//------------------------------//
// Chapter Two: Old Freind 
// Story: Orbit: The Future Of Equestria 
// by Ace26 
//------------------------------//

Once Charger realized the bomb run was over he quickly flipped onto his belly.  He stared at the red stallion, he wondered if he had made it.
" I don't see any blood." Charger thought to himself
" However, that doesn't keen he wasn't killed by the concussion of the blast."  He moved himself a tad bit closer to the stallion, he picked up his rifle and started to poke the stallion.  Before he could go in for a second poke the stallion jumped up and nocked the rifle away.
" What the hell are ya doin!?" Asked the slightly pissed off stallion.   
" I'm checkin to make sure those bombs didn't "fry off your mark!" Charger answered.  Charger remembered how the stallions mark was a target sign.  He then realized he wasn't talking to any random pony.
" Holly shit, Sights?" Charger asked in a daze.
" Sights hoofdwond, yes." Answered the stallion.
" How do you know my name?"  Charger slapped himself on the head was his hoof.  
" Holly crap, you crazy flank, you don't remember me?" Charger asked smiling
" Remember the academy, the pony who threw up on the first day of PT?"  Charger said still smiling.  The red stallion thought that over for a second.  His face was scrunched up, not to mentioned black with ash.  Then, his eyes popped wide open!
" Charger, Holly crap brotha!" Exclaimed the Stallion.
" What the hey ya doin out here?" Asked Sights.  
Charger never thought he would run into his long time buddy again.  They had been best friends at the military academy.  They pulled all the best pranks and they knew what made every TAC Officer "tick".  Charger remembered the time they accidentally raised the flag upside-down. 
" I never thought you'd go for infantry!" Laughed Sights.
" Well, after you transferred, I supposed I wasn't going to have a copilot!" laughed Charger back.  
Just recently the Equestrian Air Guard had developed a new technology, it was a ship that earth ponies and unicorns could fly in.  They called the machines, Pods and gun ships.  The hover carriage had been used for decades before, but nothing like that had ever been used in the military.  Charger did plan on trying out to be a pilot, but Sights transferred, and he wouldn't fly without his wingman.
As Charger remembered this he heard a static from his ear.  He hit it once and the message was clear.
" Oh My Celestia!" screamed the COMS pony over the radio.
" Are you alright?"  Sights looked at Charger with  confused face.
" It's our COMS pony" Charger answered.  Sights face gave him a look of approval and then they listened back to to pony on the radio.
" Yah, we're good, but what the HELL was that!" He screamed into his ear piece.
" I'm sorry charger I was going to call you before and tell you that…" The COMS pony started.
"TELL ME WHAT!?" Interrupted Charger.
" Well, I tracked your last transmission and well, you were in the middle of a kill box."
A kill box was a selected piece of the battlefield where air strikes would occur.  Every friendly soldier was supposed to stay out of that area, but sometimes thy wondered in.  It was actually a miracle both Sights and Charger survived the air raid.  It was at this time that they both relized that.
They both looked around.  Everything that was already destroyed was gone, completely.  What ever was not destroyed in earlier battles was now black, crumbling, and charred. Surprisingly, there were no bodies of the enemy soldiers.  They had either been blown away from the shock wave, or vaporized by the heat of the explosion.
Charger the  heard more static on his radio.  He switched over to another channel and heard a familiar voice.  
" That better have not been you!" said a deep voice on the other end of the radio.
" Yah, it was Gold Wings." answered Charger.  Gold Wings was the black Pegasus in charge of Shadow Squad, yes he's the same one as mentioned in the beginning of this story.
" Man, that's the second time I've almost blown your ass up!" yelled Gold Wings laughing.
" Actually, I believe that was the first time." stated Charger
" Think back body, The Phenix Island conflicts, you called in close air support." started Gold Wings.
" Hey, that was CLOSE air support, it was supposed to almost blow me up!" Charger exclaimed.
" Well, that was definitely my first time almost being blown up." said Sights over the radio.  There was a slight pause in the conversation.
" Um, Charger, who the hey is that?" asked Gold Wings.
" Oh, thats Sights, we go way back, when I was in the academy, figures we run into each other on the field."
" What's he look like, actually never mind I'm coming in for a pass."  More screeching sounds were heard approaching.  Then, a "V" of dots appeared on the horizon and were approaching fast.  They were soon flying over Charger and Sights.  Gold Wings flipped upside down and gave a hooves up the two stallions on the ground.  Within second the pass over was completed and the squad of Pegasus were out of sight.
" Wow, you guys look like crap." laughed Gold Wings into the radio.
" I find it funny how that's coming from some pony with two giants tanks strapped to there back Goldy Locks." taunted Sights.
" What did you just call me?" asked Gold Wings in a quivering voice.
" G O L D Y  L O C K S" stated Sights.  With this there was radio silence.
Another rumbling sound was heard, only this was no bomb.  The sound was followed by voices and clanks of guns on soldiers backs, they could here clops of ponies as well.  A huge metal carriage with a cabin in front and a platform with a turret in the back came over a hill.  Its large black wheels crushed and squashed all the degree in front of the car.
" Well, looks like the calvary arrived." said Charger.  The troops and cars stopped, the same stallion with the gold sun on his helmet walked out in front of the group.
" Charger, why the Hell are you in a kill box?" asked the Captain.
" I was separated from the unit, sir." Answered Charger, putting his rifle around his back.  The captain took a quick look around the area and noted all of the destruction.
" Well, this place went to shit." plainly stated the Captain.
" Yah, we had a pretty fun time over on this end, sir." answered Sights.  The captain had hardly noticed Sights until he had spoken.
" Who are you soldier?" asked the captain.
" I am PFC Sights sir, I'm a sniper in the one hundred and fifth infantry, sir."
" I suppose you got separated too, sights?" asked the captain.
" Actually no sir, I was scouting ahead for enemy potations, let's just say I found one." explained Sights.
" I'd say you did, look down soldier." instructed the captain.  Sights looked down at his hoof, a small piece of metal was poking out of it and it was covered in blood.
" Holly Shit, sir" Sights said.
The captain called out for one of his medical staff, a white mare came running over.  
" It appears the confusion has sent your horse shoe into your hoof." explained the medic.
" That's bad r-right?" asked Sights with a scared tone.
" Well, you be able to walk, I suppose you could levitate with your horn though." said the mare
" However, it's not a fatal injury."  Sights wiped the sweat off his head, with his good hoof of course.  
" What are we going to do about his hoof, sir?" asked Charger.
" We'll take him aboard and then get him back to his ship." said the Captain.
" What is your ship, son?" asked the captain.
" We were assigned to the Democracy." answered Sights.
The landing trailers came down slowly, hovering over the ground.  These were large metal boxes with turrets on top.  they were latched like a sled to a team of four Pegasus.  They could also have a front triangular cabin, were earth ponies and unicorns could fly as well.  CHarger and Sights ship came down almost exactly first, this was because Sights was wounded. They hauled sights into a stretcher and then into the trailer.  The rest of them piled in and took there seats along the walls.  Some ponies told up and held onto the grips hanging from the ceiling.  
" Ready to launch?" asked the pilot over the radio.
" Let's go." answered the nearest pony.  With this command the cabin slowly lifted and the pegasus started to burn their thrusters.  When they were high enough a loud roar was heard from the front as the pegasus thrusters fully engaged, the ship lurched forward and they were off out into space.