It's been twenty years since that terrible but winnable battle on Kashyyyk during the Clone Wars. I, clone trooper CT-37-4444, or Fours, am now an Imperial stormtrooper fighting for the Galactic Empire, which the Galactic Republic evolved into after the end of the Clone Wars, and my brothers in the 501st Legion and I are trying to drive the remaining Rebel forces off of Yavin 4 after they destroyed the Death Star and killed many of our brethren. Now, instead of the blue-and-white armor we wore as clone troopers, we wear matching white armor, pure and simple, and our DC-15s have been replaced with powerful but less accurate E-11 blaster rifles.

I can vividly remember a recent space battle where we destroyed a Rebel fleet above this moon; I served as one of the TIE pilots in that mission. In a TIE Bomber, I destroyed five transports in less than three minutes, which was fortunate because they were about to escape into hyperspace. It took two loads of bombs for each transport, I recall. I had to destroy a few Corellian frigates after that, and then I had to return to the Star Destroyer's hangar to get into a TIE Interceptor, because my superior officers wanted us pilots to destroy as many Rebel starfighters as possible. I took out ten X-Wings, Y-Wings, and A-Wings before I was given another objective.

I had to return to the hangar again, because I needed the TIE Bomber again, and I was sent out to destroy some of the vital parts of the enemy Mon Calamari cruiser. All four of the ship's turrets were destroyed first, and next I had to destroy all six engines. I had only ten minutes to do all those things before the Rebels would go to hyperspace. When I was finished, the Star Destroyer fired its own turrets and turbolasers at the Rebel cruiser until it blew up completely. The day was ours!

Now it was time to show a thing or two to the Rebel force on Yavin's fourth moon. I remember that many of my brethren were on board the battle station when it exploded, and Camper and Cocoa, who have endured with me to this day, are eager for revenge. They vowed that they will not show the traitors any mercy. I've been trying to remind them, though, that there's a better purpose to the existence of the fighting men of the 501st. The problem is, I'm still not sure what it is, exactly, myself. I've fought in many missions for the Empire, and in some of them, I couldn't understand what the whole point of them was. Unlike some of my less remorseful brothers, I took no joy in killing a rogue clone army on Kamino in secret, though I agree with them that making the Stormtrooper Corps more and more diverse was not a good thing at all. And I don't like the way Lord Vader put that Rebel princess through torture in order to find the hidden Rebel base. I knew that we were guardians and protectors of the peace when we served the Republic, but perhaps because of the straightforward nature of the Imperial battles I've been in so far, I still am looking for evidence that the Empire has a meaning like the Republic did. Who knows? Maybe I'll find it today.

I was in standard stormtrooper armor while Camper and Cocoa were given the job of Imperial scout troopers for this mission. We knew that there would be a lot of fighting on foot, but during the battle's initial stages, I drove an IFT-T hover tank (based off of the IFT-X tank of the Republic) to the north, with Cocoa manning the beam cannon, while Camper ran beside the tank with many of our fellow men, whom he kept calling by their unit numbers. I never understood, by the way, why the Emperor and the Imperial officers refuse to allow us to use our names and instead treat us like anonymous numbers, but I guess they have their reasons, and I am very loyal to them. But I keep telling my brothers that we're not droids, and we're not programmed; we have to learn to make our own decisions. I remember Captain Rex of Torrent Company said something like that during the Clone Wars. But not all of them agree with me, in fact, most disagree, saying that they wouldn't dream of thinking for themselves when the Emperor and Lord Vader want us to follow all our orders to the letter. It saddens me sometimes, but at least Camper and Cocoa, as well as some others, agree with me on this matter.

But now, let's get back to the subject at hand. The three of us went north with other troopers, clearing out Rebel defenders as we went, until we reached a Rebel command post at a large water fountain. We shot down more Rebels, until all nearby were dead, and we guarded the post until it was secure. Then we ran up to the northeast with Cocoa and I in the tank again, eliminating some AAC-1 speeder tanks the Rebels were using. At the next command post, by a viaduct, I guarded the west of it, dodging Rebel marksmen's shots until it was also secure. Yet again, we entered a hover tank and headed north until we almost reached the Rebel-held temple and destroyed three tower-based turrets. Then we went back south to a reflecting pool to capture the post there.

We had to defend the pool for about two minutes after that. I couldn't help noticing that the Rebels were fighting just as fiercely as we were, but there seemed to be a sort of craziness about them; it was like they were driven almost to madness by all the alleged Imperial atrocities they say have happened over the years. Well, I will admit that the Empire is a little rough and brutal around the edges, and sometimes it can be ruthless, too, but our sense of duty and idealism is no different than that of the Rebels at worst. And at best, we are a lot better off than the unkempt Rebellion. The frenzied fighting of the Rebel soldiers reminded me of a rumor Camper and Cocoa had spoken of to me on more than one occasion. The galaxy was becoming a harsher place to live all the time, and for all his cold-heartedness, the Emperor is doing a favor for the galaxy, something we stormtroopers should be especially proud of as his most elite military force.

In addition to controlling and stopping criminals and troublemaking bounty hunters and mercenaries, the Empire is preparing, according to my brethren, for a probable outside invasion of people known only as the Far Outsiders from another galaxy. They're said by those Imperials who gossip to be very strong, very powerful, and very merciless, and we need all the protection we can get from their murderous barbarity. That's why the Emperor keeps building up his military war machine even when there are no threats to it, to protect the galaxy from violent invaders.

Anyway, these Rebels were fighting almost maniacally, and they were what reminded me of this strong rumor about the Far Outsiders. They were a menace to society if I ever saw one. And as we all fought, a Rebel vanguard suddenly shot down Camper, killing him. I had served with him for so long, I would have cried, but I struggled not to let hate master me. In anger, but also with a feeling of justice rather than revenge, I shot the Rebel dead. I remembered about how all people who fight for a living risk everything in a battle, including their own lives, and I wanted to save as many lives as possible.

Finally, at the end of two minutes, the reflecting pool was fully secure. Cocoa and I got into our tank yet again, and went west to an altar where we would find a breaching bomb. We grabbed it at the top of the altar and brought it back down. We returned to the temple, and Cocoa placed the bomb by the temple doors, and then he ran back to the tank. The bomb exploded, and the doors were blown open. The two of us hopped out of the tank and headed up the stairs. This was where the mission would conclude. We had to kill three Bothan spies who were in charge of the Rebel troops on Yavin 4. They had stealth ability, and the first one almost fried me with his incinerator, but Cocoa saved my life by killing him first. I was about to thank him for it when another Bothan snuck up behind and burned him up. I quickly shot the alien dead, and when the last Bothan charged me, I dodged his incinerator and shot him.

That was the end of the mission, and the remaining Rebels on the fourth moon of Yavin were routed. The officers congratulated me for my impressive fighting skills, and I asked to spend a few minutes alone, which they granted, provided I remained alert for my next orders. As I stood off to the side, leaning against one side of the temple, I looked around the jungle planet, thinking about the lives my brothers and I have to save all the time, the lives we have to take so that others may live, and the lives of my four closest brothers, Camper, Cocoa, Butch, and Joker. I also examined my new stormtrooper armor with its clean, shiny white color to represent the purity of the Empire. And it was there that I suddenly received my clarity.

The galaxy needs heroes; that much is certain. And we were the heroes of the Republic, the Blue Knights, or at least those of us who were in the 501st, who were guardians and protectors of the peace, as I've stated before. However, the Republic was a weak, dying carcass of a government, no longer fit to rule a changing galaxy, and as the Blue Knights, we were upholding something that needed fixing, badly. But now, with a strong, militarized government in its place, providing true peace and order throughout the galaxy, its citizens will no longer have to fear threats from without, or from within, because the Empire fights corruption and dissent with a strong hand. And we are the glue that holds the Empire together; we save lives from those who are bent on war and destruction, and we help the Imperial Security Bureau control corruption. Without its Imperial stormtroopers, anonymous numbers or no, the galaxy would suffer from terrific chaos, and no one could ever live here again.

We were the Blue Knights.

Now, we are the White Knights. The galaxy's White Knights.

That's right, we bring light and happiness back to the galactic citizens, and those of us who live to hear about it are glad the Imperials are so grateful. And with us protecting the star systems, we no longer need the shady Jedi Knights, who betrayed us and didn't know how to end the Clone Wars and restore peace to the galaxy.

Yes, we, the Stormtrooper Corps, the 501st Legion, the White Knights of the Empire, will always be a legend to the galaxy as the mightiest military, the most loyal servants, for we serve, not make others serve us, and the legacy of the former Grand Army of the Republic.