Striving for Perfection

It's amazing that Celestia agreed to hold exercises in the city. Although given the conditions, it would be better if she did not agree.

I took a deep breath and briefly surveyed my surroundings. My body and Rising rested on a bench right in front of the train station. Several nearby benches were completely occupied by my soldiers who had already equipped themselves with weapons and armor. For a few seconds, I just looked at how they just sat there not talking to each other. Everyone used to talk to each other. And before, there were always not enough benches and some had to sit on the ground.

"So, what are we waiting for, sir?" The voice of Rising asked, bringing me back to reality. As soon as his question reached my brain, I gritted my teeth remembering Celestia's conditions.

"Have I already told you what we're going to do today?" I asked in response to his question.

"You said something about the fact that this will be the largest exercise that we have had. And that's it. Rising replied with a slight embarrassment in his voice, causing me to turn my head sharply in his direction. Did I forget to tell you about such a case in more detail? Damn lack of sleep. We need to find a way to sleep. Find a sleeping pill or something.

Sighing, I looked at the train station again and said, "In any case, there will be a major exercise today. And to carry it out, I persuaded Celestia to declare a curfew. Literally. From one o'clock in the afternoon until two, everyone will be forbidden to leave the street. Although I would prefer from eight in the evening to midnight. "

Rising glanced in the direction of the clock on the facade of the station and abruptly jumped up from the bench, said: " It's already three hours and ten minutes! It's time to start!"

My ears caught that some thestrals had already started to get up from their seats, in response to which my left hand showed them a stop sign. I rolled my eyes and said reassuringly: "You don't think that the Princess will agree to all my conditions without putting forward a counter?"

"Oh." Rising muttered softly as he sat back down on the bench next to me. Having settled in place, he looked at me and curiously raised an eyebrow. I gritted my teeth again remembering the conditions. Of all the counter-conditions that Celestia could put forward, she chose the worst.

Stop whining and talk. In any case, you have already agreed to them while no one has seen.

Taking a deep breath, I reluctantly said, looking into Rising's eyes: "Everyone's favorite heroes will participate in the teaching, or as Luna likes to call them, elements of harmony."

After these words, I felt anger and irritation begin to concentrate among the thestrals around me. In the end, an expression of barely restrained rage appeared on Rising's face and he hissed softly: "Not them. And anyway, after what happened, they don't have the right to be called heroes."

Hmm, he blames the death of his comrades not on you, but on the heroes doing nothing? Well, it's nice to know that in his eyes you're not involved. By the way, this is another reason to believe in the theory that everything that happened was an ambush of heroes.

Nodding slightly, I once again turned my gaze to the train station and said with a grin: "I completely agree with you. But alas, everything is consistent. So let's meet them with all the hospitality that we have. Just don't hug, okay?"

Judging by the active nod of Rising and many other soldiers, I was able to describe my thought quite clearly. Nodding in response, I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the lines and sounds. There is no one on the street except my soldiers. All the ponies are sitting at home and looking at us from the window. Slowly, conversations began to flare up between the soldiers, accompanied by quiet chuckles. In the distance, the lines cut out clear silhouettes. Casting a glance in the direction where the lines began to bend strongly, I saw the train approaching its station. A few moments later, a loud beep was heard. Here it begins.

Getting up from my seat, I adjusted my glasses slightly and checked my pockets. A pencil and a small notebook provided by Celestia. I planned to memorize the inconveniences and problems of the soldiers so that I could retell them to the research group later. But if you were given a notebook, then you can use it. A long time ago, the discharged phone was left in the room along with the knife.

After making sure that everything was in place, I nodded to myself and took a few steps towards the station. Behind me, I caught a crowd of Thestrals getting up from their seats and following me. Sighing contentedly, I leaned my left hand on the nearest wall inside the station while the train was getting closer and closer. My eyes caught that a whole line of soldiers was lined up to my right. Seeing this, I tilted my head to the side trying to figure out what they were going to do. Especially considering that all this was planned nonverbally.
Well, or almost nonverbally.

Eventually, the train slowly stopped at its station with a loud horn. I felt the presence of nine ponies inside him. Probably three are the staff of the train and six are "dear guests". As soon as the train doors opened, a pink pony jumped out of it and stopped in the air at the sight of a whole line in front of her. I grinned and lightly waved my hand at such an annoying creature. At the sight of me, she landed on the ground with her fur slightly discolored. Hmm, she looks better this way.

Then Rainbow got out of the car, or rather, flew out. All the others followed her, and the next moment after that, a loud cry of many thestrals was heard. I quickly covered one ear with my hand and cast an irritated glance in their direction. How could they agree on such a thing without saying almost a single word? And why the hell didn't they tell me about it?

Well, I can answer the crybaby's first question. Do you hear that animal cry? It is impossible to make out a single word, a specific letter or at least one emotion among it. It's an incredible cacophony. It is a fusion of vile collectivism and wonderful individualism. You can agree on the creation of such a thing with a couple of gestures.

Despite the severe pain in my right ear, which I couldn't cover, I chuckled slightly. Well done, very good. As soon as the loud scream subsided, I looked at the heroes barely holding back my laughter. They all fell right on their asses and opened their eyes wide, not knowing what to do. It seemed that if the scream had lasted a little longer, they would have just run. I put my hand behind my back and slowly approached the whole six. As I approached, they slowly recovered, but still did not get up from the ground.

Standing right in front of them and towering over them, he said: "Do you know what the funniest thing is? They came up with it themselves, almost nonverbally. Without me. How cute to look at your shock when reality knocks on the skull. It's unpleasant to leave the comfort zone, right?"

After my words, silence hung in the air. Even none of the soldiers commented on anything. Looks like I'm being left alone again. One against six is so unfair. For them, of course.

Shh, they're starting to make excuses. That's the fun part.

Every pony in the six looked anywhere but into my eyes. In the end, Twilight quietly said, "Look, we're really sorry..."

"I don't need your useless words and excuses. Moreover, I am too lazy to make any accusations in your direction. So I recommend that you get ready and get your asses off the ground already. There will be no special treatment for you. Never. " I interrupted, shaking my head slightly.

After a few seconds of silence, the six of them slowly got to their feet and continued to avoid eye contact with me. Smiling, I turned around on the spot to face the soldiers and said clapping my hands: " Okay, stop having fun. Since everything is in place, then I can begin to explain why we are gathered here. There will be a drill today. But not simpler. The main task will be practicing improvisation skills directly in combat and use the terrain. Who will be your opponent? The one who usually commands you."

In other words, you trash will run after me all over the city in the hope of winning. And I will watch and write down why you are not getting something. More precisely, why nothing works.

After I said these words, the soldiers were confused and began to look at each other as if they perceived my words as a very strange joke. Hoping to dispel their suspicions nonverbally, I put my hand on my side and frowned slightly. Eventually Rising took a cautious step forward and asked: "Mr. Sir Boss, why you? Your arm is broken, sort of. And you're wearing glasses now after all. "

Grinning, I slightly adjusted my glasses and said: " That's right, I'm giving you a chance. If you are so afraid of hurting me that you are unlikely to succeed, then fine. Your task will be to take me into a complete environment with no way out. For additional simplification, I'll just step back without trying to counterattack. Are you satisfied? "

To my annoyance, several Thestrals from the crowd raised their hooves up. I focused on them and was about to ask a question, but I saw what the problem was. They are the few who decided to choose a bow as their weapon. Yeah, trouble. In a good way, they need to act at a distance. And it will be inconvenient if they accidentally put an arrow in my knee.

This will be an additional test for you. And anyway, you will most likely feel their presence from afar. No surprise effect.

Smiling slightly, I answered an unasked question: "Don't worry, I'll be able to dodge all your arrows. If you don't trust me, you can just shout something warning before firing. Does anyone else have any questions or can we stop wasting time?"

At first there was a calm and satisfying silence around me. Then I heard a woman clearing her throat behind me. With extreme reluctance, I turned around on the spot and looked at the pony. All of them have already managed to take a more or less confident look, and Rainbow even dared to take off with crossed hooves. Seeing that my gaze was focused on her, she asked impatiently: "And what are we going to do?"

"You won't fucking believe it. Absolutely the same! With only one exception. The six of you will be in the same group. " With fun in my voice, I said, raising one hand up. After these words, the eyes of each of the six widened and their mouths slightly opened. Nodding, I turned around again to look at the soldiers. It was evident from their facial expressions that they were dissatisfied with the fact that they would study together with the "heroes".

Grinning, I took a step forward and hurriedly said: "Okay, enough talking. I'll wander around the city, I won't tell you where. Your task will be to organize yourself, find me and take me into the environment. How you will do it is not important to me. Although I want to warn you. Because of someone, you will only have one single attempt to do it in the city. "

After the end of my speech, the soldiers reluctantly nodded and made way for me to pass. Nodding in response, I quickly walked through the formed living corridor and put my hand in my pocket. Leaving everyone behind, I turned the nearest corner and pulled a notebook and pencil out of my pocket. The main thing is not to think about how to record with only one hand working.

We will hold the pencil with our mouth. That's probably how ponies write.

Sighing, I nodded to myself and completely walked through the alley and looked around. To the right was the castle, already bored with its ugliness. Ahead were apartment buildings from which I could feel the few glances of ponies. To my left were various shops. Starting from clothes (wow, ponies massively sell clothes) and ending with a donut. I understood. There's nowhere to go.

Then an idea came to my mind, and I cast my gaze upward. I had already had to climb up using the narrow space of the alley before. Why don't I try it again? Besides, if I was on the roof, I'll be able to see how well the thestrals fly in full uniform. Nodding to myself, I took a deep breath. Because of my right arm, I won't be able to just crawl like last time. You'll have to run or even jump away from the walls. The second option is undesirable. I took a few steps back and returned my pencil and notebook in my pocket. Now there is a question. What to do with the glasses?

Unable to think of anything better, I took off my glasses and put them in my pocket. When it was all over, I sighed and ran to the wall. When it was only a step away, I rested my left foot on it and instantly rested my right a little higher. Then, instinctively, I stretched my left hand forward towards the wall and, to my own surprise, accidentally made a hole in the wall. It will be . . . easier than I expected. Grinning, I clung to the hole and pushed up with a little effort. This effort was enough to get me high enough in a few seconds to reach the roof at arm's length. Taking another breath, I pulled myself up on one arm and sat down on the roof.

Well, it was easy. Now you can do more important things. By important, I mean anything other than sitting.

Nodding to myself, I slowly got up on both feet and brushed the dirt off my coat. Then I carefully pulled my glasses out of my pocket and put them on before looking towards the train station. There, to my own surprise, I could only make out six figures. Presumably, "heroes". So my soldiers have already figured out what to do. But at the same time they are looking so far away that I can't feel them with lines.

"I'm even a little impressed with them," I quietly admitted, looking around. Like a challenge to my past statement, I saw a disappointing picture. Not a single thestral took to the sky. Is it hard for them in armor or just laziness? Although, in any case, they will have to take off to get to me. Not to mention active harassment.

Don't you think you're making it too easy for them?

As soon as this question appeared in my head, I reflexively pressed my hand to my chin. On the one hand, yes, I am too soft with them and could try to simulate a real fight. But on the other hand, all this training was done solely to find out what can be improved in soldiers. I think, after all this training, it would be nice to ask questions to the soldiers themselves. Hmm, the lines are starting to move. With that, from all sides.

"I found he!" A voice shouted from behind before actively moving away from me. After a few moments while this information was reaching my brain, I grinned. To enter the same area from several sides? Very good. Maybe they will even be able to take me into the environment. Although I can just bite my finger and create a fog to get out of the environment.

Or can I borrow blood from one of them?

Returning to a more serious mood, I shook my head slightly and began to think about how to act. Of course, you can just stand still and watch as the environment gets tighter and tighter. But you can't simplify the task too much. On the other hand, I can jump on the roofs. I am sure that all those who are trying to sleep now will appreciate it. Although who will sleep at one o'clock in the afternoon? No matter. From the third side, you can run and maneuver through narrow streets. The city after all. How will I record all the information on the go, with one hand? Good question.

Feeling the soldiers approaching me and looking around, I noticed another detail. They fly, but so low that it is very difficult to see them from the roof. Only sometimes you can notice ears and heads. Not a bad idea. Only, they have limited the field of view to themselves. Well, everything has pros and cons. Except for morality, of course.

Standing on the edge of the roof, I looked down and saw three thestrals flying low along a wide road. At the sight of me, they quickly flew in the other direction and shouted about where I was. A note for the future: "Low data transfer rate."

Nodding to myself, I grabbed my glasses with my left hand and jumped off the roof to the ground. Landing on both feet, I felt a slight pain in my knees, but decided to ignore it. If I tried to mitigate the pain of falling by rolling, then the glasses would be in a risky position. Shaking my head, I ran straight ahead along the wide road trying to focus on the location of the soldiers. They're getting further and further away from me. Why first take me into the environment and then run away in the corners?

Fear, terror, flight. What could be better than this?

Sighing, I slightly slowed down the pace of my movement and closed my eyes consoling the headache. Think, not a sleeping head, think. Why first find someone, take them into the environment and then just run away in different directions? When after a few seconds the brain was able to give out absolutely nothing, I began to lightly tap my fist on the head. Nothing, it's empty.

In the end, I sensed not just a lone thestral, but a whole group hiding in the alley to my left. Hmm, maybe they scattered to start chasing me to one point? This explains why the heroes were standing at the train station. Well, I'll let them lead me to the train station. Within reason, of course. The main thing is that they know the way themselves.

Holding my glasses in my left hand, I slowed down to a normal pace and continued walking forward as if there was no one in ambush. Step. The quietest breath. One more step. A quiet, indistinguishable whispering. Note: "We need a way to communicate without sounds. They understand my gestures well, but I don't seem to use them when communicating with each other. Or now it's just an unfortunate situation."

Another step and I stopped right in front of the alley where an ambush was waiting for me. For a moment I could only hear their breathing, as if they had run a marathon. Or they were preparing for something labor-intensive. The next moment, they simultaneously burst out of the alley, forcing me to finally look at them. To my own surprise, it was self-organized normally. There was one clear leader in front and behind him two rows of thestrals, each of which had three people. At the same time, they were all armed with spears. So he formed a group based on the fact that they use the same weapon? Hmm.

Stop praising and admiring them, crybaby. They're already running at you. It's time to do something.

With a slight nod to myself, I turned completely towards them before jumping back. To my own surprise, instead of stupidly running forward, they stopped at about the place where I had been before. Instead of stupidly running at the enemy, they just made a small leap forward. I don't even know how to treat it. I definitely didn't teach them that. But it doesn't look too stupid.

While I was thinking about this, the soldiers took another collective breath and another jerk. In response, I jumped back again and out of the corner of my eye, looking around, realized that I was in an alley. Yeah, a narrow room. I can just pick up on the wall and. . . No, I can't. Judging by the lines, several thestrals hovered over the alley. Just in case, I took another bounce back and looked up. There, as the lines said, were thestrals, but apart from that, they held bows with a stretched string in their hooves and teeth. Catching my gaze, all the owners of the bows slowly nodded and released the bowstring, sending arrows at me. Are they so afraid of hurting me?

Shaking my head, I quickly created a shield rune in my left hand with almost no magic invested in it, and in the next instant it formed around me. The first arrow hit the shield at the height of my neck and bounced off it. The second in the chest and again rebound from the shield. The third arrow flew into the shield at the level of my stomach and stuck in the shield. The fourth flew into the shield at the level of my leg and smashed it. In less than a second, I took another bounce back and cast a glance in the direction of the arrows. All of them were randomly lying on the ground with the exception of the fourth arrow that dug into the ground. Then I looked at the soldiers in the air. They opened their eyes wide and guiltily pressed their ears to their heads. A note for the future: "The soldiers don't have anything with significant firepower."

They think you're weak and fragile. Fools. They're even worse off than you, crybaby.

Shaking my head slightly, I turned my gaze to the soldiers right in front of me. From the moment the archers started shooting, they didn't make a single dash towards me. Now, to get to me, they will need to make or several jerks or abandon this strange tactic and start running. Seeing that they were staring at the arrows instead of moving, I sighed and raised my hand and said: "I'm waiting."

After a few seconds of stupor, everyone slowly nodded and started walking towards me, keeping the formation. Slowly, but without jerks. But it turned out that way only at first glance. Squinting, I noticed that they were actively taking a breath and seemed to be gaining acceleration with every second. Then, when there was a little more than one jerk left before me, they accelerated sharply, amazingly maintaining a tight formation. Seeing this, I just rolled my eyes and jumped back once again. But to my surprise, I didn't really distance myself from the advancing soldiers. On the contrary, they are still approaching.

No more weird jerks. The time has come for total persecution.

Before I had time to grin, I felt the presence of another group of soldiers to my right. Looking in their direction, I noticed that this group occupied the center of the road, was armed with swords and did not move jerkily. Holding my glasses, I turned sharply to the left and ran forward at medium speed. I hope they don't get too tired when chasing me.

While running, I felt two more interesting details. The first is that both groups merged into one large one that took up the entire road. The second is that there was another group of soldiers ahead in one of the alleys to my left. This alley was very close to the intersection. I wonder what they'll do if I run into another alley. Or just keep running forward.

Let's see how well they have provided for everything.

Grinning, I focused on the right side of the road and as soon as I saw the alley turned into it almost falling. After my turn, the soldiers ran a little further before stopping abruptly. I let out a brief laugh but was abruptly interrupted by a meaningless loud scream coming from behind. At first I thought that someone had managed to get hurt under such circumstances. But the next moment my brain caught the approach of another group from the front. Reserve? Is a loud sound a way to call him into battle?

Shaking my head, I assumed that I would not have time to run out of the alley before the arrival of the guards, so it would be better to choose up. Spoiling the walls again. Sighing, I carefully put the glasses in my pocket again and took a small run-up and jumped on the wall. Just like last time, the hand accidentally made a hole in the wall, catching on to which I sent myself to the very top. When I was on the roof, my hand reached for my glasses and quickly put them on. A few moments later, a reserve group of soldiers ran into the alley looking for me. But they looked a little too low.

"Try looking higher. I said, adjusting my glasses and looking down at the group while a large group of soldiers split into two. The first one went towards the alley and the second one went forward. The third group that was previously waiting for me in another alley was already out of reach.

Hearing my voice, the reserve group of soldiers shuddered slightly and collectively raised their heads up. At the sight of me on the roof, adjusting my glasses, their eyes widened as if they didn't even think that I could do this. Sighing, I shook my head slightly and said before turning around: "You should have assumed that."

Turning away from them, I tightly gripped the glasses with my left hand so as not to lose them for sure and slowly began to accelerate. After gaining a decent speed and reaching the edge of the roof, I jumped off it. In flight, the cold air ruffled my hair and coat. Damn cold. A few moments later, I landed on both feet right on the ground. A small moan of pain escaped from my mouth caused by such a stupid landing. Maybe it's better to risk the points after all?

Of course it's better. It's even better to forget about their existence and start getting used to the new reality.

Sighing, I looked back and saw a group of soldiers coming out of the alley and started running at medium speed again. But before I could take a dozen steps, two groups of soldiers jumped out in front of me and formed a whole wall. Looking around, I saw only one escape route. Alleyway. Again.

With an exasperated sigh, I turned sharply to the right while glancing at both groups out of the corner of my eye. A large group took a collective breath and made a leap forward. Again, these strange jerks. As soon as we figure everything out, we will need to understand why they decided to do it this way. In any case, a smaller group occupied the middle of the street and similarly moved towards me. If they had sent a couple of people into the alley from the other side and archers from above, then an encirclement could have already turned out. But it looks like they decided to stick strictly to the plan. Note: "There is not enough flexibility. Strong adherence to the plan or just lack of talent is unknown. Both options are possible at once."

Running through the alley, I saw the train station in front of me and a group of soldiers standing next to it, in the middle of which was Rising with a small smile on his face. Did my eyes widen slightly at the sight of this? Where did the heroes go? Oh, here they are. They stand right behind the soldiers and do nothing. I was about to run somewhere in the other direction, but I felt that the environment around me was being shackled. One group is coming across the alley straight to me. On the left and on the right, there are also small groups. And even worse, presumably archers are approaching from above. My brain was struggling to find a way out of the situation. But nothing more sensible than the word "run" came out.

As all the groups approached, I began to slowly step aside, trying not to pay attention to Rising. Some come out of the alley, the rest comes out of the corners and eventually form a single formation coming at me with a wall. Squinting, I noticed that they all looked extremely tired. One even wheezed a little. Focusing on the wheezing thestral, I assumed it was the one with the broken rib. Damn, why didn't he just ask for a rest for today? I quickly shook my head. It doesn't matter, it's already happened. At some point, due to such a large crowd of people in one place, the lines began to move far away. Almost like from Celestia and Luna. Although, no, I overdid it here. It was at this moment that a thought finally appeared in my brain.

The sky is blocked. The ground is blocked. But no one said anything about what was happening underground.

I just washed up recently. But giving up just like that? No problem. Taking a deep breath, I looked around and saw a manhole cover very close to my foot. Grinning, I sat down and opened it with one hand with a slight movement. And the next moment a spear pointed at me like a condemning finger. My eyes widened slightly when I saw that the spear was pointed at me by Flying. That's it. They still managed to take me into the environment.

With a slight grin, I put my hand on top of the spear and asked: "Who smells bad now, eh, Flying?"

In response, he just rolled his eyes and replied: "Shut up. I didn't climb into this pit voluntarily."

"You could have refused!" Shouted Rising. I turned my head in his direction and saw that he looked very pleased with himself. It's not even clear what more. By driving me into the environment or by forcing Flying to climb into the sewer?

No matter. It's time to think about what we will do next.

Nodding, I slowly got up on both feet and said, looking at the wall of soldiers: "Okay, I've seen enough. I was going to make you ride through the mountains today to see how you feel in a similar area. But seeing that you work much better on your own than I expected, you can make an exception. The exercises are over for today. "

The soldiers nodded in response, and some even began to talk among themselves what to do. But like an annoying mosquito Rainbow dash raised her voice and asked: " So we came here just to stand still and leave?"

All negotiations subsided, and silence hung in the air. The first thought in my head was to shoot her in the head. And then dissect into parts. But instead, I looked down at the Flying that was slowly getting out of the sewer and ordered: "Give me your spear. I want to practice javelin throwing."

"Hey, hey, relax!" Rainbow shouted in an attempt to justify herself, but these words were completely ignored by me. Fortunately for me, Flying grinned and handed me the spear without any questions. Clutching it in my left hand, I began to release magical tentacles from it and wrap them around the spear like a rope. When a thick enough coil of rope formed around the spear, I took a deep breath.

Actions always say more than words. Today we can neglect the contract a little.

Turning abruptly, I caught sight of Rainbow and saw that the soldiers had parted to the sides, giving me a perfect view. The next moment, my hand threw a spear straight at her chest. Her eyes widened and she abruptly flew higher, causing the spear to fly far back. Grinning, I took a step back and abruptly pulled on the tentacles, sending the spear back.

Not noticing this Rainbow returned exactly to the previous height and shouted discontentedly: "What's wrong with you!? I just asked one little question. And you already want to..."

Her speech was interrupted by a spear that hit right on her spine, causing her to fall to the ground. Fortunately for her, the spear crashed into her with its wooden part. In any case, the spear was still on collision with the Pegasus and it safely got into my hand. Grinning, I made the tentacles disappear and said while passing the Flying spear, "Kill you? Unfortunately, some things do not allow me to do this. As I said earlier, I just want to practice javelin throwing."

My ears caught a few giggles that stopped as soon as Rainbow took off into the air again and said: "You could have killed me!"

I rolled my eyes and slightly adjusted my glasses and replied: "First of all, you're still alive, so I don't see any reason to complain. Secondly, even if you died, what do I care?"

Besides the law and the destruction of the contract? Nothing.

After the last sentence left my lips, Rainbow and the other ponies opened their mouths wide in shock. Grinning, I shook my head slightly and said, pointing my finger at the train station: "In any case, my answer to the original question is yes. You looked at how well I soldiers work and organize themselves. And you have already seen what role you will play in the battle. Yes, Celestia wants you to participate in the battle. But no one said that your participation would be active. "As soon as I finished speaking, Rainbow crossed her hooves and opened her mouth to say something, but was instantly interrupted by me: " Get out of here, garbage. It's disgusting even looking at you and your comrades. Is it more clear to you now? Or do I have to punch your skull so that the realization of your guilt reaches you?"

When I finished speaking, all six ponies guiltily slightly lowered their heads down and slowly backed back to the station. Wow, that worked out well. As soon as they were far enough away, I took a deep breath and turned to Rising and asked: "You were the one who organized the whole operation with me surrounding, weren't you?"

He smiled broadly and said with satisfaction in his voice: "Yes, it's me. Are you proud of me, Mr. Sir Boss?"

You want too much. Say no.

After a few seconds of silence, I reluctantly said, "Well, I have to admit it was impressive. More than. However, before making a final conclusion. I need to talk to you for a while. Follow me, Rising. "

When I finished speaking, I turned around on the spot and waited until Rising decided to follow me. Literally the next moment, he took off and quickly ran up to me. With a slight smile, I looked at the rest of the soldiers for the last time and said: " And you can do whatever you want. Consider that today you had a micro workout. "

In response, they nodded and Rising and I walked towards the palace. While we were walking, I distinctly felt the strange movements of Rising. His gait was slightly bouncy and he seemed to be barely restraining the desire to overtake me. Closing my eyes, I slowly made a plan of further actions in my head. 1. Ask Rose about all important topics. 2. Write down in a notebook all the problems that the soldiers have. 3. Ask Celestia where Flim, Flam and Starlight are located in order to give them a notebook later. 4. Enjoy success and wait for the group to come up with a solution to all the soldiers' problems.

Nodding to myself, I opened my eyes and looked down at Rising and asked: "So, I have a couple of questions for you. Let's start with the most obvious. Why the hell was everyone moving in jerks? "

Rising looked at me and awkwardly scratched the back of his head with his wing and said, " Well, I thought it would be easier for everyone. "

In response, I stared at him and seeing this, he nervously continued: " Running in armor is, well, unpleasant. They rattle, sometimes they hurt against the body and in general they are heavy. I thought that if we move in jerks, we will get less tired."

It looks like a heart. To rest as much as to work. How effective is it when we talk about the movement of soldiers? It's hard to say. Probably not very much.

Nodding in response, I nodded and asked another question: "Well, one more question. Why did you decide to conduct reconnaissance by encircling one area from all sides, only to then run away?"

"Well, I thought that in order to take you into the environment, I would need a clear plan. And convinced everyone else to stick to the plan above all else. And it just seemed to me that the best solution would be to drive you to the train station. " Cautiously, Rising replied as if he was afraid that I would consider his decisions, bad.

I nodded slightly in response and trying to ignore the castle that we had almost reached said: " Well, I have to say that in the end it turned out well. Well done, Rising, great job."

Remember, praise is only needed to control this orphan. There can be no question of any attachment.

He looked at me as if he could hardly believe the words of praise and did not say anything. Then he shocked me, hugged my leg and said looking up at me: "Thank you, sir! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

At first, my brain completely froze, not understanding what to do with the grateful cries of Rising. The first solution that came to my mind was to push him to the ground and tell him never to touch me again. But this idea was quickly rejected. Taking a deep breath, I gently put my hand on Rising's head and said: "Don't mention it, don't mention it. It's just an honest recognition of your merits. Now, please let go of my leg. "

Rising looked unhappy for just a moment, but the next second he nodded and let go of my leg. Then he stood up on all four hooves again and lightly dusted himself off. Sighing, I looked at the gate to the castle, which was only a couple of steps away, and said: " Okay, Rising. I have things to do. So you can go rest somewhere. "

I took a step towards the gate that no one was guarding and was about to push it, but I heard a question: "Can I go with you, sir? If I don't get in the way, of course."

My head turned just enough to see Rising. He awkwardly lost the floor with a hoof and lowered his head down. Why the hell is he so shy? I shook my head slightly. It doesn't matter, we have to answer the question already. Sighing, I said, "No, Rising, you can't. Nothing interesting is going to happen and I have no idea what you're going to do. I just don't want you to waste your time following me, you know?"

Who are you trying to fool?

Rising nodded extremely reluctantly and said slowly turning around, "Oh, good. Then I'm off. See you later, Mr. Sir Boss!"

I grinned in response and again focusing on the entrance to the castle pushed the gate forward. With a loud creaking and scraping on the floor, the gate opened wide giving passage. I took a few steps forward until I was in the lock before stopping and looking at the door. Maybe you should close it behind you?

"No. Sooner or later, the guards will come back and close the door themselves." I said waving my hand before continuing to walk, trying to navigate the castle. Fortunately, over the last couple of days I have been forced to stay in it, I have gained some sense of direction in the castle.

As I moved, I could feel that an active movement of ponies began outside the castle. Looks like the curfew is over. Well, I got everything I could from him. Thank you for giving me an hour for the necessary procedure, Celestia. There's only one service you need to do right now.

In the end, I found myself right in front of the door with the image of the sun. The lines have long since diverged far to the sides, informing me that there is a Celestia inside. And just like last time, there was no one standing next to her. I scratched my chin slightly while looking at this while my brain, exhausted from lack of sleep, was trying to formulate a pattern. Door. The man inside. There are no soldiers. Door. There is no person inside. There are soldiers.

Snapping my finger, I muttered softly to myself: "The soldiers only guard the documents in this room. If there is someone inside, they leave. Can Celestia really be trusted with her own safety?"

Considering the movement of the lines? Quite.

"Khem Khem!" the voice on the other side of the door coughed loudly. Can she hear me? However, it doesn't matter.

Grinning, I slowly opened the door and took a quick step into the room. There I saw Celestia hunched over a desk surrounded by a lot of papers. She smiled slightly at the sight of me and opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly interrupted by me: "Yes, yes, Celly. Listen, just shut up while I write down everything I need in a notebook. Then just take me to the group."

Without waiting for any approval, I went to her desk and put a notebook on it and began to carefully write down the shortcomings in the army that I had noticed today. The first is of course the same armor. We need to somehow make it easier without critical loss of properties. Or you can come up with a way to deliver soldiers immediately to the battlefield so that they do not lose strength.

Unfortunately, the recording process was interrupted by Celestia, who carefully put a hoof on top of my hand and gently suggested: "You know, it's not necessary to strain so much. I can just write down everything you need to dictate to me. It will be easier for me than for you."

We don't need the help of conservatives.

I glanced at Celestia for a moment before looking at the notebook again and saying, "Get your dirty hoof off. I just washed up recently."

Disappointed, Celestia removed the hoof from my hand and immediately after that I continued to write carefully. The main thing is not to look at the handwriting. He's wrong. Unfortunately, Celestia did not calm down after that and persistently asked: "Tell me what you're recording, at least."

With an exasperated sigh, I sold the record and said: "The problems that exist among the soldiers and that need to be solved in the near future. Among them there are three that I discovered today. There is a fourth one, but I didn't think it was too serious. Armor that exhausts soldiers even before the battle, weapons with low power and lack of fast communication between soldiers directly on the battlefield. "

" And do you have any ideas how to solve them? " Celestia asked with curiosity in her voice. Or is it acting to confuse me?

Or does she want to know your ideas so that she can pass them off as her own?

I shrugged my shoulders and replied: "I have some ideas. But I wouldn't trust you with them for the world. So please tell me where Starlight, Flim and Flam are. I need to give them this notebook. And I wouldn't mind already seeing what budget you have allocated for development. "

Celestia sighed and said, looking away, " Everything is very complicated about the budget. It will take a couple of days to negotiate with the nobles and put it all in one bag. But I keep my word."

Yeah, of course.

Before I could comment, Celestia smiled slightly and continued: "But I can take you to the FSF if you want. Or even teleport."

I completely ignored the part about teleportation and asked with my head on one side: "FSF?"

Celestia giggled slightly and replied with a quick nod, "Yes. I thought it would take a long time to call all the names every time. So I just took the first letters of each name. See, I can come up with names too. "

I rolled my eyes and reluctantly replied: " Okay, I admit it. FSF is a normal name. Although I don't really like how it sounds. Anyway, let's get down to business. Where is this group of ingenious inventors? "

Celestia smiled slightly and said, lighting her horn, " I'll tell you later. I'll just teleport us there now."

Teleportation does. . .

Before I could even finish the thought, I found myself in a corridor next to Celestia. At first, my brain couldn't feel anything. It was as if the final death had come. Then a second later I took a sharp breath and grabbed my head, which was splitting with pain. I don't even know what to compare it with. It's the first time I slept for a few days and I was suddenly woken up?

Celestia looked at me and asked worriedly: "What happened?"

"You happened. " I hissed, trying not to groan in pain. It feels like I'm completely dead for a moment. And now I was born again and am learning to breathe again.

As one of the teleportation theories suggests. The original object is disassembled into atoms and assembled elsewhere. So now there is a question. Have you just been killed and revived, or is it just a painful effect of Celestia's magic? Are we going to bite our nails and cry about being dead, crybaby?

Groaning in pain, I slowly straightened up and said, taking a deep breath: "Just give me a notebook and show me where the FSF is. I don't have the strength to speculate about whether I was killed now or not."

With a flash of magic, a notebook appeared in the air right in front of me, which I caught with my left hand. After a moment, Celestia said, "You're all right, my little human. You're just not used to moving at such a fast speed."

I looked at her irritably and asked firmly: "WHERE ARE THEY?"

Celestia opened her eyes dumbfounded before pointing her hoof at the nearest door. By the time I looked at her, my brain had finally recovered. Well, as recovered as I can given the circumstances. There was a sign on the door that read: "General Laboratory number 4." And from behind the door I could hear someone arguing with someone. Come on, brain, we have a job waiting for us.

While I was slowly recovering, Celestia cleared her throat and began to explain with a proud smile on her face: "You see, there is a school for gifted unicorns in Canterlot. And in addition to the classes themselves, there are laboratories so that the foals can study magic or other disciplines of interest to them."

Slowly, my left hand puts the notebook in my pocket. Then she reached for her glasses and slowly hung them by the shackle behind her pocket. Eventually, my left hand wrapped its fingers around the bridge of my nose and I asked closing my eyes: "You mean that development. Military developments will be developed. In the school lab? "

Celestia stood awkwardly for a few seconds before answering: " Yes, that's right. But listen to me, please. As you read on the sign, this is a general laboratory. Therefore, there is a little bit of everything in it. And I personally made sure that this particular one had everything you need and even more. "

Calm down, relax. Inhale, exhale. In the future, it will only give us an advantage in discrediting Celestia. We will tell everyone how she provided absolutely nothing for scientists in such a difficult hour.

Sighing, I slowly put on my glasses and was about to open the door, but Celestia started talking again: "Oh, I almost forgot! Do you remember your idea of using murderers in prison? Well, everything is ready and everyone is notified. So tomorrow you will go to prison to convince the prisoners of your idea. They will remove your cast beforehand, of course. "I rolled my eyes and asked: " Why are you so active? Do you want to see how even murderers don't want to be under my command? Do you want to gloat?"

“What? No, no, no! I just thought this news would make you happy. You insisted very strongly on this idea. And as you said yesterday, you are haunted by the failures. I wanted to cheer you up. " Celestia quickly justified herself, making me frown. Can I trust her? Probably not. She's just afraid to admit the truth.

Sighing, I grabbed the door handle and focusing on the screams behind it, I said: "Stay here. I may have to use you as an email a little later."

Without waiting for her answer, I abruptly opened the door and took a step inside the room. I saw a lot of things there. Flasks with liquids, boards, chalk, chairs and other small things. But the most important among them were Starlight, Flim and Flam. The interaction between them was unfriendly to say the least. Starlight, smiling maliciously, held two other unicorns hovering above the ground. They unsuccessfully tried to escape and actively demanded Starlight to let them go.

A fascist and two businessmen met. Despite the presence of all three to the right of the center of the political coordinates, they still did not share something.

After taking a look at the whole picture, I sarcastically asked: "What representatives of the same ideology could not share?"

When I raised my voice, all three turned their heads in my direction and unanimously said, "Mr. Ctumer?"

Grinning, I adjusted my glasses slightly and answered: "Yes, the one and only. Now tell me what your conflict is so that I can solve it in five seconds. I will be in the role of a great peacemaker. "Starlight pointed accusingly with her hoof towards the two unicorns still floating in the air and said: " They think exclusively about themselves and do not even think about working for the benefit of everyone! It is because of such people that disharmony and inequality reign in the world! "

" Why would we engage in such nonsense? So everything is controlled by the invisible hoof of the market. As you know, the pursuit of personal gain contributes to the establishment of the common good. So the only one here who doesn't think about the common good is you, Miss Glimmer! " Flim and Flam replied at the same time, pointing their hooves at Starlight. It doesn't seem to bother them that they can be dropped on the floor at any second.

Anarcho-capitalists and a fascist again grappled drunkenly. It's the same thing every day.

Sighing, I shook my head slightly and said irritably, "Listen up, you fools. Your ideologies are essentially the same thing. The three of you are essentially radical capitalists. Just authoritarian to varying degrees. So how about recognizing your differences and getting started? I already have a notebook with tasks that you need to solve. Labor unites or something like that."

At the end of my speech, I pulled a notebook out of my pocket and held it up so that all the ponies could see it. For a moment, all the arguments subsided and Starlight, Flim and Flam stared at the notebook like a rabbit at a carrot. Starlight's magical aura even began to weaken a little, as if she was about to let go of the two brothers. Great, everything works.

But the next moment, Starlight's aura became dense again and pointing at the two brothers, she said: "I refuse to work with such vile, selfish boobies! I am sure that in the future they will take all the ideas for themselves and start selling the developments to the enemies!"

I rolled my eyes and, without listening to the answer of the two brothers, turned around on the spot and met the gaze of Celestia. There was a smirk on her face as if she expected me to get down on my knees and ask her for help. I frowned slightly and said, "Find my soldiers, gather a group of nine people and send them here. It looks like commissars are needed here."

Celestia nodded reluctantly, lit her horn and disappeared from my sight in a yellow flash. Sighing, I turned around again and slowly walked to the chair while everyone else was shouting. Going to the chair, I took it and scratching it on the floor went to the table. In the end, I took a deep breath and hit the table with my fist, causing a small crack to pass through it. The sound startled all the ponies, and Starlight even lost her concentration and dropped the two brothers to the ground.

Taking a deep breath, I said in a firm and cold tone: "Well, apparently I need to communicate with you as a father. Shouting and violence."

I once again slammed my palm on the table, making the pony shudder and said: "From now on, you will be strictly monitored. Every moment of your developments will be watched by soldiers who will come here soon. Each of your attempts to argue will be severely suppressed. Every decision will be made by me. If the soldiers report to me that you have made any decision, then I will punish you. And you won't like it. "

After making sure that everyone was silent and did not dare to speak, I put the notebook on the table and said: " Here are the problems of the soldiers. Your task is to develop a way to solve them. It is not necessary to solve each problem for individual projects. Until the soldiers come, I will be watching you. If you don't like to communicate so much, then use chalk and a blackboard. And now, GET TO WORK!"

After my shout, all three unicorns shuddered and scattered in different directions. Starlight grabbed a notebook with her magic and ran to the blackboard before starting to rewrite the contents. Flim and Flam watched this with some irritation on their faces, but being under my surveillance, they did not dare to do anything. Looking at this, I yawned and sat down on a chair and closed my eyes in an attempt to fall asleep. Before another unsuccessful attempt, a thought filled with irritation formed in my head.

Regulating the work of these idiots will be difficult. And it is obvious that the commissioners will not be able to become a permanent solution.