When he wasn’t having sense beaten into him the hard way, Blueblood had been forced to wake up at least three hours earlier then he was accustomed and hurtled into a world of rigorous exercise and training. Hours long hikes, drills, and the drudgery of ‘make work’ with the intention of instilling in ponies an iron bound sense of discipline became his new routine. Now, normally such training was reserved for ponies who already had some soldiery experience under their saddlebags. Veterans of militia service or the princesses’ own gold-cloak standing levies who, through promotion or volunteerism, were brought here to ‘the camp’ to be forged into the royal guards.