Deke had pinned a notice on Unit 0’s doors so that when they exited the building to get breakfast, they could see that there was a voluntary meet up at 0800. They found him casually leaning against the building in his service uniform. His was different than theirs because of his Cloudship officer post. It was more like a simplified dress uniform.

“So,” Deke said as the lined up. “You were shutdown. By your Lieutenant. Who is my friend. He gave up on you the other day, but I am not giving up on him. So I decided to see for myself, if you had any semblance of skill. If you are soldiers or not. Because that sounded like a flat no.”

Deke pushed himself off the wall. “The thing is, I know him well. And he has a knack for turning a bad situation into a good one. He fixes things well. Overcomes challenges. Even when that means leading. So I don’t believe the rumors that he failed.”

“So this is one hundred percent voluntary?” Sunset Fury asked.

“I have little authority here,” Deke shrugged. “And am supposed to stay out of things. But I am a Lieutenant and he does listen to me. Is that a problem?”

“Not at all,” Sunset Fury smiled. “I am in. I am the Master Sergeant for this Unit.”

“Rank means shit in your Unit,” Deke spat.

“Still,” Sunset Fury replied. “I want my Silver Wings. I will get my Silver Wings. There is another ACS coming and I don’t care if I have to do it outside of Unit 0, I will get my wings.”

“Lofty goal but it looks doubtful. You can’t even pass the Enclave’s basic physical requirements, let alone keep up with the ACS program.”

“You’re a Medic, not a soldier,” Willow said to Sunset Fury. “We all are.”

“And if I want to be more?” Sunset Fury asked.

“He isn’t supposed to be doing this,” Willow replied. “He is a Second Lieutenant on that Cloudship that almost took our heads off.”

Deke couldn't help but laughed.

“Yeah,” He said gaining control. “That was fun doing that the other day. First time I have ever tried that and it worked.”

“You almost took our heads off?” Star Chaser asked annoyed.

“Well, I was in control of everything and knew where you all were. So it wasn’t like I actually got close to your heads.”

“Other their reckless flying, do you know how to train medics?”

“No,” Deke grinned. “But I am an officer for a reason. I have to keep my troops in shape and in order. I know how to do that. Do you know how to perform under an officer?”

It was a low blow, but true. Nopony had a response. Deke rolled his eyes. He was going to have to roll in absolutes.

“None of you have passed the standard requirements to continue your service. I can test you on that. You lost seven the other day from their own stupidity. Are you ready to lose your careers over a physical fitness test? I don’t have to know how to train medics to give you guys this shot. This isn’t medical.”

Deke missed what Willow said.

“Are you really going to just give up?” Morning Spark asked. “They may be lining up to remove more of us. This could at least keep your job, somewhere. 12 years is a long time to throw away.”

Willow shook her head. “Fine. I have no faith in this, but fine.”

“I have faith in us all,” Sunset Fury stated.

“Then lets get over to Black Barrack Flight Deck,” Deke said taking off.

They were slow, but they also were not expecting this opportunity. When they landed they were quickly in their A-D Squads. Deke wasted no time in moving them into warm ups.

As soon as they looked ready he had his clipboard out and began to run them through the PT test. Sit Ups, Push Ups, Wing Ups, 100 yard sprint, 100 yard wing sprint, and then the 2x2 ruck.

They had a good break before Deke pushed them into the 2x2. Two miles on hoof and then two miles in the air. Each soldier had to pass both sections by a certain time and total time. Since Deke was leading this alone, he had to keep up with them on the 2x2 for timing.

Halfway through the hoof portion he was feeling it, as expected.

Ebony Bolt decided to prod him a bit. “Hey! You okay? Or does the Cloudship officer not have what it takes?”

“If you can talk then you be in a walk!” Deke fired back. “Plus, I have to stay with you, not kill this course! Last time my 2x2 was 23.42!”

Ebony Bolt nodded to Winter Fire and they picked up the speed. Deke picked his up. He had to be at the head to record the times. The two of them were in no position to sub 25 minutes. Maybe sub 28.

Deke sprinted ahead the last three hundred yards to the timing post and slid into a stop. He recorded each one’s time and then had to catch up to them in the air. All of the specialists and corporals had quit staying with the pack and were finally out for themselves.

Deke still cruised in well ahead of them and recorded the final times for each individual. While they got to lay down and let their bodies catch up, He had to crunch the numbers to see how each one ranked.

Right as he finished, Little cruised in. “Lieutenant. It is lunch time, and I need to speak with you, privately.”

“Right,” Deke said keeping himself from panting. “All of you can go. The fitness test is done. I will make sure that, by 0900 tomorrow, the results will be on the notifications board as you walk into your Unit.”

Little waited for them to leave before speaking.

“First off, you are welcome for the well timed rescue.”

“Thanks,” Deke smiled. “You saved my face with them. They were starting to fear me. Once they knew I can sub 25, they pushed but they can’t push that hard.”

“You can sub 25? Never mind, that isn’t important. How did they do?”

“All passed,” Deke said taking in a deep breath. “Even the Sergeant Major. Barely for her, but they all passed. I know they missed a day, but maybe this will convince Olive Pit to let them have another go.”

“Right,” Little chuckled. “You missed that meeting because you were not tearing things apart. This is really good news and needed because the Colonel is going to be putting them back in. They have to continue with ACS.”

“Good,” Deke smiled. “The other thing?”

“Yeah, so my sister is being a pain. It was bad enough on our intermittent talks, but now that I am here, she had been prodding me for a date to the wedding.”

Deke had a good laugh. Little was prepared for it and let it ride.

“I am the only available bachelor that doesn’t make you look desperate.”

“Being First Mate on the Third Fleet’s Flagship does cut the number of suitors down, drastically.”

“Third Fleet?” Deke asked cocking his head. “Why is the Red Dawn approaching?”

Little looked to where he was pointing.

“That is the Red Dawn all right. But why indeed. We are not scheduled for a meet up for another two months at the Third Fleet Rally.”

“She is moving in at near her top speed,” Deke added. “Very odd.”

The warning siren went off, calling all teams to be grounded and reassemble at the Squad Barracks.

“She is coming in fast,” Little said. “Lets get back on our wings while we have the chance.”

The Red Dawn cruised in, make good use of the breaks. She came in to rest at the back end of the Squad Barracks. She had lowered her ramp well in advanced, a move that was not supposed to be attempted outside special training.

Admiral Purple Breeze had been at the bottom of the ramp since it had first lowered. She took one step off and onto the Squad Barracks. It was all she needed.

“Admiral!” Deke and Little saluted.

“At ease. And where is Ruby?”

“No idea Ma’am,” Little stated. “It’s been a very hectic, weird few days Ma’am.”

“Admiral!” Ruby Snow called out as he came out of the Squad Barracks. “Sorry, a lot has happened. Captain of a Cloudship means nothing. All that matters is my rank. I had unexpected duties to attend to.”

“And where is Colonel Nova?” Admiral Purple Breeze asked.

“No idea,” Ruby Snow shrugged. “I have not seen him all day.”

“At day two of the trials,” Olive Pit said coming down the stairs to join them. “I was supposed to be on look out for you to let you know he is on his was as soon as possible.

“What are you… wearing?” Admiral Purple Breeze asked.

Olive Pit laughed. He had forgotten he was pink with a blond mane, out of uniform and in a dress to look like Scarlet Garland.

“I lost a wager,” Olive Pit explained. “Which is part of why things are so crazy and why Colonel Nova is not here. He should be back shortly. We are in the middle of Aerial Combat School. My Unit got caught with drugs. And that meant taking everything here apart. We found a few more. He is finishing up his hearings today.”

“And that excuses your look?” Admiral Purple Breeze asked.

Olive Pit blushed. “My Unit failed to meet the standards and this is my side of the wager. I couldn’t pay multiple individuals.”

“All of this for a… petty idea of what?”

Olive Pit shifted back into a command stance. “I am the officer restarting Unit 0. The first officer they have had in over ten years. Its my job to make sure that the Aerial Combat Units have medics by their side once again. We all have to get our wings.”

“That is why the wager was formed among the officers. They were in poor shape and the goal was to get them to want to pass on their own, by not wanting to let their officer down and letting the entire Squad Barracks know it. Because you can’t help but see that I am wearing their shame. Even though I am pulling it off.”

The Admiral laughed with the others. Olive Pit was making a very good show of things.

“I didn’t know the ACUs had Combat Medics,” The Admiral stated.

“It was the best kept secret inside the ACUs, even to the ACUs. With the reboot, we are getting back to the original design and that also mean the same standards and higher standards than the ACUs. And that also means Silver Wings.”

“Combat Medics with Silver Wings,” Admiral Purple Breeze marveled. “That would top 731’s medics. You have some skill.”

“I have my skill,” Olive Pit blushed. “But, I can’t stitch up shitty soldiers. In my unit, seven are out for drug use. Two have been dishonorably discharged and the other five have been sent to rehab. Their careers are undecided and out of our wings now.”

“I thought ACUs had six?”

“Unit 0 does not fall to that model. I have individual squads structured that way, but the Unit as a whole can be in the 90s. Or that is the goal. We were supposed to be at 36 wings in eight weeks, now its going to be 29, at most. If they can even pass their fitness tests.”

“Oh!” Deke exclaimed. “I did that this morning, and here it is. They all passed.”

“That is good news,” Olive Pit marveled. “Very good news.”

“Projection?”

Deke passed Olive Pit the clip board with the scores.

“I don’t think the Sergeant Major can pass overall. She is, just too long out of the game. At least not for this cycle.”

“Thanks,” Olive Pit smiled. “A good thing to hear. A real outside voice.”

“But!” Olive Pit said looking at the Admiral. “You didn’t come here to see me pulling off looking like Scarlet Garland.”

“I am here to discuss the Third Fleet’s new ranking system with Colonel Nova. It should prove useful to the ACUs, even your Unit. We are expanding the area between the Lieutenant ranks and the Captain, to allow for more movement and growth, particularly in the bridge officers. That also comes with a new rank below Second Lieutenant, Ensign. It will help balance things out.”

“Ooo, I like that,” Little squealed. “I hated that my next rank meant I was a Captain over a Cloudship. That is a hard appointment to get and could take years being stuck as a Lieutenant. I look forward to promotion opportunities!”

“You still don’t have any, Commander,” Admiral Purple Breeze smiled. “Congratulations.”

“HA! I’m a Commander, and you still are Lieutenant!”

“No, he isn’t,” Ruby Snow chuckled. “He is Lieutenant Commander Deke.”

“Awwwww,” Little whined. “Why does he get to be the rank directly below me. He has barely been off probation since he failed the practicum!”

“He can handle the entire bridge,” Admiral Purple Breeze clarified. “Weapons and all.”

“I pulled off a bootleg turn to slid in front of the Squad Barracks. Commander Little wanted a grand entrance, so I gave her one.”

“That is why he deserves it,” Admiral Purple Breeze grinned. “I can’t believe you, Commander, never have tried something like that. We need this stuff being done in the Third. You two are significantly better than the others. And you have the age advantage.”

Deke chuckled. “I almost got my coat flayed off me while I was alive for it, but the drug issue saved me from that. I had control of the area. It was safe. But, now I do need to work to recalibrate the engines. I fully accepted that responsibility before pulling it off.”

“You won’t have to,” Admiral Purple Breeze said. “Captain, I am also here because I will be relieving you of duty for the next four weeks so you and your crew can take that much needed and well deserved break. The Ships will be moving to Nellie. Your crew can chose to stay here at New Heaven, or go with to Nellie with the ships.”

“Yes!” Ruby Snow exclaimed pumping his hoof. “We certainly could use that. And new chairs on the bridge.”

“Yes, those are going to be fixed. Along with some other areas. That is why the promotions are imperative. We are going to be bringing the Buttercup and all Third Fleet Cloudships back up to their full complements. We need our competent officers to take primary roles in their younger counterpart’s development.”

“Please deny Lieutenant Green,” Deke said, almost pleading.

“We have denied him multiple times,” Admiral Purple Breeze stated. “Which is how we found out about you. Lieutenant Green is connected to a troublesome cohort of aggressive, confident young officers who are willing to take risks and have the social backing to get what they want.”

“You take risks, but you don’t throw around your backing as a threat. And yours is calculation, not so much aggression. You see the bigger picture, they see power."

“You should be familiar with a Lieutenant Autumn Leaf, who is now a Captain and in a strong command position. We do not need that kind of officer in the Third. We are not that kind of fleet. Although Lieutenant Honey Bee circumvented our job a month back when he sent scouts to look for the Recon Team, not the Buttercup as planned.”

Deke’s heart stopped beating. “I was supposed to go below on the rescue run?”

“Along with several Wonderbolt teams,” Admiral Purple Breeze stated. “That is their cohort’s strength. Serving themselves, not the Enclave; but in the name of the Enclave.”

“The Command Sergeant Major would have been able to bring down a heap of trouble on his Lieutenant if he had made it back. His rank would have meant he could have burned him alive and his Lieutenant was not in a place where he could have gotten assistance. Justice would have been served where he could not have been saved.”

“That balance has been restored. The Wonderbolt’s Colonel should have arrived and be speaking with the teams here. We won’t be skipped again. We just need information on where to search, but that has no clearance either.I am afraid they have been MIA too long for much hope to be left. Any alive probably believe they have been officially abandoned.”

“They are a crafty group who would have made some attempt at giving us notification. Each day makes it less likely.”

Deke growled. “I see that Lieutenant, I will kill him. Shadow Flare would have left some message. Some way for us to find him.”

“You don’t want to do that,” Ruby Snow stated. “It will end your career and gain nothing but banishment. And I understand that attempt was already made by his wife.”

“Wife?” Deke asked.

“Didn’t Nova catch you up?” Olive Pit asked, shocked.

“Yeah, but he never said anything about a wife.”

“Of course he missed that,” Olive Pit said rolling his eyes. “During ACS, he married Cardinal Spitfire. Secretly so he didn’t get pulled. Its no secret now, but it was then.”

Deke spoke without thinking. “Golden Dawn won’t like hearing that.”

“Idiot,” Olive Pit said shaking his head. “Its a raw subject to Cardinal Spitfire. She was as close to the situation as possible. Wonderbolt training and where the Recon Team was based out of was the same base. Be sensitive.”

“I can be sensitive,” Deke shot back.

“Admiral!” Nova called out, ending all other conversations. “Forgive me. I am so sorry I am late. I am sure you were caught up on the issue of the past few days?”

“And I am very sorry to hear it,” Admiral Purple Breeze replied.

“These idiots should have gotten you inside.”

“The fresh air is nice,” Admiral Purple Breeze smiled. “Besides, it is the better light to appreciate Scarlet Garland.”

“It is,” Nova chuckled. “Although that dress should have been worn yesterday for the hearings. It is much nicer than the one yesterday. Most of his were done yesterday.”

“It fits so much better,” Olive Pit smiled. “And it really does go with my eyes.”

Admiral Purple Breeze shook her head. “I can not believe you wore that to a formal hearing.”

“It played well into our hooves,” Nova chuckled. “It showed just how much he has tried and has done for them. And how very much they have failed. Especially the five drug users who started after ACS began. Plus, he was the prettiest Pegasus in the hearings.”

“Now admiral,” Nova said getting on track. “I have us set up in Unit 0’s auditorium. It is designed for this stuff. Well, more like medical conference and information stuff, but it is the best place for all of us. The Squad Barracks has nothing for that. Still expanding stuff here.”

“The rest of the senior officers should be there already. Including the Wonderbolts. They are, or were, in the conference rooms in Unit 0 hashing our some things.”

Marble Falls was with Cardinal Spitfire, the last in Room C. The Colonel had caught them up on the investigation, which ended with nothing. The tracks were obviously hidden, but they didn’t have the power to uncover in them. He was saved by time and his cohort mentor.

Cardinal Spitfire was splayed out on the table, quietly sobbing. Marble Falls picked up the pen and got to writing.

Family of Shadow Flare,

I won’t drag it out, Shadow Flare has been declared Missing in Action, MIA, for several weeks. MIA does not mean killed in action. His mission below is shrouded in mystery and we can’t get much information out of the whole thing.

I am writing to tell you for two reasons. The first just occurred to me that the Military may never even notify you of this, issue, because of it’s clandestine nature.

The second and real reason I am writing is that you would not get notified that he is MIA because, according to the Enclave records, family has already been notified.

My name is Captain Marble Falls. I had the honor of training your son multiple times and making him into the amazing Reconnaissance Soldier he is. I am writing this because this is attempt five to write this letter and she still can’t.

Your son married Cardinal Spitfire. A dynamite mare with as big of dreams as he has and more fire in her heart. The two of them were side by side in Basic and then Aerial Combat School. They married shortly before the school ended.

It was a secret wedding that even I, their friend, didn’t know about. They wanted to keep it secret so that neither of their dreams were stopped by marriage. Shadow Flare may have been pulled from the mission, and none of us wanted that to happen. She didn’t want her Wonderbolt dreams to get put on hold because she was married.

I trained her alongside him and I am now her captain in our Wonderbolt Unit. There is so much I wish I could write. Both of them are good friends. None of us believe that Shadow Flare is dead. There are inconsistencies that we can’t get a clear answer on, but we know him.

That is of course, no guarantee. But if there is a Pegasus from the Enclave that can survive against the odds, it is Shadow Flare.

I am sorry that you have to find this out from a letter. I wish I could deliver this personally, but I am kind of banned from visiting you right now. I have responsibilities I can not put aside, even for a short trip.

Captain Marble Falls

Marble Falls picked up Cardinal Spitfire to get them to the meeting. They ran into the others coming in to the meeting. Deke slammed into Cardinal Spitfire and brought her into a tight, choking hug.

“Somepony told me about Shadow, but not about you two. I am so sorry.”

“DAMN IT!” Marble Falls groaned as Cardinal Spitfire began to cry in his arm. “Deke, I just got her calmed down! We have a meeting. She was holding together so well the past week. Not a tear shed!”

“I am not sorry,” Deke shot back. “I want to hold one of my best friend after finding out such news. Not my fault they didn’t let me know earlier! They said MIA, not MTCS!”

“MTCS?” Cardinal Spitfire chuckled away tears.

“Married To Cardinal Spitfire. You both scored amazing spouses. My friends married each other.”

“Okay,” Cardinal Spitfire coughed. “You could loosen up on the hug.”

“Sorry,” Deke blushed, letting her go.

“Thanks,” Cardinal Spitfire smiled. “Nopony has hugged me to death for this.”

“Eh, they are too scared. I am not.”

They both chuckled.

“Woah!” Sunset Fury jumped in surprise. “Officers!”

He saluted. Sunset Fury was unaware they were here and he wasn’t expecting to run into all of them in their Unit housing.

“At ease,” Olive Pit ordered. “We are headed to a meeting of Squad Barracks officers. Unit 0 has the only room large enough for this.”

“While I have you all,” Sunset Fury said. “Permission to speak freely?”

“Yes,” Olive Pit nodded.

“I wanted to say again that I am sorry I failed you as a Master Sergeant. I want my Silver Wings. If there is an opening, I want it. I will fight for it. And I am not alone. Maybe what we really needed was to be split up and not be as Unit 0, the Combat Medics.”

“Not possible,” Nova immediately said. “No room and not a good idea. We need you to train as support, with combat as the second roll. While still training you as combatants first. Pony Patrol gets how to train you.”

Olive Pit interjected. “You all passed your PT test. It starts off again at 0600 tomorrow morning. So let the Unit know.”

Sunset Fury grinned as he saluted and rushed off.

“Okay! To the meeting!” Olive Pit announced.

It was a forum, not a meeting. The first thing was the new structure idea and the logistics of new ranks. With such a tight group of officer centric units, the addition of ranks to help denote a stronger structure beneath a captain was very important.

Once things were introduced, the Admiral opened up the room to discussion. It got a lot of positive feedback from the ACUs. Even the Wonderbolts were looking at the new structure. That was the primary reason why the Colonel was attending.

Deke and Little were discussed and introduced to their new rank insignia. Admiral Purple Breeze had been using it on the Red Dawn for almost a year and it certainly allowed for the advancement of officers who were stuck without the ability to move up past Lieutenant unless they took charge of a ship.

No Ships were available and Captain was a highly coveted position.They lost a lot of good officers who got tired of waiting or playing the popularity game. The new ranks would hold more of those officers and cut out much of the popularity contest.

Nova decided that the ACUs would shift to the Air Command Structure the Admiral presented. It would eliminate the Rank of Major, moving it to Colonel and then General. The Air Command Structure moved to Admirals, but they would stay with General since they were direct combat troops.

O1: Ensign

O2: Second Lieutenant

O3: First Lieutenant

O4: Lieutenant Commander

O5: Commander

O6: Captain

O7: Colonel

O8: Lieutenant General

O9: Major General

O10: Field General

“Great system,” Cardinal Spitfire stated. “But who is our General and shouldn’t they be implementing this?”

Nova and the Wonderbolt Colonel exchanged glanced. The Wonderbolt Colonel decided to speak.

“The Aerial Units share the same general, as we all are in the Aerial Combat Battalion. That includes Scout Command and the MIA Reconnaissance Team. The Squad Barracks has a half general, General Red River, since it is his fort, the aerial combat portion of Basic Training is conducted here and ACS happens here. General Shielded Vengeance is… around. You Wonderbolts have met him, usually without knowing it.”

“He often goes by other names and if he wears a rank insignia, it is often that of a Colonel. He is involved in other things throughout the Enclave Military as well. With the change he might make an appearance.”

“Most likely he will,” Nova stated. “I need at least six plus Olive Pit to pass ACS so we can better debut the Silver Medic Wings.”

“Why do we need a new design?” Olive Pit asked. “Can’t we wear both devices or have a medic collar pin or something?”

“That wing you fixed the other day, we need you guys trained in more trauma and wing injuries. Longer term care because you can’t just pass things off. Master Sergeant Sunset Fury is supposed to head that training up.”

“Is he aware?” Olive Pit asked.

“Sort of,” Nova replied. “He knows there were some techniques, like the wing, that I wanted him to teach. But not the full scale. That has been a developing change.”

“So earning both wings and additional combat medicine training,” Olive Pit nodded. “You really need them to be on the tip of their hooves and fixing this.”

“Yes, things have been embarrassing. But that should be over now. Just focus on your job and I will deal with your soldiers. The Second ACS is really going to be brutal for Unit 0.”

“I understand,” Olive Pit nodded.

“I get the respect for privacy in the General’s position,” Raspberry Lemonade said. “But is there any tell? Any way that we can know?”

Nova decided to answer. “He often has a Chief Warrant Officer with him. Last I knew, Defiant Impact was a Chief Warrant Officer Grade 4. Again, he often goes by another name or no name tag.”

“I can see some of you know who they are and have been to their specialized training. And I am assuming under at least false devices, no Silver Wings. Probably false ranks as well. The last thing we need is the rest of the military to know is that the ACUs are being prepared that way.”

“That program is designed for mechanics and support units, less on the combat side. It was allowed on the terms that the main focus was for mechanics and reclamation. Combat soldiers learning it becomes, aggressive. They could take up these new arms and for some illogical reason control over them would be lost. I don’t understand it all.”

Olive Pit stood up. “If we are going to be getting specialized wings, I need to go prepare a curriculum for this style of combat to train on. I was already playing with some ideas in my head. I also recommend that Aerial Combat Medical School be started two weeks prior to allow for the training of the new material and longer conditioning time.”

“Very proactive,” Admiral Purple Breeze stated. “731 could use some of that. I might send our medics to you to train them up.”

“Get me a head count,” Nova nodded. “We still have 8 weeks until we are done, but the next ACS won’t be far behind. Especially with a new curriculum. The Lieutenant is very thorough.”

Olive Pit exited the room. The others might have some things to talk about, but he had real, tangible work to do. ACS had been halted for the day in anticipation of the forum.

Sunset Fury was waiting outside of his office.

“Yes Master Sergeant?” Olive Pit asked as he unlocked his door. “Come in.”

“I just wanted to tell you that the others know and are ready. The are excited to begin.”

“We already began,” Olive Pit said taking a seat at his desk. He gestured for Sunset Fury to sit down. “So it is continuing. We have a new squad structure as well. But that will be done at 0600. That is why it is starting early.”

“However, you know how I fixed the Wonderbolt’s wing the other day?”

“Yes Sir. The talk was that you saved her career it by realigning it immediately. I am glad I had the chance to teach you that.”

“Right,” Olive Pit smiled. “I know there is a lot of pressure for you to pass. I do not want to add any more to that, but we need to step up the medical game for these mobile aerial medical units. That will be implemented after ACS, but the next one may have that information taught and tested upon.”

Sunset Fury nodded. “I will make some quick calls and see what some of my friends have to offer to expand our skill set. One that is worthy of the Silver Wings. The Colonel already informed me of the expanded medical training idea.”

“I will be drawing up an additional curriculum,” Olive Pit stated. “If you could even get me topics or injuries to cover, it would be appreciated. We won’t have the opportunity to just patch up and pull them off the front lines to be picked up by M.A.S.H. units. We will have to take injured out with us.”

“I can do that,” Sunset Fury smiled. “I am very happy to be helping on this. This is important medical stuff that I was beginning to notice we lacked and most definitely applicable to here.”

“Get ready for the game to pick up hard after this ACS. There will be no time to coast in victory.”

“I didn’t take this post to coast. I took this post to stop coasting.”

“Wonderful,” Olive Pit smiled. “I know you guys have had a hell of a time these past two weeks. I am surprised you all passed the fitness test. And with these scores. None of them can compete with the Lieutenant Commander’s scores on the 2x2, but the Specialists and Corporals made a noticeable difference.”

“Well, the Lieutenant peaked their interest when he told them his scores. It got them riled up a bit to try and beat him. It was impossible since we were deep in the 2x2, but they pushed ahead on their own, outside of the group.”

“Wait,” Olive Pit said putting his hoof up. “Are you saying that in training, you have been testing as a Squad?”

“Yes,” Sunset Fury nodded. “That was the general consensus that was arrived at. We all had to pass together.”

Olive Pit had to stop his head from hitting the desk.

“You are training in Squads, but not passing or failing as a Squad. You pass or fail as individuals, but apply the training in Units or our Squads.”

“That is what I said and was encouraging, but outside of Staff Sergeant Star Chaser, Corporal Ebony Bolt and Specialist Winter Fire, the others had the weight of their rank influencing that consensus. Many had seen several ACSs. We four continued as individuals. There may have been others, but I know us four conducted ourselves as individuals working to pass.”

Olive Pit shook his head. “That explains things. Stupid decision. I know your trainers didn’t portray that ideology.”

“The damage was done,” Sunset Fury stated. “Like I said, I failed you as your Master Sergeant.”

“You should have made that issue more aware,” Olive Pit stated.

“Another place I messed up,” Sunset Fury admitted. “After watching their performance, I didn’t think it mattered.”

“Now it does matter,” Olive Pit stated. “It really does matter. You need to push each other to excellence by competing. Friendly competition, ensuring you all have each other’s backs, but pushing so you all succeed, yet never compromising your position. It is training, not combat. Learning some new skills and you have to show you know them backwards and forwards.”

“Now, since you are helping me with some of the curriculum, do you want an office?” Olive Pit asked.

“Aren’t they for officers?” Sunset Fury asked.

Olive Pit shrugged. “That is the official design, but this is my Unit and to give out offices as I see fit. I have plenty. If you are heading up some of the training aspects, you need an office.”

“Then, let’s get me an office,” Sunset Fury smiled.

Olive Pit unlocked a drawer and then a safe in that drawer and removed a set of keys. U0O1 was marked on the head of the key. Unit 0 Office 1. Olive Pit gave Sunset Fury the keys to his new office and led him to it.

“A thought,” Sunset Fury said as Olive Pit began to walk away. “Do I have permission to bring in outside trainers for boosting our medical training?”

“Hmmm,” Olive Pit said thinking. “Get me a list. If you contact any of them about this new training materials, inform them they may be receiving a call, depending on how things play out.”

“Wonderful,” Sunset Fury smiled.

Next Chapter: Chapter 75 - Aborted Moratorium Estimated time remaining: 9 Hours, 19 Minutes