Chapter 18

Matt stood and prepared to tell, what he believed, was going to be an amazing story of his life. But when the Californian opened his mouth to start, he had no idea where to begin.

“Uh, I-um.” Matt shifted awkwardly in his stance.

Zeus rolled his eyes. “Just start at the moment you came out of your mother’s-”

“I was born in a small hospital in San Francisco,” Matt said before Zeus could finish his statement. “My mother raised me by herself. She was, what you could call, a street corner girl before I was born. Then she got a real job as maid in downtown San Fran.”

“Street corner woman?” Twilight tilted her head in confusion.

“I think he means a whore, prostitute,” Bill groaned. “Sold her body for money.”

All of the pony’s eyes went wide. Matt glared at Bill, then continued with his story.

“I didn’t go to school because I had to stay home and care for my two brothers and four sisters.”

“Wait.” Zeus shook his head. “If your mother stopped her original business as a prostitute and she was not married... Where did all of your younger siblings come from?”

Matt opened his mouth to make a smart reply but instead continued the story, now wanting to end his turn as quickly as he could. “When I was seventeen I lied to get into the army and now here I am!”

“That was an incredible story Shelly.” Zeus leaned back in his seat. “I was enthralled the whole time.”

“Who wants to go next?” Pinkie Pie asked.

“I guess I will.” Zeus stood. He suddenly smiled widely. “Hello, my name is Zachariah Marshall and I’ve been sober for two months now.”

The ponies looked at his with a blank face but the other Americans chuckled.

“That is good, I guess,” Fluttershy squeaked politely.

Zeus shook his head, dismissing the pony’s misunderstanding. “I’m from Michigan, I’m a fisherman’s son and a fisherman myself. My mother was the best cook in our little town. My life was very boring so I decided to do what my father and his fathers had done through every generation. I joined the navy.”

“I served during peacetime operations though, and I found that even more boring. Then some Japanese bastards blew up some of my friends at Pearl Harbor a few days before my time was up, so I decided to join the army. My know-how of gunnery made me a prime candidate for the armored cavalry and I was the first person of the new bunch to join Ian’s crew along with Fishy. Me and Fishy were put in Mother’s crew to replace the men who were killed in Africa. Shelly is the newest, he replaced Henry who died in Sicily.”

“I do miss Henry,” Bill sighed. “That boy was one hell of a singer.”

“Yep.” Zeus continued. “They call me Zeus because I can hit the MG window of a pillbox from a mile away.”

“And he is part Greek,” Matt chimed.

Zeus nodded in agreement.

“And it is easier to say Zeus than Zachariah.”

“Yep,” Zeus cracked his knuckles in annoyance.

“Oh, and he gets angry very easily.” Matt noticed the hateful look on the gunner’s face and stopped talking.

Zeus rolled his eyes then turned to Jeff. “Your turn Fishy.”

Jeff stood and looked silently at the ponies. “Ah was born in Texas. Ah worked on a ranch with my family. Ah joined the army around the same time Zeus did. And I was put into into Lucky’s crew at the same time too. Right before the invasion of Sicily. That is all.”

“He never talks about his family or life back home to anybody other than Ian,” Matt whispered to the nearest two ponies, Twilight and Pinkie. “We have no idea why.”

All eyes turned to the last American. Bill continued to sit and chew on his lip, ignoring their expectations.

He sighed heavily. “Fine, but don’t expect too much from me.” Bill stood and popped his back. “I’m a Virginian man. My forefathers have always been two things, farmers and soldiers. So it was natural for me to follow in their wake. I have a wife and we own a small farm near Richmond, as if you ponies know where Richmond even is. I have been in the army longer than all of my fellow Americans here, serving as an infantryman for ten years and a tanker for almost four.”

“I have fought through the African, and Sicily campaign alongside Ian before the rest of these boys showed up to replace the friends we lost.”

“Is that why you are angry all the time?” Rainbow Dash challenged.

Bill’s eyes snapped to her with a murderous glare. Dash squeaked as if she had been hurt and sank down on the couch.

“No,” he replied with a growl.

“Why are you so angry then?” Pinkie Pie sat up and met the human’s hateful eyes.

“For reasons you have no right to know.” Bill prepared to leave.

“But I think we should know, Bill.” Zeus stopped him. “You have not been the same since that day before we shipped out of England. The day you got that letter.”

“That letter is none of your business!”

“Bill,” Zeus stared the oldest American down. “Tell us.”

“What?” Bill hollered. His anger overflowing and his face red. “Can’t a man be angry? Can’t a man hate this cruel world, this war and how the lives of so many of my friends have died?”

To the surprise of everyone in the room, tears started to form in Bill’s eyes. “Can’t I hate how I have been away from my home and wife for so long that I can barely remember her face? Can’t-can’t I hate how God took my little girl away from me and my wife before she could take her first breath? How I never got to see her. I will never see her live her life with her loving father!”

Bill collapsed to the ground and leaned up against the wall. The humans and ponies remained silent as the Virginian wept. “I just-I just wanted to hold a new life, my little girl, after so much death has happened around me. I just wanted to, to-”
His words disappeared into another onslaught of tears.

Frederic didn’t mind that Bill’s emotional outbreak had prevented him and his crew from telling their stories. He was actually happy. Talking about his wife and kids made him homesick and that was not something a commanding officer needed to feel. Just in case the pink one wanted to continue her little game, the Germans had left a couple minutes after the older American had fallen into tears. Plus, he didn’t feel like translating for his men.

He hated to admit it to people but despite being a successful tank commander, Frederic was a little lazy. An attribute his commanders and, more importantly, his wife hated him for. Rommel had even directly told him one day in Africa, “I told you to move your Panzer over the ridge and hit the English flank!”

Of course, if he had moved those three Cruiser tanks would have hit his tank’s soft underbelly when he breached the sand dune. Instead, he had been the one to do that to them when they came over the rise. Almost the easiest set of kills he had ever done and all of it because he was too lazy to tell his men to go forward. But that was back when he commanded a Panzer III.

Now he commanded the Tiger, and he needed to be more active if he wanted to continue his success.

“I wonder if the baker ponies, what is their names, the Cakes are selling their pastries today.” Udo interrupted Frederics thoughts.

“We could stop by and see.” Felix said before looking at Frederic. “If it is alright with you Sir?”

Frederic shrugged. “Sounds good. I could go for something sweet.”

“Oh, welcome humans!” Mrs. Cake exclaimed hurriedly as she and her husband rushed around the bakery. “Sorry if this place is a mess. We are one of the local suppliers for the military's food. Can I get you anything?”

“Five cinnamon rolls please.”

“Coming right up!” The mare smiled tiredly. “After I get the order of three hundred loaves of bread out of the way first.”

An hour later the Germans sat relaxing on a pile of crates, watching Ian and his ponies finish the war train. Ian noticed them and walked over to the five other humans.

“What brings you bastards out here?” Ian smiled.

“Dinner and a show,” Frederic replied with a passive smile.

“I’m not going to dance and sing if that is what you lads want.”

“Nein, no.” Frederic shook his head and smiled. Of all the Americans, Ian was his favorite. Perhaps it was the fact that he was a tank commander too, or was not a complete annoyance on a day to day basis like Matt. “I’m just interested in this little project your General is having you vork on.”

“I’m not questioning this activity,” Ian shrugged. “I have learned to not question it when your commanding officers ask you to do things. Even if it is building a massive war train alongside a whole bunch of colorful ponies. Though if I was asked to do that back on Earth I would have probably told the Old Man to go fuck himself with a broom.”

Frederic chuckled and looked back at the train. “How much longer until this is done?”

Ian stretched as he looked over the massive machine. “By tomorrow morning this train will be ready to go. Along with the ponies chosen by Zeus to man the guns, this bitch is ready to kick some, er-I don’t know exactly what we're fighting, but it will kick their asses!”

Frederic nodded. “Any news about the shipment of ammunition for our Panzers?”

“Those fairy brained ponies in charge of developing the shells have only made slight progress. They tell me that they will be ready in another week, at the earliest, to go into production. Too bad they are not making the same efficient progress with their tanks.”

“I'm just eager to get back into action instead of spending all day vis you Amerikaner.”

“Same with me,” Ian smiled. “Come, lets go see if we can scrounge up some alcohol and cigarettes from our stockpiles.”

“Sound appealing to me.” Frederic stood along with the other Germans. “I think your driver, Bill, will need a drink or two.”

Ian paused. “How come?”

Frederic shrugged passively. “He told us that his daughter died and the reasoning behind his attitude.”

“Oh,” Ian replied without a hint of surprise. “He finally let it out. Bout time he told other people than me.”

“So you knew?” Frederic stated, unsurprised.

“Why do you think I’m called Momma or Mother?”

“You, uh, have mother attributes, no?” Udo chimed up with a slight smile.

“I keep forgetting you know english too.” Ian pointed at Udo, shaking his head and perturbed. “Come, lets get drunk. Oh, and maybe we can get some of these ponies pissed too for the hell of it!”

“Pissed-angry, as you Americans use the word, or pissed-drunk?” Frederic asked.

Ian shrugged. “Both.”

The mood had yet to improve when the Germans and Ian, arrived at the Apple’s house with all of the alcohol they could scrounge up. A pony had told them about a mare with the largest stockpile of “happy drinks”, as Ian called them, on that side of Canterlot. After requisitioning six armfuls of wine, champagne and other drinks under the pretext that they were taking them for important use in the military.

“Lads, ponies!” Ian cheered, already slightly drunk. “We bring gifts of happiness. You will forget all of your troubles tonight. The war will even seem like a fleeing thought when you drink your fill of this!”

Bill was the first to grab a bottle and start to drink deeply. The other humans quickly joined them. The ponies watched for a good twenty minutes as the humans grew happier and more careless.

“I guess it can't hurt to have a little,” Twilight said.

“No, no no no-no!” Ian garbled repeatedly. “Sing-sing it again but this time, this-this time I want you, Bill, to be bass.”

“Erkay,” Bill burped.

“We don’t know that song- that song as well as you!” Matt waved his bottle of wine around, spilling a little on the floor. Applejack saw the mess but didn’t care. She was too drunk as well.

“Her-em I will start it.” Ian coughed. “You, you lads join in. You German bastards too!”

The Irishman took a breath and started to sing. The other’s joined in including Udo and Frederic. The other Germans and the ponies tapped their feet and hooves to the beat. When they were done they drank some more.

“I-I haven't felt this awesome in, like, forever!” Rainbow Dash squealed.

“Ta mad when ya wake up tomorah you won't remember any uh it and you won't be feelin’ so awesome,” Ian whispered in her ear.

Dash suddenly regretted drinking, but that passed as another bottle was handed to her.

“Another song me lads, and another round of drinks!” Ian raised his arms, as if challenging god. “And may we go to hell on our own terms!”

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Tell me if you see any mistakes. Thank you!