“Ready?” Sunset asked with a smile as she walked along next to me.
“Sure,” I agreed and sighed, “I still feel that this is a bit silly. I mean, why would I possibly need my own guard for? None of the… actually, I suppose it might have helped with the changelings, but… still.”
Sunset shrugged, “Well, it couldn’t hurt. Besides, if it makes Princess Luna happy, why not?”
“Just seem like a bit of a waste of resources that could be better put into either the night or day guard,” I said with a frown, “How many did we end up with anyway?”
“We started with hundred and fifty and after basic training we are down to twenty five,” Sunset explained, “That’s about as far as we are getting without your support.”
“How so?”
She grinned, “Nobody actually know anything about the formation of a personal guard so I had to dig into the archives. It turns out that if we are to do things right, the Princess… or in this case Prince,”
“Hey!”
“Would need to personally chose how the training will progress and be focused,” she continued with a smile like I hadn’t spoken up, “So far, we have only gone through basic training. Running, some hoof to hoof, spell casting and some flying for the pegasi. Basically, yelling and pushing a bunch of ponies until they either started preforming or washed out. As I understand it, Swift Spear had a lot of fun with that.”
I chuckled at that, “Yeah, I can see that. Lieutenant or not, I think he’ll always be a sergeant at heart.”
“Yep. Was kind of fun to watch,” Sunset agreed, “But we are at the point where we need your input.”
“Just give them guard training,” I said, “That was easy.”
Sunset sighed and poked me with her hoof, “If we are to do this right, you need to inspect the troops first and hand the guard handbook or something over to me or Swift. But I’m not even sure if regular guard stuff would work with this.”
“Why?”
“Because they would guard you and I never seen you not run directly towards the danger,” she said with a frown, “The normal guard strategy is to get between their charge and the danger.”
“…Point,” I admitted, “Not that I’m trying to get into danger, but I can help and…”
Sunset nodded, “I know. But that won’t work with the normal guard training. If anything, they should be given the same kind of training we have gotten. But barely a third are unicorns and while I can at least start with them, I have no clue what to do about earth ponies and pegasi.”
There was that.
“I’ll consider it,” I said and frowned, “I should talk it over with Luna tonight.”
“All I ask,” she said and led me out onto the parade ground and I blinked twice at the sight before I stopped and grabbed Sunset it my magic, pulling her back out with me again as I ducked back into the room, ”Sunset?”
“Yes?” she asked innocently from the golden magic holding her in the air.
I took a slow breath and rubbed my eyes with a hoof before I set her back down, “…Why are they all female?”
“Symmetry,” She said and smiled at me, “The Princesses guards are all male. I figured that your guard should be all female. Besides, a lot of mares around that would have wanted to join the Guard but been unable to. Only thing they could do would be to try for cities local police forces.”
That… almost made some kind of twisted sense.
“Sunset, that’s… oh damn it. Do you have any idea how this might look?”
She smiled, “Oh, I know. But you’ll thank me in a couple of hundred years,” she said before she teased, “Or would you rather be surrounded by burly stallions.”
“…Fucking damn it, Sunny,” I groaned and then nodded, “Very well, mares I understand. But why are their armour different?”
“Unless you haven’t noticed,” she said and shifted next to me, bumping her side against mine, “Mares are a bit of a different shape than colts.”
“Oh I noticed,“ I grumbled and brushed my wing across her back, “But those seem a bit less covering and strictly form fitting than strictly necessary.”
She grinned, “I got Rarity involved with the royal armor smith and they got a good looking and still practical set of armor. You should see the dress uniform, it’s really nice.”
Sitting down, I rubbed the side of my head.
I’m getting a headache. Why did I give Sunset the authority to do this again? Oh yeah, because I was being lazy and didn’t want to this myself.
“…you don’t like it?” Sunset said after a moment, “I’m sorry, Page. I tried my best to…”
“No…” I said and shook my head, putting my wing around her and pulling her into a quick hug, “It’s not that I don’t like it. It’s not just what I was expecting.”
“I know. I wanted it to be a surprise.”
Nodding, I smiled at her, “Okay then. Let’s figure out what you should be teaching them then.”
She blinked at me, “Me?”
“Oh yeah, you got us into this, you get us out of it,” I said with a smile, “Perhaps you should be wearing that armour and dress uniform as well?”
“No, no, no!” She quickly said and shook her head, “I’m not joining!”
We’ll see about that.
Chuckling, I nodded, “Very well,” and let her go, “But you are helping with the rest of their training until they graduate.”
“…That’s mean,” she mumbled.
“Tough,” I told her and then stretched my wings, “Now, I think we have an inspection to do?”
“…Yeah.”
I watched her for a moment before I gave her another hug with my wing, “Thank you. I won’t be able to do it in a couple of hundred years, so I figured now would do it now.”
That got a smile from her.
So they tapped into his army of fan-mares?
He now has a guard. I wonder what he is going to name it?
Page's powers come from 'Imagination' and 'the mind', right? That probably means his guard will be like therapists, spies, or maybe social workers. You know, professions that protect the health of his 'dominion'.
Or Twily could manage to keep her waifu along for the ride.
8705702
Nah, Page is the Alicorn of getting in too deep. His guard must be able to accompany him into the depths of Tartarus itself and back. And since Sunset got Rarity into it, doing it fabulously!
So Celestia was wasting willing talents for 1000 years? I always thinked that she promote equal chances for everybody, so it's strange.
And I really wish to find even a tiny information about Starlight Glimmer and Discord. What happened to them? Please, Hiver.
Just saw how many stories were before this one—and how many chapters each one had.
Suh-weet Jesus, you've been busy. I could never be able to accomplish all that in just two years alone.
That being said, I may give these stories a read. :)
Luna is SO teasing him for the gender of the guards.
8705743
Honestly, I've always been of the opinion that they are both male and female, but the enchantment that give them their uniform colors also makes them all look male. I'm also of the opinion that it makes them look like pretty boys to make it easier to get the largely female population to open up to them, but that goes beyond the point at hand here.
Make Sunset Shimmer an alicorn and a princess and see how much she enjoys all this stuff then.
8705774
But the thing is, that she'll probably would enjoy it
8705702
Or DARPA. Because he wants a death star.
Twilight would probably like to see Sunset in the armor.
Thanks for the update!
Looks like my suggestion has taken root for the guard, I would have suggested that Swift joined then as the Majordomo.
An exciting development. Nice work Sunset and awesome work from you Hiver.
8705755
Definitely teasing.
Page needs to make like an ape and gives those fillies some guns. Fillies love guns.
They will be my greatest guardsmen, These mares who give of themselves to me.
Like putty I will mold them, and in the fires of my stupidity will they be forged.
They will be iron and steely muscle.
In great armor will I clad them, and with the mightiest pew-pew will they be armed.
They will be untouched by the idiot ball, and know lapse in judgment will affect them.
They will have such tactics, strategies, and magiks so that no foe will best them on the field of battle.
They are my Bulwark against my irresponsibility.
They are the defenders of Equestria.
They are my [insert guard name], and they will know no fear.
He's already ripped off star wars, he might as well go all the way.
Page turns around and sees two guards ogling him.
“Are-are you two looking at my butt?”
“Yes sir.” They reply candidly.
“Thanks for your honesty. But, can you not?”
“The Princess’s Guard get to do it, why can’t we?”
“....they don’t.”
“They do.”
“Well let dont let me stand in the way of equal opportunity, proceed.”
“Luna, we both need to where capes.”
8706086
i can totally see this happening
I really would like to see some artist draw this armor. I suspect it may be something like Tempest's but with Rarity's input? Having trouble envisioning it.
8706056
https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTBwRrwPCer3ePi-VFImnNTI3K7tzDfU_j94fBJ8fqa_zjLSinqCA
Sunset is rivaling Spike for Best Assistant Ever.
The same reason why the Day and Night guard are all male. Eye-candy.
... she is going to end the captain of his guard, won't she?
Awesome chapter, good work.
8705694
Wasn't there a scene, one or two books back, where he said he would bet about his rabid fans winning a fight against the royal guard? Guess it just became truth.
8706223
Why do you think I stay so fit? If there going to protect my flanks with there lives shouldn’t those same flanks look good?
8706227. I am working on something. But take this. Try your own hand at it.
orig00.deviantart.net/9415/f/2018/032/2/a/the_dream_guard__template__by_sipioc-dc1ucs5.jpg
100 years later....
“Newest bunch of recruits, Prince Page.”
“Thank you Captain Starburst. Ladies. Welcome to the Dream Corp. Your Instructors have taught you well and you have thus far survived the meat grinder. But it only gets harder from here on.
Let’s first address the biggest question you have : No. It is NOT part of your initiation into the DC to spend the night with me. That was a rumor that was started by an angry Solar Guard who got his flanked handed to him when he went up against our first captain; Sunset Shimmer.”
Some sighs of relief could be heard but each passing decade the relief was replaced with a sound of disappointment.
Aww!
The curse of immortality man...
8706056
You win the comments section in my opinion.
Also, Sunny needs to be Guard Captain.
8705697
Well imagination implies infinite possibilities, maybe something like the Infinity guard, or the Eon guard, something like that.
8707077
Humm, thosesound like good names to me but we will have to wait to see which name Hiver choose.
Love this story! Can't wait for more. However, I noticed something:
Shouldn't it be "...hoof the guard hoofbook or something over to me or Swift."? I know they both come from or have been in a human world which had hands, but "When in Rome..." and all that.
O this is going to be interesting as to how the new guard is trained.
8705697
I'd go with the "Paper Warriors"
Yes, I know it sound insulting--but consider:
Unlike humans, in equines (and most other creatures, for that matter) there is little or no dichotomy between the sexes where it comes to physical strength, endurance, and dexterity. So the mares get the same rigorous training as the stallions.
However, whatever enemy they go up against, when they hear they're called the "Paper Warriors", they'll assume pansies and bust a gut laughing--at least until the mares come in and stomp the shit out of all them.
Of course, that tactic will only work the first few times it happens--and by then, the mares will start getting a rep, which will soon become a badge of honor for them.
8708084
Well, they could call them the "training manuals"
--wait--
okay--"training horseuals".
yeeeaaah--that works
I knew it!!! Hah, score one for the Shimmer-mare. You got him good, filly.
8733429
It was plainly obvious. This is Sunset we are talking about. Trollestia's previous student. And she is bi/lesbian. She would know how to put together an effective-but-still-eye-candy-material guard. It was stupidly obvious. Or that could just be the intellectual part of me talking.
9820379
dude there are already like, 3 male only guard units.
Fucking chill bro
8710083
There is a story where hospitals are called horsespitals... I mean I dont mind some words like hand man and women being replaced with their respective equine counterparts... but horsepital? Fucking horsepital???
8710083
since the "man" in manual was Latin for "hand" it would make more sense for it to be "hoofual"
10819613
Actually...
https://glosbe.com/en/la/hoof
... Ungual?
All of this will make a great Legancy if Sunset dont earn wings! 👏
Sunset for next Alicorn xD
Well, this would give a solid explanation why the variety in guards goes up in later seasons…
I can see Page guard to be like 'X-Com' from Enemy unknown.
11641465
Where the hell do you find shit like this? I think i've finally lost touch with the internet because despite the fact that i fucking love it i haven't found anything like that in years.
11674150
Its over a decade old, finding it cost me hour the second time around...
A all male or female guard makes no sense to me, it would make more sense to go after affinities on magic or other criteria. But there is nothing that can't be changed later.
If he takes his time to do so next time around.
11896270
You know, I could never for the life of me figure out why X-Com crossovers were so popular here.
I finally looked it up just now-- X-Com was partially developed by Hasbro*.
*--hidden in case anyone else wants to keep being mystified.