The border guards, operating under the aliases "Kinder" and "Joker," played a crucial role in liberating the village of Andriivka in the Donetsk region. These military personnel provided assistance and evacuated wounded comrades during battles with occupiers near the settlement.

Both "Kinder" and "Joker" began their service with the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine in 2021, initially drafted for compulsory military service. In the summer of the same year, they volunteered and joined a unit deployed to an area of active combat. By this time, "Kinder" had already signed a contract for military service, while "Joker" served as a conscript.

During the assault near Andriivka, border units were involved in direct combat with the enemy, both advancing against the foe and supporting the progress of Ukrainian forces. One of the groups, including "Kinder" and "Joker," was hit by an anti-tank mine while advancing on armored vehicles.

"At first, the guys went ahead, stormed the position, and secured it. We went to their aid," recounts "Joker."

"We hit an anti-tank mine and were blown up—the caterpillar flew off. As soon as we got out and detached from the combat vehicle, I was wearing a full-size helmet with 'ears,' and a fragment flew directly into the left side of the helmet, almost penetrating through. I was immediately concussed," recalls "Kinder."

Under enemy fire, the group had to seek cover in the forest strip and take action. "We immediately entered the position, sought cover because the enemy was shelling with mortars. Then the command came for us to work as an evacuation group," says "Joker."

"Our first wounded started coming from the assault. We had 'Sunshine,' a combat medic from the 3rd assault brigade, with us, and we ran to meet the guys and help them," adds "Kinder."

In this way, Ukrainian fighters provided field medical assistance and evacuated severely wounded comrades. Throughout, they faced constant enemy fire, attempting to reclaim lost positions.

"We met people, bandaged their wounds, assessed the severity of their injuries. We carried the seriously wounded to a safe zone," shares "Joker."

"When we were evacuating the wounded, an enemy drone spotted us, and we were under mortar fire the entire way. We hid in bunkers, and in the 'cleared' forest strips, where there was no opportunity to hide, we simply tried to run," says "Kinder."

Despite their injuries, the guys continued to fulfill their combat tasks. For instance, while "Kinder" suffered a concussion during the landing from the BMP, "Joker" sustained injuries in the evening from the explosion of an enemy anti-tank grenade.

"In the evening, as it got dark, they started shelling us with mortars and RPGs. The enemy accurately shot from a stationary anti-tank grenade launcher and hit about a meter from my trench. The explosion concussed me, my eyes immediately darkened, and there was a ringing in my ears," recounts "Joker."

"It is physically very challenging to carry a wounded person. The wounded person feels bad psychologically, and you look at them and want everything to be okay, so it is very difficult. And physically carrying them is unreal. Water is very much needed for the wounded and for ourselves," says "Kinder" and adds, "We tried to use first aid kits for the wounded. However, in this task, we used both our kits and even collected enemy kits to find something necessary."

Despite fear, concussions, and their young age, the guys did not lose composure and successfully carried out their assigned combat tasks, saving the most precious – human lives.

"Everything is new, feelings are mixed. It's scary and yet not scary," shares "Joker."

"I thought I would be confused in such a stressful situation when it is necessary to provide assistance. However, no, everything was fine, everything went as it should," concludes "Kinder."