Author's Notes:

BOOK 1: PART 2: DUTY

“DIVE FILLY FOOLERS! I SAID DIVE! ROVER, BANK LEFT AND REVERSE ROLL! GALE! WHERE ARE YOU? LILY BLOSSOM, MOVE FASTER! WHERE ARE YOU GALE? DITWITZ BANK LEFT! NO, YOUR OTHER LEFT. HAY BAIL, OPEN CROSS THEN REWIND. THERE YOU ARE GALE! GIVE ME A ROLL, LOOP AND THEN BANK RIGHT INTO A STAR ATTACK! HURRICANE, GO WITH A STAR, BANK RIGHT, ROLL, CROSS, STAR. DREAMERS, BANK LEFT AND CROSS THEN CLIMB OR ELSE FILLY FOOLERS WILL HIT YOU!”

Lieutenant Marble Falls had been drilling them on squad flying for two days. They were down to following a quick set of orders as they flew all across the sky, sometimes accidentally scaring another Barrack's Squads with their general proximity.

Ditwitz squad had even gotten close enough to drop and blow over Green's tents. A mean trick, but fun. They were yelled at by Lieutenant Marble Falls for their inappropriate prank and sent to set up the tents.

The Lieutenant was giving corrections and orders from where she was hovering in the general middle of their zone. They were avoiding Blue as they were also doing mass squad maneuvers.

“CIRCLE UP!” Lieutenant Marble Falls ordered over the coms.

All squads circled up in a loose formation in the air.

“I think we are ready. Blue is too loose to start it, so Black will. Typically, Lieutenant Razzleberry over there directing Blue gets his squads ready and then together fast enough to start the strafing. His squads look good. I think he is hesitating. I have never been able to get my squads on the defensive, let alone the offensive.”

“Your job is to lead your squad in a dogfight. Chase the Blue Squads and make them do what you want them to do. Just like you would come up behind and on a group in combat and shoot them, just no guns. If you can, force them to land on their flight deck. It will be a fast and heated game. Pride is on the line.”

Everypony cheered.

“But we will not start out with a direct offensive. Meeting up like this and then starting is to straightforward. You will be sent off like before until I tell you to move in. You are ready to start reactive formation training and I have a score to settle. Watch out for other Barracks. They will most likely try and launch their squads in a counter offensive or preemptively before you begin to outright terrorize them.”

Shadow rolled backwards on cue and they dropped straight down. Rays was leading. After several tight turns and rolls they ducked under Red's flight deck and circled up and around. Hay Bail Squad was on point as they moved in to take on Blue.

Filly Foolers skimmed their own flight deck and ducked low before popping up over Blue's flight deck. They surprised a Blue Squad that was on the deck and the squad was forced to dive out of the way as Filly Foolers screamed towards them. They were taken into a roll under Blue's flight deck and were able to force down the same squad as the came up and around again.

They rolled up into a climb and then lazily peaked as one, falling straight towards the flight deck again. They crossed which forced them into a split. Shadow was on the tip of the wing and their half chased down the same Blue Squad for the third time. This time, the Blue Squad got airborne and dove down and out of the way as soon as they had cleared their deck.

They reformed and began to assist Hay Bail who was being pursued. They forced the Blue Squad to break off their chase and followed them in a tight chase before the Blue Squad broke and Filly Fooler gave up chase.

Instead, Rays passed lead to Moonless Night and he chose to start that assault on the other barracks by picking Yellow. Yellow had landed all their squads on their deck and appeared to be preparing to launch as they strafed right above them. Shadow flicked off their Lieutenant's hat with the tip of his wing with ease. They split to avoid chase.

As they reformed, two Green Squads moved in behind them. The call for a cross barrel roll and then tri-split was made and they executed it flawlessly. Cardinal Spitfire and Shadow banked hard and flipped around behind one of the Green Squads.

The two of them separated so they were flanking the now panicking Green Squad. They let them go when the squad split and turned to find the rest of Filly Fooler. They were still split into their pairs and causing terror among the Red Squads that were airborne. Shadow shifted to lead and He turned into a climb before rolling over into a dive.

It gave him the view needed to pick their target. One of Filly Foolers' teams was being corralled by two Red Squads. Shadow called for them to slip through and they tucked their wings in and sliced their way in between the Red Squad who did a dead stop from the shock. It was a very advanced and dangerous move.

The other Red Squad broke off their chase and Filly Foolers was reunited with Shadow on point.

“I still can not believe you did not go to a flight school,” Shooting Star said as they formed up.

Shadow laughed and asked for target suggestions.

'Yellow chasing a Blue which is chasing a Red' was suggested and they banked into another role to put themselves where they needed too be.

It ended up being more of a four squad flying formation than a chase. After a bit, the Blue Squad didn't like the odds and fragmented. Yellow then freaked out and went the other way. They dove hard onto the Red Squad and forced them to land on Red's flight deck. They were headed to their flight deck before Filly Fooler made that move, but it was still humiliating.

Shadow dropped back a tad and Cardinal Spitfire took her turn leading them to victory. They rejoined the major battle over Blue's flight deck and forced eight squads to break off their pursuit of another squad and even grounded a Blue Squad in less than two minutes.

Cardinal Spitfire was in her element. Leading a strong flying squad through maneuvers at high speeds with little direction and quick orders. While she was on point, no other squad could force them to break. The few that did get behind them were quickly shaken. She had let loose and it was obvious.

Other than Shadow's hat trick when they first attacked Yellow, they left the Lieutenants and other instructors floating around alone. All were enjoying the performance.

Lieutenant Marble Falls called off Black after a few hours. No collisions had happened and only a few rough landings were reported. Blue Barracks strafed them in revenger as they assembled, but the damage was already done to Blue's pride.

“Well done all Squads,” Lieutenant Marble Falls praised. “That was exceptional. Across all the barracks as well, but especially Black. Black was on the attack!”

“Cardinal Spitfire, you really came alive out there. I hate to admit it, especially in person, but that was Wonderbolt material I was seeing. You still have to complete Aerial Combat School and then pass Wonderbolt Testing, but I am liking what I am seeing. I do not make those decisions though. That is way over my head.”

“Thank you Ma'am!” Cardinal Spitfire said beaming.

Lieutenant Marble Falls continued to give praise all through the ranks. Sometimes highlighting an individual, always highlighting a squad's choices in tactics and their performance at one time or another.

“That was the most fun we have ever had!” Deke squealed when they were released for the night.

“I know!” Shadow said as they bumped hooves.

“I wish we were in the same squad,” Olive pit confessed. “Then it would have been more fun.”

“I do not know,” Golden Dawn said thinking. “It was a lot of fun seeing Cardinal Spitfire force the Blue Squad that had attached itself to ours break away as they buzzed them. Seeing her fly, I would have spent more time focusing on the task with her leading than having fun.”

Cardinal Spitfire could only smile.

“You have to be able to keep up with her, let alone roll with the fast and often subtle calls,” Shadow added. “She is not loud when she gives orders, but we can more than keep up and have learned to handle her.”

“Slicing that red squad was awesome,” Cardinal Spitfire finally said. “We did a lot of fun things, but just us breaking them up like that, that was the best.”

“Yeah, it was,” Shadow smiled. “And I was lead on that wasn't I?”

“Very much so,” Cardinal Spitfire said still beaming. “And knocking off the Lieutenant's hat, that takes skill.”

Shadow laughed. “I forgot I did that. It was just right there. A single feather was all I needed. I reacted on a whim. No planning. I might get smoked for it tomorrow.”

“And you retaining that feather is really impressive,” Cardinal Spitfire sighed contently. “It was so much fun actually flying with you beside me Shadow. I do not know if any other pegasus can top it.”

“I doubt you will ever have close to a free and fun time like we just had,” Shadow replied. “Well, at least it was free and fun for Black. It was one of the best things that Lieutenant Autumn Leaf threw us together.”

“I am still shocked about the turn around on that,” Deke said bluntly. “For six weeks you hated him until you were thrown together in a team that should have imploded.”

“Neither of us wanted to back down,” Shadow retorted. “Lieutenant Autumn Leaf was more of a threat than the other. It was easy enough to put aside the petty past and band together in fear.”

“I was deaf for the rest of the day in one ear,” Cardinal Spitfire chuckled. “And after that, it was time to admit that my hate was not at him, but at things that happened because of him. He was not responsible in any way when it came to the General's decision to pit us against each other. Unarmed combat, he had to try and beat me or I would have hated him worse for going soft on me. The fact that either of us made it that far in the ring is what I should have been proud of. Although that kick really hurt.”

“Yeah,” Shadow sucked in. “I knew that as I was doing it and that it would hurt. It was no fun on my end either.”

“And that is why it was easy to forgive you. You didn't do it to hurt me in any way. You have a sweet heart, even when you are being tough.”

“Duty sucks,” Shadow stated.

“I hate that I didn't go,” Golden Dawn snapped. “I chickened out.”

“You didn't miss much,” Shadow said. “We just stood there and ponies yelled at each other and waved poorly made signs. Waste of resources those signs.”

“You did miss Shadow's introduction to a real city,” Cardinal Spitfire added. “But that was mostly just our squad's enjoyment as it was quiet and over quickly.”

“We got reassured so many times,” Shadow said annoyed. “They babied us a bit, but I was scared like a foal in a thunderstorm. When the Captain took command over our squad, it only made it worse. And then he forgot to take command when the clean up started. That was scary and confusing. Crowd control is something I don’t want to learn. It is terrifying and looks more dangerous than anything we have done in training. The Captain made a comment and seemed to believe that Crowd Control would soon become standard.”

Cardinal Spitfire took over. “Pegasi physically resisting peace officers, we all froze when ordered to assist. We were rescued by that Captain in time. That was all we did. Nothing more, nothing less. Just bodies.”

“We basically sat around the whole day,” Deke said. “General Red River was too distracted with reports from there to pay us any attention outside of making sure Lieutenant Autumn Leaf didn't jump us. He actually sent the Lieutenant inside, leaving him alone with us.”

“At least we all reaped the reward of a hot meal,” Shadow pointed out. “We all were deemed ready and able to perform duties beyond our training, by standing there for hours.”

They all laughed and settled into a quiet dinner. As usual, Golden Dawn couldn't eat more than half of her dinner. She did fine for most breakfast and lunch meals, but by dinner her stomach had enough for the day.

Field rations were fine to start, but after three weeks, even Shadow was hating them. Pumpkin pound cake was more pound than pumpkin or cake, a chocolate bar was 75% paraffin to preserve it in all weathers and every meal that sounded good tasted no more than half of what they initially expected.

“I am out,” Shadow said tossing his aside. “That tastes nothing like veggieloaf anymore.”

“Damn. You ate like two bites,” Deke said, questioning his own meal.

“These are calorie and nutrition packed meals. Missing one wont hurt us,” Shadow said laying down on his back. “Especially the last meal of the day. We are not doing any night training so breakfast will be before any more training.”

“How do you guys feel after today about the assignments?” Olive Pit asked. “Its easy for me to become a medic. The requirements for entry are low compared to things like recon and Aerial Combat Units.”

“I'll get on a Raptor,” Deke said with swagger. “And Officer training should not be far behind. I lead well with the little bit of training we have had in leadership. And we all know after today that Cardinal Spitfire has Aerial Combat School in her hooves.”

“I have the easiest,” Golden Dawn said. “Just a plain soldier. No flair, no special training. Just sixteen more weeks of pretty much the same thing. Soldiers get more specialized and heavier guns. Any fool can make it into Combat School. I just want to be a light trooper and only a light trooper.”

“Shadow has improved his shooting and because of his flying he should be offered at least Scout,” Cardinal Spitfire said smiling at Shadow. “And recon should be offered. Nopegasus knows much about either force. They are as mysterious as the Wonderbolts. But as least with the Wonderbolts we know you have to be one of the fastest fliers in the Enclave to even be considered.”

“This is week 14. We have a bit over two weeks left,” Shadow said not getting up. “And then we will know. This is going to be one hell of a finish.”

“Actually, you should coast in just fine,” Lieutenant Marble Falls said startling them all.

“You just come out of nowhere,” Cardinal Spitfire said trying to get her heart to stop pounding.

“Something I naturally picked up over the years,” The Lieutenant replied. “I actually came over to see if everything was alright, seeing that Shadow Flare had given up on dinner. You falling out again recruit?”

“No Ma'am,” Shadow said relaxing. “Just sick of field rations.”

“That is what concerns me. You have never shown any problems with any food at any time while training. And we all know your position on food. If you have a problem in the morning, speak up. Some other pegasus is probably having it worse and I can't have that.”

“What did you mean coast?” Cardinal Spitfire asked before the Lieutenant cold walk away.

“Black is about taking the best and making them the best they can be. Peak efficiency. Individually, most score in the top 100 of each class. As a Barracks, they balance out in the middle for most things. Shadow Flare can't shoot well, but he can fly for hours with great speed. Olive Pit is a decent soldier all around and would make a solid officer if he could navigate better. Deke can navigate and command, but his flying is weak. That is absolutely fine for a cloudship officer. A position on a Raptor shouldn't be too hard to get either. Golden Dawn, you are going to have no problem at all in Combat School. Cardinal Spitfire is top five out of all the recruits. Her agility training with Shadow Flare has only improved her position.”

“The point is, each of you would be top in any other Barracks except for Red. You saw how they flew today. Red is Red. Green is better than they are at flying. Black's focus is on individual improvement by pushing them past their limit. We pick the best we can to do it. It takes internal drive and ability to think ahead and adapt. You all show those qualities extremely well and have improved by leaps and bounds. Your formation flying was top notch. Personally I think Black far out flew Blue which is why they strafed us at the end.”

“It is true that most of Blue will go either to cloudships or squads who focus is more in the air, but Red, Yellow and Green will make up the bulk of the Enclave as soldiers. Which is what we need. The colors are to help you improve and do your duty perfectly by organizing you into groups with similar weaknesses and strengths.”

“That is so you become reliable no matter what happens. You already showed you had the confidence, a level head, and the proper structure and order needed to begin that duty when you were called up for that special assignment. A tough assignment when you are not done training, let alone basic. I was surprised the General even asked.”

“But that is off topic. Don't think this will be an easy finish. No instructor is going to let that happen. But if you put your skills to their proper use, things will fall into place and the stress will be minimal. It is all downhill from here, showing that you have the skills we taught you.”

The Lieutenant walked away, ignoring their thanks. She headed towards the squad barracks and her room.

The morning found them again waiting. This time they were lined up along the flight deck instead of bunks. Most had fallen out of 'at ease' and were sitting down. The Lieutenant finally came into view and they came to order. She was joined by Master Wind, Lieutenant Autumn Leaf and a newcomer in a worn out brown jacket.

“Recruits, this is Captain Nova. He will be here for a few days to lecture you on surviving in the wasteland in the event you ever are sent below. You will also practice the vital skills he will teach you.”

Captain Nova was obviously not typical. He seemed to be only half there and his posture was horrible, including a wing that was half open and draped over his side like it was dead. The radio on his jacket was upside down and as he got closer they could see the threads were worn and it's warm, cotton lining was patchy at best.

Lieutenant Marble Falls continued. “The schedule was to send you back to your barracks for this training and then use it as your starting point the the joint exercises and final testing. However, you will be staying here. The good news is that I got it so that Breakfast and Dinners will be served in the Squad Barrack's mess hall. Lunch will still be field rations, if you are inclined to eat them. I know most of you can barely stand then by now.”

“For now, we are behind and if you did not eat, too bad. Now I will turn things over to the Captain.”

The Captains voice matched his relaxed image. “I began my career in the Scouts well before the Enclave decided to head below. For the first ten years of my service, there was never any legitimate talk about heading below. Until they suddenly sent the squad I was in below for the first look at the land below. It was a foolish thing to do. Almost as foolish as the General sending some half baked recruits to help with crowd control.”

“Captain,” The Lieutenant said. “Personal opinions besides please. They need training, not opinions.”

He continued as if nothing had been said, but his tone got aggressive. “I have gotten bad radiation sickness three times and my wing has an mass that they can not remove from radiation exposure. The wasteland is a death trap and I am supposed to teach you how to survive long enough to do something other than die.”

The Captain's tone changed depending how how happy or sad the topic was to him.

“Up here in the clouds, food is plentiful enough, for now, but raw material are getting shorter and shorter. Recycling can only do so much. But amidst all the destruction and ruins lies bountiful scraps that can be recovered. Living trees with solid enough wood can be found and harvested. That is the only good thing down there.”

“To get there though, means toxins. Lots of toxins. You will need your gas masks at all times. Even if you are in a 'toxin free' zone, the stench of rot is everywhere. It is like a festering wound and you will want to wear them instead of facing that odor. Nothing is redeemable.”

“Sir, are there inhabitants?” Olive Pit asked.

“You want to be a medic, don't you colt?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Things live. If you can even call it living. Painful mutations riddle with cancer and diseases you have never heard of because those too have mutated. If it lives, it hunts. They seek only blood. Anypony left shoots before they think. It is always their first thought, shoot. And I mean every pony. What once were Unicorns and Earth Ponies.”

“They are savage cannibals who will happily cut off your wings and roast them over an open fire for a snack. All while you sit by bound and gagged, forced to watch and dread your painful death. Skulls, ghastly weapons, and blood stains are their Cutie Marks. At least that was the report before that team was hacked to pieces. They even use boards with nails in them to bash each other for initiation into the raider gangs that control everything.”

“Since we first dropped below, nine scout units have been shot down and devoured, and we lost the all twelve recon teams. Wiped out within days after they touched down. Nothing down there is redeemable. Nopony, no creature, no buildings, nothing.”

“The point,” Lieutenant Marble Falls softly pushed.

“Right. The point. If you have to go below, you need to know how to overcome the rules of three. Three minutes without oxygen and you die. Three days without water, dead! And three weeks without food… that is a painful demise.”

“Gear like gas masks and technical things like geiger counters and shit will help you survive the air. We will cover those tomorrow. But first I will teach you how to purify water. I know you were taught the importance of drinking enough water. Your canteens will become radiated quickly turning that safe water bad.”

“Captain,” The Lieutenant stepped in again. “That oversight was fixed, including shielding the crates that hold rations and fresh water.”

“And your field rations will fall prey to radiation as well. If left out long enough. And we are only taking a week at most.”

The Captain stopped and looked around. “Somepony down there scrambled my brain. The doctors might find nothing wrong, but somepony did something to me.” He shook his head and continued.

“Radiated water can be treated with tablets called… PWT. Purifying water tablets. These are only good for small amounts of water mind you. You can't cleanse a stream or large water source. They also have water collectors that do some purifying as you collect it from a large sources.”

“Food you have no help for. Your geiger counters will help determine how unsafe something is to eat. Sooner rather than later, something will happen with supplies and you will be forced to eat the pre-war stuff that is somehow still lying around. That and there is mutated fruit and vegetables that are 'edible'. It is better than starving, but still bad.”

“Which bring us to medicines. Basic first aid was taught, but radiation was not covered. Radiation sickness stalks you wherever you go and pounces on you if you do not keep track. That is why my wing has this mass on it.” The Captain moved his wing. It wasn't able to move much and flying was certainly out of the question. However, there was no visible sign of a mass.

“Pre-war they created a mix called Rad-Away. And orange liquid you drink that combats radiation and clears your system. It tastes worse than it looks but chugging death to stay alive tastes better than a rotting tongue. If you stupidly have to enter a radiated zone, they made stuff called RadSafe. Stuff is shit too but they do their job. I pity you.”

“That is pre-war pony shit. The Enclave has developed much better stuff. Rad-Flush is like Rad-away, except it is blue and tastes slightly better. RadBlock is like RadSafe except more shitty but much better protection. I said your supplies will run out. That definitely includes rad meds. If you stumble upon any pre-war radiation meds, secure it. Better safe than sorry. Having the flesh pealed off of you with a knife is better than drying of radiation sickness, which often comes with your flesh falling off.”

“Now, team up little ones and each get a pack of tablets from whichever box it is behind me that has them. This is one thing you do not share. Ever. If you share, you run out and then both of you die.”

“He is cheery,” Cardinal Spitfire whispered to Shadow in the chaos.

“Yeah. But I will take it so long as I learn to survive. I signed up to probably go do everything he is saying not to do.”

Cardinal Spitfire chuckled as she grabbed a box and tossed it to Shadow, who caught it on his wing and carried it back that way.

The box had all the instructions and ratios to used, but they sat by and listened to the Captain drone on in his introduction and instruction. Lieutenant Marble Falls looked like she had stopped listening in her boredom. As a Wonderbolt and training recruits, she must have heard these instructions a hundred times.

They put to practice the tablets with buckets of water. The biggest catch was having to wait an hour before they could drink it. Not that anypegasus wanted to drink it. It had a bad odor and almost burned your mouth.

“You have not had worse water than this?” Cardinal Spitfire asked Shadow.

“Hell no,” Shadow shot back.

“Now young ones,” The Captain said softly. “Grab a bottle of RadBlock and sit back down.”

Once they were seated he made them drink it.

“It is safe enough to drink even when you do not have radiation sickness.”

“Personally, I think the distant cloud farmer are irradiated a bit. It explains their large size and strength. I think the clouds are not thick enough. But they just tell me I am wrong and then expect me to teach recruits the same stuff I cite as evidence for my explanations.”

Shadow and Cardinal Spitfire just shook their heads and chugged the Red-Flush. Three of their comrades threw up and were forced to drink another one to feel it's effects. The Captain did mean business. Or he was insane. Both were a strong possibility, yet their superiors found him fit to teach them wasteland survival.

“I feel itchy,” Shadow said scratching a bit.

“I hear buzzing,” Cardinal Spitfire replied. “If hhe going to have us take everyhing in the medicine cabinet?”

“I have no idea what a medicine cabinet is, but I hope not,” Shadow groaned as he fell over.

“I can't talk straight,” Cardinal Spitfire said slowly.

“These are not combat meds,” Shadow replied, slowing his speech down as well.

“Now that you all know what that tastes like, Drugs!” The Captain said clapping to get their attention. Most had to sit back up. He didn't bother to make them stand. Formality meant nothing to the Captain.

The Captain held up a small box. “We have bandages and you know how to use them. However, this is a box of Magical Bandages. We can not make these. It requires unicorn magic. They heal faster than regular bandages. Simple. But all types of bandages take time for you to heal.”

“Also a thing to look out for is healing potions. Faster and better than bandages. We have them and you will be supplied with them on mission, but like the Rad-away and RadSafe they should be picked up for use. None of those meds spoil. Healing potions are in short supply in the Enclave. They are to be used wisely.”

“Avoid the other drugs. They are highly addictive. Alcohol should be an obvious no no while in the field, in combat, and even on duty above the clouds. Painkillers like Med-X are a double edged sword. Pain is reduced, but so is combat effectiveness as you are fighting at least heavy drowsiness. It is more liable to addict you or get you killed than help.”

“There is some drug called Dash. It is a very bad war hallucinogenic. Probably part of the reason why Rainbow Dash stabbed us in the back. She was a Dash addict. It was named after her.

Rage is a booster that is highly addictive. And some of the things down there use it, meaning you must shoot them twice as hard. It is not good for the body or mind.

Buck and Stampede are similar drugs. Stampede was developed by Fluttershy, that war ministry head healing pegasus. So much for healing and peace.”

“Mint-als. I know you all know about them.”

Shadow looked at Cardinal Spitfire and shrugged his shoulders. He had never heard of them.

“Don't become a drug addicts. Especially below the clouds. The poisons down there strengthen their potency and quickly will make you unable to perform your duty as a soldier. That means you will die! And you do not want to reap the punishment of being caught taking drugs. Also, down below there is rumored to be a worse form of Mint-als. Party-time Mint-als.”

“Any questions?”

They all shook their heads and the Captain moved on.

“Time for Ghost, Ghouls and other ghastly creatures one must avoid and how to kill them if forced to face them.”

“Are you sure you want to go into recon or scouts?” Cardinal Spitfire asked.

“They have to be getting this new information somehow,” Shadow whispered back. “Even if it is ten or twenty years old, somepony has to make sure that the Enclave stays informed of new developments. Without it, more will die trying to clear the way for resource gathering.”

“That little mare is right!” The Captain said from on the other side of the group. His hearing was crystal clear “You there. Tell everypegasus what you just said.

Shadow repeated the question and his answer.

“This brave fool is right. And better listen if she wishes to survive and successfully carry out her duty. Now what is so funny young ones?”

“She is Shadow Flare, a stallion,” Deke said trying not to laugh more.

The Captain stared at Shadow for a bit before giving his verdict. “You are fucked. The wasteland is no place for somepony your size. They even murder their own fillies and colts for fun.”

“Move along Captain. Please,” Lieutenant Marble Falls softly ordered.

“It is true. The mares always died first,” The Captain replied.

“Captain, there is no sufficient evidence to support that. All you are going off of is your failed mission where she died first. And that wasn't your fault either. I have trained that recruit and seen him fly and shoot. Her, I mean his, scores prove that he is prepared more than sufficiently to deal with what is below. Assuming he is taught properly by you.”

“Whatever,” The Captain said turning back to ghosts.

Shadow Ghosts, Star Ghosts, and Howling Ghosts. Most were anecdotal explanations and had no combat answer other than run. The Captain was a good story teller and he had their manes standing on edge.

Ghouls were terrifying. The Captain told them about whole herds numbering in the thousands and out seeking the fresh blood that they needed to survive, including them turning on each other if food was not found. Thankfully they were too stupid to use weapons, if they even were capable of it. They had to be ripped apart so their bodies couldn't function and bleed out. Otherwise they would heal the bullet wounds and eventually regrow limbs.

The Ghastlies were again more anecdotal stories of things as simple as irradiated bunnies to hogs and even reports of toothless gators that swallowed ponies whole. It also included moving trees and mutated fish walking on land.

“How many days of this do we have to go through?” Deke moaned as he sat down for dinner.

“Two more,” Shadow answered. “At least tomorrow get to learn the equipment before more lectures on creatures, be they fact or fiction.”

“How does Rainbow Dash being a drug addict fit in with your tales?” Golden Dawn asked Shadow.

“Perfectly,” Shadow replied. “I won't tell folks back home since it will ruin her swashbuckling stories. Especially about her high jacking a Zebra pirate ship. It hurts nopony to keep the tales going and only helps keep our moral up. I doubt the stories would change much anyway. No more than forgetting a General's name and making one up on the spot.”

They all laughed quietly.

“Some of those lessons are more like nightmares,” Olive Pit shivered. “And he hasn't gotten to the surviving ponies.”

“You are going to die,” Deke said in a dramatic panic. “I hate saying that I am going to lose a friend, but everything he is describing will kill you like the other teams.”

“Relax,” Shadow said forcing him to let go. “I won't die. I am sure some is exaggerated. What is or isn't I do not know, but somehow they got that information back, which means successful missions. The Lieutenant mentioned he had a failed mission. But it also sounds like he had plenty more completely successful ones.”

“You are right,” Deke sighed. “I am letting fear get the better of me.”

“Ever notice how much we sigh while talking?” Olive Pit said. “I know how tired we all are, how hard we work and that we are open and honest, but we are downtrodden most of the time.”

“Lets fix that,” Shadow smiled. “Sighs of contentment and groans of physical pain only from here on out!” The slammed their cups together in a toast and went back to focusing on eating a real meal.

END OF BOOK 1: PART 2: DUTY