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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2013 10:38:05 GMT -5
Hoplite nodded once, Odd, one would think he'd be here by now. It's not that early in the morning... His thoughts were interrupted by a newcomer, a Red Mage that proceeded to explain that apparently, by military standards, the militia's gear was simply not up to par. Now, apparently, they had brought in a blacksmith *and* an enchanter to modify them. Oooooh dear, not sure how many folks will be comfortable with those enchantments...
"Guess so much for weapons drilling..." Hoplite shrugged, "Well, we could always run a fitness te-" "Not to worry!" "WAH!" Hoplite shrieked in surprise, completely unaware until now that Watermark had arrived.
"I've made ice replicas for the sake of drilling. Don't worry, it won't be cold," Hoplite blinked in confusion, not too certain how comfortable most of the militia would be training with ice weapons. Wouldn't they be cold? He opened his muzzle to comment, quickly being stopped by Watermark, "Not colder than steel anyway," Hoplite sighed, figuring this wasn't something Watermark would move on. He seemed rather determined on this idea.
"So White Fire, I need to talk to you about something," Hoplite took a few steps back, knowing that Watermark wanted to talk to her privately, without his input of course. He watched the two walk further down the hall and start talking, much to his surprise he could hear most of what they were saying. Despite the realization that doing so was probably something he shouldn't be doing whatsoever, his curiosity won over. He strained his ears to try and hear their conversation more clearly.
"...Razorwing was in town apparently, apparently she busted into his sister's house..." Hoplite tried to keep his muzzle from dropping, A Razorwing broke into our house? Or...was that somepony else? Either way, a Razorwing was in town earlier...
"She's even going to offer her a position in her..." Who? What? Who are they talking about and what is going on?! he thought, trying to listen more intently without making it obviously he was eavesdropping. "...if the mare doesn't like Unicorns getting bullied into it is unacceptable..." Hoplite couldn't hold back a frown, he now knew *exactly* who they were talking about, it wasn't as if there was another mare in town who had become infamous for 'unicorn intolerance'.
"She's Percheron's sister for crying out loud..." Wait, so the pony who had broken into his house...was not only after Phalanx, was not only a Razorwing, but was Percheron's sister?! Well, can't say he had expected something like this when he woke up in the morning. "Things were far easier in the Cult. At least there everypony cooperated..." Hoplite sighed, wondering just how long it would take for the Eclipse crisis to pass from everyone's mind...
Sure enough, Watermark and White Fire returned after a moment. "Okay, I uh, should go over and apologize to someone, you two go help out in the back setting up that smith," Oh, I don't envy you right now, Watermark. If I know Fal, you're the *last* pony she'd want to see after her house was broken into... Hoplite turned to face White Fire, shrugging widely before trotting towards the back of the headquarters.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 27, 2013 13:48:03 GMT -5
Watermark exited the Militia headquarters and took one step into the snow before falling into it, leaving no hole behind and climbing out of it casually in the vicinity of Phalanx's house (he didn't want her to see him aquaporting). He trotted idly towards her home, not much able to be mad at White Fire, she was trying to help, or Firefly, well she was quite the firebrand...
He sighed as he rounded the corner and Phalanx and Hoplite's house came into view. He knocked on... well the wall, since the door was out. "Anypony home?"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2013 16:09:16 GMT -5
Phalanx had been gathering the few spare parts she could find after Firefly had broken in, putting one pile with the door, wall shards, and bolts and a second pile with every piece she could find that once belonged to the crushed chair. Her ear twitched, somepony else was at the front do-...huh, well she couldn't call it the 'front door' anymore, so...somepony else was at the gaping hole at the front of the building, knocking and asking if she was home. she could swear she recognized the voice, but right now wouldn't be the time to scream at some random militia mem-...actually, the more she thought of it, now was the *perfect* time to scream at whoever it was at the door!
She snarled, leaving the piles of wooden shards to themselves and approaching the front door. Sure enough, Watermark was standing near the entrance. She rolled her eyes, "What do you want?" she inquired, her tone far from inviting.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 27, 2013 16:33:22 GMT -5
"I'd like to apologize in Firefly's name, my Lieutenant must have thought it was a good idea to send her to talk to you since she was already around... She meant well. I realize I must not be your favorite pony right about now, but your brother cares a lot about you and I prefer a happy lieutenant to an unhappy one. Is there any chance we could work things out?"
Watermark usually could care less about what other ponies thought of him, whether it be prejudice over him being half zebra, or prejudice for him being an ex-cultist, Watermark knew who he was. Right now however, he wanted to settle this situation with Phalanx, if only for Hoplite's sake. It was a small town, he was going to have to see Phalanx at least in the public evacuation drills. He really did not dislike her, in fact he thought the army could use more of her, but he just couldn't afford having prejudice under him. As someone who suffered from it greatly in the past, he just couldn't let himself do it.
But he did want to make this right, he did want a solution, a golden road if you will.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2013 16:48:27 GMT -5
Phalanx blinked, what did Watermark mean by "a happy lieutenant"? Was he still talking about the one that sent Firefly or was he talking about her brother? Nah, no way he was talking about Hoplite, Phalanx knew her brother wasn't going to just 'rise up the ranks' without talking with her first, let alone without letting her in on it!
"Is there any chance we could work things out?" Phalanx paced about a bit, still looking at Watermark all the while, "Y'know, considering how my house was *just* broken into by some rich kid, who apparently is getting away with Breaking and Entering in a town bearing host to a legion of Red Mages *and* the militia...considering the militia has been taken over by the pony that kicked my flank out of it because I'm not fond of spellcasters...*considering* that now my distaste for spellcasters has clearly reached far beyond just you and me and probably found it's way into Canterlot or some other big city, nevermind the ranks of the Red Mages thanks to your lieutenant...considering how even now, you probably hope my opinion of spellcasters must've changed after *all* of this: No! No, Watermark, I don't think there *is* a chance we can work things out!" Phalanx had been wanting to scream at Watermark for well over twelve hours now, and he had just waltzed in and given her the chance, "You and I both know I'm not budging on my, considering how many ponies have tried in the past twenty-four hours, word-of-mouth has spread this situation *much* too far to keep it a secret anymore, how neither Firefly nor your lieutenant are getting anything beyond a bit of chewing out over that break-in...honestly, Watermark, you've screwed this up *far* too much. Unless that horn of yours can conjure up *something* to fix everything by nightfall, I think you and I are going to be at-odds until this crisis is over."
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 27, 2013 17:02:47 GMT -5
"Let me kill this insolent one." A gruff voice broke from behind Watermark as the giant unicorn ice statue, the one which has been in the town for several months now, having popped up with no explanation walked into sight.
Watermark didn't dignify the statue with a response, "You blame me for your troubles when they all come from your own intolerance. You act like a spoiled child. You call one of the nation's heroes a "rich kid", you are not even willing to consider changing your opinion of a ponies that are living besides you. You know what, Phalanx? If you learned to keep your big mouth shut, this whole series of events wouldn't even take place. But as you found it reasonable to notify an official, a superior no less of your racism while on duty for the simple act of giving you a snowcone - you must face the consequences of your action. Though I do not justify Firefly's breaking of your door and she's definitely going to hear about it from me, I find your behavior to be distasteful. I find it difficult to believe Kuruka would allow someone so immature to enlist in protection of their fellow ponies. If we must be at odds then so be it, but if I hear you snap at my lieutenant, I will have you shipped out to Canterlot with the refugees. Are we clear?" Watermark asked, now he was angry and it showed. His seemingly eternal grin faded and he radiated authority. "If you have any further complaints, feel free to file them with Lieutenant Hoplite. I am done wasting my time with your infantile behavior."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 27, 2013 17:12:46 GMT -5
Phalanx's aggressive stance faded in all of a few seconds, practically collapsing as Watermark's rant ended. Hoplite...a Lieutenant already? He never consulted me, or even *told* me? Her mind raced with far too many streams of thought for her to catch any of them, at odds with herself and all those around her. After Watermark's verbal beatdown *and* the kick in the gut that was her brother's promotion, there was at least one primary instinct she felt all too much reason to follow...to cry.
Hoplite abandoned her...they had vowed when they were young to never leave each other behind, or to separate. Yet now, off he went doing his own thing without talking it over with her or even *saying* he had been promoted? All this after she had outright refused to separate after hearing Firefly's invitation because of that vow. She felt a few whimpering sobs rising up her throat, threatening to echo out into the room. She grit her teeth, she couldn't let Watermark of all ponies see her cry, not now and not again.
Her head hung low, she started making her way up the stairs, grateful that Watermark was no longer present. She dared not turn back to the front door, nor did she dare leave the house. As far as she was concerned, she wasn't sure she wanted to speak to Watermark again, but for mostly different reasons this time. She stepped up to the door of her room, opened it and stepped inside, closing and locking it behind her. She couldn't keep ponies out of her house anymore, but at the very least she could make sure nopony but her got into her room, her sanctuary...no doubt it'll be invaded later on by her deserter brother.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2013 16:21:38 GMT -5
The sun had just begun to dip beyond the horizon, it's fading light still slightly distorted from the ice shield. Hoplite rubbed his shoulder with a grumble, still sore from the drills with the ice gear earlier in the day. He managed a light chuckle as he remembered when Bodkin's ice arrow had crashed right into his shoulder, leaving behind a large welt that had turned into the bruise it inevitably had turned into.
"Fal?" he called out for his sister, surprised when he didn't get an immediate, snarky response. "Fal?!" Now he was *really* curious, usually by now Phalanx would either have a trap or a painful response for him...yet it was silent. He trotted up the stairs, breathing a sigh of relief when he noticed his sister's room door was closed, clearly indicating she was in her bedroom.
Hoplite tapped on the door, "Fal? You in there?" he asked, wanting to be sure before he barged in.
Instead of the furious response he expected, Hoplite was surprised to hear an actually rather passive, "Yeah," from his sister. He blinked confusedly, that *never* happened with her. Something was up.
He tried to open the door briefly before realizing the door was most certainly locked. "Uhh, you okay there, Fal?" he asked. He grinned, he *knew* that would get to her. If the previous night had been any hint of the matter, nevermind the numerous years he had known her, asking obvious questions would get a little emotion into her voice.
Yet, almost a buzz-kill, Phalanx responded with yet another passive, one-word response, "Sure."
Hoplite blinked in confusion, just what exactly had Watermark done when he swung by to apologize? All the same, what had Firefly done when she had barged in? Visualizations of a beaten and broken pegasus on the other side of the door assaulted his mind, and he started trying to open the door again, "Fal? Fal, what's wrong?!"
With only the most subtle hint of venom, Phalanx replied, "I'd rather not talk about it, lieutenant."
Hoplite froze, now realizing just exactly how much Watermark seemed to be willing to discuss with his sister. Now the mare on the other side of the door was probably freaking out, and with good reason: he had broken their vow. Foalish as it was, they did make a promise that they would rise together through the ranks, and as far as Phalanx was probably concerned, Hoplite had just outright abandoned her. "Fal...Fal, I am *so* sorry..."
"That's nice," Phalanx responded, still maintaining her passive tone.
"Look, it's not what you're think!" Hoplite continued, now trying to open the door again.
"I'm sure..."
"No, really! Watermark ordered it!"
"Of course he would," was that another hint of venom in her voice? As wrong as it was to think of it that way, at least Hoplite was making a bit of progress.
"Look, let's not let this get between u-" his words were quickly interrupted by an audible *click* on the other side of the door. The lock had shifted, and the door swung open.
In the doorway stood a rather sullen-looking pegasus, head hung almost limply and her gaze lazily focused towards the ground. Her cheeks were caked with moisture, leaving a pattern of lines from her eyes to the sides of her head before fading. "Tell Watermark tomorrow I'm ready for active duty," she practically muttered, still passive in tone.
"Uhh, I don't think that'll work," Hoplite rubbed the back of his head awkwardly, "I'm pretty sure Watermark would be able to tell that you're lying."
Phalanx looked up to Hoplite, seeming to gaze right though his eyes and into his very being with her...scarily passive expression, and he heard the words, "I'm not lying," escape the pegasi's muzzle.
Hoplite nervously looked up and down the hall, "Uhh, alright, alright! I'll tell him in the morning." Phalanx hung her head again, looking away from Hoplite. Hoplite couldn't stand it, he couldn't just let his sister be all mopey like this! "Look, I'm sorry, okay? Hey," he outstretched his forelegs and took a few tentative steps towards the mare, "D'you need a hu-," his sentence and his stride jerked to a halt.
Phalanx was holding him at arm's length with a foreleg, lightly shoving him moments later. The force wasn't actually enough to move the large stallion, but he at least honoured her intent and took a step back. Phalanx shut the door, surprisingly not slamming the thing, and continued, "I'll see you in the morning," still passive as before.
Hoplite blinked a few times, wondering if maybe it was his turn to cry. All things considered, he was running out of things to smile about.
* * *
Hoplite looked behind him, looking to his sister with a questioning gaze. "Are you sure about this?" he whispered. The mare, still looking as blank as she had the night before, simply nodded once. After a bit of delay, Hoplite tapped on the door thrice before stepping into Kuruka's office, his sister following suit. "Uhh, Watermark? Phalanx says she's ready to return to active duty..." he said to the aquamancer, his uncertainty clearly leaking through into his tone.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 28, 2013 16:42:56 GMT -5
Watermark nodded, "Great, get set up in the back, Tongs and I have been working all night long to get your gear up to scratch, what can I say, she's one heck of a smith, she's managed to get it up to military standards overnight. Of course it helps when you have a couple dozen little helpers." He indicated one of his water golems. Of course, the water golems, the small impish creatures always scurrying about everywhere. Beyond the fact that they made every job take half as long, they were also Watermark's eyes and ears around town. He apparently was able to control them passively without actually having to dedicate any brainpower to doing so, but he knew he could probably listen and watch through all of them at any time. It seemed almost insane for one pony to be able to take in that much input constantly without going mad. But then again... who said Watermark wasn't a little mad?
Sure enough, when the militia assembled in the back yard jaws dropped at their shiny new gear, polished metal plates that wouldn't shame the royal guard now coated their once weary, rusty metal jackets. They weren't full plate bardings per se, but they were just as good. Tongs, a unicorn with a large burn scar on her face, gave them a 'you're welcome' wave from her blacksmith, working on spare weapons and armor. She was even able to decorate the suits, emblazoning the Hoofington Militia symbol, a crossed scythe and sword on a stock of wheat within one of the old Horsepitaller cross shields (after all, it was the Horsepitallers who founded Hoofington).
With that they were presented with helmets (for the first time, as they never had helmets before) and various belts and holsters for equipment. The new barding wasn't as heavy as they'd expected but would take time getting used to. Their new weapons however, were beyond astounding, spears, swords, bows, all remade to military grade and sharpened. Watermark explained that hardening enchantments were cast on all suits and that they are currently the most well equipped militia in Equestria. Now it was time to bring their training up to scratch, good gear is nothing without good discipline.
At that he began announcing that the next few weeks will be some of the hardest they'd ever have to go through, but they would be worth it. With a competent militia in Hoofington, Watermark and his mages will be able to take actions against the Diamond Dogs on the roads, allowing for supplies and trade. This meant profit for the farmers, new supplies for the town. All in all, everyone would win.
"We won't sit quietly in the shade as dogs ravage our countryside anymore. We won't stand idly by letting our families starve and our crops wither. It's time we retook what was ours, it's time for fresh supplies and trade. You all worked hard to raise these fields and you all deserve to reap what you sowed. With your help, we will make this happen and we will show these Diamond Dogs that pony will is not to be taken lightly. I will ask much of you in these coming days, but I know the ponies of Hoofington to be of the toughest stuff. You will not disappoint Equestria, not because of this new gear, or because of my mages. You won't disappoint Equestria because you're Hoofington ponies, when they ask about the impenetrable barrier, they ask of you. When they ask of the unstoppable force, they ask of you. And when those work side by side, there is no failure!" The Red Mages, followed by the militia, enthusiastic by their new gear and Watermark's care roared in approval.
"Now let's make you into the ponies Diamond Dog legends will tell their children!" At that, White Fire and the mages guided the ecstatic militia towards the front courtyard. Watermark has acquired several senior drill instructors to cover the range of ponies. Unicorn, Pegasus and Earth pony.
When he approached Hoplite again at the end, Hoplite could tell he wasn't lying when he said he spent all night helping tongs, his eyes had large sacks under them and were even slightly bloodshot. "Think I overdid it? I kind of liked it, reminded me of Luna's speech when attacking our pyramid."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 28, 2013 17:09:28 GMT -5
Hoplite and Phalanx exchanged a wordless glance and headed towards the back as per Watermark's word. Sure enough, upon arrival, the siblings were awestruck at just how quickly and suddenly the back of the militia headquarters had turned into an outright military facility! Water golems, mages, and the blacksmith had clearly been hard at work, much harder work than even Hoplite had imagined them capable of. He immediately re-thought the pure ability of not only the mages, but Watermark himself. Clearly this pony was fitting of the legends surrounding him.
After hearing about their recent 'upgrades', Hoplite looked to Phalanx with a bit of unease. She was the sort that was known to get livid if any other pony simply *touched* her treasured longspear, now every single piece of gear stored in the headquarters - including Hoplite's custom-made tower shield, now that he thought about it - had all been worked by a smith *and* enchanted. Oh boy, here comes the rant about how she never asked for magic to touch her spear! Hoplite braced for shouts of rage from his sister.
Surprisingly, the pegasus was still silent, her expression barely changing from the one she had earlier that morning. Sure, some of the awe showed through, but short of that she still seemed to be at least trying to hold that expression. Well, at least we can get through the day without a dishonourable discharge to ruin it... Hoplite thought to himself.
Hoplite and Phalanx quickly donned their now-enchanted-gear, strapping all the right plates into place and holstering their favoured gear. While Hoplite would pause occasionally to take in the armour he was now wearing, Phalanx almost seemed to be rushing through the process. Well, at least *that's* normal for her... Finally they both clicked the last part in place, a wordless act that they seemed to psychically synchronize despite Phalanx's head-start. Hoplite looked to the symbol of the Hoofington Militia on his sister's helmet in wonderment, incredibly proud that the symbol had gone beyond just flags and patches on piecemeal leather armour. Yet even still, Phalanx chose not to say a word. Maybe she's just scared that saying something would get her into more trouble...frankly, I wouldn't blame her.
Hoplite turned to Watermark, listening intently to his explanation. "Most well-equipped militia in Equestria," huh? Well, we'd better be considering all this gear. If there was a militia in better shape than us, I'd be worried. While he cringed a bit at the thought of intensely-rigorous training over the next few weeks, he felt a bit giddy at the thought of advancing his skills and his talent further, and without a doubt Phalanx *must've* felt that same giddiness. Or, at least he figured she *would* be feeling that under other circumstances, now he hadn't the foggiest idea what was going through his sister's head right now...and that unnerved the stallion.
Hoplite listened rather intently to Watermark's speech, a grin forming on his face as the aquamancer riled up the militia and the Red Mages. As it came to a close, Hoplite cheered along with the rest of his companions, though through the din he could tell Phalanx was still quiet as ever. When the cries died down and the militia was escorted towards the front courtyard, Hoplite looked to Phalanx, "Hey...why weren't you cheering?"
Phalanx looked to him with that same neutral expression she had been wearing all day, "Guess," she responded blankly. Before Hoplite had a chance to inquire further, Watermark had already approached him.
"Think I overdid it? I kind of liked it, reminded me of Luna's speech when attacking our pyramid," he heard the zebracorn ask. Hoplite leaned to the side a bit, trying to find his sister in the crowd of militia. Figuring she must've gone ahead of him, he sighed and turned his attention back to Watermark, "I thought it was great," he replied, "And apparently so did the rest of the militia. Phalanx, though...well, let's not think on that right now," trying to change the tone of the conversation, Hoplite gave Watermark a friendly, light elbow to the upper foreleg, "You certainly worked wonders here today, Watermark, let's just hope those wonders continue for as long as possible, huh?"
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 28, 2013 17:31:59 GMT -5
"Yeah," Watermark yawned, "I don't know how Tongs can manage to stay completely awake and focused on her work. I'm practically exhausted and there's so much paperwork to do. You go on ahead with the others, I think you'd like the instructors I brought by. Sometimes it pays to be connected to the Royal Adviser." The zebracorn yawned again, waving him off and retreating to his office. White Fire was already getting the militia into groups, Earth Ponies, Pegasi and Unicorns. They would all drill seperately so they could practice their own abilities, later on they would train as a wide group to acquire proper coordination between them.
As Hoplite took to his group he noticed the three instructors. Watermark wasn't kidding when he said it was worth it to be connected. The Earth Pony he was looking at now was a rugged, old looking Earth Pony, he seemed very experienced and very commanding. From whispers around he heard that this was the same instructor who trained Field Marshal Starling. Whether it was true or not, he commanded respect among the men and he seemed knowledgeable.
On the pegasus side, the instructor was Flamberge Razorwing an instructor who drilled the Equestrian Royal Guard's pegasi trainees for the past generation. He graduated so many pegasi he was known far and wide for his strict discipline. He had only retired shortly before the Eclipse Crisis, but it was evident that Watermark was able to convince him to come help.
Finally for the unicorns it was a Silver Scholar drill instructor. The Silver Scholars were the elite unit of unicorns entrusted with guarding all of the collected knowledge in Equestria, which resided in the great library in Canterlot. Other than that, he knew little about him. There was a short break before they started, which gave the militia ponies time to talk. There weren't many of them, maybe three dozen, but Hoofington didn't need more than that. That Watermark was able to get all of this to such a small group, it was truly a testament to his commitment to the town he was guarding.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2013 0:16:29 GMT -5
Hoplite gave Watermark a curt nod before following the rest of the militia to the drilling grounds, splitting off with the rest of the earth ponies.
After taking a bit to settle into the group of armoured ponies, having just inched past a few ponies who dared not move, considering who they thought was up ahead of them getting ready to commence the drill. Hoplite turned to see just exactly who it was, completely unsure or unaware by what the pony looked like, but according to a few hushed whispers from his companions this pony had trained Field Marshal Starling! Now he had made his way to tiny little Hoofington and was about to start proper military drilling on the militia?
Hoplite grinned, remembering how for the first year or so of working in the militia he could remember Phalanx and he would always wish they had become soldiers instead of defenders, considering the dreams and vivid imagination his pegasus sister had. 'Careful what you wish for', I guess, he thought to himself, settling down and joining the hushed silence as the instructor grew closer, listening intently and waiting for the drill to begin.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2013 0:24:54 GMT -5
Phalanx cringed, now that she had split from Hoplite she had become ever more aware of the hushed whispers of the militia around her. A few words stuck out more than others, considering how consistently she picked up the words "Horn Hater," from a few nearby ponies. It was official, her reputation had clearly spread amongst the militia, sure didn't take long in doing so.
Trying to ignore the insults, she tried making her way into the crowd of pegasi forming for drilling. Her stride was suddenly broken and she stumbled awkwardly into the sides of an orange-coated stallion. He looked over with momentary anger, then after seeing who exactly had crashed into him, he started grinning and even laughing a bit before turning to his friend next to him. Phalanx looked back at what had broken her stride, but all she could see were the pegasi she had stepped past. She grumbled, somepony had obviously tripped her. Training quite simply could not go well...
When she turned to face the instructor, she was actually rather confused as to who exactly was at the head there. She looked to the pony next to her, mentally groaning when she saw it was Bodkin, and asked, "Hey, who's that up there?"
Bodkin looked to her with an air of superiority, one he tended to have yet seemed amplified by four in this scenario, "That's Flamberge Razorwing, Horn-Hater. He used to train the pegasi Royal Guards," he responded matter-of-factly, not hesitating in adding a level of distaste to his tone when he had insulted her.
Phalanx sighed, turning her gaze back up towards the instructor. This was going to be a long - and likely horrid - day.
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Post by Red Charge on Jul 29, 2013 5:27:16 GMT -5
"You must be feeling all high and mighty after that speech don't ya?" Asked the veteran pegasus with a grin, speaking to the entirety of the militia, "The unstoppable force, the impenetrable barrier all that. You must feel like REAL war ponies don't ya?" He asked, still smiling warmly at the militia, some of which responded with whoops and 'hay yeah's.
"Well you're all still maggots to me. Look at you all riled up because of some fancy words. All of you could charge me at once, I doubt you'd manage to lay a hoof on me, old as I am." He spat harshly on the ground, "You think shiny new armor is the solution to everything? Think the Silver Core got their way by just being silver? No, they were more than that. They were a CORE. I still remember the stories, shield bearers and weapon bearers working in complete coordination switching lines back and forth to defend against dragon fire and then skewer the Dang lizards. Can you imagine? Entire battalions moving as a single fluid form? You can't. You know why? Because you're incompetent maggots and I'm going to break you ohoho yes, I am going to break every single one of you just like we did your weapons and I'm going to reforge you into military grade hardware. You will be well oiled gears moving in complete unison with each other, making the machine that I'll make out of this militia work."
"Now I did my old pal Watermark here a favor, came out of retirement to turn your sorry flanks into something worth keeping. I see the tiniest hint of hesitation or insubordination I'm going to personally kick your flank. Are we clear?" The immediate 'yes, sir!' resounded throughout the courtyard.
"Outstanding, looks like we can skip the answering questions part and get right to the actions. Pegasi with me to the sky, Earth Ponies you go with ol' Slate-Head and you unicorns, with Mercury. We're going to see how much you imbeciles stumble over yourselves before we can properly drill you." At that the three groups split.
The pegasi unit flew outside the ice dome to an incredibly hot afternoon, "That's right, sweat," Flamberge said, "Sweat for me, trust me, you'll learn to enjoy it soon enough." At that he began a series of formation drills, above cloud cover non stop in heavy armor. The armor quickly overheated from the intensity of the sun, many of the pegasi found themselves out of breath or otherwise dizzy, but the Razorwing was ruthless. "You don't stop until you drop out of the sky and if you drop out of the sky, you'll have to make up for what you lose by spending quality time with me when all of your friends have already gotten to sleep." The training only got harder and the formations more complex and that's before they even got to any fighting drills. By the time he finished with the formations several militia ponies were already collapsed. Only when they really started to drill formations did Phalanx realize how much they didn't know. They moved like rabid moths rather than a unit and it took them forever to get even the most basic wedge right. She had never noticed in what bad shape the militia was, mostly because she had nothing to compare it with.
Down below the Earth Ponies weren't doing much better, Slate-Head pelted them with whatever projectiles he could acquire, equipping them all with shields and demanding that they protect themselves from the onslaught, then without shields demanding they stay in formation no matter what. Hoplite got a rock straight to his head, it left a bloody below his ear. They continued with charging training, something which was exhausting, charging from the militia to the most remote farm and back and again faster each time until they could just barely walk and then repeating the whole process.
The unicorns themselves were nowhere near either group so they had no idea how they were training. But it was obvious that they really needed training. There was only one break during the day where they all got to collapse on the snow next to each other, bruised, aching and exhausted.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 29, 2013 5:55:02 GMT -5
Phalanx wanted to roll her eyes at the second big speech she had sat through in the past five minutes, but knew doing so was probably a worse death sentence than, well, she'd rather not think of what she could compare it to, least of all here.
After splitting from the earth ponies and unicorns, Phalanx grimaced as they left the ice shield and ventured forth into the positively scorching air outside and quickly breaking the cloud cover, letting the incinerating rays of the emblazoned sun cake her coat in sweat. So this is how the rest of Equestria has been feeling... she thought idly and morbidly to herself, settling loosely into formation and simply following instructions that were constantly being barked by Flamberge.
After all of a few brief drills, Phalanx's weak wings were already starting to stiffen up from soreness and overuse. She hadn't been one for flying all too much during her stay in Hoofington. Sure, she knew how to use them, if the first few drills were any distinction, but they hardly got much practice when on patrol or sparring. Come to think of it, she probably hadn't properly flown in months, and now she was being drilled as if she were a Cloudsdale Flight School Honours Student. Her armour felt like it was burning into her skin, her coat and wings were weighed down even further by caked-in sweat, and she started to notice in the middle of the fourth drill that she was losing altitude. She gritted her teeth, trying to make sure not to drop her spear as she slowly regained her altitude, trying to rejoin the formation.
It wasn't any use, her endurance had run out. She practically plummeted out of formation, falling a ways before having her drop halted by a soft cloud. Thankful for the rest, she sat down on the entirely-too-comfortable cloud and started massaging her wings. She looked about her, at least thankful she hadn't been the first pegasus to drop out, and all too grateful she wasn't one of the three she saw passed out. She knew she was going to get an earful the moment Flamberge took notice of the sheer amount of pegasi that had already quit out, but right now she figured no amount of harsh words could be any worse than working her weak wings any further.
Course she figured Flamberge had worse ready for her than just harsh words, but even still she was just grateful for the reprieve.
After the drills, Phalanx heard Flamberge mention something about extra night-time drilling for the 'quitters'. She didn't care, at the very least she'll have company when that came around...company that would probably send a few more "Horn Hater" remarks at her, but company nonetheless.
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