I have a way off this station. The hangar, some transportation is finally in the hanger! Wait, a second where am I?

He had been running blindly for so long he had lost his way. He drew the E-11 to his shoulder while trying to figure out where he was.

Blasted station, I can’t seem to remember anything about it. The heat is killing me, but my brain is being affected much more. I wish it were cooler in here.

Suddenly, the station started cooling.

Beautiful, maybe it’ll work again. I wish for this station to be destroyed.

He waited and waited. Nothing happened.

Well, it was worth a try. Okay, maybe it wasn’t, but, still, you can’t blame me for try it. On the other hand, maybe you can. Oh, well, who cares? It didn’t work and that’s what matters. Now, how do I figure out where I am?

The area was a long narrow hallway with doors approximately every four meters. Pierce put one hand on the door and pointed the E-11 right at where the door would open.

-------
There were a hundred doors, which was one door per recruit. Pierce lined up for the breach in his gleaming white armor, which had been modified so that it could electronically register “kills”.  When it would register a “kill”, the armor would lock up. The five droids on the other side had stun rifles, which would both register a “kill” and stun you.

“Listen up, recruits! This ain’t a full size urban combat training, but all of you should know bits and pieces of it in case you get stuck in the middle of a city. You have done well with interior and exterior fighting, so today we move into the toughest thing of all, breaching. Average stormtroopers can usually finish a breach and clear in approximately six seconds. Trained specialists can do it in half, or less, of that time. You scum aren’t full quality stormtroopers yet, so I’m going to cut you a deal. To earn a run back to the barracks and survival rations, you’ve got to do it in fifteen seconds. To earn a walk and a regular meal, you’ll do it in ten seconds. To earn a landspeeder ride and an officer meal, you’ll do it in eight seconds. If you want an airspeeder ride and all-you-can-eat and best-food-we-can-offer meal plus a nice bed instead of those bunks you have, you have to do it in six seconds. You can try as many times as you wish until the sun sets.”

The drill instructor looked over his recruits, making sure that they had heard the reward. He continued speaking, “Alright, there are few ways to do a breach and clear. One’s the explosive way. You stick an explosive on the door, activate it, and wait for the fireworks. Once the fireworks go off, you rush inside and kill everyone with nice little red bolts, but we aren’t going to teach you that way because you won’t be carrying breaching charges as your standard loadout as a stormtrooper. Don’t even think about using a regular explosive, however, unless you want to eat shrapnel.  Second way only works on weak doors, so don’t try it on five-centimeter metal doors. You kick the door down and kill everyone with nice little red bolts. The third way is the one we’re going to teach you because it is easiest one to use on the battlefield. You grab the handle, twist it, throw open the door, and clear the inside. Simple, no?”

He made sure everybody had heard and then said, “Go!”

Pierce put his hand on the door and lined up the E-11. Steeling himself, he threw open the door and saw the first droid. He let loose one bolt which miraculously hit the droid. He found the second droid and let loose a small burst that caused the droid to go down. The last three droids were in a group. Pierce let his E-11 drain the powercell in one continuous barrage, which took out the last three droids.

“Do you have a guess how long that took, recruit?”

Pierce whirled around and saw the drill instructor standing behind him. He responded, “Fifteen seconds, maybe, sir?”

“Wrong. Guess again.”

“Seventeen seconds, sir?”

“The other way.”

“Ten seconds, sir?

“Wrong. Guess again.”

“Seven seconds, sir?

“Well, close enough, six point one to be exact. Now, keep doing it until you get six seconds, I’m not going to let you give up.”

Pierce did it repeatedly but could not get six seconds. Finally, the instructor grew frustrated and stopped him. The instructor yelled for one of the guards. Once the guard had walked over, he gave an order, “Give me your rifle.” The guard hesitated for a second and then turned it over to the instructor. “It does have a live powercell in it, right?” the instructor asked. The guard nodded once. “Good, go back to your post.” He then motioned then motioned the nearest recruit over. “Give me your armor.”

The baffled recruit asked, “What?”

“What, sir.”

“Sorry, sir. What did you ask of me, sir?”

“Your armor, give it over to me.”

The recruit hesitated and then took off his armor, which the instructor quickly donned. He then walked over the recruit’s droids and grabbed one rifle, which he handed to Pierce. “Now listen to me. You’re going to breach and clear one more time. However, I’ll be firing live rounds. Since I assume you want to live, you’re going to shoot me and lock up my armor. Alright? Wait ten seconds and then you may breach and clear.”

Pierce waited and counted to ten. When he reached nine, he put his hand on the handle. Steeling himself one more time, he threw open the door. He located the instructor and lined up his rifle. The instructor lined up his shot, and they both waited that fraction of a second to see what the other would do.

The instructor fired first. His shot flew through the air. Pierce instinctively fired back. He saw the instructor’s armor freeze up, then pain beyond measure burned in his knee. He cried out once and then fell while losing all consciousness.

He awoke in a painfully white room. “Where...uh, where am I?” he asked even though he had no idea if somebody was there.

“Easy, son. Wait few a seconds.”

Pierce hauled himself into a semi-upright position. He looked around and saw the drill instructor sitting on the side. “What happened, sir? I only remember a pain and then...well, nothing.”

“The bolt I fired tore through your knee, burning through some muscles. It’ll feel sore for a few days, but you won’t be able to continue training for the Stormtrooper Corps. I’m sorry that I tried that to push you in that manner, so I’m going to recommend you for station security, if you want to try that, of course.”

---

Pierce made sure he was in correct position, and prepared himself to throw open the door.

I need a medic, preferably before I die.

He laughed slightly, but this only brought more pain. He doubled over, cursing himself for laughing.

It hurts to walk. It hurts to run. It hurts to crawl. It hurts laugh. It hurts to cry. It hurts to think. Hell, it hurt to do nothing. Just make it stop; just make it stop.

He rolled over onto his back, ready to give up.

------

“You going to give up, recruit!?!” yelled his stormtrooper academy drill instructor. “Well everybody, looks like we have a quitter over here. Ya’ know what, I’m going to cut you a deal.”

Everybody, including Pierce, groaned. The drill instructor’s “deals” usually involved pain, pain, and more pain with very little reward. His last “deal” had been that the first person to run an obstacle course while under crossfire from fifty droids would get a two-day liberty from boot camp. No one had made it past the first of fifty obstacle, but they had all tried at least fifteen times. His “reward” would be impossible to get but would be so tempting you had to try it.

“Now, now, boys and girls...Nah, let me revise that. Girls, if this recruit makes it across in five minutes in his first five attempts, no one has to do any more running for today. However, if he does not make it across in the first five attempts, you all will have to do it two times more than however many times it takes the recruit. Now line up, you girl and quitter, and start on my mark.”

The recruit lined up and, when the instructor gave the command, started running for all his life. He ran and was ten meters away from the end when the thirty seconds ended, but he did not give up. He ran with everything he had, not once but four times, but he could not make it. The entire class had ended up running it ten times, but, that night, no one carried out further punishment. They knew he had learned his lesson, and they respected that he had not cowered away from punishment.

Pierce had intently watched this humiliation, and he knew the recruit would never give up. And neither would he, he had promised himself.

------

He staggered up from the floor, and stumbled his way for a few meters. He then made the mistake of looking back.

There was a red streak across the floor, marking where he had been.

Can I still survive with this much blood loss? There is no way I can survive.

-----

He stared into her eyes, drinking in the details. He tried to make sure he could remember each streak, each change of color, each size, and that look she gave him like it would be the last time she would be able to see him.

“Don’t worry so much. It’s a simple security of a station. It’s not like I’m going out into hell. I will come back.”

“I will be waiting.”

With that last look he had, he turned and walked on, not daring to turn back in case he would run away from his duty to her.

------

Who was that? I know I loved her with everything I had, but who is she? Once I get off this station, I will find her and figure out who she is. But to do that, I’m going to have to out of here. I will get off this blasted station, because I must for her.

Re-determined, he forged on ahead. Even though pain nipped at him, his promise acted stronger than anything that medics had to stop pain. As the pain cleared and he began to realize his surroundings, he remembered that the hangar lay within fifty meters of his current place. He quickend his pace in an attempt to reach a medic.