was going to hurt, especially for Night Flash and Book Binder. Elias took a deep breath and ignored the feelings he felt. It didn’t matter. When it needed to be done, he would do it. They knew what they were risking, he had warned them in full. There was simply no more time for warnings or feelings, now it was time to be General Bright.

Elias looked out across the assembled ponies with a scowl, clasping his hands behind his back. Without turning around, Elias said;

“First Centurion Flash, Centurions Blossom and Granite, join the recruits in their blocks. First Centurion at the center, Centurions Blossom and Granite, go to your cohorts.”

To their credit, all three moved swiftly from the stage, and Night Flash found his spot quite easily. Blossom and Granite moved too slow however, with the former getting momentarily confused as she searched for her assigned place. She fell into line, and Elias was pleased to note a bead of sweat on the pegasus’ face as he began approaching with even steps. Book Binder followed him off the stage, standing just to the left of it as Elias stalked forward. Getting close to Ice Blossom, Elias didn’t bother looking down at her, and instead looked out over his recruits.

“Do you know where you have failed Centurion?” Elias asked quietly.

The pegasus nodded silently. A mistake on her part. Elias’ voice hit the air like a hammer on an anvil, a powerful shout that cut through the training grounds, and made many of the recruits flinch.

“If you know your mistake Centurion, then why have you not begun your punishment?” Elias roared in her face. “It is within your duties to distribute punishment for failure, that includes your own. If you cannot have enough foresight to grasp the full scope of your duties, I will find someone who will, am I clear?”

Ice Blossom nodded.

“Yes General.”

“THEN WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU STILL STANDING HERE?” Elias shouted.

She took off like a shot, bolting for the training ground gates. Elias knew she would do the full lap of the city. Blossom was a rock-solid guard, and he was happy to have her as a centurion. He just needed the example that nobody was free from punishment, and from the looks of some of the recruits, they understood that lesson clearly.

Elias let his face become neutral as he began pacing at the front of the formation.

“Good morning recruits,” Elias called evenly. “Welcome to your first day of training. Adiutor Binder has already taken attendance, and while I have not looked at her work, I trust her completely. If you are still here, then that means you were here on time, a good first step. Those that were late should have been rejected at the gate, and rest assured, if I find someone here that was late, there will be consequences.”

He stopped before a bright yellow pony with neon green hair. It was a strange coloration combo, but Elias didn’t particularly care about that. He was much more interested in the nervous look in her eyes, and the quake in the pony’s knees. It might just have been because of his close presence, but the pony was a step away from breaking down. Elias stared at her for a moment, then resumed looking above the ponies’ heads.

“If there is anyone here who was late, or feels that they no longer belong in my legion, now is the time to back out without punishment. If you wait for even a second too long, you will be whipped before I throw you out. Step forward if you have decided that this is not for you.”

Elias waited calmly as a few ponies slipped out of the formation and trotted with their heads down to the front of the formation. Elias extended a hand toward Book Binder, and the unicorn pulled out a list, crossing off names as the ponies left. Elias glanced down at the pony before him. She no longer had her eyes locked on him, but was watching the ponies who were leaving in disbelief. Elias glanced at the small line, then back to the pegasus before him.

“Thinking about quitting? There’s no shame in it, yet.”

The yellow pegasus blinked at his words, then she shook her head.

“N-no sir. I signed up for a reason. I have to give it my best, even if I fail in the end. I won’t quit on the first day.”

Elias cocked his head.

“But you will on the second?”

The pony shook her head.

“The third then? Perhaps the fourth day? At what point will you become a quitter? You mentioned quitting on the first day like that is somehow better or worse than quitting on the fifth, or the sixth day. At what point do you think that I should find it acceptable to quit? At what point will you decide to stop wasting my time? Are you going to quit on me? Are you going to let me, my legion, and everyone around you down? Are you going to quit?”

Her ears pinned to the side of her head and she looked down. Elias waited calmly as he watched her think. Her emotions flashed clearly through her eyes, and when she glanced back up, Elias saw steel in her gaze.

“No sir, I won’t quit. I have to do my best.”

Elias nodded and looked out across the legion.

“Good. We’ll see how long that attitude will last. Report to Adiutor Binder, you will help her distribute the training armor.”

The pegasus nodded, then dipped around him at a brisk trot. Elias didn’t bother watching her go. He instead began pacing between the rows of ponies, looking for signs of weakness.

“For those of you who have decided to stay,” Elias said loudly, his voice easily carrying through the training grounds, “your window for leaving shame-free is closing. Adiutor Binder will soon begin passing out your training equipment, and with it will come your legion number, and your legion helmet. Once you receive these items, you will officially be a legion recruit, and any action you take will have the potential to reflect poorly on my legion.”

Elias turned around sharply, his face twisting into a snarl.

“I do not take kindly to those who make my legion look bad, and in time, neither will those of you who survive to become legionaries.”

A few more ponies slipped out of formation; their dignity gone as they raced for Book Binder. Perhaps it was the word survive, but Elias was glad to see them go. If they couldn’t handle his hard talk, they wouldn’t survive his brutal training. He continued pacing silently, frequently making eye contact with some of the ponies that were twitchy. A few withered under his eyes and slunk away, but most did their best to meet his gaze and stay in formation.

Once the weakest had quit and left the training area, Elias continued his pacing, ensuring that nobody else was going to leave. When nobody did, and he could no longer find the immediate signs of weakness, Elias spoke again.

“Those of you that are left, your opportunity to leave without shame has passed. Know that from this moment forth you are my recruits, and as such, you will not leave my legion without my say so. Punishment can be expected from quitting, because not only are you making me, and by extension my legion bad, you are making those around you look bad. You have taken my name by remaining, and I promise you that if you make my name look bad, I will make you sorry for it.”

Elias hear an audible gulp, but upon stopping to glance around, he found nobody that looked nervous enough to have made the noise. Elias let his face fall into a scowl, then began walking slowly toward the front.

“Listen well now recruits, because I do not repeat myself, and anyone found ignorant of their orders will be found guilty of disobeying them and will be punished as such.”

He signaled for Book Binder, Night Flash, Gray Granite, and the recruit pegasus to begin passing out the training armor. As the first ponies received their gear, Elias made his voice rise to a shout. It was unnecessary, but he saw a few recruits growing lax, and that wouldn’t do.

“Your first lesson as recruits in my command is that you are all worthless to me! Whatever you have accomplished before now, whoever your family may be, none of it matters. Not to me, not to your officers, and not to your princesses, though they may lie to your face to make you feel better.”

Wisely, nobody chuckled. It was a good sign for so early in the day, it meant they were actually listening to his words, his tone. Elias resisted the urge to grin with satisfaction.

“Because a number of you won’t last the month, I will not bother to learn your name. I don’t give a rat’s ass about your special talent, because unless I deem it so, it is unimportant. I will be giving you a new special talent, and that talent will be to follow orders. You are not ponies, you are bodies in a machine. You have one purpose here, to fight. My purpose here is to teach you how to do so, and the best I way I know how is to make sure every step you take is a battle.”

Elias motioned to the ponies in the front row who were beginning to put on the dull grey training armor.

“What your officers are giving out is your training armor. You will become best friends with this armor, because if you are anything less, you will be punished. This is the equipment you will wear at all times when you are not either sleeping, or bathing. If you are eating, you will be in armor. If you are running, you will be in armor.”

Elias spun on his heel, causing a blue earth pony to his left to flinch.

“If you are taking a shit, you will be wearing your armor, and you will ensure that you apologize to it for the inconvenience. This armor will shine when you are done cleaning it, and you, and you alone will be responsible for its maintenance. Your officers will conduct an inspection every morning, ensure that if it does become damaged, you fix it by then.”

Elias’ ears picked up a small gasp of shock as Ice Blossom bolted back into the training grounds. She was covered in sweat, but she took one glance at her fellow officers, and she moved to the stage, dragging out a larger crate. She cracked open the top, and then she passed out the “specialized” gear. Elias smirked at the sight of some disbelieving faces as the ponies beheld the wing binders, horn nullifiers, and weighted vests he had commissioned. Elias turned about and continued his speech.

“Because each of you have no value, and because none of you are special, you shall all be equals until I say otherwise. You will not have special talents, or magical strengths to make you exceptional in my eyes. Instead, you will persevere, you will show inner strength, of will, of intelligence. If you can do that, then I might give you your specialties back.”

Elias cocked his head and shrugged.

“Maybe.”

Taking a breath, he continued.

“For the pegasi, you shall receive wing binders. Too many of you are reliant on your wings, and that will not do. I need you to fight on the ground with everyone else, and so I shall keep you grounded until you learn to fight without your precious wings. For the unicorns, it is the same issue, but with your horns. It is high time to start using your hooves, and if you feel like you already know how use your hooves, then congratulations, this shouldn’t be a challenge for you.”

“For the earth ponies,” Elias said, then paused. He snorted. “You’re magically strong. There isn’t much I can do to hinder that, other than to push you harder. You will receive weighted vests to push you as hard as everyone else.”

A unicorn stepped out of line from the back with a look of disgust on his face.

“Alright, if nopony else is going to say something, then I will. This is crazy, not to mention illegal. You can’t expect us to go through all of this crap just because you’re some weird, monkey looking thing. It isn’t fair, and I for one won’t stand for it.”

Elias watched Gray Granite drop his crate and begin striding with purpose toward the errant unicorn. The armored pony opened his mouth to no doubt verbally punish the unicorn, but Elias raised a hand to keep him silent.

“No words Centurion, just seize him. Give him 10 lashes for speaking out of turn. Then give him a helmet and make him wait by the stage. Tell me when you’re finished.”

Gray Granite nodded grimly, and the unicorn gave Elias a look of horror as the armored earth pony grabbed him by the tail, forcing him toward the front. Elias didn’t watch, and instead waited in silence for the sound of the flog. It was another test, one that he needed to ensure that the ponies could go through with. If his hand was the only one distributing martial punishment, the ponies would resent him, and they wouldn’t see the reason of why they were getting beaten. They needed to understand, and as the first crack and cry split the air, Elias knew that Granite was going to excel in his role. Elias would have to watch for blindness when following orders, but otherwise, Elias knew the earth pony would have what it took. The beating progressed mechanically, with each crack of the whip sounding no less forceful than the first hit.

Elias walked through the now stunned rows of ponies. Even a few of the former guards looked shaken up, but Elias didn’t care. They would become desensitized in time, or they would leave, and the legion would be stronger for it. Elias began slowly pacing toward the front.

“This little demonstration brings me to my next point. There is no task that I will ask you to do that I will not do myself. You will have your restrictions, and so will I. I have no magical abilities however, no wings, no horn, no magic strength or connection to the earth. I have no magic whatsoever. Everything I do is by my own strength, and I shall say this clearly for all to here; that strength is worthless.”

Elias got to the front row and stopped as the last crack split the air. The flog was designed to merely be painful, to do little more than leave welts on the back of the pony it was being used on, yet the unicorn who had spoken out was weeping like he had been branded. It was pathetic. Elias watched with no sympathy as Granite untied him from the whipping pole and dragged him toward the center stage, shoving a helmet into his hooves as he forced the unicorn to stand up straight. Elias decided to let the pony stew with his pain for a moment. Elias looked out to the assembled legion.

“You are all worthless alone, but so am I. Personal success matters not at all in my legion, because if we cannot succeed as a group, then we are already dead. If you believe you are not capable enough to pull your weight here, then this,” he said, motioning to the large bell beside the stage, “is for you. Name it what you like, but this is for the failures and the quitters. I need only those of you who are strong enough in body and mind to seize victory. Those whose mind gives out before their body are not fit to fight with me, and I will be saving your life by sending you home.”

Elias motioned for Granite to bring the whipped pony forward. The unicorn whimpered loudly and tried to shy away from Elias, but the human didn’t make any moves to harm him further. He instead gently took the training helmet from the pony’s grasp and raised it into the air.

“This is a symbol of your commitment to the legion. In time, it will be replaced with an actual helmet, but I will not piss away the royal treasury on making real armor for quitters. Should you last the month, the real training will begin; everything else is merely to push you to the breaking point.”

Elias gave the helmet back to the pony, and kneeled beside him. Softly, he said;

“Take your helmet and place it next to the bell, then ring it and go home. You’re done here.”

The pony sniffled and nodded. Elias stood up and waited while the pony set the helmet down carefully, no doubt trying to prevent further punishment. He then took the bell rope in his teeth and gave it a solid yank. The bell rang once, and Elias motioned for Granite to escort the pony out of the training grounds. Elias then looked to the assembled formation of recruits.

“To ring the bell means that you accept your failure. It is, in fact, the ultimate acceptance of your inadequacy as a soldier, because rest assured, those that make it through my training will be the finest soldiers Equestria has ever seen. Once you have rung this bell, you will not be allowed to return to my legion, ever.”

Elias stepped away from the lone helmet and began his pacing anew.

“I can see already that some of you wish to quit after that little punishment, but you will wait. I told you that your last opportunity to leave without shame left, and so it has. Everyone here will know of your failure, so stand up straight and try to act like you have pride. I assure you that you do not.”

Gray Granite trotted back to the crate of training armor and continued passing it out without a hitch. Elias watched him move for a moment, then continued to the final portion of his speech. He knew he had conveyed how rough he was going to be, but without a light at the end of the tunnel, most, if not all the ponies would quit. They needed a reason why they were fighting, and Elias appreciated that heavily. In his experience with humans, they didn’t really need a solid reason to fight, they just did so based on some primal instinct. Perhaps ponies were more civilized in that regard, likely the result of either their magic, or the fact that they were considered “prey” animals. Either way, Elias knew how to fire up the strong ponies, and he would wait while the weak saw themselves out.

“I shall always be honest with you recruits. I shall always give you a detailed summary of what I, and the other generals are doing, and you shall always have a clear picture of why we are doing what we are doing. This fall, we, as well as the rest of the guard forces, will be conducting a march to the capital city of Saddle Arabia. The reason is to establish a magical portal linking their capital with Canterlot in order to create lasting peace to our west in the minotaur lands. The princesses believe that Chrysalis and her ilk raised their army with love stolen from the main tradeway, so think of this all as a roundabout method of revenge against those black-shelled bastards.”

The word revenge caused some stares to harden into glares as the ponies steeled themselves. More than a few of them were Canterlot locals, or at least had family in the city. It was an easy rally point for the ponies, and as he continued pacing, Elias could tell that it was a blemish on the national pride of the Equestrians. Nobody launched an invasion on Equestria, and if they did, they certainly didn’t try to gun for three princesses at the same time. Understanding about his prominent facial scar seemed to dawn in some eyes, and a few nervous looks disappeared. Good, they were beginning to figure it out.

“Every action you take will be with purpose,” Elias said without pause. “Before you will act, you will think. My orders are law, but nobody is perfect, and even I need the occasional course correction. In time, you will be able to tell when I am right and wrong, but for now, I am always right. If I tell you to jump, your only response should be to ask how high. You are in my legion, and therefore you are mine. I will decide where you go, and what you do, and I will determine if you even belong here. The next few months will be the most punishing and rewarding months of your lives if you’re willing to toughen up and power through.”

Elias made his way to the front of the formation.

“Those of you that survive to the end will be the best of the best. You will be legionaries. Soldiers of the eagle, of the Legio I Equus.”

Upon the verbal que, Book Binder peeled away from the formation, leaving the rest of the officers to distribute the training equipment. Moving behind the stage, the unicorn quickly dragged out a tall pair of standards. The first, a rearing pony made of pure gold, shined brightly in the morning sun, making it almost difficult to look at. The second was the legion standard, matching the standard of his earthen legion near perfectly, save for the letters that decorated it. The golden eagle was also slightly larger, with its wings spread fully as it shimmered and flapped in the light breeze. Elias smiled lightly as he looked upon both images with pride. Soon, he would have soldiers worthy of both banners. He had a lot of work to do in the interim.

Elias took the standard first, holding it into the air with one arm.

“This is your symbol. Your every action will be done under this banner, respect it, because nations will come to either fear or respect this symbol. I strive for both.”

Passing Book Binder the standard, Elias took the pony and raised it into the air.

“This is your representation of Equestria. This is your princess, your home, your family. This represents everything you strive to protect. On the battlefield, should you ever feel doubt, should you ever feel fear, then look to the golden pony, because it is the hopes and prayers of everyone you love, it is the guarantee of coming home. You will honor it, you will fight for it, you may even die for it!”

Elias passed the golden pony back to Book Binder and re-clasped his hands behind his back.

“In time, two of you shall have the privilege of carrying these standards into battle, and make no mistake, it is an honor. Should we lose either of these standards, then I can safely say that we will be lost. The two ponies chosen to carry these standards will be the best of us, and they will act as the honor guard. If you want that to be you, then push yourself to your breaking point and beyond. Soar for new heights that you couldn’t imagine in your wildest dreams.”

Elias paused, looking out over the recruits for hopefuls. He saw a few eyes that were transfixed by the shiny gold of the standard, of the legion pony. That had been a small change that Elias knew would make a big impact. The eagle meant a lot in Roman culture, and while a significant symbol for the legion to have, Elias knew that the ponies would rally better if one of their standards was more meaningful to them from the start. In time both would be theirs, but they needed to see themselves in their legion, and replacing the legion eagle with a legion pony was a small sacrifice to make for unity of action and purpose.

His officers finished passing out the training equipment, so Elias made his final offer for freedom.

“If any of you have heard my words today and decided that you do not have what it takes to be the best, and that you do not wish to serve with the best, then please step forward now and place your helmet next to the bell.”

Three shifted out of the formation, the training gear sitting on their backs. Two of them gave Elias arrogant glares as they stalked past. Likely they thought they were above him, but what they thought didn’t matter, they were the ones who were quitting. All three set down their helmets, but the first pony decided to be a rebel. As soon as he kicked dirt on his training helmet, Ice Blossom was on the pony, dragging him to the whipping post. Granite made the other two wait while the cracks of the whip went out over the formation. The other two ponies flinched with each yelp and cry, but the mild beating soon ended. Ice Blossom gave the rebel no break as she dragged him back to his helmet. Setting the pony up straight, she jabbed a hoof at the scuffed helmet.

“You wanna leave? Fine, but show some respect, the princesses payed far too much money for this equipment for you to kick dirt on it,” Ice Blossom spat.

The pony cringed, though whether it was from fear of another whipping, or the pegasus’ tone, Elias didn’t know, and he didn’t care. The rebel picked up the helmet with his teeth, then gently set it by the bell. He then looked back to Blossom, who motioned toward the rope, and with an almost shy look, the pony let loose the second ring of the day. Elias knew that many would soon follow. The other two ponies quickly, and carefully set down their helmets, then rang the bell. Granite fell in beside them, removing their training gear, and then Book Binder escorted them out, recording their names on the roster.

Elias watched all of it with an impassive stare. The weakest had been weeded out, but now it was time to get to work on the next group, and then the next. He looked to the formation and scowled.

“This morning, you will be getting familiar with one another, your officers, and your new quarters. First however, you will be familiar with me. You may address me as General, or General Bright. Sir is saved for the normal guards. Do note, if you call me sir, that is grounds for punishment. I would learn the ranks of everyone above you quickly.”

He took one more look over his recruits, then nodded in satisfaction. It wasn’t a bad start, and the morning was only just beginning.

“With that out of the way; Centurions! Get the recruits in formation, we’re going for a run.”

*****

Elias rolled his shoulder as he stalked back toward his office. In his hand was the members report; they were already down nearly two hundred. His early estimates for recruitment had been spot on, with six thousand meeting his strict requirements. While only a dozen or two left before training had even started, the rest had started dropping like flies as he introduced the ponies to his punishing endurance training. Each day started with a lap of the entirety of Canterlot, followed by physical fitness tests through the obstacle course he and Blossom had designed. It was an incredibly difficult, nigh impossible course, even for him, and every time the ponies “failed” he sent them on another lap of the city. He had personally counted thirty quitting just from that effort.

After running them half to death in the morning, Elias let his officers handle them over lunch. He gave them a lengthy first day break; a full two hours to eat, then settle into the freshly built recruit quarters. Elias had made sure to skimp on cost for the recruit buildings, providing only the barest of essentials. The buildings were little more than long barns with plumbing, and the beds were simple cots and blankets. The legionnaire quarters would be far nicer, but until more of the ponies quit, Elias wasn’t going to waste effort, or money on them.

The afternoon started with another lap of Canterlot, this time in their “packs”, which consisted of rubble loaded into saddlebags. The entire time, Elias ran ahead, behind, and beside his recruits, hurling insults at them. Two had broken down and cried, while another one had snapped and had tried attacking Elias. After a very public beating in the Canterlot streets, Elias had carried the unconscious pony over his shoulder the rest of the way, balancing the pony’s weight with his saddlebags. Two more bells were rung, with his attacker thrown into the stockade for the night. Raw, violent anger was a tool Elias could utilize; he just hoped the pony would learn his lesson by morning.

After the run came basic combat training. The real phalanx training wouldn’t start for another month or so, but while some of the ponies had their guard training, others were starting fresh, they needed to know how to fight when the formation disintegrated, or when they became isolated. Elias spent most of that time observing, ensuring that his officers were being hard on the recruits. Gray Granite caught his eye more than once. It was like the pony had been waiting to step into the role of the hardened, battle-ready centurion, goading the recruits against each other, and when the ponies had enough and began fighting amongst themselves, he stepped in expertly, showing them some new move, or strategy to grapple their opponent. His cohort saw the best cohesion and already Elias could spot the weak links and the rising stars. It had earned the earth pony a compliment, which he beamed at. Then one of his recruits stepped out of line, and the centurion came out again, sending the pony out on another lap of the city.

Elias’ part in the day ended with a briefing to all of the recruits, passing out the first version of the official legion manual, which included the basics of everything they would learn in time. It ranged from basic battle strategy and chain of command, to the grooming standards and dress code. For some reason, three more recruits left after he read through that section, declaring his requirements “tyrannical” simply because the tunics they were required to wear would cover their cutie marks, as if the armor wasn’t already doing that. Again though, Elias was glad to be rid of them. If minute, nothing issues caused them problems, he didn’t want them anywhere near a battlefield.

Elias rubbed his sweaty forehead. In terms of a first day, it had been an excellent start, and with two Royal Guards taking care of the standards for the night, the recruits would be prepared for the next day. Maybe it would work. Maybe he could do it right this time. Elias snorted dismissively at his optimism, and pushed open the door to his office to find an unwelcome sight.

Celestia waited calmly with her rump in his chair, and the sight of the alicorn enraged Elias. That was his chair damnit! He didn’t need some fluffy pony sitting in it! A vaguely familiar pony sat across from her in Book Binder’s chair, and the pony flinched as Elias entered the room. Luna looked up from where she had been pacing behind his desk, and a flicker of a smile passed over her face before it settled into her professional mask.

Elias did the same, letting his hands fall behind his back as he stared at the ponies that were in his office without permission.

“Princess Luna, Princess Celestia, I did not expect to see you here, is there something you needed from me?”

Celestia sighed and shuffled in Elias’ chair. It almost made him smile. Of course it wasn’t comfortable, it wasn’t designed with a pony in mind.

“I have received some rather disturbing news General, and I wanted to ensure that things were going well with your first day with your new recruits.”

Elias smoothly slid the day’s reports from his satchel and leafed through them.

“I believe things have gotten off to a fantastic start. My officers are exceeding my expectations for this early stage of training, and I don’t see discipline within their ranks being an issue." He flipped a page and frowned. "Additionally, I am happy to report that the costs for my legions armor and weapons can already be decreased from my early estimates. It is my intention to speak with Anyon tonight to see about beginning the initial armor fittings, and to see if he has any further improvements on my designs.”

Elias calmly passed the reports to Celestia, who gave them a cursory glance before setting them off to the side. Elias clasped his hands behind his back and stared at her with emotionless eyes.

“Overall, I think the first day went spectacularly, and I eagerly anticipate tomorrow when the real training starts.”

Celestia shifted in Elias’ chair again, and this time Elias didn’t bother keeping the smirk from his face.

“Princess, would you like to sit somewhere else? You seem uncomfortable.”

Luna knew what he was doing, he could see it in her eyes. Her eyes seemed halfway between warning him not to provoke the larger alicorn, and pleading with him not to. Tough. They wanted to make him a king, he was going to control his little kingdom. That started with reclaiming his throne.

Celestia sighed and rose from Elias’ chair.

“I think I shall stand General.”

Elias nodded and waited silently as she moved around the desk. As she faced him and opened her mouth to speak, Elias went around the other side, setting his helmet down with the facial slit facing toward the door. He then calmly sat straight-backed in his chair, and rested his elbows on his desk. Celestia blinked owlishly at him for a moment, no doubt trying to process why he had thrown a minor offence her way, but Elias quite simply didn’t care. He wasn’t going to play posturing games, and he wasn’t going to listen to their complaints about the weak, cowering pony before him. Elias’ usurping of the room’s metaphorical throne had made the stallion shiver as he looked back and forth between Luna and Celestia. When he finally worked up the balls to look at Elias, he flinched when he found the human’s eyes boring into him.

Elias continued to stare the unicorn down for a moment, then looked to Celestia with a professional smile.

“So Princess, I again ask, what can I do to help you?”

Celestia blinked at him again, then seemed to regain her composure.

“I… have heard some concerning reports, and I wished to hear your side of things before passing judgement. This fine young stallion here tells me you have been beating your recruits?”

Elias smiled at her for a moment, then his eyes flicked to the unicorn, who flinched visibly.

“Does he now? And what tale about my legendary cruelty has he woven?”

The stallion whimpered, and sank low in his chair. Luna, no doubt tired of the game they were playing, sighed and moved to the front of Elias’ desk.

“General, Wild Strikes tells us that you singled him out, humiliated him in front of his fellow recruits, and then beat him before throwing him from the training grounds. Is this true?”

Elias stared at her for a moment, then sighed and scratched at his head.

“The simple answer is no, and unlike Wild Coward here, I have proof. You both know what one of my beatings looks like, and this idiot lacks the markings of such a thing. What you will find, however, is ten welts. He was whipped, by the light lash no less, because he decided to speak out while in formation. He received a briefing packet that said such a thing was punishable by whipping, and he made a decision to insult my training techniques in front of all the other recruits. I can not be made to look weak, so I had one of my centurions whip him, and he was then escorted out with the other failures.”

Elias shrugged.

“He wanted to quit, but decided to be a big tough guy about it. Too bad he didn’t read his paperwork properly.”

Elias looked to the pony, who flinched again.

“You failed on the first day because you wanted to run your big mouth instead of listening. I can’t imagine this is your first failure caused by talking too much. You then decided you couldn’t live with your failure, so you went to the princesses? For what gain coward? It wasn’t going to make you un-whipped.”

The pony opened his mouth to respond, but Elias merely held up his hand.

“I don’t want to hear you speak. In fact, I made it very clear that I never wanted to so much as see you again. Wait outside while the princesses and I talk. If I find you spying, you will receive twenty-five lashes with the actual whip. Then maybe you can go and whine to somebody.”

The stallion looked to Celestia. The alicorn glanced at Elias out of the corner of her eye, then looked back to the stallion.

“Go wait outside Wild Strikes. We’ll be just a minute.”

The stallion gave another fearful glance to Elias, then slipped out of his seat and quickly trotted to the door, closing it behind him as he left. Elias stared at the closed door for a moment, then looked to Celestia, who was staring at him intently. Elias stared back.

“General, I must express my concern on this matter, I….”

Elias held up his hand, and she fell silent, but irritation quickly entered her eyes. Elias stared at her for a moment more, then took a deep breath and looked to Luna.

“Princess, what was my number one term when I took this position?”

Luna sighed and rubbed her forehead with her hoof.

“You would have complete control of your legion, with no outside interference.”

Elias nodded and looked to Celestia.

“That’s correct. No outside interference. Yet, here we are, not one full day into training, and you’re already sticking your nose into my legion’s business. That coward was escorted out because he wanted to be special and couldn’t take the pressure of being another faceless soldier. He was weak, and he was left behind, just like the rest of them. If he wasn’t so showy, he wouldn’t have gotten whipped at all. Either way, it doesn’t matter why I had him whipped, if it was for a good reason, or if it was just because I felt like it, this is my legion, my rule. If you don’t like that…”

Elias slid open the drawer directly to his right, quickly drawing out a thick packet of papers. Without looking at it, he dropped it on the desk in front of Celestia.

“There is my resignation. It was the second set of papers I filled out, only because I couldn’t write a resignation without signing my acceptance forms. If you don’t like how I’m running my legion, then there’s your out.”

Elias leaned back in his chair, scratching at his nose with one hand as he stared at the white alicorn.

“I don’t know what posturing, backstabbing, lying morons you usually deal with, but when I say words, they mean something. I don’t want this job, I don’t want to build a legion, I don’t want to lead. End of story. The only reason I am doing it is because she,” he said, jabbing a finger at Luna, “asked me to, and I couldn’t let her down. She’s been far too kind to me, and I would be an awful friend if I turned around and spit on that.”

Elias spread his hands.

“But I won’t stand being second guessed. I will play nice this once because you did it in private, but I promise you that if you come to me with some new coward who weeps alligator tears to get me in trouble, I’m done. I will silently give you that packet and leave. It’s all or nothing. I don’t take middle grounds.”

Celestia stared at him, but whether it was shock in her eyes or something else, Elias couldn’t tell. He could tell that this was not a normal occurrence for the unquestioned ruler, but he didn’t care. He wasn’t going to skirt the truth. He was taking an immense personal risk doing their bidding, and he was going to do as much as possible to reduce that risk. If they didn’t like that, he didn’t care.

Elias subconsciously ran his thumb down his breastplate, miming the motions he would make to rub at Luna’s feather. He was still wearing it of course, but as per her request, he kept it hidden after heat week, telling nobody where he got it. It had made many ponies look at him strangely, but when Elias put his foot down, the ponies stopped asking. Still, he took comfort in the soft feeling of feather, the one allowed weakness he had in his life. It gave him the confidence to keep pushing forward, to press as hard as he could. He was either going to make a legion that would survive, or he was going to be driven out of his position.

“I…” Celestia started, then stopped.

She stared at his desktop for a moment, and for a brief second, her hoof raised toward his resignation forms. It just as quickly dropped and the white alicorn met Elias’ gaze.

“I suppose you have kept your end of our agreement. You did not maim or kill Wild Strikes. While I do not like your definition of appropriate punishment, we agreed that you would have unquestioned authority.”

She looked to Luna, who nodded as she continued.

“We shall not bring an issue such as this to you again, but rest assured, we are watching, and if you cross a line, we will intervene.”

Elias motioned to the resignation form.

“Your intervention is right there. Say the word, and I’m gone. I’m not some power-hungry nut, I’m just a fighter. This,” he said, gesturing around his office, “is not my end goal. Nor is anything above it.”

“And what is your end goal?” Luna asked with a hint of a smile.

Elias looked to her, cocking his head slightly at the playful look in her eye. He didn’t know what had provoked her sudden change in mood, but he didn’t have time to deal with it. He simply shrugged his shoulders at the alicorn.

“Right now? It’s the same plan I’ve always had; survive. Unfortunately for me, I have to take care of others now, so my job just gets harder every day.”

Elias slipped his watch from his belt and clicked it open. Glancing at the time, he looked back to the alicorns.

“Now, if we’re done here, I have paperwork to fill out.”

It was clearly a dismissal, but Luna didn’t seem to take it as such. She merely turned around and trotted away in a weird manner with her flanks swaying, while Celestia stared at Elias for a moment more before following suit, albeit in a normal trot, closing the frosted glass door behind them. Elias let out a long sigh when the door jamb slipped closed, and he sank in his chair, enjoying the custom feeling. It wasn’t going to be the last time he and Celestia butted heads, and though Luna was on his side for the time, he knew that that too would change as his training got more intense and more dropouts started complaining. That was for later, however. Elias sat in his lazy manner for a few minutes, then his mind seemed to snap back into focus. Elias quickly snatched his resignation form from his desk, sliding it back into its drawer. He then grabbed a quill and got to work.

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