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I watched the surrounding mountains with a pensive gaze. They weren't going to get me here, not now. The cold air hung over the valley, suffocating all warmth. I could see a small smoke plume coming from an outdoor oven located in the nearby village. The only sign of life in this godforsaken land. I began to think that this place was cursed, condemned to eternal violence and war.

"Reb... Reb! Wake the fuck up Brother." A voice entered my head, waking me from my thoughts. I turned to see my spotter Danny standing behind me. "Hey man lets go, I don't want to get shot by a sniper waiting for your ass to get in the fucking perimeter."

"Roger. Sorry bro, my mind was wandering." I replied, slightly embarrassed.

"Well, wander it back into the FOB." Danny said turning to enter the gates of our base.

I entered the FOB behind Danny and looked over the many goings-on. Soldiers walked back and forth between buildings. A few worked on Humvees, others shot hoops at the makeshift basketball court. This was FOB Valhalla or Forward Operating Base Valhalla, the largest outpost in the Kajikistan Mountain Range. This was my second time being in the country. My unit was redeployed when the new government we helped install after the war, collapsed. Now we were looking for the former dictator and war-criminal that fled to these mountains. He was enraged by the removal of his power and stared a guerilla war against the newly formed Democratic Republic of Kajikistan. My unit was part of a joint task force stationed at FOB Valhalla tasked with tracking his whereabouts and eliminating hostile forces loyal to the former dictator. I didn't mind the job much, it was the cold I couldn't stand and it was always cold up here.

I walked towards the task force's barracks as Danny ran to join the Pick-up game that was starting on the court. The gravel and dirt crunched beneath my boots as I approached the front of the barracks. A large hand painted sign sat in front of two large prefabricated buildings, which read: "CAUTION! YOU ARE NOW ENTERING THE LAND OF SINNERS, SAINTS AND OCCASIONAL FOUL LANGUAGE!" I tapped the sign with my gloved paw as I passed. There was a pair of uniformed figures sitting in lawn chairs in front of the barracks, they yelled at me as I approached. "Hey man, haven't you won the war yet? I wanna go home already." The one giving me a hard time was a Schnauzer named Eddie, to his left sat a Fox named Sam. They were both SEALs assigned to the Joint Task Force.

"I'm having a hard time getting it done. Maybe you can get off yall's asses and help." I replied, approaching them.

Sam chuckled "Fuck, I wish we could. We haven't been out in days."

Eddie nodded, rubbing his beard. "I haven't fired a shot in anger in forever... I think I'm going through withdrawal." He stretched out his legs over the grass. Eddie and Sam had planted winter seed grass and were always sitting on their 'lawn' when not on missions or training. I let out a chuckle as I entered the building next to the one they were outside of. My unit was housed in a separate building from the SEALs but we shared an armory that was out back of the buildings and connected to each by makeshift plywood hallways. I passed the many rooms made up of plywood dividers. Continuing down the narrow hallway I could hear my teammates relaxing in their rooms as well as the FIFA tournament that was being hosted in the First Lieutenant's room. I yelled a greeting as I passed but the nine packed in the small room just flipped me the bird and went back to playing. My boots echoed as I crossed into the plywood hallway and then into the armory.

The Armory was the same size as the two aluminum buildings we used as barracks but had more space since the interior wasn't used to house a bunch of Operators. The whole building was covered in sand bags on the outside and the interior walls were lined with them as well. The long rectangular interior was occupied by a large banquet style table built by the engineers at the FOB. A menagerie of boxes, lockers and crates ran against the walls. These were filled with supplies that kept the task force's ability to ensure that when violence of action was necessary, we would fucking wreck anyone in our way. There was a back door opposite the entrances from the barracks that lead out to the rest of the FOB and it was here that the supply clerks and Kajikistani soldiers entered. We were training the newly formed Kajikistan National Army in combat and other skills so they could be prepared to defend their country. I had mix feelings about this due to the fact that insurgents would join the Army so they could attack US soldiers, this was called Green on Blue and was becoming more common every day.

Green on Blue attacks were not even on my mind as I laid my rifle down on the table, bipod deployed. I checked the breach then stowed my ammunition in my locker. I removed my plate carrier that housed my body armor. It was covered in pouches that held various items and my magazines. I placed the carrier on the table as I heard the backdoor open. Two males entered accompanied by what looked to be a boy in his early teens. The two males were dressed in the Kajikistani National Army Uniform and carried AK-47s. I waved and went back to working on my rifles, paying them no mind. After a moment I realized the group had done nothing but stand in the same place and speak to each other in Arabic. I found this strange since most of the time they would chat us up and ask for advice on their weapons or just shoot-the-shit. Just as I began thinking how peculiar this was I heard a sound that I had become accustomed to; the safety of an AK-47 being switched off.

My mind raced as I saw one of the males raise his rifle. "I'm fucking dead." I thought to myself. Quickly I grabbed my plate carrier off the table and held it in front of my face. A split second later, the sound of a gunshot filled the air and the massive impact of the bullet hitting the armor in my carrier knocked me down. The carrier flew from my grasp as I hit the floor. I caught my breath right before seeing one of the males begin to look under the table. "Fuck you!" I yelled as I drew my Glock from its holster and popped off a shot. The .45 caliber round impacted the male's knee and he dropped to the ground in a screaming heap. A second shot rang out from my handgun striking the male in the neck, sending an explosion of blood from his arteries into the air. A barrage of bullets smashed through the table above me and lodged in the floor as I rolled away from the impacts. I rose to a kneeling position and fired again, my rounds impacting the male in the shoulder, as he fell I fired a fatal shot to his head. That was it, lights out. I holstered my handgun as I approached the lifeless bodies. The kid was crouched over the first male's body, tears streaming down his face. The sound of boots echoed from the barracks as both my unit and the SEALs entered the Armory, all of them with weapons raised. "Reb, You good Brother!?" One of the SEALs called out.

"Yeah, I think so. Someone come check me for holes." I yelled as I ran a paw over my body, looking for any blood. I paused and leaned down to check the kid, grabbing his shoulder. He recoiled towards me, an AK in hand and the bayonet deployed. The blade hit my left cheek and sliced into the flesh. As the kid rose it pushed the bayonet up my face, skipping over my eye and once again finding flesh just above my left eye socket then I fell back onto the ground. In one reflexive, mechanical motion I drew my Glock and fired. The round hit the kid in the face, caving in the front of his skull and exploding out the back, taking brain matter and bone with it. The kid's limp body fell to the ground, a red, lumpy stain on the wall. I dropped my handgun as blood began to cover my left eye and block my vision. This was the first time I had killed anyone that young. A few tears escaped my eyes as the guys picked me up and helped me to the medical building.

As we approached the building a medic ran out to meet us. The base was on high alert and all Kajikistani personnel were ordered to evacuate FOB Valhalla immediately. The Medic brought me inside and began checking me over.

"You might lose the eye." He said as he shined a flashlight into the bloody wound. I didn't even hear him. My good eye was looking over his shoulder and out the window to the mountains. Those cold, godforsaken mountains.