Aleksandr

Chapter 7: Pompous Little Prick

I was jolted awake by the sound of hooves slamming on the door.

"Hey! Hey! Wake up! It's time for breakfast!" I recognized that voice. It was that pompous little prick from last night's dinner; Blueblood. I didn't like this little fucker. Doesn't he realize who he's messing with? Quickly getting myself ready, I showered, combed my hair, and dressed myself. I straightened my coat in the mirror, sheathed my knife and snatched up my pistol, leaving my SMG in my wardrobe. The little dickhead slammed on the door, only louder this time.

"Hey! Ape! Are you almost done in there?!" I don't have time for this. Stomping over to the door, I threw it open, revealing a smug-looking Blueblood. "I see you're awake. How are you?" He said sarcastically, grinning.

"Fan-fucking-tastic!" I said, smiling widely, before pistol whipping him across the face.

"Aaaaaah! Help! Guards! Seize him!" Damn. I hit him hard. He was bleeding profusely from his nose, and I knocked a few of his teeth out. A small group of guards sprinted in, spears pointing in my direction. They lowered them after seeing who was there, and began to carry him to the infirmary.

"What are you doing?! Seize him!" The guards shrugged, and carried him past me. I got a few 'Good hit!" and "Nice one, Aleksandr!"'s whispered to me as they passed. Clearly, no-one liked him. Good. I continued to walk to the kitchen, which was right next to the dining hall. I entered, and saw the chefs working tirelessly. A few of them looked up at me, but gave respectful nods before returning to their cooking. One of them trotted up to me, I assumed he was the head chef, or something like that.

"Hello, you must be the Aleksandr fellow I've heard so much about, yes?"

"Да. The one and only."

"What brings you here on this fine morning?"

"I just wanted to have a look around. Besides, I was going to get some breakfast."

"Ah, so, what will it be, hmm?"

"Just a buttered roll, a bowl of fruit, and some coffee. Dark roast if you have it."

"How would you like your coffee?"

"Whole milk, not too much sugar."

"Alright then. You heard him! Get to it! It will be ready in a few minutes. It'll be on the counter when it's ready." Nodding, I proceeded to sit down in the dining room, and waited patiently. I began to inspect something I hadn't touched since boot-camp: my gas mask. It had sat in my mask bag for the entire time I was in the service, and it miraculously had no damage to it. My маска-08's hose was un-punctured, the filter had next-to-none in the way of dents, the lenses were un-cracked, the face-piece wasn't dry rotted, and the harness was in one piece. I practiced some fitting drills, and was interrupted by a pony calling my name.

"Your meal's ready, Aleksa-- Sweet Celestia! What is that on your face?!" She looked slightly disturbed.

"Oh! Sorry!" Quickly removing my mask, I draped it over my shoulder and took the plate and sat down. It was just as I asked, a roll, coffee, and a small bowl of fruit. I munched happily on the roll, ate the sweet fruit pieces, and gulped down my coffee. I hadn't had real coffee in a while. A maid took my plate, and I set off to find the princess. She was most likely in the throne room. I found it, and entered the large room. I was about to approach her, but she was in the middle of listening to some random pony babble about a problem. It just happened to be Blueballs, who looked as if I never hit him. Magic! Wooo! Fuck physics!

"And there he is," He said, whipping around to face me. "Oh, you're really going to get it now, ape!"

"Simmer down, Blueblood. With how you've been treating him lately, I think you deserved it." Celestia deadpanned. Ouch. Not even she likes him.

"Morning, Blueballs." I said, grinning at the little asshole.

"I swear, you both will pay, mark my words!" He shouted before storming off.

"Ugh, I should just strip him of his title and kick him out. Anyway, what brings you here today?"

"I just wanted to ask when I can join the military here. I need a job, after all."

"Yes, yes. Of course, all you need to do is gather your belongings from Ponyville, and we can begin. You may set out today, if you like."

"Да I will leave at once." I left, and jogged back to my room. I collected my SMG, ammo, and put my ushanka atop my head. I resumed my departure, and stopped at the palace gates. I checked over my equipment, seeing I had my PPSh, Tokarev, ammo, and my knife. I held my SMG across my chest and jogged down to the train station. I kept glancing at the upper windows, checking for enemy snipers. Then I remembered where I was, and felt like an idiot. I reached the train station, and boarded one of the rearmost cars. This one was completely empty. Good. I decided to get some rest before I arrived.

///\\

The train had arrived in Ponyville, and I had arrived at Golden Oaks Library. I entered, and was surprised to see Twilight organizing the book shelves.

"Wait, I thought you were still in Canterlot?" I said, confused.

"Oh, good afternoon, Aleks. My friends and I left early." I nodded, and went down to the basement to retrieve my weapons. I found an old black duffle bag and put my sniper rifle, SMG, AR and ammo boxes into. Jeez, this bag had a lot of space. I walked up the stairs, and bid Twilight farewell.

"Goodbye, Twilight."

"Wait! Where are you going?! You can't leave! Where are you going to stay?"

"I'm moving to Canterlot. Don't worry, I'll write."

"Why?"

"Potential job as a Royal Guard." Before she could respond, I was out the door, and making my way to the train station. I went to my previous spot, and found it to still be empty. To pass the time, I stripped, cleaned and loaded my weapons. For the rest of the way, I sharpened and polished my knife.

///\\

I walked down the streets of Canterlot, and received many confused stares. I resumed my journey to the castle, and it was around 4:00PM. I found the princess, and found that she was talking to Shining Armor. Shit. I forgot I would be taking orders from him.

"There you are, Aleksandr. I just finished talking to Shining Armor about you joining the Royal Guard. He accepts, but believes you shouldn't keep your original rank. Do you accept?" Said Celestia.

"Can I at least be higher than Private?"

"No."

"Damn! So, when do we begin? I'm going to ignore the fact that you just insulted me as a Red Army soldier."

"We will start your initiation shortly. If you would follow me?"

"Да. Please tell me I don't have to wear that shitty armor."

"You will have a set custom made for you."

"I refuse to wear it. It is heavy, and useless in combat."

"Then how will ponies know who you are?"

"I will have a duplicate set of clothing similar to what I am wearing. I will have it tailored to have gold accents, and the ushanka will have the equestrian symbol instead of a Red Star. Maybe an armband with the Equestrian insignia on it. What do you think of it?"

Hesitantly, he replied. "Fine. We're here." We were in the training grounds, and a bat-pony thing was sitting on it's haunches, waiting for us.

"Now, if you can beat Night Blade, You're in. He's gone undefeated for over 6 years. Don't kill each other. No weapons, no armor. Have fun, you two." I removed my ushanka and coat, and put all of my weapons into the duffle bag. Placing them to the side, I cracked my knuckles, and dropped into a fighting stance.

"Bring it, horse."