“Atten-SHUN!”

The Night Guard leaped from bed, each one standing tall and still. The head of the barracks, Lieutenant Nightshade Silk, marched down the row of soldiers, inspecting the stance of every single one. He found that every single one was meeting his exact demands for the perfect guardpony. All except one.

North Star looked ragged, not having gotten a good enough sleep. In fact, it looked like he had been beaten up in his sleep. He did his best to stand tall and stoic as usual, but his eyes blinking one at a time had proven that he had not had a good night’s sleep.

“Private North Star!”

North jolted to attention. “Y-Yes, sir!”

“You better not have been staying up late doing Luna knows what again!”

“Sir, no sir! I was having trouble sleeping due to some night terrors, sir!”

“That’s your excuse every night, private!” Nightshade glared into the guard’s eyes. “If you really are having night terrors, I will consider putting you on leave until those issues get sorted out!”

North saluted, his eyes quickly becoming focused. “That will not be necessary, sir! I can manage the day!”

“Hmph, we’ll see…” He glared at the private in frustration. He had a long list of ideas in order to prove that he wasn’t fit for the guard. Before he could give the first order, a thin unicorn in wide, round glasses burst into the door. She donned a cloak of stars and carried a parcel bag underneath.

“E-Excuse me! Sorry to interrupt… Is this a bad time?”

Nightshade looked at the cloaked mare. “Not at all, Lunar Scholar Tea Leaves. What seems to be the issue?”

“A-Ah, no issue. Well, not really, just…” She gulped nervously as she handed a scroll to Nightshade with her magic. “Princess Luna is making an emergency trip to the Crystal Empire alone. She will be gone for a good chunk of the day, but she has requested that you and a few selected guards test the new cadets.”

Nightshade squinted his eyes in irritation as he read through the scroll. He had a number of things he wanted to say, but knew that a proper leader of the Night Guard never burst into a stream of colorful obscenities in front of his subordinates. Save it for home… Save it for home… he thought as he looked to North with a slightly malicious grin. “Looks like we’ve found just the right test in order to determine your resolve, Private Star.”

North gave a quiet nod, much to the surprise and amusement of everyone else, but inside all he could think was how much he wanted to bash Silk’s head in. I promise you, I’m going to make sure the next ramen pack you steal is coated in ghost chilis…

~~~

Despite the Night Guard overwhelmingly working in the night, the new cadets were expected to report to their first days of orientation in the bright daylight. It was hard to say why, but the reasonings often ranged from an old to tradition where the villains of Equestria were shone off in the light for all to see before they descended into the depths of the kingdom, to a tactic to weed out the especially weak soldiers by making them stand for hours in the bright lights while their lowlight vision made it hell. What was known is that any who left were not permitted to try again. This was their second chance, and if they turned their backs on Luna, there was no hope for them.

The newest line of Night Guard ranged quite a bit in body type, from small mares to large stallions and vice versa. None of them exuded as much confidence as the tallest of the stallions, whose darkened mane still had traces of orange-red from before the transformation. He eyed the others as his confidence swelled. No one here had any makings of a true knight, unlike himself. Especially not the pony to his left, a mare who shook in place like a sapling in the wind. Her eyes squinted in pain as she tried her best to avoid getting sun in her eyes.

“Hmph, I’d give up if I were you…” He spoke arrogantly in her direction, never breaking stance. “If a little sun is causing you trouble, you’ll be no match for whatever struggles Equestria faces. You could never defend the princess…”

“Th-That’s not true!” The tiny mare shouted out. “I’m gonna prove myself to the princess and get my life back! I promise you!”

“Sure you will, peasant…” He snickered as he looked up at the sky to face the sun head-on. Not to be outdone, the mare followed suit.

“What, looking to mimic me for validation? You’ll not get approval by just blatantly copying me.”

“I-I’m trying to show you…” She grunted as she kept staring up. “I can handle anything you can-!”

“Wouldja knock it off, you two???”

The sound of a thick Manehatten accent cut the two short and forced them to look in the direction of the voice. Although their visions were blurry, the sound of shouting approaching them indicated that it wasn’t far.

“What, do you wanna go blind?? A normal pony’s already got trouble dealin’ wid tha sun makin’ him go blind, you two are just askin’ fer it-!”

“Private North Star!!” A second, more authoritative voice spoke. “That’s quite enough! If the cadets want to go blind, that’s their choice. And fix your armor!”

There was a slight pause as the two’s eyes adjusted to see what was causing such a ruckus. What they saw was a bat stallion with slightly askew armor struggling to adjust it in its proper place and a second one who stood at attention and whose eyes were as cold as they were sharp. He gazed at each one of the new members before standing at attention. “Cadets. This is the beginning of Tartarus for you. You will be going through some very vigorous training in order to prove that you have what it takes to survive in the Night Guard. Let me state for the record…” He glanced sharply at the mare, whose knees buckled. “I do not believe that any of you are suited for this platoon. But if you are here, that means that you do not care for the odds of success or failure. You will keep trying no matter what. Those that do not, well…” He pointed his hoof at the castle gates. “There’s the exit.”

When none of the cadets stepped away, he smirked. “Alright. Let’s see how well you can do.” With that, he marched towards a nearby wall of the castle. The other guard motioned them all to follow his lead and each one attempted to march in lockstep with them. Only the large stallion seemed to have a grasp, his marching almost in complete sync.

Nightshade tapped a few bricks, which revealed a stairway downwards. He turned to face the cadets. “As soon as we arrive down there, I will be assigning you a member of the guard based on your preliminary results. You will undergo a day of rigorous training before you will be pitted against one another to determine your worth. Your score during every bit of training will be evaluated and measured up before the initial match.” With that, he stepped aside to let each one descend into the darkness. As each one stepped in, he took note of how each one walked, how they looked, how in sync they were with the one in front of them, and the look in their eyes. He could tell which one was ready to fold just with a glance. As the last one went down, he looked to North Star.

“So, private. Any one of them catch your eye as the first one out?”

North shook his head. “Might just be my headache, but… Not really. They all seem like they got decent grit.”

“Must not have been paying attention much, then.” He smirked slightly and began going downstairs. “I’ll bet you the first one to go is the filly.”

“Pretty sure she’s a grown mare, sir…” North mumbled as he followed. “And I’m not about to play this game with you again. You do it with every group that gets recruited.”

“That’s because I want you to have an incentive to actually try and give those cadets that same spark you had when you were just some thug.”

“Oh, and serving Princess Luna isn’t enough?”

“Apparently not,” He turned and jabbed North in the chest with his hoof. “I’ve seen how you are with a good incentive and when you’re left to your own devices. In the one-on-one, I’m willing to bet you a free dinner of your choice if she’s able to beat one of the other cadets.”

“Really? A meal to get me to do my job? I’m already going to do this, why would I-?”

“I’ll also move your schedules for the next 2 months to be on personal guard detail with Princess Luna.”

There was a pause in the air as North weighed his options. It didn’t take long for him to hang his head in defeat, however.

“Fine… But you better hold up your end of the bargain.”

“North, I may not be like Tumble, but I am still a stallion of my word. But try for once.”

With a quiet nod, the two split off to begin assigning troops to the new blood, North’s mind already filling with possibilities on how this mare could take any of the other cadets on.

~

As it turned out, the one known as Lily Breeze was not exactly adept in combat. North studied her attempts at swordplay, and it was a failure. CQC, fail. Aerial combat, fail. It seemed that her biggest talent was in being nimble and agile, which played into her ability to stay hidden during the stealth examination. He also watched as she managed to spot every single discrepancy in the investigation exam. Above all else, however, he noticed one thing that he felt defined her better than the rest. She was extremely stubborn and unwilling to give up until she got better, even if by a couple of points.

He pondered his options for advice as Nightshade began the one-on-one competition. Of course, Private Star was keen to notice the dejected look on Lily’s face as she saw her score.

“You’re not happy with your scores, are you?”

She shook her head before burying them in her hooves. “They all did better than me… I’m useless…”

“Well, I wouldn’t say that. I think I got the perfect thing lined up for you.”

“No offense, Mr. North Star sir, but… You’ve just been kind of watching me. Everypony else gets to work with somepony who actually gives them good advice… And you don’t. Plus, you seem distracted and tired… And you’re… K-Kinda grumpy looking…” She flinched, expecting him to yell, but North simply shrugged and chuckled.

“Yeah, fair point… I’m not teaching you to fight like the guard. Cause I don’t fight like the guard. I fight a bit different.” He sat down next to her. “I’m trying to figure out how best you can fight like you, instead of like them.”

“Huh?”

“Alright, cadets!” Nightshade called out to everypony. “We’re now going to begin the one-on-ones! Losers run a hundred laps around the castle! Tumble, if you would.

“Yep, I gotcha,” The Appleoosan muttered as he left and return with a Stetson. Nightshade put a few slips of paper in the hat before shuffling it around.

“Alright, the first matches of the day are… Lily Breeze and Count Burning Iron!”

Lily’s ears shrank down as she saw the giant stallion she squared off with earlier smirk and step into the improvised ring of ponies. She froze in place, unable to move, but a hoof on her shoulder caught her off guard.

“Listen carefully. You can’t face him head-on, he’s got some of the strongest fists in the cadets. Keep watch of his movements and dodge as quickly as you can until the round ends. And for the love of Luna, don’t go running your mouth. Just focus on your opponent and last a couple of minutes.”

She looked at the grumpy mentor, whose foggy eyes became clear as he kept his gaze on the ring. It was like he was looking at a place he knew all too well. Unsure of any other options, she nodded and quietly stepped into the ring, where Iron stretched his body.

“And here I thought you were going to turn tail and run, peasant…” Iron grinned as he stood over Lily.

“N-No… I…” She took a deep breath and assumed a low fighting stance. “I will defeat you! I will show my worth to the Guard!”

“Admirable… But a waste of breath.”

Nightshade looked to the two, raising a hoof in the air. “Ready… Begin!” As soon as he brought his hoof down, the royal stallion rushed forward with a right jab, which made Lily only barely managed to evade. Next was another jab, then a left cross and then he threw out his left backhoof in an upward swinging kick. Before long, a series of wide punches and kicks came her way. Lily, in a panic, began dipping and dodging. She just barely managed to come out of the first combination of strikes without a scratch before she was rushed with a second one.

“Hahaha! What’s the matter? Aware your puny attacks cannot harm me?? I’m expecting a real fight, you know!”

Lily kept her mouth shut as she darted around. Even as her mind was trying to come up with a good comeback, she slapped it down and listened to her mentor’s advice. She flung her body around, trying to rely on sight and instinct. Unfortunately, a stray punch made contact and sent her tumbling back. Her hooves struggled to keep her on her feet, but seeing Iron rush at her snapped her brain awake. She barely managed to avoid contact once more, when suddenly, her back was against the corner of the ring. She boxed herself in with her opponent leaping up to divebomb her.

“Time! To your corners!”

Iron stopped just shy of Lily, putting down his fist and moving to the corner. Lily stood there, frozen in fear and confusion. Even though he sported a sinister smile and had the full right to destroy her, he obeyed the rules.

“Hey! Snap out of it and get ova’ here!”

Lily blinked and looked over at North. The adrenaline coursing through her system was starting to wear off, and she limped as quickly as she could.

“H-He’s fast… I could’ve sworn I could see them all-”

“You couldn’t. Your eyes were telling me you were thinking about something other than fighting.”

She blinked in surprise. “H-How did you-?”

“Don’t worry about that. Listen, did you notice anything about how he was fighting? Anything off?”

Lily hesitated, looking down as she tried to focus. “W-Well…”

“We don’t have time. I’ll just tell you. He’s using Royal Style Hoofboxing, which is good for large overwhelming sweeps. However, that’s designed with a pony leading with their left side, not their right. Plus, he delays when he tries to kick you.”

Her eyes widened as her mentor rattled on pieces of info that she didn’t even catch. Even if he wasn’t in the match… It was like he could see through each of us as we fought… That was when the pieces of info all clicked together and her mind suddenly formed a plan.

“Thank you, Mister North Star!” She looked to him with a confident smile. “I think I got it now!”

Giving a half-smile, he nodded to her as she walked back into the ring. She seemed to be in less pain, the moment’s rest giving her a chance to recover just enough. Meanwhile, North could see Tumble after trying to talk to Burning Iron, and he knew from that uncharacteristically moody expression that they had this in the bag.

“Alright, round 2…” Nightshade Silk spoke before raising his hoof up. “Ready… Begin!”

Burning once again rushed at Lily with a right jab, but this time Lily was prepared. She closed the distance between the two, diving between his backhooves and sweep-kicking at the right one. As it made contact, Iron’s eyes widened before backing away quickly. His confident demeanor turned to anger mixed with panic. Lily smiled. He was right…! I just need to keep taking him down…

Burning charged forward with a downward punch, but it too, was dodged by Lily. With a quick cartwheel, she positioned herself behind him and brought a mighty axe kick down on his weak point.

The sounds of his yell of agonized pain echoed through the room, but it wasn’t over for the giant. Memorizing the grapples from North, Lily hopped onto his back and grabbed the weakened hoof. She pulled it back further and further, making Iron cry out from the sheer pain.

“That’s it, keep going,” Nightshade said, his eyes focused on Lily. “You’d show no mercy to your opponent in the ring. Don’t start now.”

The other cadets looked in discomfort as this tiny mare they assumed to leave was quietly threatening to rip off Burning Iron’s leg. North watched as she kept going, his eyes focused on her look. She tried her best to show her cold determination, but he could see in those eyes, a desire to stop. He finally stepped in.

“That’s enough. I’m calling it. Winner is Lily.”

Lily immediately let go, hopping off while looking uncomfortable. Nightshade glared at his subordinate. “What are you doing? This is not your call to make.”

“Yeah, well I don’t need to follow the orders of somepony about to put others at risk of permanent injury.”

“Some aren’t worthy of redemption through the Night Guard, Private Star.”

“And when were you the one to make that decision?”

Silence filled the room as North approached Burning Iron. “You. You’re a good fighter. I haven’t seen anypony master Royal Style left-hooved. But you’ve got a lot to account for, like the injury you’ve clearly been hiding since before you got turned.”

Iron stared dumbfounded at the stallion before closing his eyes with a sigh. “I suppose you are correct…” He slowly got onto his hooves and looked back at North. “Perhaps I have miscalculated about Manehatten… And myself.” With that, he limped out of the ring, past Tumble who gave a big grin to his friend before walking off.

Lily approached North with her head down, nudging him slightly. “H-Hey… Th-Thank you for helping me, sir… I’m sorry I called you grumpy…”

He simply chuckled and took off his helmet. “No, you’re right… Long night and little sleep, plus being out in the sun at around noon… Hate it. You will too, trust me.”

“But, how did you know how to face him like that?”

North paused and looked down at the ground. “The Royal Guard typically have a few styles they prefer, sticking to a more uniform fighting style. It’s theoretically effective, but there are big holes in it. Soon as I heard Count in his name, I figure I was dealing with some noble’s son who served in the royal guard. It’s all about reading your opponent. Soon as you can see the cards in their hoof, you can strategize.”

“Wow…” Lily muttered as he watched him ramble. It reminded her of someone she knew from before, somepony she looked up to. She smiled and saluted him. “Thank you, sir. I look forward to serving with you!”

The stallion just looked over and then smirked. “Oh, you thought today was training? No, that was just us assessing you. Training’s only just started…” He walked off with a chuckle. “Have fun with the next ten weeks~”

Lily’s eyes widened as she followed him. “W-Wait, what do you mean? What happens in the next ten weeks?? How bad is it?? M-Mister North!!” But he didn’t hear her. All he did was cackle as he went to Nightshade to redeem his prize.

Author's Note

Hope you enjoy. Next chapter will also be low on lewd, then we'll go right back to lewd. Sorry for that. I'm not entirely sure how to tag these stories. Sorry.