A Whole New World

30th Summer's End

"Hurry up Dutch! The train leaves in fifteen minutes." Twilight said.

"I know, I know," I shot back as I filled my bag with things I would need, "Christ, the one time I need to get up early and the bloody rooster doesn't call."

"You shouldn't rely on it so much."

I ignored her and continued to fill my pack, "It's like being later for school all over again."

"Aw come on," Scootaloo said, "It can't be that bad."

I took another look at the list of supplies Derpy had only given me this morning. It had the usual requirements; clothes, toiletries, even some bits if we wanted to go anywhere in Canterlot during the off time. They would supply food and equipment. However, at the bottom of the list, it said 'Any specialist items'. I could only think of one thing that would be referring to, and I had a feeling Celestia had a hoof in writing this letter.

I used the key around my neck to open the wooden box and pulled out the rifle. I did a quick check, and upon seeing no signs of damage or rust, strapped it to the side of my pack. I stuffed the magazines inside and zipped up the bag, lifting the whole thing onto my back, with my wings on either side. I did a quick scan of things in the room I may have forgotten, but I only saw the things I wouldn't need; my sleeping bag, the box I kept my rifle in, my snowboard, I still need to try that out.

"Ok, now I'm ready to go."

"Great, hold still," Twilight lit up her horn, my vision flashed, and that familiar feeling of being pulled apart engulfed me. When it ended, I was standing outside the train station.

I shook my head to get rid of the nausea, "I don't think I'll ever get used to that."

Twilight didn't seem bothered, however, as she trotted inside with Scootaloo, only turning back to give me a stern look, "Come on, the others are waiting."

We entered the train station and I bought a ticket for the Canterlot Express. After receiving the tiny piece of paper, we continued through the building and out onto the platform, where everyone else was waiting for us. They all had huge smiles on their faces, despite me going away for a few weeks.

"Ya take care now, ya hear?" Applejack said as she gave me a hug, "Ah don't wanna have to drag ya'll back to the hospital again."

"Will do AJ,"

"And make sure to have fun!" Pinkie exclaimed, "When you get back, we can throw you a congratulatory party!"

I laughed, "I'll keep that in mind."

I made my way down the line of friends, each of them giving their own message for me. The final one to say goodbye was Lyra.

She dragged her hoof along the ground, as if trying to think of something to say, "Um... good luck Dutch,"

"Thanks," I pulled her into a hug, which she returned, "I'll see you again in a few weeks."

"...ok," I pulled away, and, looking into her large, golden eyes, I swear I could see a hint of sadness. I gave her a reassuring smile as I stood up and climbed onboard the train.

Apart from a slightly lower roof, this train seemed similar to ones back on Earth. The carriages had a single, long hallway on one side of the train with passenger compartments lining the other. I quickly found one that was empty and lifted my pack onto the railing above me, the rifle making a clatter as it hit the metal poles. With that taken care of, I opened the window and stuck my head out just as the train started moving. I waved to the ponies on the platform as they ran alongside, each of them saying their goodbyes.

"See you in a few weeks," I shouted as they ran out of platform. The last thing I saw before the train rounded a corner was Lyra's mint-green coat contrasting against the brown station. I sat down and let my mind wander as the train made its way to Canterlot.

Except for the noise of the engine, the train was quiet. No other ponies entered my compartment, whether it was fear at seeing a strange creature, or respecting one's privacy. About five minutes into the journey, the train was plunged into darkness as it entered a tunnel cut through a mountain. When light finally returned to the compartment, I noticed Valiant sitting opposite me. I was slightly surprised, but I told myself to expect sudden appearances further down the line.

"What are you expecting when you get to Canterlot?" He asked.

"Don't know," I said, "But I'm a human, I can adapt. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."

"In that case, there's something else I'd like to talk to you about."

"Sure. What's on your mind?"

"The same thing that's on your mind, seeing as I'm in your head: Lyra."

He hopped off the seat and climbed up next to me, giving me a deep stare, "You have feelings for her, don't you?"

I sighed, staring at the floor, "Now that I think about it, yes. I don't know why, but... there's something about her. I just can't put my finger on it."

"So what's stopping you from telling her?"

I gave a weak laugh, and gestured at myself, "This. Back home, humans were the only sentient creatures on the planet. We don't know anything about relationships outside our own species. "

"There's probably no difference between there and here," Valiant replied, "I'm not the best source of information for this kind of thing after being in that castle for the past thousand years, but there are other animals that walk and talk like ponies. I'm sure there's at least one pony out there who's dating a different species."

I broke my gaze from the floor, trying to think about how to solve this problem, "So you think I should do it?"

"Honestly, I'm not the one you should be asking," he shifted his wings a bit, before continuing, "Look, it was a bad morning for you, and this trip's going to take a while. Get yourself some sleep, and I'll wake you up when we get close to Canterlot."

"Thanks Valiant."

The train passed through another tunnel, and when we exited, Valiant was gone. I rested my feet on the seat beside me and used my wings as a makeshift backrest, placing my head on the wooden wall as I fell asleep.

I looked around, taking in my surroundings. I was in a rich, green meadow, hills and trees on all sides, the sun disappearing behind the horizon. One particular hill caught my attention, and on top of it I saw a faint green dot, paler in colour than the rest of the land. I started making my way up the hill, intent on finding out what the speck was.

I reached the top, and the shape revealed itself to be Lyra. She was sat on the top of the hill, staring at the horizon. I followed her gaze; the view was magnificent. I was looking over the town of Ponyville, and all of the buildings were in view. In the distance, I could see Sweet Apple Acres in all its glory, the orchard spreading for miles.

As I sat down next to Lyra, and she turned to look at me, "I'm glad you're here Dutch. I wouldn't have been the same without you."

I found myself replying as I smiled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and resting my head on hers, "I wouldn't have missed this for the world, Lyra."

Her eyes met mine, and I became lost in her golden irises. The sunset reflected off that gold and accentuated their beauty as I saw her head slowly moving towards mine. I copied her movements, and I saw her eyes close. Our faces slowly moved closer together until...

"Hey, wake up, we're almost there."

I felt something tapping my head. Waving my arm, I opened my eyes to see Valiant poking me with a hoof. I shifted in my sitting position and heard a pony somewhere down the hall of the carriage shouting, "Next stop: Canterlot!" I lifted my legs off the seat, taking a moment to think about the dream I had had. Only one thing was going through my head as I sat there: Wierd.

I saw a pair of Royal Guards dressed in their golden armour as I approached the castle. Someone must have sent word ahead of my arrival, because as I got closer, they pulled their spears apart and let me through. I gave them a brief nod of thanks as I passed them, but they didn't even make eye contact. They only placed their spears back across the entrance, These guys are just like the British Royal Guards back home, only without the hats.

I made my way through the castle grounds until I saw a group of guards being ordered about by two pegasi, a stallion and a mare. I looked at the officers, shouting commands, and imagined myself standing where they were. I soon began to rethink my decision to do this, wondering if I could be a leader, but I quickly squashed that thought, I'm here now, no going back.

I looked at the officers again, and recognised the white coat of one of them. Captain Wingfleet saw me too. He marched his soldiers around for a few minutes more, before dismissing them and making his way over to me, the female officer behind him.

"Morning Dutch. I heard you were coming here for training," his gaze turned onto my wings, "How long have you had those?"

"Almost two weeks now," I said. I looked at the symbol on the shoulder of his armour - a full moon, which I guessed was the rank for Captain - as a thought occured to me, "I suppose this means I call you 'sir' now, huh?"

"As of now, yes," he gestured to the mare at his side, "This is Captain Bright Skies, my second in command."

The female pegasus had a bright blue coat and a white mane. She offered a hoof to shake, "There are those that speak highly of you, Lieutenant."

"Really? I haven't even started training yet."

"Captain Wingfleet!" The new voice travelled across the grounds, and I saw a dark red earth pony with a black mane making his way towards us. I stole a glance at his rank slide, and saw two full moons. The pony reached us and said, "Captain, where is your platoon?"

"Dismissed, Commander Ironhoof," said Wingfleet, giving a salute to this new officer.

Ironhoof turned to me, "And what the hell is this?"

Taking the initiative, I saluted too, "Lieutenant Jones sir, reporting for training."

"Yes, I know who you are," Ironhoof snapped, "The Princess mentioned some creature coming here for training," he shifted closer to me and narrowed his eyes, "But frankly, I don't care who, or what you are. When you're here, you're just like everypony else. Don't expect any special treatment just because you know the Princess."

"Yes sir." I already wasn't liking this guy, but his approach seemed fair.

I saw another pony approaching us. He was a tall, white unicorn with a blue mane wearing unusual purple armour. There was something about his cutie mark that seemed oddly familiar.

"Commander. May I have a word with our newest recruit?" He asked. His voice was strange for an officer, and would have sounded more appropriate with a surfer.

Ironhoof seemed to pause, before saying, "Yes Captain." He took one more look at me, as if to say 'I'm watching you', before walking back towards the castle.

The unicorn stallion approached me, "Don't worry about Ironhoof, most of his family history is Equestrian military. I guess it's just his nature to be like that," he extended his hoof, which I shook, "First Captain Shining Armour. I already know about you Dutch; Twilight Sparkle's told me a lot about you, but it's still quite a shock to see something so... different."

I cocked my head, "How do you know Twilight?"

"What, she never told you?" He asked, "I'm her brother."

Surprised, I took another look at his cutie mark: a blue shield with a purple, six-point star on it, similar to Twilight's, "She never mentioned any siblings."

Shining Armour chuckled, "That sounds like Twily, no doubt too busy studying. It's nice to finally make your acquaintance."

We shared a quick laugh, before Shining said, "Captain Wingfleet will escort you to your quarters. Get settled in and we'll send somepony to collect you for when we issue your equipment."

I followed Wingfleet round the back of the castle and towards what I assumed was the barracks. It was a fairly large building, seperate from the castle, which overlooked a large field, a forest and an assualt course. I saw a flying carriage taking some soldiers up into the mountains, so they must have had training areas up there too.

We entered the barracks and walked down a series of hallways, and I took mental notes of which turnings to take so I wouldn't get lost later. After a few minutes, we came to a door marked 'Emerald Squad'.

"This will be your dorm throughout training," Wingfleet explained, "Each new officer recruit is assigned guardsmen to train alongside them. You will be designated Emerald Squad for your duration here, and the ponies in this room will be under your command during and after training. Lead them well, and you'll be able to rely on them when you need to. Good luck Dutch."

I saluted, "Thank you sir."

He left, and I entered my new quarters. There were five beds inside, and two pegasi had already arrived, and were now in some sort of argument over who owned which bed. One had a light grey coat, a black, slicked-back mane and a thunderbolt cutie mark. The other one had a black coat, a mohawk that was two shades of pale blue and a cutie mark of a storm cloud with lightning. The one with the lighter coat noticed my presence, and nudged the other one as he continued to stare at me.

"Morning gents," I said as I sat down on a bed. It was designed for a pony, but I had gotten used to the small size, "My name's Dutch Jones. I guess I'm your squad leader from now on."

The two pegasi stared at me for a few seconds longer, before the pony with the mohawk shook his head and stepped forward, "Well, um... it's good to meet you... sir," he noticed the other pegasus was still staring, and slapped him on the back of the head, "I'm Thunderlane, and this is my little brother, Rumble."

Rumble managed a weak smile and a wave, "Um... hi."

I figured I'd try and break the ice a bit, and said, "So, you're brothers? What made you decide to join the Guard?"

I turned out that both of these pegasi had wanted to become part of the Royal Guard from a very young age. They had always had dreams of adventure and brotherhood in the military, and I didn't blame them. I had had very similar views when I was younger; stories of courage and heroism filling my head, making me want to be part of that. And here I was now.

We carried on talking for some time. Rumble had become much more relaxed around me, and was more light-hearted than he had been before. He began talking about their family. They had come from an average family in Manehatten. Their parents hadn't been able to do much to dissuade them from joining the army, but it wasn't like they wanted to anyway. They were proud of their two sons becoming soldiers.

Soon afterwards, the door opened and another pegasus stepped inside. He had a blue coat and a black mane, which was cut quite short compared to other ponies. On his flank was a picture of two swords, crossed over each other.

"Steel Sword, reporting to Emerald Squad," he said, his tone making him sound like a professional soldier already.

"Good to see you again Steel," said Thunderlane.

Steel narrowed his eyes, "Thunderlane?"

"The one and only," he replied, giving Steel a hoofshake, "I saw you as I approached the barracks, but I thought I would surprise you the next time I saw you."

"I assume you two know each other then," I asked.

"Yeah, we were friends from school," Steel said, "We haven't seen each other in what... seven years? But I'd recognise that mohawk anywhere."

I looked towards the fifth bed, "So any ideas who our final squadmate is?"

Thunderlane looked at his brother, "Bet you a bit that it's another pegasus."

"You're on," Rumble said, "We've got four flyers already. Chances are we're not going to get a fifth."

As if on cue, the door to our room opened, and another pegasus entered. He had a dark grey coat and a striped mane, which was black and ice-blue. His cutie mark was a white dove on top of a black heart, and was perhaps one of the more complex marks I had seen. As I expected, his eyes widened upon seeing me.

"Um... i-is this Emerald Squad?"

"Sure is, make yourself at home," said Thunderlane, before turning to Rumble, "Pay up, bro."

While Rumble muttered something under his breath and handed over a gold coin, I turned to the new arrival, "So what's your name?"

"Shadow Breeze," said the pegasus, putting his bag on the remaining bed and making his way over to us.

"Well Shadow, it's nice to meet you. I'm Dutch, and this is Thunderlane, Rumble and Steel Sword," I gestured at the three pegasi next to me, "You and Steel don't seem that surprised to see me."

"There were a few soldiers down the hall talking about some six-foot-tall, two-legged creature in the barracks." Shadow said, "But it's still a surprise."

"Yeah, my dad was in the Royal Guard," Steel said, "He said the if there was anything that spread around the barracks faster than germs, it was rumours. Chances are everypony will know about you before day's end."

We continued to talk, making sure everyone could get involved in the conversation and learn about the ponies they would be serving with. After half an hour, we heard the door open again. This time, a pony already wearing armour poked his head in.

"Come with me. Your gear's being issued now."

We all got up and followed the soldier down the hallways. As we walked, I noticed Thunderlane hang his head and hand over to Rumble the same bit he had just given him. I became curious, and nudged Steel Sword.

"Were they always so quick to place bets?"

"Don't worry about that," Steel replied, "They were using that same bit when I knew them in school. I lost count of how many times it's changed hooves."

The guard led us outside and round the back of the barracks. As we rounded the corner, we saw a large group of ponies crowded around a door, undoubtedly other recruits. Some of them noticed me, and began whispering amongst themselves. Steel was right; more ponies knew about me since I had arrived.

The queue into the room was pretty big, and it took a while before Emerald Squad managed to collect their gear. My team was given identical sets of navy-blue uniforms, both for formal and informal parts of training, as well as other equipment, such as a pack and waterproof clothing, and something that resembled a chest rig.

When I reached the front of the line, the quartermaster took one look at me and walked through a door at the back. He returned carrying a pile of human clothing and kit; trousers, tops, and a pair of black boots. All of the tops had slits in the back to allow my wings to move freely, so I could only assume Twilight had sent a letter about them. The pony also handed over an empty pack similar to the one I had brought with me, and webbing that looked very similar to army cadet webbing. Seeing this made me wonder if Celestia had read more of my mind than I had initially thought.

Collectively, all of the new gear weighed a fair amount, but it was nothing I couldn't handle as the squad returned to our dorm.

"So," Thunderlane said, turning to everyone else, "Ready for training tomorrow?"

"Definitely," Rumble replied, giving his brother a high-hoof.

Author's notes: Grr, why does writer's block exist? On the plus side, alcohol is an excellent cure.
Also, many thanks to AnonJ17 for letting me use his OC: the one and only Shadow Breeze.