Therex was in a bit better mood about going to class today. From what he had heard, they were supposed to be doing combat simulations.

Finally, I get to shoot something.

He was a doctor, yes, but Therex was also a soldier. He was excited by battle. It got his blood pumping. Sighing contentedly, he walked into his classroom and sat down at his table, laying a datapad down. The class was just minutes away from starting, so most of the other students were already there. The instructor, a tall, thin, yet muscular, older gentleman nodded, acknowledging him.

“Now, I know we are not all here,” he said, placing one of his datapads on the large desk at the front of the room. “But I feel we should get started as soon as possible. As some of you may have heard, we are doing a combat simulation.”

Small cheers and whispers went around the room. Obviously not all of them liked the idea. Therex returned his attention to the instructor, who was now holding up his hands, trying to calm the group down.

“However,” he said, “This is not a test of your fighting skills. We are seeing how well you work under pressure... Under fire, if you will.”

Most of the cheers turned to groans, and those which were already merely became louder. Therex tensed slightly. He had been hoping to let off some steam. Now this was just going to add to his stress. Sighing, he shook his head.

What can I do about it?

The instructor lowered the lights and opened a miniature holo-projector. A small 3D map hovered off the table and expanded till it was almost six feet square. It was a relatively flat terrain. Small trenches had been dug along at intervals on both sides. It looked like a standard combat sim.

“We will suit up, and the simulation will deposit us here.”

The instructor pointed just behind the last of the trenches. It was relatively calm there in most sims. As you moved forward though, the fire would intensify on both sides. A younger member of the group raised his hand.

“Yes?” the instructor said, waving his hand at him.

“Aren't these simulations dangerous? Like as in deadly?” he asked, his voice obviously masking his fear.

“No,” the instructor assured him. “All the safeties are in place for this one. Any shot that you take will merely stun you and exit you from the simulation.”

The student nodded his head, only slightly reassured. Therex chuckled.

Greenies.

The instructor returned his focus to the map.

“Our goal is to move up through the trenches and assist wounded soldiers. These again are just simulations, so don't worry if one dies on you. It happens. Your job is to try to save those that can be saved. So, use your materials wisely as we will limit them for this test. You all ready?”

Several murmurs filled the room followed by affirmatives from everyone.

“Good, now suit up.”

--- 20 minutes later ---

Used to combat, Therex was the first in his gear. It was standard Stormtrooper armor, but it included a satchel and pouches on the belt for any tools a medic could need. Waiting, Therex started fiddling with one of the flaps on his belt. Soon, the other five students filed out, most standing awkwardly, obviously uncomfortable in their armor.

Soon, the instructor stepped into the room, and had everyone fall into a line.

“Now, the sim will run for 30 minutes. Survive for that long and you get to go home with your dignity intact.”

Punching a few keys on his datapad, the instructor waved them through a small door on the wall. It led to a smaller room that was lit by a single lamp. On either side were seats. Everyone in the group took a seat and strapped themselves down.

“Simulation will start in 60 seconds,” The instructor said, hitting a few more keys. “Good luck.”

The door whooshed shut behind them. Taking a deep breath, Therex checked his supplies. They hadn't been kidding about limiting them. It had just enough to treat four, maybe five people, if you used it sparingly. Digging around, Therex found a medkit at the bottom of his bag. Opening it, he found it was only half stocked as well. Others in the group were discovering this too, and groans could be heard.

They were silenced by a voice filling the chamber.

“Simulation begins in 5... 4... 3... 2... 1... Godspeed.”

The room lurched, and it finally dawned on Therex. They were in the simulation's version of a landing shuttle. Soon the sounds of laser fire and explosions could be heard from far off. However, they didn't stay too far away. The “ship” rocked as Anti Air defenses tried to shoot them down. Quickly, it set down at the designated area and everyone quickly filed out.

The ship rose, turned and flew off, only to be shot down by the enemy's defenses. One of the students cursed out loud, stunned by what he had just seen. Therex grabbed his shoulder.

“It's a simulation. Don't worry about it.”

The student turned reluctantly and slowly calmed down. Nodding at him, Therex looked around. There was a small tent set up, most likely a resupply station, but nothing that the medics could use. Still looking around, Therex noticed that one of the students had disappeared. One of the students who had been nearest to their missing comrade walked over to where she had been standing and stepped forward. He too disappeared, swallowed by some energy field. Confused, Therex walked through the barrier as well.

On the other side, the battle still ensued, but the other medics were gone. Suddenly, Therex figured it out.

Separate simulations. So we can't assist or offer support. Sneaky.

Therex shifted his satchel to a more comfortable position, and ducked into the first trench. It came up about a foot over his head. Approaching one of the soldiers, he tapped him on the shoulder.

“Where are your casualties?” he yelled over the din of the battle raging around them.

Without a word, the man pointed down the trench a ways at another soldier wearing field bandages. Patting him on the shoulder, Therex made his way down the trench hugging the wall as people passed in the rush to get forward and gain ground. When he finally reached the wounded man, he pulled his satchel around and knelt next to him.

“Where does it hurt most?” he asked, looking under the bandages.

“My right arm, doc,” his patient exclaimed, almost hissing through his teeth.

Moving his hands to the bandages wrapped on the arm, Therex lifted them gently. The area was pretty banged up, ripped in several places. Obviously a shrapnel wound. And considering the amount of blood and pain, it had probably hit the bone after passing through several veins.  Reaching into his bag, Therex found a small vial of painkiller pills. Tapping out a couple, he gave them to the wounded man.

“I wish I could give you something more direct, but we will have to make do with this. Would you hold his arm down?”

A nearby soldier who had previously been tending to him came over, and laid the wounded soldier's arm flat. An explosion sounded nearby, shaking the ground, and sending small chunks of dirt raining down upon them. Therex covered his patient with his body, letting the rocks and dirt bounce off his back. Sitting up, he then put his hand against the man's arm and with the other removed the bandage completely.

“This is going to hurt,” he informed him.

Reaching into the wound, Therex separated the flesh that had started to close in over the shrapnel imbedded in the man's arm. The man screamed and tried to pull away but Therex and the other soldier were able to hold him still and stop his thrashing. Taking a deep breath, Therex plunged his fingers back into the man's arm. A small piece of metal rubbed his finger. Fishing around, Therex eventually got two fingers around the shrapnel.

“Ok, now hold him down,” He said, releasing his free hand to retrieve a bandage. “Ready?”

When the other soldier nodded, Therex returned it and sighed. In one pull he ripped the shrapnel out. Without any delay, blood started spurting from freshly ruptured veins. Tossing the shrapnel away, Therex quickly applied pressure on the arm and started wrapping it. The bandage eventually had staunched the flow of blood enough that Therex could remove his hand. Patting the wounded soldier on the shoulder, Therex quickly checked him for other wounds. All his other injuries seemed minor.

“You look fine for now,” he said. “Get yourself to a combat hospital and have them finish patching you up.”

The man nodded at him and stood, supporting himself on another comrade. Moving up to the trench, Therex found a small indent leading to the surface. He could also hear calls for a medic coming from the other trenches.

A day in the life.

Jumping up to the edge of the trench, Therex crawled along to the next one, listening to the shots whizzing overhead, and the explosions rocking the ground everywhere. He rolled the last two feet, landing in a trench on one foot, a knee and balancing himself on one hand. Standing, he brushed himself off and was already spotting casualties.

Running to the first, he found burn wounds from a blaster. With the amount flying over the trenches, it wasn't too surprising. He had probably been running from one trench to another when the shot caught him in the leg. Apparently no one had thought to bandage it. Reaching back into his sparse equipment, Therex retrieved a syringe filled with antibiotics to fight infection, which seemed to be starting around the wound. Also, he pulled out his last bacta patch and set it aside for now. Sliding the needle under the crisp, blackened flesh, Therex noticed that the man barely flinched. Loss of nerve function could mean a lot of things.

He got his answer mere seconds after. The man began thrashing, and his leg began bleeding a milky red substance, almost a mix of pus and blood, with other elements. The man was having a reaction to the shot, and the way the wound reacted pointed to one thing. The infection was worse than he had expected. And now, it was fighting back in his system, and his bodies defenses were being overworked.

Therex held the man down, his mind racing, searching for options.

Adrenaline!

It wouldn't stop the infection, but it might charge his body enough to make it a fair fight. Soon, his thrashing stopped, and Therex applied the bacta patch.

“Might lose the leg, but no worries,”Therex said, standing up and flexing his own leg. “They give you cool replacements in this army.”

I'm sympathizing to a computer simulation.

The rest of the cases were similar, broken bones, concussions, lacerations, burns, and so on. Therex worked until his bag was empty. Around then, he checked his chronometer and saw that there was only two minutes left in the simulation. Shrugging, he reached down and picked up a rifle off a dead body. One of the poor souls he didn't get to in time.

Shaking his head, he pointed the barrel over the trench lip and opened fire. Not exactly shooting anything. Just venting steam. Soon the room went white and his fun ended.

Oh well. I ended on a high note.

Stepping out of the now dark room, he saw everyone standing around. The instructor approached him and shook his hand.

“Good Job, Rex,” he said, letting go of Therex's hand. “You'll make an even greater doctor on the front lines now. Congrats on graduating.”