Black Powder

Professional****Day

-522

****Army of Western Equestria****

Applejack and the other mares that she was bunked with emerged from the tent, ready to begin their first day of army training in Luna's 4th Grenadiers. As she left the tent, she noticed that it was foggy today and that ponies from other tents were preparing for the day as well. There was the usual banter of ponies, the clanking of equipment and the squeaks of supply wagons being driven as well.

She was excited.

Today was the first day that she would have to don the red coat of Luna's Grenadiers.

Applejack and the other grenadier recruits thought that it was weird that most of the army wore the usual green coats except for them, the skirmishers, and the Royal Guard.

She knew that she was going to feel silly wearing them. Wouldn't the red make them easy to see and target?

From what she had heard, the entire purpose of the Grenadiers was these nifty little portable bombs that they would light and buck into the enemy ranks. Of course, not all grenadiers had as strong legs as her with years of experience bucking solid trees, so that would mean that they would have to brave enemy fire to get close enough to kick their namesakes. Of course, they would all learn to march, shoot and fight in melee, just like the rest of the infantry.

However, General Crimson Fields wanted Luna's Grenadiers to be especially tough, so he mandated that all grenadier regiments were to focus heavily on melee fighting, which Applejack had no qualms or protests about.

"Shoot 'em, grenade 'em, AND take them on hoof-to-hoof? Golly, we must be the best ponies in the entire army!" she thought with pride.

This was exactly what she wanted. She now had a first-hand opportunity to end this war quickly. The harder she fought, the quicker the war will end. And then, she could get back to the farm and everything will return to normal. These rebels won't have the fight in them to hold out too long, especially against shock troops like Luna's Grenadiers.

This was her plan and it was perfect.

"Why, those Red Maners will run after the first volley! Maybe even at the sight of us! If we show them our ferocity, they would think twice to hurt innocent ponies ever again and they'll be runnin' scared! Serves them right," she thought vengefully, growling a bit under her breath, enough to where the other mares near her couldn't hear.

She still hadn't gotten over her feelings about the attack on the train station and how it had affected her friends. It was a rotten move by Red Mane. Then, it occurred to her that she couldn't feel better until she saw that justice was done.

The farm pony began to stretch her limbs by the dying fire outside the tent. She knew that it was good to get limbered up before performing any physical exercises. As she and her tent mates began to stretch, she heard three familiar voices squeak in the distance. She perked her ears up to listen closely, but the sound disappeared as quickly as it came. It was only a few seconds before her ears drooped back down and she brushed it off as nothing.

"I'm bein' mighty antsy today. I wonder what's makin' me hear these--"

There is was again.

It sounded like the high-pitched laughter of three young fillies.

"Oh HAY no!"

She turned completely around, nearly having a heart attack at what she saw.

There, walking in between tents, laughing and giggling in buttoned red uniforms and black grenadier caps, was the Cutie Mark Crusaders.

As she looked closer, she noticed that Scootaloo had a fife hanging out of her mouth like a cigar and that Sweetie Belle had just slipped her own fife in her pack. Applejack growled in anger as eyes fell upon her little sister's bulky form. Applebloom had a snare drum fitted around her neck and hanging freely towards the ground. The red-maned filly mumbled with two drumsticks in her mouth with a smile.

"So yeah, I'm thinking about writing a song for the regiment. I just don't where the inspiration came from! I can't write music though, only lyrics, so maybe you girls can help me out with that!" Sweetie Belle said excitedly.

Scootaloo spit her fife into her hoof and nodded vigorously with a wide, toothy smile.

"Totally! Once I uh...learn how to play this thing anyway," Scootaloo said sheepishly, looking down onto the instrument.

"Y'all have got my support!" Applebloom chimed in, her voice muffled slightly from the drumsticks in her mouth.

A look of horror crossed Applejack's face.

"No...no no no NO!" she panicked.

"What do those little fillies think they're doing!?"

"Applebloom!" the farmpony boomed.

All three fillies jerked their heads toward her, fear and dread in their eyes.

"What do you fillies think you're doin'!?" she barked, repeating her thought a second ago, almost word for word.

"Ah! Applejack?!" Applebloom squeaked.

Both Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle winced as they glanced at each other.

"Do you have any idea how worried sick Granny Smith must be right now? Leaving her alone on the farm like this? Wait 'til I tell Big McIntosh on you young filly! In fact, he shouldn't be but a few tents down," Applejack finished, looking behind her.

"But sis! You left home too!" Applebloom whined, her sunset-colored eyes becoming watery.

"That's different! You're just not old enough to be out here young filly! How did the army even let you in anyway!?" she cried.

Sweetie Belle stepped up with an innocent smile.

"That's easy! They needed foals for the Fife and Drum Corps and this grumpy recruiter in Ponyville let us right in!" she chirped happily.

Applejack froze.

"Grumpy recru--oh no..." Applejack sighed as she held a hoof to her forehead.

"Girls, you can't just--"

"It's totally fine Applejack! We're just playing music. That's not dangerous, right?" Scootaloo reasoned.

"--But you're still going to be on the front lines! Applebloom! What am I gonna do if you get shot huh?! I don't want that on my mind while I'm fightin'! And what about you Sweetie Belle?! Do your parents know about this?! Don't you think Rarity would be worried sick about you!? What where you girls thinkin', runnin' off like that!? Why?! Why did you do this, huh?!"

Applejack was nearly sobbing as she ended her tirade, huffing intensely, sweat dripping her face. Some of the other grenadiers looked on in bewilderment and a slight fear of Applejack.

Immediately, the three fillies began to feel remorse, their bodies shrinking further into the ground with each outburst.

"Well, it's too late now, you're already in the army. I hope you're happy..." Applejack finished, speaking quietly this time between breaths.

Applejack didn't know what to do now. Her plan was so easy and straightforward up to this point, just defeat Red Mane and come home in one piece. But now she had three little ponies to look after. Every second that they were in danger would no doubt, stress her heart. She needed to fight even harder, now more than ever, to get the Cutie Mark Crusaders home as safely as possible.

She would have to pour hours upon hours into her training, mastering every facet of her new job.

Applejack would become a professional.

And she was still telling Mac.

****

Unicorn Officer Academy

****

"A battalion is a group of infantry ponies consisting of two or more companies, usually numbering at around five hundred strong. A regiment is a larger group of ponies consisting of two or more battalions and the numbering differs between types of unit. Usual division of an infantry regiment follows the standard: two thousand for militia, fifteen hundred for Hoof, twelve hundred for Grenadiers, and one thousand for Elite Hoof Guards (Royal Guard). All of the above are usually commanded by a Captain, Major, or a Colonel. This includes Equestrian, Equestrian Auxiliaries (Gryphonic and Saddle Arabian) and other foreign powers as well."

Twilight scanned through the book once more. It was actually pretty simple and straightforward...for a pony like her anyway. Then again, this chapter was only covering basic units structures and other little tips for aspiring officers. She couldn't wait until she had gotten into the more complex material.

"Gryphon Auxiliary cavalry squadrons are heavy cavalry usually numbering at six to seven hundred a squadron, while lighter pegasi cavalry will number at around nine hundred to a thousand. Gryphon cavalry is used for heavy charges, while pegacav is used for flanking, harassment and charges against weakly defended targets (artillery positions). Pegacav commanders should avoid head-on charges against an enemy infantry regiment, even if stationary and especially when deployed in square."

As Twilight read, there was an image of earth pony units deployed in a perfect square formations, firing their muskets at incoming pegacav. Those ponies were not Equestrian.

"Pegacav should be treated as aerial skirmishers foremost to combat enemy pegacav, (which is why they are armed with breech-loading rifles rather than muskets) and anti-artillery cavalry second. Should they be forced to charge infantry, they should only do so from the flanks and rear. They will also be extensively trained for close combat using curved sabers against enemy soldiers. Light pegacav such as 'Dragoons' are good shots with a breech-loader, artist fencers, and a terror in melee combat."

Twilight had talked to Rainbow Dash about the pegasus joining the Dragoons. As supportive as Twilight was, she couldn't help but to be worried about her friend.

Applejack was just as bad, probably worse.

What did they call them...Grenadiers?

The unicorn was stressed over all of their safeties, including her own. Especially since they would be serving under the same insane general. Well, at least Masterstroke said he was insane. Hopefully that wasn't entirely true. She could tell that Armchair didn't think too highly of Fields and she assumed that it was probably the same way vice versa.

She shifted uneasily in her chair as she grimaced at the situation that she and her friends had found themselves in. The other cadets didn't seem to notice, which was good.

By now, Twilight had learned that she would be serving as an infantry officer for a regular Hoof regiment known as the '20th Manehattan'. She frowned into her book as she thought about that. This meant that she wouldn't know a single pony in that outfit and would have to help the officer in charge with commanding complete strangers.

Was this normal for an officer? The feeling was so strange to her.

"Grenadiers are infantry shock troops known best for their proficiency for the usage of a portable explosive known as a 'grenade'. Grenadiers are notoriously tough and are somewhat feared on the battlefield. They excel at melee combat and are respectable shots with a musket. A famous tactic that is used by the Karalian Grenadiers is called 'Close to Range'. 'Close to Range' is a simple but devastating tactic in which the grenadier regiment would fire one volley at normal range and then close with the enemy formation at double-time march and then stop and buck grenades at the enemy. After this, they waited until the grenades reached their destinations and detonated. After detonation, the Karalian Grenadiers would close the rest of the distance with a bayonet charge, hopefully crippling the enemy formation and/or shattering their morale."

Twilight would have to be strong for all of them. She had to do her best, knowing that Applejack and Rainbow Dash were doing the same. She buried herself a little further into her book.

An infantry officer huh?

Well, she would be the best infantry officer that she could be. And if she survived long enough, the best second-in-command that General Masterstroke ever had. It was her destiny, and Equestria had once again, depended on her to fulfill it.

Twilight Sparkle would be a professional.

****Pegasi Officer Academy

****

Rainbow Dash slashed at the pony in front of her, only for her attack to be blocked by the opponent's own wooden saber. Her adversary went in for a quick thrust at her chest but Dash was able pivot the saber in her hoof to parry the blow. She pushed the enemy sword away from her own as she performed a downward slash from the opposite side this time, which exposed her body. The enemy pegasus saw this and parried the slash immediately. What Rainbow Dash didn't see was the spinning kick from Spitfire's back hoof coming at her from Rainbow's left side.

The blow connected with Dash's face and the force threw her back but Rainbow Dash wasn't going down that easily. She masterfully turned her fall into a back-flip and was able to remain in the air. Her Captain charged her as she recovered and prepared another attack. She lifted her saber just in time to deflect a horizontal slash at her torso and returned the favor with a downward thrust which Spitfire dodged and slashed at Rainbow again, this time a downward stroke aimed at her head. Dash realized her folly and recovered by bringing her wooden weapon up just in time to stop the blow.

Spitfire noticed that Rainbow's left was open again and used a fore hoof to punch Rainbow in the face once again. After this, the orange pegasus gritted her teeth as she released of flurry of slashes, thrusts, swipes at her opponent, determined to break her enemy. Rainbow Dash struggled to parry and block every attack aimed at her, nearly having a heart attack while ducking to dodge a swipe that would have beheaded her, if they were using real swords.

Rainbow Dash watched her experienced captain with awe and terror.

The way Spitfire flipped the saber with ease to a position to attack, frightened her. Spitfire moved fluidly and with great speed, able to recover after every movement, whether it'd be a slash, parry, or thrust, it didn't matter. She was like a painter with a brush, intensely and passionately constructing a work of art. It was like the sword was an extension of Spitfire herself. Her moves were near perfect, the orange pegasus was even able to carry out multiple moves in a single motion, the saber flowing along with her body like water.

Rainbow was losing ground, or air for that matter, getting pushed back, little by little.

Rainbow twirled her saber to build up momentum for an attack while at the same time trying desperately to distract Spitfire. She tried to cut under Spitfire's defense and slash upwards but her opponent saw it coming from a mile away and deflected it with ease. She then air-jumped over Spitfire, performing a front-flip in an attempt to catch Spitfire off-guard. She used to momentum to try and slash at Spitfire's shoulder while in mid-flip. A risky move for sure, but Rainbow Dash wasn't much of a conservative fighter.

Spitfire pivoted and spun her entire body around, saber already in perfect position to block the attack. Still falling, Rainbow silently cursed as she realized that failed attack had left her back exposed and that she would be a sitting duck by the time she righted herself.

The captain smirked as she gripped her saber with both hooves and plunged the tip into Rainbow's back, where her heart would be.

Rainbow Dash cried out as the force of the hit caused her to fall out of the sky, only to crash onto a large flat cloud. The sound of a pillow being fluffed was heard as she hit the cloud. She groaned and pushed her head further into the cloud in shame and dizziness as the other cadets stood in a semi-circle around her. Spitfire landed behind her with that smug expression still plastered on her face. The captain bowed politely and sheathed her wooden saber.

"Sergeant! Time please!" she called out to an older stallion.

"Two minutes and ten seconds ma'am."

As she heard this, she whistled and nodded with satisfaction, looking down upon the defeated Rainbow Dash.

"Not exactly an Academy record, but its still pretty good. Lasted a lot longer than many of the other cadets," she said proudly, taking the clipboard that the sergeant had handed her.

Rainbow Dash picked herself off of the cloud and returned to the semi-circle so that the next cadet could have his or her turn. Spitfire still eyed her with curiosity.

"You surprise me Cadet Rainbow Dash. I didn't take you for a decent swordspony. It was also interesting fighting a lefty for a change as well."

Spitfire smiled genuinely as she returned to the clipboard to the sergeant while keeping her eyes on Rainbow Dash.

"Thank you ma'am!" Rainbow Dash replied, still huffing as she tried to fill her lungs with as much air as possible, while wiping the sweat from her brow.

"You did good, but you need to learn how to cover your left and not to take so many risks like that last one that did you in. Your moves are fluid and your defense is impeccable but your attacks are sloppy and poorly disguised. You broadcast your attacks too much, making it far too easy for your enemy to read your every move. You would do fine against standard soldiers and militia but if you came across a decently talented fighter, you would have been dead, just like right now," Spitfire analyzed and lectured simultaneously.

She then turned and faced the rest of the cadets, beating her wings to float above them and took a look around at her class.

"Let me remind you all that we are Dragoons. We will most definitely come across well-trained enemy pegasi and even ground troops for that matter. Some of those rebel pegasi trained right here! In this academy! They were cadets just like you. And even though they are not war-experienced, I can guarantee you that they've spent years getting ready for it!"

Some of the cadets looked at each other, none of them saying a word.

"We are not gryphons. We do not have the luxury of being able to bash through our targets with pure force or heavy enough to charge blindly into an enemy formation and still expect victory. We are light cavalry. Our role is a little more refined than the heavies. Lacking in power, we must make up for in speed and technique! The lancers have to use these as well, only able to slash through an enemy unit and having to reform and charge again."

The captain looked around, eyeing her cadets with passion in her eyes.

"Our job is to occupy the enemy cavalry and open up a path for our gryphons to reach the enemy's infantry. To harass enemy units with long range rifle fire and to slip behind enemy lines and destroy artillery positions. Assassinate a commander if ordered to do so. All of the above are very dangerous missions and leave us susceptible to many forms of attack. This is why we must be at our best and be ready for anything out there!"

Spitfire smiled as she looked into Rainbow Dash's eyes. It was like looking into a mirror. Mutual passion burned through both of them as Rainbow Dash finally understood what needed to be done.

"We need to train to be the best! Not only so that you can trust yourself but also to trust the pony next to you to be just as good with a rifle or a saber! Many of us will be serving in either the same squadron or a nearby one, so regardless, we'll be seeing each other a lot. Now do me a favor and look to the pony next to you."

All of the cadets obeyed, emotions overtaking them as well. Many nodded to their comrades and others spoke quiet words of encouragement.

"Do not get me wrong, we will take casualties! And when we do, we need to depend on our brothers and sisters to pull through with us and get things done. Work as a cohesive unit, a well-oiled machine. We need to be able to depend on one another in order to be successful."

Spitfire rose her wooden sword, and jabbed it in the direction of Red Mane as she spoke the next words.

"Because when this whole thing starts...each other is all you're going to have."

Silence.

Nothing was heard but the wind blowing through the sky.

After a few seconds, Rainbow Dash nodded.

The Dragoon squadron that she was going to be deployed to was now her adopted family. If she wanted to survive, and more importantly, win this war, she needed to improve herself to be an expert at everything. Whether an expert shooter with a rifle, a masterful artist with a sword, or a competent leader as an officer, she needed to do it all. Being a former weather pony, teamwork was not something very foreign to her. She hoped that her experience there, along with what she will learn at the Academy, will help her mold well with her squadron.

She needed to be strong, not just for herself, or her friends, or even Equestria, but also her squadron. Because if she was strong for them, mostly likely, they will return the favor.

Rainbow Dash needed to become a professional.