Celestia's sun rises above Ponyville. Numerous guards patrolling the Everfree forest while others prepare to continue the search. The girls arrive at the command tent from Fluttershy's cottage, as they spent the night. Trottman and Sarge were peering over a map of Everfree. Several areas were X'ed out, leaving a red circle around the south east portion left.

"Have you found anything yet?" Twilight ask walking up to the map.

"Not yet, but we've got it narrowed down to the southern area." The sergeant states."We're going to send out another patrol soon. They're to find him and report his position."

Leaves brush past as we continue our patrol through the jungle. Since we've lost over half our team, we were partnered with another team from Phoenix, Dingo team. Looking around, everypony is exhausted from the humidity and still weighed down from Mac and Onyx's deaths. They both had families waiting for their return. Onyx was just married before getting shipped out here again, and Mac has another foal on the way. Why did the dud land in mine and Timber's hole and not their's?

Carefully hopping over a fallen log, Sgt. Thunder tells us to stop. It was like I was wearing earplugs, because the whole jungle was dead silent. There was no sound except the sound of us getting our rifles ready. Then, we heard it.

"CONTACT!" Somepony shouts.

"Shit!" Another one yells.

"LEFT SIDE! LEFT SIDE!" Rolling Thunder yells.

A massive firefight ensues. The sound of the gunfire was deafening. Colbalt swings his MG around to lay down suppressing fire while the rest of us make for cover. Diving behind the fallen log I ready rifle. Several griffons are charging to my left. I take aim

BANG BANG BANG

Two bullets slam into the first griffon. One in the leg, the other in the neck. The last bullet punches through another griffons chest. It's me, Timber, and Thunder behind the log, while White and Colbalt are covered in a crater. Shadow took cover behind some trees with several ponies from Dingo.

"We've gotta push right! We can counterattack their location!" Thunder yells over the noise, before calling over to Colbalt." Colbalt! Suppressing fire!" He holds a hoof to us telling us to wait." Hold. Hold. GO!" Signaling us to move. We weave through the trees and brush, to try and get flank the enemy. "HOLD HERE!" He orders until a bullet tears through his hind legs. "AAAAHHH!"

"SARGE!" Timber yells. "MEDIC!" The medic from Dingo makes his way to our position to our position
White Room and Colbalt are about to move when small and round rolls into their crater. A second later an ungodly roar echoes through the jungle.

BOOM

An explosion tears through the crater, killing White. Colbalt's hind legs were blown off, as he screams in pain.

"WHITE!" Shadow screams. Enraged with seeing his best friend killed, he slams in a fresh magazine into his rifle.

BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG

He takes out four griffons until he's stopped by multiple bullets hitting his shoulders and chest. He drops dead next to his best friend.

The scene is utter chaos as bullets whiz by, until one strikes my left foreleg.

I awake heavily breathing. The morning sun is peaking through the treetops. Judging how hungry I am, I remember how I haven't had anything to eat since that party. I've got to venture out a little ways and find something to eat.

Stomping through the forest were dozens of royal guards. Several guards hacked away at vines and leaves with their swords. The column stopped, when a distinct smell filled the area.

"Uh, what's that smell?" One guard asks.

"Timberwolve?" Another one says, before the captain steps up and sniffs the air.

"No." He says calmly." That's the smell of death." Looking further down the trail, he notices something large laying down with flies buzzing all around it. "There." He says pointing his hoof at it.

Leading his troops up to it, they see what it is. A dead manticore with a distinct knife wound in the neck.

"What the buck?" One guard mouths. "Do you think this was him?!"

"This can't be." A guard says. The other guards look over to her inspecting the body." This isn't a fresh kill. He's been dead at least a couple days." Stepping back, the captain orders his troops to keep moving.

"Let the hunt continue." One guard jokes.

"Really? Are we hunting him or is he hunting us?" His friend jokes back as the guard patrol continues down the path, unaware that a pair of eyes were watching them from the foliage.

"There they are." Marble whispers to himself as makes his way further in the brush. "Gotta get back to the cave."

Marble continued down trail back to his cave when he heard a twig snap behind him. Looking behind him he saw a shadowy figure obscured by the brush. Pulling out his knife, he dove into the bush and tackled the figure. The blade stopped inches from the figure's throat. Looking down, he saw it wasn't a guard or one of the many monsters of the Everfree, but a terrified zebra carrying a bag of herbs.

"W-Who might you be, that you hold your blade to me?" She asks. Instead of responding, Marble threw the bag into a bush, before running off in the direction of his cave. The sound of the struggle attracted the attention of the guards to his position.

"There he is!" He hears one of them yell. Soon, Marble was surrounded, with him at the entrance, and the guards outside behind, cover.

Trottman, the girls, and the sergeant were all waiting around for an update on the search. Rainbow Dash was flying around lazily. Twilight was looking over the map with Trottman and Sarge. Pinkie and Fluttershy were waiting by the radio. Applejack and Rarity were sitting, trying to pass the time.

"Ugh, this is taking forever." Rainbow complained. Suddenly, the radio jumped to life. Pinkie was about to reach it, but Sarge took it first.

"Ground control to Hq."

"Hq copies." He replies

"Sir, we found him. He's held up in the abandoned mine a few miles south of here."

"Good, now don't do anything till we get there." Sarge says hanging up the receiver. Looking over he sees the girls looking at him with hope. "They found him."

"Finally!" Rainbow Dash exclaimes.

"Well, lets go."

Arrows flew past Marble, As he stood in a corner of the entrance. Every so often he would throw a rock back. More and more arrows were coming, and Marble has had enough. Until, he spots an old lantern filled with kerosene hanging by an old rope on the other side of the entrance. Waiting for a break in the volley of arrows, Marble rushes over and grabs the lantern. Soaking the rope in the kerosene, he wraps it around the top before lighting it. A second later, he throws it.

The guards didn't know what to think as they see a flaming lantern land a couple of feet in front of them, before exploding in a large fireball. All the commotion died instantly. They all took cover, too afraid to move, until the captain speaks up.

"Frosty, I need you to go in that cave."

Frosty speaks up." No, not me, sir."

"What do yo mean not me?" He says with some anger.

"Look I'm supposed to be stationed up in Canterlot. I didn't come down here to get killed by some maniac in some forgotten cave. Besides he probably in there waiting for us."

"Your right, private." The captain says." Light Wing, bring that dynamite up here, we're going to flush him out." He turns towards the mouth of the cave again." Marble, this is Captain Stonewall of the Royal Guard. This is your last chance to come peacefully."

"...."

"Light Wing, do it."

Marble watches as two sticks of dynamite are thrown into the cave, landing a few feet from him before he makes a mad dash deeper in. Seconds later, the entire mouth was destroyed in a ball of rocks and fire, sending a deafening Boom echoing through the forest.

"How much further is this mine?" Rainbow complained.

"Not much." Trottman replies.

"Good this place give the creeps. Like I don't wa-" she was cut off as an explosion echoes through.

"Idiots!" Sarge mutters to himself, realizing where the blast came from.

"That came from the cave!" Twilight yelled." We have to hurry! Come on everypony!" Galloping towards the sound. As they arrive, they see the guards gathered around a collapsed cave. Some were talking, others were picking through the rubble. Sarge marches up to captain Stonewall.

"What the Hay is wrong with you! Don't you ponies listen to orders!?" He yells. "You were supposed to wait for us!"

Stonewall shuffled his hooves." Well he was fighting back! Heck, he literally threw a fire bomb at us!"

"It's your mess! Dig him out!" Stonewall sighed before heading off." I thought you said he was the best of the best?" Sarge jokes to Trottman. "I mean look. A few guards stopped him."

"There was a time that Marble was very special."

"Special my ass. He's just another lawbreaker." The girls just watched as the two bickered back and forth.

"So, do we help them or just watch." Rainbow Dash whispered.

"Disturbing the peace wasn't it?" He replies calmly." That's gonna look real good on his grave in Canterlot. Here lies Marble Force, winner of Royal Medal of Honnor, survivor of countless incursions behind enemy lines, recipient of multiple Purple Hearts, Killed for disturbing the peace?"

"Oh don't give me that shit! He almost killed a civilian, for Celestia's sake!"

"Your pretty damn lucky he didn't kill all you when he had the chance." With that, Trottman turned and headed back to town.

Light.

Light is coming just a little further down the tunnel. Marble rounds a corner, only to be met with an old ladder and daylight. He doesn't know what time it is, as he was down in the cave for several hours. Climbing up the ladder, he peaks his head out. View over looks the clearing all the guards. Dozens of guards are picking through the rocks trying to find his body. 'Not dead yet suckers' he thinks. Towards the edge of the clearing there are several wagons with boxes in them.

"Hmm. That could work." He says to himself. Carefully lifting himself out, he slowly and quietly makes his way around the clearing. Eventually, he reaches the wagons. A single guard stands in his way. Sneaking up behind him, he wraps his hoof around the guards mouth before knocking the guard out. Dragging the unconscious pony into the bushes, Marble slipped the golden armor on and watched as his coat became a clean white coat. Hitching himself to the wagon, Marble set off to town.

Author's Note

Ah, right on schedule.

BTW Sgt. Rolling Thunder is named after the military op during Vietnam not the actual character.