Sharp Shot

Sharp Shot is a main character of the Soldier's Memoirs saga. He is a male unicorn enlisted in Skyfall Unit as the team's designated markspony and recon sniper. He is a seasoned veteran with years of experience behind the scope of a rifle.

Early life
Sharp Shot was raised in an orphanage in Canterlot from his birth. Though he willingly talks about his past, Sharp never goes into too many details about his childhood or growing up. All that is known is that he enlisted in the Royal Guard as soon as he turned eighteen and signed up for sniper school, where he passed with flying colors.

The Second Griffon-Pony War
Sharp Shot was a member of 1st Canterlot Company as a recon sniper when the Second Griffon-Pony War started. He served in the Battle of Skyfall by eliminating enemy snipers from a distance, using his small size to his advantage to climb and crawl into tight spaces other ponies couldn't fit and picking off his targets from a safe distance.

In the aftermath of the invasion, Sharp Shot was reassigned to 2nd Company, as his skills were deemed required in the urban setting of Midgard. He was present during the initial Battle of Midgard, using his skills to assassinate critical griffon officers during the assault. It was thanks to his recon unit's ability to successfully kill the griffon hierarchy that the battle was so short, resulting in a complete Equestrian victory.

While the rest of 2nd Company followed the fleeing griffons to Asgard, Sharp Shot was left to regroup with Captain Phalanx's unit to reinforce and guide them to Asgard. However, while waiting, the Equestrians were ambushed by guerrilla griffon forces still remaining in the city. The group's leader was killed, and Sharp Shot and the others holed up in a row of businesses until they were rescued by Phalanx's unit. Sharp Shot then provided cover for the retreating Equestrians when he sniped a griffon sharpshooter that was harassing them and had killed Phalanx. Sharp Shot, impressed by Fleethoof's ability to lead ponies safely through a war zone and kill three griffon elite on his own, volunteered to stay with him for the duration of the war.

In Asgard, Sharp Shot assisted Fleethoof's unit in sabotaging the city's defenses and providing covering fire during their retreat. When they moved to rescue the high value targets in Skyfall, Sharp Shot demonstrated his skills as a sniper again when he supplied cover for the pegasi distraction from a tower. After they had returned to Equestria, Sharp Shot remained behind, opting out of returning to the war.

After the war had ended, Sharp Shot was invited to join Skyfall Unit, having impressed Fleethoof with his abilites as a markspony and a reliable teammate.

Protecting the Princesses
When attempting to track down the Double-Edged Sword, Sharp Shot acted as overwatch during the trap that caught Night Shade. He tracked the pony's movements from a lofty perch for the others, and would eventually aid in his capture when he fired the shot that staggered him.

After Night Shade had escaped their custody and Skyfall Unit was sent to Saddle Arabia, Sharp Shot watched over the gala event from a high rooftop, relaying information to the rest of the team while keeping a close eye on Fleethoof and Cadance. When the Sword made their move, Sharp dropped the first enemy, but when the power was cut, he was rendered useless. Sharp Shot scrambled to rejoin the others, but arrived after the fighting had ended.

Killing Night Shade
When Skyfall returned to Canterlot and discovered Night Shade had taken control of Canterlot Grand Station, Sharp Shot slipped away from the group and found a position atop a stalled train car where he could see into the station. Here he waited while Fleethoof and Princess Celestia tried to reason with Night Shade, but when the unicorn refused to yield, Sharp Shot executed him with a clean shot through the head. He would later receive the Silver Star for protecting the Royal Family and the hundreds of innocents inside the station.

Project Union
During the reformation of the Royal Guard, Sharp Shot ended up saving Fleethoof during an unfair fight against Midnight Dasher. In turn, he asked that Fleethoof explain Project Union to the team, as Skyfall Unit had begun to worry they were being replaced. Though Fleethoof assured them otherwise, Sharp Shot was not convinced. When Skyfall was sent on a mission with Union to Los Pegasus, Sharp Shot played overwatch, providing realtime information to the team regarding enemy movement and locations of key targets.

After Union went rogue, Sharp Shot was the one who uncovered that the project had been sabotaged by Chitin's spies. He helped identify the leak and the mole inside Fireteam Union. When Skyfall had tracked Union down to Saddle Arabia, Sharp Shot assisted the infantry in the base against the attacking mercenaries from a cliff. He killed an enemy sniper that was putting pressure on the defense force and nearly killed Fleethoof, and when they were fighting Lightning Strike, he again saved his captain's life by staggering the corrupted soldier with his heavy caliber rounds. Although his bullets did not harm Lightning Strike, Sharp Shot was able to keep him suppressed until Fleethoof and Blue Shield could weaken his armor enough to deliver a killing blow.

The Everfree Incident
Sharp Shot was originally the one summoned by the Royal Guard to assist in the search for the missing foals in the Everfree Forest, as his skills in tracking and spotting were considered valuable assets. However, due to his immense fear of the myths of the forest, Sharp begged Fleethoof relieve him of that duty. Fleethoof went instead of Sharp Shot, but not before he convinced Fleethoof to take his weapons with him, just in case. After Fleethoof returned, Midnight Dasher and Echo were recruited into Skyfall, much to Sharp Shot's skepticism. He was especially critical of Echo, who was assigned to be his spotter.

Sharp Shot never learned the truth of the Everfree Incident, preferring to remain blissfully ignorant of what transpired.

The Hunt for Alaric
After the Clydesdale scandal became public and information of Alaric's intentions came to light, Sharp Shot was placed with Princess Luna's personal security. There, he provided aerial security and surveillance during all of the princess' events and appearances. When his tour with Luna was up, he learned of the ambush on Cadance's convoy and the state of Fleethoof, and returned to Skyfall Unit. He was recruited into the Operation Black Wraith program soon after as the team's designated markspony and reconnaissance specialist.

Personality
Sharp Shot is a joker at heart. A lifetime of repressing any negative emotions has made him snarky and sarcastic, turning everything into jokes that sometimes border on the immature to avoid dealing with any consequences or side effects of his actions. Despite choosing to treat everything like a game, the severity of situations is not lost on him. He is very cautious and aware of his surroundings, monitoring and questioning everything as if it were a threat.

He is very devoted to Equestria, even if he plays it off like he's indifferent. His love for his country has made him generally xenophobic towards other nations, particularly Re'emians; he cannot stand being around them and refers to them as traitors and blasphemers whenever he can. This has often led him to speaking without thinking, saying things that make others cringe. He suffers from aviophobia, the fear of flying, and gets violently ill whenever he had to be in a helicopter.

Sharp Shot is incredibly patient, as his profession requires, and very clever. He can predict enemy positions and movements well ahead of time, and estimate ranges within meters. He sometimes displays traits of ADD and is somewhat of a neat-freak, constantly maintaining and caring for his equipment, especially his rifle. Sharp tends to be a boaster, bragging about how great Skyfall is to others, or how great of a shooter he is. Sharp Shot's official kill count is currently unknown.

Skills
As a sniper, Sharp Shot is one of the best in Equestria. He can accurately place shots within a bit-sized area at 800 meters. His ability to predict enemy tactics and compensate accordingly make him an efficient markspony and recon asset to the team, as well as a major supporter in providing cover and information.

Sharp Shot makes up for his small size with a dizzying style of close-quarters combat. He fights with fast, well-placed strikes timed to stagger and disorient his opponents before taking them down. He also possesses some skills at lock picking and breaking into secure structures.

Equipment
Sharp Shot currently carries a semi-automatic rifle with a telescopic scope, bipod, and removable suppressor. He wears the standard issue black Skyfall Unit uniform with a lighter version of the plate carrier and vest for better maneuverability and agility. He sometime swears a boonie hat and sunglasses, depending on the situation. He carries a standard issue nine-millimeter pistol and a combat knife as his sidearms. He keeps an additional smaller knife tucked in one of his boots, in case of emergency.

His other equipment includes night-vision goggles, smoke grenades, and special binoculars with a built-in rangefinder. During the Second Griffon-Pony War, he carried a bolt action sniper rifle, standard issue for all recon snipers during the time. Sharp Shot has said that he preferred the old rifle to the new one, favoring the feeling of using a bolt manually. Sharp Shot also has a longer range sniper rifle designed by Quarter Master for extreme distance shooting. Designated as the M200 Neigh-Tac, the prototype rifle was given to Sharp Shot to field test during the hunt for Alaric Dawnbreaker. The claimed range of the weapon is over two kilometers. Sharp Shot has yet to use this rifle.

Military
Ranked as one of the most successful snipers in Equestria, Sharp Shot has garnered a lot of respect from his peers and fellow marksponies. His ability to perform and get the job done is often enough for his superiors to overlook his usual disregard of protocols and his lax demeanor.

Skyfall Unit

Skyfall Unit has become a second home for Sharp Shot, who treats his comrades more like friends and roommates than fellow soldiers. His relaxed, casual attitude toward codes and rules fits the model of Skyfall well, seldom ever referring to others by rank, even Fleethoof, whom he simply calls "boss". He gets along with everyone, save for Echo, whom he was originally resentful of. As some time has passed, he became accustomed to Echo, even appreciative of her presence, accompanying her in her qualification test during her training.

Cupcake
Cupcake and Sharp Shot share a strong friendship based on mutual respect, humor, and trust. Both being the pranksters they are, downtime between the two usually devolves into paper airplane wars or other games. Cupcake's brunt honesty and Sharp's sarcasm during exchanges create a comedic mix for the rest of the team. Though the two operate as polar opposites, on the field they work almost hand-in-hand, with Sharp Shot picking off the ponies Cupcake pins with his heavy weapons.

Echo
Though he started off disliking her, Echo has made an impression on Sharp Shot. He appreciates her support as his spotter, even if he holds to the belief that he's good enough to operate without needing one. After she joined the team, Sharp Shot kept a close eye on her progress in training, passing on his knowledge of sniping and combat when he could. Echo impressed him by becoming a fast and dedicated learner, even going so far as to look up to him as a mentor. Sharp Shot personally oversaw Echo's final qualification test for the team (a job typically reserved for Fleethoof) at his request and cleared her for duty as his spotter.

Sharp Shot admires Echo's passion and bright outlook on life, even in her diminished state. He looks out for her, making sure she is always prepared and content in the team. Echo is the one pony in Skyfall he has not subjected to a prank of some kind. Though he would never admit to giving her preferential treatment, Sharp Shot harbors a secret attraction to the Thestral.