Over the Top

My eyes slowly blink open, I am greeted with a face full of dirt, very blurry still. I bring up my arms, realizing they feel like one-ton weights. I rub my eyes before letting my hands go limp again, returning to their original state of hanging off the side of the bed. It only takes a few seconds to realize exactly where I am. This is the dug-out for wounded, which was quickly confirmed as the man next to me started to cough in a whooping fashion. Which was typically not great.

"How you feeling?" A voice from your left asks.

Reflexes kick in as you spin around and lift your guard, suddenly feeling a little stronger in surprise. You lower your hands to see it is a nurse, she looks tired, worn, and aching. Even her posture is crooked and weak. You can't help but feel a little sorry for the female work force. You know from experience they get more crap in one day than you would ever ask for. Your opinion was biased, however. You weren't a people person.

"Like I was just shot twice, how about you?"

The nurse cringes a little, and gets to walking away to assist with a soldier who appears to be in much more agony than you are.

"Sorry I asked"

"Wait a moment..."

She turns around, confused that you wanted to continue the conversation, her brown locks bounce a little, almost cute, had they not been on someone who looked so broken.

"Who brought me in here? Name and rank?" You ask, genuinely wanting to know if your savior was someone who knew you like you expected.

"Private First Class, don't know the name. She came in here and tossed you down and went back off, all I saw was the rank insignia."

"Wait, she? Was it one of the EPs?" EPs are what we referred Earth Ponies are, the other races were referred to by full name, since their abbriviations didn't sound right usually.

"Of course, most of the other soldiers were too distracted. She might be back in here, not sure. Seemed in a hurry to get back out there, but you were the only one she brought back. Maybe she didn't make it, she had Green eyes, if that helps..." With that, the nurse turned back and started leaving again.

"Wait! Nurse, one more thing, what happened to us?"

"What do you mean?"

"Did we keep our trench?"

"Oh, yes. But we are spread thin, we couldn't possibly take another attack. Reinforcements are on the way to help our war efforts. Should be here in a couple days."

"Days!? Do you know how many things could go wrong in the next hour!?"

The nurse snaps back, clearly not in the mood for violence. I quickly regret shouting, but it was hands down the unluckiest news I could hear at a time like this. We were almost undefended for the next few days, and if the Germans got this far back, I had no way to stop them from taking you as a war prisoner. I'd only heard of the horrors they do to captured Entente soldiers, and I didn't want to think about it any harder.

Getting woozy from the news, I close my eyes and relax, trying to sleep. This was difficult with the sound of gunfire and explosions not that far away. But after maybe an hour, I fall asleep without even realizing.