The carriage carrying the ponies flew over the Everfree Forest towards the COLTS base. They were going very deep into the forest and it would a while before they reached their destination.

"So." Autumn Leaf said breaking the silence. "Where you guys from?"

"I'm Lance Corporal Solar Blitz and I'm from Manehattan! Boy it sure is a nice city! You guys should so stop by sometime!" Solar Blitz exclaimed. He was extremely talkative, just like another pony Macintosh knows.

"Typical Manehattanite, doesn't ever shut up!" Deadeye thought as he overheard the conversation.

"I'm Private Silent Shadow and I'm from Appleloosa." Silent Shadow said.

"What? I didn't hear ya." Autumn said.

"I said Appleloosa!" Shadow said a little louder this time.

"Appleloosa! That was the first place the grifs attacked! You're not the one pony that killed all those sentries are you?" Solar Blitz asked.

"Yes." Shadow said.

"That's awesome! I haven't done anything cool like that but I hope I'll be able to!" Blitz said.

"How bout you big guy?" Autumn asked.

"Ah'm Corporal Big Macintosh and I'm from Ponyville." Big Mac said. The ponies all went silent.

"Woah! He's the Beast of Ponyville!" Blitz exclaimed.

"Wait y'all know bout that?" Big Mac asked.

"Dude nopony kills thirty three griffons on his first battle and keeps it a secret." Autumn said.

"Wow remind me not to get on your badside!" Blitz said jokingly. "Hey you haven't told us your name yet" He said as he pointed to Autumn.

"I'm from Stalliongrad and my name is Sergeant Autumn Leaf." Autumn said. "I was actually at that battle with Big Mac, saw him take down those grifs like nopony's buisness."

"Hey guys if y'all don't mind can we not talk bout that?" Big Mac asked. "Ah don't like that fact ah killed all those griffons."

"Hey listen, those grifs are a threat to our nation and nothing dares threaten our kind right?" Autumn asked.

"Eeyup" Big Mac said.

"Besides that's probably how you got recruited for this am I right?" Blitz asked.

"Eeyup." Macintosh replied.

"Than don't worry bout it" Blitz said as the carriage began to slow down. They landed in a clearing deep inside the Everfree forest. They could see the eyes of trainers burn holes into their souls as they approached. Deadeye noticed some guards in a hassle with a large black pony.

"You are not with an authorized COLTS recruiter and therefore not allowed in this facility." A guard yelled.

"I was sent here under specific order by Princess Celestia! NOW MOVE!" The black pony yelled back.

"A likely story, only earth ponies are allowed to be COLTS and you..... I don't even know what you are!"

"My horn is shattered so I can't use magic and I am just as strong as any stallion here!" The black pony yelled.

"STOP!" Deadeye ordered as the bickering died down. "Who are you?"

"I am Black Soul, Princess Celestia sent me here." Black Soul explained.

"What are you? An alicorn?"

"I was but my horn is busted so I can't use magic any more and my wings aren't too good either" Black Soul said. Deadeye noticed the massive pony's muscular build and decided to let him slide.

"Let him in." Deadeye said.

"But sir-" A guard said.

"Are you questioning my orders Sgt?" Deadeye asked.

"No sir!" The guard said.

"Than do it!" Deadeye said as Black Soul was let into the camp.

"That guy gives me the creeps!" Blitz whispered to Shadow.

"Good luck, I expect to see every one of you six months from now. Though realistically, probably none of you will make it through." Deadeye said.

"Your not training us?" Autumn asked.

"There are only three COLTS including me as of now, I have missions to do." Deadeye explained. "Have fun."

"That didn't sound promising" Shadow said as they approached. They saw about two hundred other stallions all lined up for processing. Given the current drop out rate, only sixteen would make it to the end. One unfortunate soul wasn't looking and slammed right into a trainer.

"Did you just touch me?" The trainer growled. "DID YOU JUST BUCKING TOUCH ME?"

"Sir I didn't mean to-" The pony said before the trainer punched him square in the jaw leaving the pony a bloody nose. The trainer than picked him up by the mane and growled.

"If you ever mess with me again... I'll rip you throat out and drink your blood" The trainer said as threw the pony to the ground. "GET IN FORMATION!". Macintosh was scared now, even Skullcrusher was never that ruthless.

"LISTEN UP!" Colonel Striper, the head of the COLTS program spoke. "Congratulations, you have all been selected for the most elite team of soldiers the world has ever seen. Take a look to your right and your left. I guarantee both those guys will be gone within two weeks! I don't give a hell what rank you were or what accomplishments you had before this! As of right now you are the lowest forms of parasprite shit!". Big Mac knew these guys meant business if they cussed like that. Not even the instructors at Fort Hoovler ever resorted to such foul language.

"You will be pushed beyond your limits, you will hurt and you will cry but guess what? I don't care and neither do any of these instructors. I have don't have time for cowards on my base! Guess what else, if you get lost or hurt during a training exercise in the forest, nopony is going to come save you, you will die cold and alone. Just remember, you can quit at anytime! Now let's start making some killers, MOVE OUT!" Striper yelled.

"AYE AYE SIR!" The ponies replied.

"I CAN'T HEAR YOU!" Striper yelled.

"AYE AYE SIR!"

"GO!". The ponies all reported to the main room where they were divided into platoons. Big Mac, Autumn, Shadow, and Blitz were all room mates and in the same platoon. All four platoons would train together but would compete against each other. They were given vest that weighed nearly one hundred pounds and boots which they would wear everyday.

"MOVE IT! WHAT'S TAKING SO LONG? WHATS SO HARD ABOUT THIS?" A trainer yelled as he pushed a pony who was struggling with his clothes to the ground. The pony did not finish and was taken behind a building for some disciplinary measures.

"THE REST OF YOU! 10 MILES NOW! DON'T GET LOST CAUSE WE AIN'T COMING TO LOOK FOR YOU!" A trainer yelled as the ponies began their run. 10 miles is hard enough and they were wearing 100 pound vests and they had to jump, duck. and roll around tree branches and rocks along the route. Trainers were running at the front middle and back of the group.

"HOW DID YOU PUKES MAKE IT PAST BASIC?" A trainer yelled. The recruits were all scared and nervous, these trainers were freakin crazy! Macintosh began to slow down to catch his breath and was caught by a nearby trainer.

"TAKING A BREAK ARE WE?" The trainer asked.

"SIR NO SIR!" Big Mac said.

"BULLCRAP! COME WITH ME NOW!" The trainer yelled as he grabbed Macintosh and pulled him down into a shrub. The trainer threw Macintosh to the ground and before he could get up he was hit in the face by the trainer.

"GET UP!" The trainer yelled. "YOU GOT A FAMILY PUKE?"

"Sir yes sir!" Big Mac yelled. "Ah have two sisters sir!"

"SISTER EH? MAYBE I SHOULD COME OVER AND GIVE THEM A GOOD BUCKING!" The trainer yelled. This enraged Macintosh but he kept his cool.

"I'LL BET SHE'S CLOPPED EVERY STALLION AND COLT WHERE YOU COME FROM! SHE'S A DIRTY WHORE AINT SHE?" The trainer said. "AIN'T SHE?"

"SIR NO SIR!" Macintosh said now getting mad. The trainer knew this and decided to push Macintosh further.

"I'LL BET SHE'S CLOPPED YOU A COUPLE TIMES! NOT ONLY IS SHE A DIRTY WHORE, SHES A DIRTY INCEST WHORE!". That did it. Macintosh yelled as he ran at the trainer and tried to attack him. The trainer smiled and moved out of the way.

"Too slow!" The trainer taunted as Macntosh whirled around in fury and tried to hit him again only to be met with a hoof to the face. Macintosh decided that was enough for now and just stayed down.

"Get back in formation and don't let me catch you slacking again or I WILL kill you! Do you understand?" The trainer asked.

"Yes sir" Macintosh spat out as he walked back to the track. Blitz looked and saw the large bruise under his eye but decided it was best to not ask about it. The recruits finished their run and returned back to base.

"That took too long, get in the water now!" A trainer ordered as the recruits went into the freezing river for punishment. They all shivered and sat there for fifteen minutes before they were pulled out and thrown right back into the training.

"Ah dont know how Deadeye was able to do his." Macintosh thought to himself. The temptation to just quit was overwhelming, he could go home and sleep in his nice warm bed, he could see his sisters and most importantly be with Luna. But if there was one thing Macintosh wasn't it was a quitter so he pushed on. After hours of pure hell it was time to hit the hay. It was way past midnight and the recruits were exhausted. Macintosh fell asleep right away but Blitz, Autumn, and Shadow were up for a little while longer.

"Hey look at this picture of his family," Blitz said as he pulled out a picture of Big Mac, Applejack, and Applebloom.

"Woah his sisters a babe!" Autumn said.

"Which one?" Blitz asked.

"What do you think sicko? The older one!" Autumn said pointing to Applejack.

"Do you think he'll be mad if we go through his stuff? Shadow asked.

"He shouldn't have fallen asleep so fast." Autumn said as he put the picture back. "Speaking of which we should probably go to bed, I'm pooped." Autumn said with a yawn.

"I agree." Blitz said "g'night."

"G'night." Autumn and Shadow said as they had some badly needed sleep. It seemed like they had just gotten to bed when the trainers came in to wake them up, the sun hadn't even come up yet.

"WAKE UP! WAKE UP PUKES!" A trainer yelled as he came in and began pulling recruits out of their beds. Macintosh noticed two empty spots at formation meaning two recruits had quit and had their memory of COLTS erased so they wouldn't accidently slip out any classified info.

"You boys might wanna hurry!" A trainer said. "If you take too long you'll miss breakfast!". This got the recruits going as they needed plenty of food to replenish the thousands of calories they burned they day before. They were all groggy and crabby from lack of sleep but it was nothing they weren't used to. The recruits made their way to the cafeteria and got in line for food. At Marine basic the food was actually not bad but here it was just a glop of purple and brown mush.

"It has all the necessary vitamins and nutrients, eat it or eat nothing at all. " The cook said to the recruits who looked at the food with disdain but ate it anyway. The mush tasted like a rotten smashed banana and everypony was forcing themselves to swallow it. Everypony except Solar Blitz who seemed to be enjoying it.

"Hey you gonna eat that?" Blitz said as he took Shadow's mush and gulped it down. Autumn and Big Mac rolled their eyes.

XXXXXX

Applejack was worried about her brother but she knew he would come back before he left for Hoofington. She awoke and went to his room to find he wasn't there. She checked the whole house, the barn, and the fields but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Ah hope he didn't leave without sayin goodbye!" Applejack said to herself as she checked everywhere one last time.

"He didn't even say goodbye." Applejack said as a tear rolled down her face. It would be six months before she saw her brother again. Applebloom woke up and came downstairs.

"Applejack? Where is Big Mac?" Applebloom asked.

"He had to leave sugarcube, he didn't have time to say goodbye." Applejack said as Applebloom walked over to her and hugged her.

"Ah miss him." Applebloom cried.

"Ah know, but he'll be alright." Applejack said thinking her brother was in Hoofington. Applejack decided to take Applebloom to Sugarcube corner for a treat to make her feel better. The two arrived at Sugarcube Corner and Applejack got a cupcake for herself and Applebloom. She just finished her cupcake when she heard a familiar voice outside.

"WERE YOU BORN A FAT SLIMY PUKE PIECE OF CRAP? OR DID YOU HAVE TO WORK ON IT?" The voice yelled.

"Sir no sir!" Another voice yelled.

"GET OUTTA MY FACE!" The voice yelled again. Applejack's suspicions were confirmed when Sgt Skullcrusher walked into the building.

"May I have a cup of coffee please?" Skullcrusher asked Mrs. Cake who had just heard the scream fest outside.

"Of course." Mrs Cake said as she poured some hot coffee into a cup and gave it to Skullcrusher. He pulled out his wallet when Mrs Cake stopped him.

"Oh this one is on us dear." Mrs Cake said.

"Are you sure?" Skullcrusher asked.

"We got lots of fillies and colts coming in here everyday. We'll be fine." Mrs Cake said.

"Thank you ma'am. Have a nice day." Skullcrusher said as he took his coffee and began to walk out. He didn't notice Applejack in the corner with her sister. Applejack decided to play around with him.

"Hey Skullcrusher! Your vest in unbuttoned private!" Applejack said in her deepest voice.

"Alright wheres the little piece of manticore crap who just called me by my name?" Skullcrusher asked. He looked around for a pony in uniform and saw two a mare and a filly laughing in the corner.

"Very funny Applejack." Skullcrusher said embarrassed that he fell for that trick.

"Ah'm just messin with ya hon." Applejack called back. "Come over here."

"Uh I gott-" Skullcrusher began to say.

"Come on over!" Applejack said again. Skullcrusher sighed in defeat and walked over to the two sisters.

"Applebloom you remember Sgt Skullcrusher right?" Applejack asked.

"He's the guy who said he was gonna rip off Big Mac's mane and use it fer a moustache right?" Applebloom asked. Skullcrusher chuckled at the fillies remark.

"Yes I guess I am." Skullcrusher said as he sat down. "So Applebloom how is your big brother doing?". Upon hearing this Applebloom's ears went down and a sad expression crawled on her face.

"Did I say something I wasn't supposed to?" Skullcrusher asked Applejack.

"Ah'm sorry Skullcrusher it just that Big Mac left for Hoofington this mornin and he wont be back fer six months." Applejack said sadly.

"I'm sorry to hear that but he'll be fine." Skullcrusher said. "He was trained with the best."

"I guess yer right." Applejack said. Pinkie Pie had just gotten back from pulling antics with Rainbow Dash and she saw Applejack sitting with Skullcrusher.

"HEY APPLEJACK! WHO IS THIS? IS HE YOUR COLTFRIEND?" Pinkie yelled. Upon hearing this both Applejack and Skullcrusher burned up with embarrassment.

"You mean you two like each other? Does this mean Skullcrusher is gonne be me and Big Mac's brother now?" Applebloom asked. Skullcrusher almost fainted when he heard that and Applejack pulled her hat down over her head.

"Uhh Sugarcube how bout you go play with yer friends." Applejack said as she scooted Applebloom away.

"HEY!" Applebloom objected as she was pushed away. Applejack than turned to Pinkie.

"Pinkie, this is Sgt Skullcrusher and no is not ma coltfriend." Applejack said as he introduced the Sgt.

"Nice to meet you Ms." Skullcrusher said.

"Oh okay, I just saw you two sitting at a table and you looked so cute together so I thought you liked each other." Pinkie said as she walked upstairs. Applejack and Skullcrusher just stood their looking at each other.