12 O'Clock

12 O'Clock

Chapter 1

"Intro"

16th of February 2019. one year anniversary after the end of the war.

"It's snowing....." I mumble to myself.

The cool breeze flowing through the cracks of the building all but calm my nerves, i'm so anxious about today. But i need to relax my thoughts, this won't work if i'm shaking like a small dog. I get up from my make shift bed in the clock tower that i made my residents, for now, deciding that i'm done procrastinating for it's almost time. I grab my rifle and uncover a small hole i made in the eastern wall earlier.

"They're about in position, right on time too"

I lie on my stomach facing the small opening, pointing my rifle through it. I look through the scope and get a read on the soldiers below.

"One, Two, Three........Four, not as many as i thought, guess that just makes my job easier"

I rest my finger on the trigger and wait for the right moment.

Oh.

Why now?

3rd of March 2017 three years into the siege.

"Hey comrade, where do you come from?"

A rookie. Typical rookie looks, clean white coat, bright blue eyes, i can't see his mane, looks like he was just drafted. Probably from the west.

"Используйте язык вашей матери. Они не знают."

"Сожалею."

Better.

"What do you need my friend."

"I was just curious where you came from, you don't look like your from here."

"...I'm from the northern district..."

"Oh, so i guess you know your way around then?"

"...."

"....C-Care to give me a few poin-"

"You ask a lot of questions, now is not the time."

I get up and walk away from the rookie giving him a dirty look and walk to another part of the trench. Maybe he'll learn some manners. I walk past some other soldiers, laughing about when they were still civilians.

Laugh all you like, you won't be laughing when your facing your enemy's who won't be laughing.

I continue my walk through the trench taking in what was left of the environment, there's a wide meadow to the east and a large sized town to the west, divided by a two layer, four foot deep pre-made death pit. A very dense forest line to the south with it becoming less dense the more you turn east, a large mountain line to the north that is a few kilometers tall that spans tens of thousands kilometers east and west separating the tundra and the forest. Still some snow left from the winter but it's starting to melt now, the trees are starting to turn green again, no birds today, maybe they'll come back some other day.

I can't wait for the day when we push back these fascists out of our motherland so she can heal herself from these wounds.

I finish my walk through the trench and enter a small cave system dug out by the engineers.

We've only been here for three days and already they got all this built, feckers are fast at what they do.

I walk through the cave system occasionally stopping and chatting with my fellow ranks, i finally locate my bed. (If you can call it that) I set my rifle down against the wall next to 'my bed' and lay down myself, i haven't slept in three days, if i stay awake any longer i might mistake a comrade for an enemy because i'm too tired. I slowly begin to doze off, listening to the distant echos of gunfire, the firing from artillery and the shells flying overhead has become a sort of lullaby to me now.

"Hope that doesn't happen twice, what time is it?" I say to myself to act as if somepony else was with me.

I look at the watch on my rifle.

11:58 AM

"Hmm" I look back through my scope. They got more down there.There's about twenty now. and it looks like they're just starting. "Damn" I mutter under my breath, I look at the watch again.

11:59 AM

"Almost time........." The clock tower shifts into position for the daily enlightenment.

I give an aggravated growl, not another flashback.

4th of march 2017

"...."

"...."

"...."

"снайпер!"

I awake to a fellow rank shouting from outside of the cave, i jump out of bed and snatch my rifle up making sure it's loaded and sprint out of the cave into the trench. My colleagues are already returning fire, a comrade is down just outside of the entrance to the cave, not taking long i duck below the ledge so i don't get shot myself.

"WE GOT A SNIPER NORTH-EAST!" Shouts the commander an older stallion maybe mid forty's, crimson red fur, black and grey mane and scars from his previous fights, a true warrior. "FIRE SOME TRACERS IN HIS VICINITY! WHERE'S OUR MARKSMAN!?" He yells looking for me.

"HERE COMMANDANT!" I shout to him to drown out the gunfire. I duck under a comrade shooting over me from a trench above. It's that same rookie, i don't have time to yell at him for cross firing for the commander begins barking orders at me.

"GET TO HIGH GROUND, FIND THAT УБЛЮДОК AND TAKE HIM OUT! WE'll GIVE YOU COVERING FIRE SO YOU CAN GET OUT OF THIS GRAVE!" He shouts at me.

"YES COMMANDANT!" I obey his orders and sprint off from the cave entrance and run up a pre-made slope to the north of the trench and begin running to a nearby five story building, an old residential building now abandoned, running as fast as i can to the now destroyed structure, i crash through the closed door knocking it off it's hinges and run up the stairs across the room as fast as my legs can propel me, finally i reach the top, the whole roof is caved in from the shelling earlier in the week, i see some built up rubble to the right of the door next to a window, 'that'll make a good hiding spot' i thought to myself, i move slowly over to the rubble so not to be seen, i gently lie down onto my stomach and begin scanning for the sniper.

"Where is he!? Where is he!?" I repeat in my head trying my best to find him, it's even harder now that the sun in facing me.

The sun might be glaring on my scope.

I lay my rifle down and pull out my binoculars and resume the search.

"Where where where where whe-"

I see him.......

He's looking right at me.

*CLANG*

I'm torn back to reality by the loud clang of shifting gears above by the old tower.

Guess that's my cue. Damned flashbacks. Why are they happening now? I take a moment to ponder why, but then i remember the task at hand. I look at the watch.

12 o'clock.

It's started now.

I look trough my scope and see that she's up there now. Princess celestia, wearing her now iconic golden suit of armor, my target. And her sister, princess luna, what?

"She's not supposed to be here."

Princess luna looks fairly upset about something, I wonder what it is.

Celestia is supposed to give a speech about something, something politics, sanctions, blockades against Russland or something like that, nothing out of the ordinary.

I push up on the action on my mosin and pull back, letting the first round be pushed up and align itself towards the chamber, i push forward and slap down on the action.

Ready to fire.

I gauge the shot.

"Not much wind, downward angle, 350, maybe 400 meters. Now i wait...."

....

....

The clock begins chiming.

"Wait for it...." I say to my self as some sort of way to relax myself. The anticipation is getting to me, it's making me shake my rifle.

"Calm down old timer, they'll be really upset if you screw this up."

I empty my lungs to stabilize my shot, i align my crosshairs.

The first gong sounds.

*BANG*