Third person, Everfree forest, Hill 959:

The platoon gathered around Clare. “Alright, let’s move out in a straight line deployment. No sound, eyes open and ears listening” he told the platoon and they nodded as they began to trek up the hill.

The grass was thick and loomed over their heads. The rain had stopped but it made the air muggy and sticky. Several of the ponies rolled up the sleeves on their jackets to allow air flow.

The platoon traveled very quietly and somewhat slowly. They could all hear gunfire chattering near the top of the hill. “Man, I’ve seen this movie before” Bakers muttered and Enders nodded. “Yeah man and it’s getting old” Enders muttered back.

“What do you mean?” Moon Crater asked and Enders looked back to the new recruit. “We’ve done this before, over half a dozen times” Enders informed the young stallion who gulped at the information.

“And before you say: ‘If we’ve taken it before than why are we taking it again?’ I’ll tell you why. Because the brass decides that it’s important then as soon as we take it, they’ve found something more important so we give the hill back to the enemy” Bakers told Moon Crater. “Yeah let’s just hope this time they’ll really keep it” Presell muttered.

“They have to. It’s one of the only locations that they can use as a mortar base” Clare told them as they trekked along. Cloud Dasher was on point, he had become accustomed to the jungle over the past month or so and was a good point stallion.

“Man, it’s like a friggin furnace down here” Mountain Dew muttered and Hart turned back and nodded. “Yeah babe, it’s the dry heat” he whispered jokingly. “Knock it off Hart. This is no time for you to be flirting” Daffodil whispered.

As they continued on up the hill they walked past a slight opening in the grass. A small group of zebras huddled close by and waited for the platoon to make their way in front of them. They were no further than twenty feet away from the platoon.

One of the zebras readied his AK47 and waited for the center of the platoon to pass by. There were only four zebras and there were forty shadow guards in the platoon. The zebras all readied their assault rifles and as the platoon passed they opened fire.

Private Jackson screamed as 7.62x39mm rounds riddled his body. “GET DOWN” Clare yelled and the group immediately dropped to cover. Derpy went to take off into the air but Clare noticed her movements before she could fly away.

Clare lept up and raced over to Derpy then tackled her to the ground. As he was running a stray bullet clipped him in the shoulder and blood no bled onto Derpy who was trapped underneath him as she squirmed to fly away. “Hey calm down, you’re going to get yourself killed… just calm down” Clare said soothingly and soon the adrenaline pumped Derpy calmed down enough to think properly.

“I’m sorry, I” she began but Clare nodded. “Don’t worry, it happens to most pegasus during their first time” Clare muttered as he rolled off her body and leveled his Thompson towards the grass where he suspected the zebras to be.

“Sergeant major I want a” Daffodil yelled out but suddenly stopped. Clare looked over to where he had heard Daffodil’s voice but couldn’t spot him through the thick grass. Clare shuffled over to Presell who lay with his hooves over his head. “Hey Presell, see where I’m shooting?” Clare asked and fired the remainder of his drum magazine into the thick grass.

Presell nodded and Clare pointed to his flamethrower. “Burn them to a crisp” Clare ordered and Presell lifted the flamethrower handle. He squeezed the trigger on the handle and a long stream of ignited fluids spat out at the grass where the zebras hid.

The fluid mixture was made mostly of tar and gasoline and whatever it coated would burn at intense temperatures. Several zebras screamed in agonizing pain as they lept to their hooves and tried to extinguish the flames that now engulfed their bodies. The grass had caught fire and was quickly spreading.

Clare looked to the zebras, their skin was peeling and it was hideous to watch their agony. He pulled out his Desert Eagle and gave all four of the zebras a mercy round to the head, ending their suffering.

“Retrieve our dead and move further up the hill as fast as we can. The fire should die out when it reaches the edge of the grass” Clare ordered. “Sir, you better come look” Aussie called out and Clare rushed over. Aussie pointed to Daffodil, he had a bullet hole in the side of his head.

“Fuck… well we can’t dwell on it now. Get the dead and let’s go” Clare said as he slipped a fresh drum magazine into the Thompson and the group continued on up the hill.

As the platoon ascended up the hill Cloud Dasher motioned for every-pony to sit tight. Soon a battered platoon of elite royal guards trotted down the hill. Some ponies were being carried on stretchers, they had been killed in combat.

The shadow guards gave the royal guards their dead troops to carry down. Lieutenant Blunder walked up to Clare. “Where’s your commanding officer?” Blunder asked and Clare let out a deep exhale. “Killed in combat. His body’s being brought down with some of the others” Clare replied and Blunder sighed. “Well good luck up there, they’re better than ever” Blunder said as he continued down with the rest of his platoon.

“Fuck this!” Lickety said and threw his helmet to the ground. “Hey come on Lickety” Presell pleaded to his friend as Lickety removed his gear. “No, I can’t do this anymore. It’s stupid” Lickety replied. Aussie walked over. “Lickety what are you doing?” the Australian pony asked. “I’m not going with you, I’m sorry” Lickety replied.

Aussie walked up and put his hoof on Lickety’s shoulder. “Listen, Lickety I don’t have time for this” Aussie ordered but Lickety’s mind wouldn’t be changed. “Well than you better move out because I’m not going no matter what you say” Lickety replied.

Clare walked up to the argument. “What’s going on here?” Clare asked and Lickety shook his head. “This is so stupid Sarge. We take this hill and ponies die. Then when we finally take the hill we give it right back to the enemy and for what?” Lickety told him. “Those are our orders” Clare said. “For nothing, you know that better than any of us Sarge” Lickety said, almost in tears.

“I’m not gonna sacrifice my life for nothing” Lickety said as he began to walk back down the hill. Clare grabbed him before he could leave. “Now listen, Lickety don’t blow a fuse alright. Listen you need a rest or something I’ll clear it so you can stay back. But don’t go screwing yourself over for this” Clare pleaded. “I don’t need a break, I’m done. I’m finished, finished with everything. The zebras, this war… this fucking hill” Lickety replied. Lickety looked to his friends who all looked at him with expressionless faces.

“I’m sorry guys, but I just can’t do this anymore” Lickety said sadly. “Alright, platoon move up” Clare said and the platoon began to move up but Aussie walked back down to Lickety with a semi angered face. “Man Lickety, how can you walk out on these stallions? They’ve always been there for you and now you’re just abandoning them?” Aussie said and Lickety shook his head.

Aussie picked up Lickety’s radio and handed it to him but Lickety wouldn’t take it. “Listen Lickety don’t ruin your life, and trust me this will ruin your life” Aussie said as he heaved the radio over his back. “Get down the hill with the wounded. We’ll pick you up on the way back” Aussie said and Lickety began to trot back down the hill. But before he could even get a few feet an angry staff sergeant rushed up the hill.

“What’s this I hear about some coward refusing to fight” the staff sergeant yelled and Lickety raised his hoof. “That’d be me” he replied and the staff sergeant snarled at him. “Why you cowardly piece of shit. I outta kill you right now” the staff sergeant snarled as he cocked his M16 and pointed it at Lickety’s face.

Clare came down like thunder on the staff sergeant and slammed a powerful punch to the side of the stallion’s head which knocked him to the ground. The staff sergeant was disoriented and quickly shook of the dizziness that blurred his vision. He looked up to Clare.

“This is my stallion here, this is his family. Now you get out of my house sergeant” Clare snarled at the now frightened staff sergeant. He scurried to his hooves and raced back down the hill towards the rest of his platoon. Clare looked to Lickety and gave him a saddened nod.

“You should have let him do it Sarge. At least then I would’ve known who did it, and what it was for. But if I die on this hill I won’t know who did it. Or what it was for” Lickety said and began to trot back down the hill.

Clare raced back up to the rest of the platoon. The peak was just up ahead and they spread out in preparation for the upcoming battle. Clare motioned for every-pony to spread out then they all crept over the ridge of the peak. Suddenly the Type 99 light machineguns in the machinegun nest lit up like the fourth of July. 7.7x58mm rounds buzzed through the air and chopped away at trees and small thickets.

“Get down, get behind cover” Clare yelled. Ponies did exactly as he ordered and they all returned fire. “Dickens, the 79” Clare yelled out and Corporal Dickens pulled out the M79 and leaned away from cover but no sooner had he leaned away than a 7.7x58mm Type 99 machinegun round struck his shoulder.

Dickens fell to the ground screaming in pain. Clare scrambled over to his injured friend. “It ain’t bad Sarge, I can still fight” Dickens cried out in pain. “Not like this you can’t. Get back down the hill and wait with the wounded. Don’t worry, we won’t forget you guys” Clare told him and Dickens handed Clare the M79 grenade belt along with the launcher.

Dickens crawled to the ridge then slipped over and began to hastily trot down the hill. Clare turned his attention to the machinegun nest and fired a 40mm grenade round at it. The round fell short however and erupted a few dozen yards before the machinegun nest. “Aussie can you pick off the machine gunner?” Clare called out. Aussie tried to peak around the tree to snap off a shot but zebras had advanced towards the platoon and shot wildly at Aussie.

Aussie ducked behind the tree. “No way Sarge, we’ll have to get rid of those zebras first” Aussie called back. “Bakers, get on them with the M60” Clare yelled. Bakers tried to mount the M60 but the machinegun nest spotted him and fired at him. Bakers ducked behind the fallen log. “They got me pinned down Sarge” Bakers yelled back.

Enders lept up but suddenly an explosion from a grenade blew off both his hindlegs and sent him hurtling through the air. Sanderson looked to his friend who screamed in pain. “I got you Enders” Sanderson yelled as he lept up and rushed over to his friend. As Sanderson lifted Enders’ body over his shoulder an RPG round struck at his hooves and blew both their bodies into smoldering pieces.

The others who watched their bodies get blown to bits gasped in horror as the bodies seemed to simply disappear. “No… FUCK!” Bakers cried out.

Elsewhere down the hill Lickety Split sat with his journal. He wrote about the war and about Sergeant Major Clare.

‘I hate this place. The smell of death is all around. Wounded are being brought down, some will die here because of their wounds. I can’t bring myself to kill anymore. I hate myself for killing in the name of Equestria. Sergeant Major Clare says that it’s for freedom and liberty but I have yet to see freedom and liberty on this hill. So many of my friends have died on this hill and their faces will haunt my dreams forever. Ponies talk about Clare like he is a hero. I have fought alongside this man. His actions and bravery on the battlefield are without question. He has courage that no-pony could ever dream of having and above all else he is compassionate towards zebras. He doesn’t fight to kill, he fights for the freedom of those under the oppression of the communist zebras. He is indeed a hero. Perhaps one day I can share his courage but without the need to kill.’

Lickety looked up from his journal to see Dickens limping down the hill. Lickety put his journal away and quickly trotted over to help his friend find a seat. “Dickens, are you alright?” Lickety asked and he nodded silently.

“I’ll be alright” Dickens replied weakly as he sat down and leaned against a tree. “What’s it like up there?” Lickety asked and Dickens shook his head sadly. “It’s bad man. The zebras are like ghosts. Every-pony is pinned down under that friggin machinegun. Sarge is trying to keep every-pony from losing their cool but ponies are starting to break down yah know” Dickens informed his friend.

Lickety quickly pulled out his water flask and handed it to Dickens who nodded and accepted the water gratefully. Lickety thought to himself and his face saddened greatly. “Damn” he cursed to himself, hating himself for leaving his friends. Lickety quickly got up and grabbed his M16 from the ground and began to trot up the hill.

“See you later Dickens” Lickety said. “Hey Lickety, where are you going?” Dickens asked and he turned back to look at his wounded friend. “Look Dickens, I never believed in this war, I never did and I never will. But I do believe in helping my friends… I guess that’s worth fighting for” Lickety said as a smile crept across his face.

Lickety rushed back up the hill to the peak to try and help his friends.

At the peak Clare pointed over to Aussie and Moon Crater. “You two come with me. BAKERS! Supressing fire. HART! Pop some smoke” Clare yelled. The platoon followed his orders and soon Clare led Aussie and Moon Crater around the side of the battlefield.

There was a group of zebras that had taken cover in some thick brush. Clare leveled his Thompson at hip level and sprayed down the group. They screamed as the .45 caliber rounds tore through their bodies and killed them.

The trio continued on ad Clare rushed the trenches. Either the zebras were too surprised at his reckless action or they didn’t quite have time to react because they stood there and watched as Clare rushed them. Firing the Thompson from his hip he lept over the trenches. Clare motioned for Aussie and Crater to follow him.

Clare stormed through the trenches and fired his Thompson on any zebras who opposed him. Aussie travelled in the other direction, he had his M25 slung across his back and was utilizing his M1911.

Clare’s Thompson ran dry as a zebra lept out at him with a bolt action Arisaka Type 99 rifle. Clare slammed the butt stock of his Thompson against the zebra’s face and knocked him to the ground.

Clare pointed to Moon Crater. “Kill him” Clare yelled as he slipped a fresh drum magazine into his sub machinegun then continued to hose down zebras. Moon Crater pointed his M14 Juggernaut at the zebra as the zebra staggered to his feet. He had joined as a marksman for two reasons. One: he was good at it. Two: he figured he’d never get close enough to have to kill a living zebra this close. Fear struck through his body as the zebra rose to his hooves.

The zebra was about to impale Crater with the bayonet on the end of his rifle when Clare lept up behind the zebra and grabbed his head. He pulled the zebra up and slit the zebra’s throat with his razor sharp bowie knife. The zebra let out a gag and blood spurted out of his gaping throat wound. Blood sprayed onto Crater’s face as he stood there in shock. Clare dropped the zebra’s body and grabbed Crater by the shoulder.

“You’ll get a hold of this shit eventually. We’re all scarred our first time” Clare told the young stallion who nodded fearfully. Suddenly there was an iconic buzzing sound and the trenches seemed like they were being torn apart.

Clare pushed Crater out of the way as 7.62x51mm rounds shredded the trenches apart. The Apache stepped into the trenches in her clad titanium armour and began a slow trot through the trenches. “<Get out of my way>” she yelled in native tongue.

The zebras who didn’t move she simply blew apart with her twin M134s as she continued towards Crater and Clare. Clare leaned out from cover and shot at The Apache until his fifty round drum magazine was empty. The Apache returned fire but Clare had already ducked back behind cover. Moon Crater swallowed his fear and leaned out, he pulled back the trigger on his M14 Juggernaut but even the powerful rounds from his rifle failed to penetrate her armour.

Clare pulled Moon Crater back behind cover just as The Apache opened fire. Moon Crater looked to Clare. “Thanks” he said and Clare nodded. “Don’t mention it, we’ll probably be dead in a few second anyways” Clare chuckled as he cocked back the charging bolt on his Thompson.

There was a war cry and several gunshots. Clare looked to see Aussie leap through the air and land on The Apache’s back. Aussie fired the remainder of his magazine into the back of her helmet but the bullets failed to penetrate.

The Apache slammed their bodies against the side of the trench and Aussie fell off her back. The Apache turned her aim to the Australian pony. Aussie was holding a live grenade. “Rest in pieces bitch” he chuckled and The Apache’s eyes went wide as the grenade exploded and engulfed their bodies in the eruption.

Clare covered his head as debris cluttered to the ground. The zebras in the trenches had realized their presence and now fired at Clare and Moon Crater. “Well this is shitty. Pinned down behind enemy lines” Clare muttered.

At the peak of the hill Lickety rushed up the hill and lept down beside Hart. “What’s going on?” he asked and Hart turned to him. “Shit… Lickety!” Hart exclaimed, happy to see his friend. “Well, the Sarge is pinned down right now in those trenches and we’re pinned down here. So we’re in a little bit of a predicament” Hart said.

Lickety nodded then gulped. “Lay down some smoke” Lickety ordered and Hart scrunched his nose. “Why?” he asked and Lickety just shook his head. “Just do it before I change my mind” Lickety ordered. Hart did what he said and tossed two M18 smoke grenades down range.

When the smoke screen formulated in front of the machinegun nest Lickety lept up and rushed the nest head on. Several zebras yelled in native tongue and pointed their rifles at Lickety. Lickety quickly snapped his aim to the zebras and cut them down with several bursts from his M16.

Back in the trenches, Clare fired his Thompson at a group of zebras who were trying to rush them. The Thompson hosed down the group with a steady stream of bullets. The zebras howled in pain as they fell to the ground.

Several zebras approached Clare from behind and tried to sneak up on him. Moon Crater saw them and quickly snapped his assault rifle up. Before his mind could contemplate killing, he simply pulled the trigger and the gun chattered as it spat out 7.62x51mm rounds. The zebras’ bodies twisted and turned as the assault rifle chugged out lead death. Their bodies fell to the ground in a bloody mess and Moon Crater was filled with shock as he realized he had just killed his first couple zebras.

Clare looked back to see at least half a dozen dead zebras then looked to Moon Crater who was holding the still smoking M14 Juggernaut. Clare tapped him on the shoulder. “Quick learner” he chuckled.

Lickety Split ejected the spent magazine and loaded a fresh one. He quickly snapped his aim to some zebras and shot them down before they noticed he was there. They screamed as the M16’s 5.56mm rounds chewed through them.

Lickety grabbed the satchel charge from his waist saddle and activated it. He tossed the satchel charge into the machinegun nest then lept up and began to run back to the others who hid behind cover. Suddenly a stray machinegun round clipped Lickety in the side.

He screamed as he fell to the ground. “Moon Crater: run back to cover. I got Lickety” Clare said as he realized his friend was back in action but was now wounded within the blast radius of the satchel charge.

Moon Crater lept up and rushed back around the sides of the battlefield as Clare rushed over to his wounded friend. The smoke was started to clear but it wouldn’t matter. Clare heaved Lickety over his shoulder then ran back to the others. The machine gunner tried to shoot Clare down but missed and shot up dirt just inches behind Clare’s feet.

Just as the satchel charge erupted, Clare lept over a fallen tree that was being used for cover. He lay there with the wounded Lickety Split who had received another bullet wound in the upper chest.

“Hey Lickety, you saved our asses up here man. We wouldn’t have been able to take the hill if it wasn’t for you” Clare said and Lickety chuckled painfully. “Lickety, we took Hill 959. We took it thanks to you” Bakers said with a heartwarming smile. “Alright some-pony get him a stretcher out of here” Clare ordered and two ponies trotted over and placed Lickety on the stretcher.

“Will he be okay?” Clare asked and one of the medics nodded. “Yeah, he’ll live but his war days are over I can tell you that” the medic said as the Lickety’s body was being trotted away. “Hey Sarge, see if you guys can hold onto the hill this time” Lickety said as the medics trotted his body away.

Clare nodded and smiled, damn right they’d be keeping the hill this time. “Alright, Hart get on the radio with HQ. Tell them we’ve taken Hill 959” Clare ordered as they all walked over to the trenches.

Clare looked for Aussie’s body but amongst all the destruction he couldn’t find it. He looked for The Apache’s body but couldn’t find that either. “All right, I want every-pony getting dug in” Clare ordered but Hart interrupted him.

“Forget it” Hart said and Clare gave him an uneasy look. “Why?” he asked and Hart heaved the radio onto his back. “HQ in Canterlot has deemed this spot unessential. They want us all to retreat back down the hill for helicopter extraction” Hart said depressingly.

“FUCK!” Bakers yelled as he kicked over a burning piece of wood. “Hey Hart… you gotta be joking man, this is some kind of joke right?” Clare asked but Hart shook his head. “Man this is fucking bullshit” Bakers yelled. “Alright… I’m only gonna say this once so listen good. Every-pony mount up. We’re heading back down the hill” Clare ordered and the ponies of the shadow guard began to trot back down the hill. They were depressed and angry.

Clare stood on the peak of the hill for just a few moments longer and smelt the burning smoke of the machinegun nest. Clare sighed to himself then followed the rest of the platoon down the hill.

Elsewhere, The Apache staggered through the jungles. Her armour had been totalled from the grenade blast and she had suffered some bad cuts and shrapnel wounds but she had potions back at her makeshift shack that would heal all her injuries. She smiled to herself as she held the hat of the Australian hunter. She laughed silently to herself as she gave a kiss to the small skull pendant around her neck. It was her luck charm that she always kissed before and after a hunt.

It was her lucky pendant that had yet to fail her. She continued on down the thick brush towards her shack. She had lost most of her armour plating but had a good idea for something she might try during a future engagement.

Author's Notes:

Ahhhhhhhhh The Apache she's alive, drum roll. And Aussie's sarifice was for nothing. Dammit