~~~Location: Emergency Training Facility, Manehattan, morning~~~
"Welcome to the Manehattan Emergency Training Facility." says a dark green unicorn mare with light green mane, her voice sounding serious, no hint of sympathy. She wears a light blue uniform, her rank displaying on her shoulders: 4 silver bars framed with a silver line.
"I am the facility leader, Chief Strawberry Cake." She glares at a pegasus with a coat that looks like milk chocolate, accentuated with his sandy mane. The stallion snickers at her name. "Do you think I chose my name?" She walks towards his table, the stallion stops snickering as the chief caught him.
"Do you think I came to this position with fun and games?" The stallion sank in his chair, trying to evade her piercing glare. "The job you are about to learn doesn't make you laugh. It's a serious job, every day you go to work, facing nothing but desperation, fear and death." She stomps her hoof on his desk to emphasize the word 'death', making him wince. "Of course you'll see happy moments... but don't you EVER think this job is sunshine and rainbows. What's your name, cadet?"
The milk chocolate colored stallion gulps heavily as he responds. "P-Pegsen, sir." His eyes open wide as he recognizes his mistake. "Mam!" he says in a louder voice, nearly shouting, sitting upright again.
The chief raises her left eyebrow and lifts her head. "Consider yourself warned, cadet. For both these mistakes. I'll keep an eye on you. One more mistake and you will be demoted. And do you know what that means?" The stallion only nods, wanting her to go away, lifting her attention from him. "Good."
She slowly walks back to the teacher's desk, the pegasus releases a sigh of relief.
"In this facility" she continues as if nothing happened "we will train you to become the last straw that the citizens of Equestria rely on." Her sight scans the classroom, looking each cadet in the eyes as she speaks. "You will become highly trained rescue forces. Each of you decided for a branch as you registered. Fire Fighting Forces or Emergency Medical Ponies, both with their own subbranches which will be explained later in your training. Each branch relies on the other, working hoof in hoof to safe the ones that got in need, their very life depending on how you do. That is why you learn the basics of these two branches, being able to understand what your colleagues do and help them out in basic tasks. If at any time you think that this job is too hard for you, feel free to quit. We accept your decision."
She smiles softly, reassuring that her words are true. "It's wiser to quit during training than quitting while on an incident when the ponies you are there for need you the most." Her smile fades, her voice returning to her harsh tone. "This job is hard, forcing you to go to your limits - both physical and psychological. We expect you to hit those limits during training. If you don't hit your limits during training, feel free to notify us - you may be qualified for our 'Specialists Program', but more on that later."
She opens a drawer in her desk and lifts an envelope with her shimmering light green magic, placing it on the table and releasing the contents held within. "Everyone of you will get an ID card that authorizes you to enter this very perimeter." She lifts her own ID card up with her right hoof, showing it to the students. Strawberrie's ID card shows a photo of her to the left side and in the middle it reads:
"Chief Strawberry Cake
Training and Education
Facility Leader"
Her four silver bars framed with silver are presented on the right side of her card.
"On it you will find your rank, your current training year, your name and your selected branch. In my case it doesn't show my year, but my function - just like every other staff's ID card does." She places her card back at her uniform, a special pocket stitched to her uniform on her right chest, displaying it to everypony who looks at her.
"I will call your name and you will step forward to my desk, collecting your ID card and keys for your dormitory." She looks on the list that has been in the envelope. She fixes her gaze at the stallion that caused trouble earlier. "Pegsen."
~~~Location: Summer Sun Celebration site, Ponyville, the afternoon before the festivity ~~~
A grey earth pony stallion with a blonde mane, dressed in a yellow vest and a red collar - the vest of an Emergency Medical Pony - waits outside a tent with a red cross on each side of its side. His ID card reads:
"Alex Grey
EMP Ponyville
Paramedic Instructor"
The left side of his ID shows his photo and the right side shows a blue bar.
"Sorry I'm late." The earth pony turns his head to the source of the sound, spotting a dark grey unicorn stallion with an unkempt brown mane who wears the same vest as he does and then looks at the town clock. "You aren't. You are five minutes early."
The unicorn offers his hoof to Alex. "Name's Cubic. I wanted to be here 10 minutes early."
Alex shakes his hoof firmly. "I'm Alex Grey, your instructor and colleague for this event."
"Wait... we are alone?"
Alex smiles. >He must be from a bigger city.< "Yes. This is Ponyville, after all. The rest of our team is off duty but they will respond to the siren alarm."
Cubic scratches his chin. "Siren... alarm?"
The earthpony laughs softly. "Like I said, Ponyville. We don't have the need to provide a full team of medics the whole day. If somepony is in need they turn on the next siren to their location. At least one of us will respond to the call. And if we need reinforcement we can raise every siren in a different sound pattern."
The unicorn looks surprised. He expected the whole arcane science equipment that they use in Manehattan.
"Another point is: This town started as an earth pony town and we do keep our tradition close to us. That's why we still have those old sirens." He looks up at the siren placed on top of Town Hall. It looks like a post with a cover that is way too big for it. "I personally like them. Gives me more free time."
Alex looks back at Cubic who still looks at the siren. "But don't worry, the rest of our equipment is state of the art, like everywhere else in Equestria. Come on, let's check our stuff before we check the location."
Cubic nods and looks back at Alex. He closes up to him as they walk into the first aid tent.
Author's Note
Pegsen is by @swallowfire on Twitter.
Alex Grey is by me.
Cubic is by @Internetianer on Twitter.
Want to be in the story? Message me! I'm always in need of OCs.
