Canterlot Under Her Wing (ATTN: Shadowbolt0 Open)

[Lux]

In the light of the rising moon a lone figure stepped from the barracks of the Royal Equestria Army Lunar Guard division. She was a jet black Pegasus mare with a white mane and tail and purple eyes. The pony was clad in a silvery armor similar with crescent moon crests emblazoned in the metal. Normally she would just head out to assume her duties patrolling the streets of Canterlot at night, but today was special. As Staff Sergeant, Night Watcher made it a priority to work one-on-one with a new pony in the Lunar Guard to see if they were following orders and procedures. She didn't mind this and welcomed the chance to get to know new members who would be serving in the Guard.

"I hope this one is on time," Night said looking at the doors to the barracks and then at the city she was to patrol.

[Shadowbolt0]

Inside the Luna Guard barracks, a dark blue pegasus mare was scanning over her equipment on final time. Her blue eyes making sure nothing was wrong, and that her light blue mane and tail were neat and correctly done. Normally, she'd let her many loose, but tonight wasn't a choice. Her first night as a Luna guard, a proper Luna guard. She couldn't afford to make a mistake. Her black armor, armor that is issued to all new member of the guard to show that they are new, shone clean in the light of the candle in the barracks.

After making on last final inspection, hoping now she hadn't left anything behind, she exited the barracks, walking towards where she'd been ordered to report for her first shift. It didn't take her long to spot the pony who was reviewing her. Despite the darkness of the night that was starting, Midnight clearly say a black pegasus with a shiny mane standing, probably waiting for her.

When Midnight got close, her body became rigid and her right hoof went to her head "Private Midnight Blossom, i'm here for the patrol night" She didn't add 'sir' or 'Ma'am' simply because, from her angle which was behind them, she couldn't tell. In her mind, the pony really could be a stallion or a mare.

[Lux]

Night Watcher heard the sound of clanking metal approach and then saw a dark young mare dressed in the standard black armor of all privates entering the Lunar Guard. The jet black Pegasus gave a quick examination of the pony before her. She appeared to have at least donned her armor correctly, albeit maybe a little loose in certain places, but that would come in time. The young mare's introduction was also very well done with the proper salute and introduction. The mare didn't address Night Watcher as "Ma'am" but the armor the Staff Sergeant was wearing and the night didn't do much to help show her gender.

"At ease soldier," the black Pegasus said saluting back to the Private, "I am Staff Sergeant Night Watcher. I will be working with you on your first patrol. If you follow my instructions then you will be successful not only in this exercise but in future patrols where you will most likely be on your own. Is that clear?"

[Shadowbolt0]

At the order, Midnight lowered her right hoof came back down against the ground. Listening closely to what Night Watcher had to say, making sure she didn't miss anything being said.

"Yes Ma'am, crystal clear" She replied, her voice stern. This was going to be her first assessment outside of basic training, and while she was nervous, she trusted her gut, and her gut said to keep calm. Midnight took several deep breaths to make sure her heard didn't start beating too fast, a basic method to keep calm.

[Lux]

"Very well," Night Watcher replied seeing that at least the Pegasus understood the first part, "Now we as members of the Lunar Guard are to protect this city, the Princesses, and the ponies within. Primarily our task is to ensure the safety of anypony that is out at night and to render aid if necessary such as helping the those lost or hurt. So, the first thing that a good guard must possess in to be observant. We have an advantage compared to earth ponies as we can both fly, so we can see things from above as well as on the ground. That reminds me, how is your flying, Private?"

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight knew that each race had it's advantages over the others, Earth ponies were strong, Unicorns had magic, and Pegasi were armed with the power of flight. At the question of her flying, she extended her wings out slightly, looking over them quickly. Her quick inspection resulted in the same as before, all of her feathers were aligned and none were damaged, at least, those she could see.

"My flying is adequate Staff Sergeant, i..." She quickly cut herself off before she continued, she was going to mention her abilities in agility, but figured the Sergeant probably didn't need to know and hadn't asked, therefore, she'd probably be wasting time talking

"My abilities of observation and flying are adequate" she hastily said, her blue eyes straight into Night Watcher's purple eyes.

[Lux]

Night Watcher stood as the private unfolded her wings, perhaps as both a means to prove to her about their condition and maybe for Midnight to give a last minute check. It was important that proper preening techniques and wing training were added into a Pegasus's routine as a guard to build strength, speed, and agility. The pony did hesitate but then explained about how her flying and observation was accurate. Of course saying and doing something were two different things.

"Very well. Now besides making sure your armor is in shape, when you go on your patrols you will need to know which part of the city you will be in, From there you should plan a route for your patrol to maximize time and reduce going through unnecessary paths. This is something that will take time as Canterlot is like a maze with its streets and buildings. For tonight though you won't have to worry because you will be with me. We are going to patrol the castle area, the most important area in Canterlot."

With that the black pony pulled out a scroll showing a map of the city. The streets surrounding the castle were marked with red lines outlining the path and arrows with the direction the mare should go to make an efficient patrol.

"Take a moment to review this before we set out on our route."

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight made sure to memorize the important parts of Watcher's statements. Unlike Midnight, whose armor was brand new, she knew Watch's had been used dozens of times, and the rank only made it more clear. The sergeant knew what she was doing, and Midnight felt, inspired by it. Standing right in front of her, was what she wanted to be. A guard who not only protected the civilians, but was kind to those with less experience.

As the Sergeant pulled out the map and ordered Midnight to review it, she quickly went over the red lines. It was a map clearly designed for efficiency of Pegasi guards, and to ensure the areas around Canterlot were secure.

Midnight went over the map one last time, before returning her gaze to her commanding officer.

"Ok, i think I have memorized the route Ma'am"She said, before realizing a mistake. She'd said 'think' instead of know, but hoped that either Watcher wouldn't pick up on it, which he doubted very much, or it wasn't as big of a thing as her mind was making it up to be

[Lux]

By the looks of things, Midnight appeared to understand the map and the direction that she and Night Watcher would be going. The mare actually didn't need the map as after all the years of her patrols she had the routes memorized by heart. This made not only her journeys easy but also allowed her to help those who were lost. But then Midnight said that she thought she was ready which raised her suspicion.

"You think that you know? A good soldier needs to make decisions at the last moment and needs to be certain of such choices. This is especially true for those things that you need not worry about the urgency of time. So, do you feel that you know the route or do you need more time? There is no shame in examining the map further as it is better to know than to make a mistake while on patrol."

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight seemingly squired as Night Watcher had spotted her poor choice of wording. She felt foolish, and she felt that Watcher was probably thinking she wasn't well trained to be a guard, especially if she couldn't keep her words under control

"Sorry Ma'am, i." Midnight paused, as she saw a truth in Watchers words. All this time, she had felt like she needed to be on top of her game, 100% perfect from the get-go to prove she was meant to be a guard, but, doing so, she realized how silly it was.

"I'd like to go over the map again, just to make sure i didn't miss anything Ma'am" She quickly went back too looking at the map, going over each part of it to make sure she wasn't going to make a mistake. After another few minutes of purely looking at the map, she smiled. She felt like she knew what she was doing, and not wandering blindly in the metaphorical dark.

"I'm ready to start the Partol Ma'am" She said, her face returning passive and her eyes looking dead straight at Night Watcher.

(Sorry about vanishing for such a long time, real life pilled up huge on me, and things are still kinda hard, but i'm trying to get back into what i love)

[Lux]

Night Watched waited as Midnight made her reply. There was no doubt in the Staff Sergeant's mind that the Private was uncertain of her ability to navigate using her memory of the map, something that was vital to a pony just starting her patrols for the first time. Night gave a nod as the pony returned to her map reading, happy to see a smile emerge on the pony's face indicating that she now understood.

"Very well, I am glad that you have studied the map again. Although there are times when a soldier must react quickly to a situation, most times it pays to study. A good soldier has not only a strong physical body but the right mental aptitude and strong will as well. Now we are going to first do a pass around the castle in the air, using the streets below that circle the castle as our guide. It is important to not only look at the ground level for anything unusual but also the skies. This is especially true as I can recall a time when the castle was attacked from the air. Are you ready to take flight?"

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight listened carefully, she couldn't afford to make the Sergeant think that she wasn't up for it. She was, this was her time to prove that all that training, all that effort, was going to pay off. All she had to do was keep her calm, use her head and she'd be fine.

At her question of if she was ready to take flight. Midnight nodded, and then quickly followed up with "Yes Ma'am"

She opened her wings, not enough to do a take off, but enough to be able to launch off if Night went into the sky without any warning. While Midnight doubted the Sergeant would do it, it was still an instinct, she had to be prepared for the unexpected, and that meant from everything, her supervisor included.

[Lux]

"Alright, stay close at my side. When you ascend, use the highest spire as your guide as this will be as high as we need to go. Now when you reach the point, we are going to fly around the castle creating a tight spiral to cover as much of it as possible. We should be able to land in the same place we started. Now to the skies."

Night Watcher then unfurled her black wings, giving them a stretch before flying into the air. As she ascended, she looked to her side, hoping to see the private following close to her.

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight knew the basics of flying, formation flying was taught in basic, still, given how she knew she'd been acting, the mare realized that last thing she could act is too confident. That was almost the formula for a disaster to occur.

Midnight watched Night Watch launch herself into the air, before flaring her own wings. She flapped them a few times, enjoying the feeling on the air in them. Then she turned her gaze to the sky, she couldn't afford to lose her sight of Night Watch, so she quickly took off. It took her a few moments to locate Night Watcher, and angled herself to she was flying just to the left of the mare. She felt a decrease of air resistance, giving her a easier flight.

Midnight knew out of this, it would be the easier part, the hard part would probably be what came next.

[Lux]

Normally Night Watcher flew alone in her patrols around the city, going through her routine like clockwork. Of course she was flexible in her journeys, as this was a requirement for any soldier to do: be ready at a moment's notice to adapt to any change good or bad. She soared towards the sky, as the white walls of the castle that glowed in the moonlight surged past her. At last she reached the peak of the highest spire of the castle and was about to make her spiraling descent around the castle but then she stopped. Realizing that the jet black Pegasus was not alone in her flight, she paused, looking around for Midnight Blossom to appear. Doing an almost vertical takeoff was a challenge for any Pegasus pony, even the most seasoned ones who flew in the military like Night Watcher or like flight teams such as the Wonderbolts. It was the fastest way to ascend but put the most strain on a Pegasus's wings.

"Where is she?" Night asked herself before seeing a familiar dark blue pony flying up to meet her.

"I'm glad to see you have practiced your fast ascent. This will help you in the future."

Before descending, an idea crept in Night's mind, as a smile crept across her face.

"Before we descend, there is something I want you to see. Follow me."

With that the Staff Sergeant ascended a little higher, looking like she was going to touch the moon. She then landed on a cloud that was above the castle, one large enough for two ponies to stand on. There she waited for the new recruit to land.

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight smiled at the compliment from Night Watcher, it was a great start for her, and to get complimented by a Staff Sergeant was surely something.

Midnight angled her wings to prepare for a descent, only to be caught off guard when Night Watcher seemingly changed her previous orders, and ordered her to follow her further up. While slightly confused, Midnight knew she didn't have much of an opinion.

Still, she kept a close visual on her mentor as she saw her heading to the moon? Was that a good idea? Her slight confusion was removed when she saw Night Watch park herself on a cloud. Midnight admittedly was confused, why did she want her to sit on a cloud with her?

Regardless, Midnight landed next to Night Watcher, gently before looking at the Staff Sergeant.

"Ma'am, may i ask why you wanted me to come up here?"

[Lux]

Night Watcher knew the new recruit had a confusion as to why she suddenly changed their plans and decided to travel to this cloud. The jet black Pegasus, however, was not one to change her plan on a whim. Deep down she had a reason for what they were doing.

"There are two reasons why I brought you up here, Midnight. The first is to always expect the unexpected as plans can change as quickly as you can imagine. It was not long ago that this city came under attack from Queen Chrysalis and her Changeling Army during a time of great peace, a royal wedding no less. We were unprepared for such attack and almost lost the city, the Princesses, and even the safety of the ponies in one fell swoop. That is why we must be vigilant with any changes that may take place. So trust your senses and don't hesitate when plans change, especially for the worst."

The Pegasus paused to let her words sink into the mind of the recruit before continuing.

"There is another reason why I brought you up here. Take a look around you at the city beneath us, at the ponies who live here. This is what we are protecting. Never forget this. When I was in your place, my instructor took me up to this very spot and had me look at the city, telling me the same thing that I told you. Whenever uncertainty clouds my mind, I come here to remember why I joined the REA in the first place. Do you understand?"

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight nodded her head, though it wasn't in her heart, not truly. Basic training had taught her to stick to a plan, no matter what, but what Night Watcher had said also made sense to her. Plans weren't perfect, but the mare knew that and she kept to them, more basic training drilling then her own belief.

But, Night had a point to the mare. Canterlot had nearly been lost in one day, because they hadn't been aware or prepared for the impending attack.

At Night's comment about why, she looked down. She'd never looked at Canterlot like this, not properly at least. Midnight preferred to spend most of her time outside the city wall, at a lake. She found it relaxing, calming. But now, looking out on the city, she felt, inspired by Night's words. The city looked beautiful at night, and in it, ponies living in safety because of the guards.

Midnight didn't speak when Night asked if she understood, she simple looked at the city in silence. It was sinking in, at first, she'd joined the guards because she wanted to help, like she'd done years ago and got her Cutie Mark for, but being a guard was different. Being a guard was knowing, not acting on the moment, and protecting the masses.

Eventually, nearly 2 minutes after Night had asked her question, Midnight finally spoke.

"Yes....I do Ma'am, more now then ever...Thank you"

[Lux]

Looking at her face, Night could see that perhaps bringing her up to show her to plan for the unexpected was lost. The Staff Sergeant wasn't going to be upset upon that as there were sure to be more opportunities for the mare to learn, hopefully before something more serious of a surprise would happen. What she was pleased to see was that Midnight did understand about bring her up here was not for a great view of the city but also for protecting those down below.

"Good. Now we will fly around the castle. I want you to stay above me as we fly to get the feeling of when you are out here by yourself. Our goal is to cover as much of the area around the castle as possible. If you see anything suspicious, do not hesitate to let me know."

With that Night Watcher dropped off the cloud and began to make her descent, slowly spiraling around the castle as she went.

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight nodded her head, just as Night Watcher left the cloud they had been sharing. She looked around one final time, town at Canterlot, the city she was protecting.

Before leaping of the cloud, quickly spotting Night Watcher, using her wings to keep herself above Night Watcher, spiraling around the tower like she was ordered too. She eventually realized she was meant to be looking, and averted her eyes onto the city below.

She honestly didn't know what she was meant to be looking for, what would be considered suspicious at night, or what could be considered not suspicious at night in Canterlot.

[Lux]

Night Watcher flew around the spires of the castle, looking for anything that was out of the ordinary. She knew too well about what happened when an attack came from above when all guards least expected it and the near disaster it almost brought to the city. This made the black Pegasus ever more vigilant to check the skies as well as the ground.

At last the two ponies landed roughly where they started, just as Night planned to do those many times before. To her pleasure Midnight was right there, not getting lost in the first part of the patrol.

"I'm glad to see that you were able to keep up. If there is one thing I learned it is to always keep your eyes fixed on the skies as well as the ground. Not every threat may come on legs. Some may try to fly in. Luckily for us we too can fly, and this gives a better perspective that some ponies just don't have. So, how are you feeling so far? Do you have any questions?"

[Shadowbolt0]

Midnight couldn't help but feel a smile sneak onto her face at Night Watcher's compliment, it felt good, positive reinforcement, and Midnight knew it. Still, regardless of knowing how Night was getting her more comfortable, it felt good.

When Night Watch mentioned watching the sky, as well as the ground, she mental cringed. She hadn't been watching the sky around her at all, her sole focus had been on the ground, and Night Watcher. Not the sky around her.

"Yeah, makes sense. A-and i'm fine..." The mare paused, there had been one question on her mind, but she felt foolish to have it. But, she decided it was better to look a fool now, then one later

"Umm, Ma'am? What if we find something, i don't know what, like..a Changeling? What will happen then? Do we like, stop it, or report it to the barracks..or?"

[Lux]

Night Watcher could see that upon speaking to her Midnight Blossom seemed to have a surge of confidence, even though the pony was unsure that the Staff Sergeant knew this. Of all ponies the jet black Pegasus knew that there were times of training where a pony was trained to the point of breaking in order to force them to push themselves and to find the inner strength and courage inside. She remembered painfully and yet fondly those days of basic training where although feeling like every muscle in her body ached and about to pass out, the pony was always treated with a compliment for a job well done at the end of the day. And that made all the difference. Knowing this Night Watcher made it a priority to acknowledge the efforts that a pony put forth.

It was then that Midnight asked a question that both surprised and made Night tremble slightly, but it was something that she knew inevitably would be asked.

"I knew you would say this. You probably guessed that I was there when Queen Chrysalis and the Changelings invaded Canterlot. I have to say that despite the fact that we did our best to guard the city, we felt too comfortable that our shield created and maintained by Captain Shining Armor would protect us from outside invaders, not knowing that the real threat came from within. It was a dark day where we almost lost the city, the Princesses, and perhaps even all of Equestria, something that I hope to never see happen again. I will give my life before I see Canterlot fall like that. But I digress. A good soldier knows when to face a foe and when to get help. If you find something like a Changeling or any other threat, you must first know the situation you are preparing to get into. Then when the moment comes do not hesitate to act. But if you feel unable to face what you see, then find backup. There are many of us patrolling the streets, so we are not too far away to assist."