RECRUIT CENTER MORRE'AC, MIFAAL, BRENTAAL SYSTEM, 3644 BBY- WEEK 5, DAY 1

1125 HOURS LOCAL TIME


The recruits adjusted their gear as they trudged through the forested mountains.

Kat struggled to adjust her pack - it wasn't easy to tighten the straps while marching in step at the same time.

Then came the words that everyone loved.

"PLATOON, HALT!... 10 minute break, do what you have to! You know the drill! Fall out!"

Kat sat down at a tree with Aikern and C'alee and took off her pack. "Damn it. Never thought that hiking in the mountains could be so tough," "I thought you were athletic?" quipped C'alee. "I was decently fit, not athletic. And I never went up mountains with 18 kilos of gear. Why did they ask us to bring everything, anyways?" she replied, before taking a swig of water from her canteen. "I don't know...Well, I'm slowly dying here, so at least you're better than me,"

Aikern was leaning his head back, eyes closed. C'alee chomped down a protein cube before asking Kat, "Why did you join up?"

"I… don't know, really. No good reason? I was an above average student and I wasn't sure of what to do. I watched a lot of holofilms, and it all seemed cool. For adventure, maybe? Go out, see the galaxy? I walked into the recruiting office for the Army, then I saw this Marine poster. I never knew about the Marines like the Army. The uniform looked cool, and they said I'll be more likely to go places. But yeah, no one solid reason. I guess I'm just looking for something different… I guess?"

"That… that sounds weird, really. But it kind of makes sense, at the same time," "Well then, why did YOU join up, C'alee?"

"I was a farmboy back on Pokas II. I didn't want to do farming, not my thing. But I had a great-uncle who was in the Marines for 20 years. I liked the sound of it, shooting blasters and the camaraderie stuff, so I walked into the recruiting office. I chose to be an Aerospace Gunner, as you know. Flying while shooting at stuff sounds like fun. After that, I think I want to do my tertiaries. Having your education partially financed after you've had fun in space doesn't seem like a bad deal,"

"Hah, at least your reason is better than mine," Kat said before trying to adjust her pack straps again. Then, she drank more water and taking some of C'alee's ration cubes. The rations were tasteless, as everything in the military seemed to be, but staying hydrated and fed is a top priority - to fall out, even if from dehydration or hunger, is a no-go. The instructors made sure they all get periodic breaks for food and water. The three agreed to share any opened rations between them anytime they had to open one.

She gestured for C'alee to wake up Aikern - the hike was to resume soon, and starting again without food or water was dangerous - for him and for the others. It was everyone's job to take care of each other. C'alee nudged Aikern with his elbow. He woke up. "We start again soon?" The two nodded. He reached for his canteen while C'alee handed him the ration cube pack.

"We were talking about why we joined. Kat says 'I don't know' while I'm trying to get off the family farm. What about you, Aik?" "Hmm…" "Well…?" "I'm trying to do something exciting," "How so?"

"I've tried to do a lot of things in life, and I don't like most of them. So I decided to join the Marines. Nothing sucks your soul like staring at a monitor for hours,"

"How old are you?" asked Kat. "25," "You're ancient…!", cried out C'alee before giggling. "And you're both babies," "C'mon, Aik. I was only playing with you," Aikern chuckled before taking a long swig from his canteen. "I was a mechanical engineering major back in my tertiaries on Mur'rafic, so I decided to join the Armoured Corps. I selected open contract,"

"Whoa. That's a gamble. What if they put you as a tank washer or something? That'll suck, especially for you," "My recruiter told me that people with expertise usually get less… soul-crushing jobs," "I could never go open contract," Kat said,"They'll probably put me in sanitation or something," "Aw, don't sell yourself short, Kat. You went for combat voc-"

"PLATOON! FAALLL IIINNNN!"

The three finished their rations, donned their packs and went back into formation in less than ten seconds.

"PLATOON! Fo-WARD, MARCH!"

The platoon started marching in step, following the senior drill instructor. Kat eyeballed around - there were tall spruce-like trees around the steep slopes, while the chocolate-coloured ground was dotted by purple and red wildflowers. The march was tiring, as the steep slopes made marching difficult - it went up, then down, then up again, like some sort of twisted park ride.

At times, they had to crawl up some of the slopes on all fours as the instructors yelled for them to not fall behind. When they reached the top, they heard a "PLATOON! Break formation!" followed by a "Alright now, form a school circle around me!" from CSGT Ra'az.

"You've reached on top of… one of the lowest hills around this area, We are now at an elevation of 170 meters," The platoons members started grumbling quietly. Kat couldn't believe it. All that… and we're still on the lowest hill? "Now I want you to look around to your rear. Take note - the camp is those buildings in the distance. I want one of you to tell me what you could see from this point,"

Kat looked towards the camp. She saw masses of beings - other recruit platoons, perhaps - and the occasional vehicle moving through. She tried to squint her eyes to better see, but to no avail. Another recruit answered, "I see other platoons doing exercises back at the camp, sir," "Good. Anything else?" "I see speeders. Couple of walkers," said another recruit. "Good. Can anyone tell me what this means?" Kat tried to think, looking at the camp.

Then it hit her. "Sir! Being on an elevated position offers better lines of sight, sir!" "Good. Anyone else?" No answers.

"Elevation is a very important advantage. The reason why I bought you up here, other than giving you some PT, is to show you that. Take note, when you have the high ground, you can see others further out, but when the enemy does, so can they. They can hit you from miles and miles away if they have the firepower. Don't bunch up, and stay low if you know they can put plunging fire from you from above. Remember this, so that in combat, you have a better chance of getting out alive,"

Command Sergeant Luro took over. "I have some good news for you, recruits. You will finally rate to have real, hot chow. Double time it back to base. We wouldn't want to let the other platoons finish them, don't we? Back in formation!" The platoon scrambled back into formation.

They moved with utmost speed. They haven't eaten hot chow since boot camp started, only wet rations and nutrient cubes.

All Kat could think of was finally putting some hot, real, delicious food into her stomach.


MESS HALL TEN, RTC MORRE'AC, 1245 HRS LOCAL TIME

The air-conditioned mess hall was a boon to anyone who entered. It was extra relief for the recruits of 4/C/5 when they entered after hours of hiking with packs.

The well-lit, white and grey-clad mess hall was full of recruits arriving and leaving, with drill instructors pressuring the recruits to eat as quickly as possible - there is no respite for the Marine recruits.

Kat finally reached the chow line, took a tray, and scanned her tags at a food machine. The diversity of the Republic requires them to cater to the needs of it's recruits - meals are tailored to each recruit's cultural and medical needs and restrictions, as well as ensuring optimum nutrition.

Taste and texture, however, are secondary.

Kat discovered that when she sat down and grabbed a bite of her chow only to taste grittiness and a weird metallic taste, reminiscent of canned goods that she had during hiking.

She looked down to see the meal - an entree of red sauce with solid pieces. What are those pieces were, she dared not think of them.

She went for the side - a trio of medium sized cookies. It had no flavour except for sweetness. At least they taste like cookies, she thought.

She tried to wash down the aftertaste of the entree with the drink. It was sweet and salty. Probably a sports drink of some kind?

She decided to wolf down the entree first. She shoved the food into her mouth and chewed as quickly as possible. After swallowing each bite, she took a sip of the drink.

After the entree, she also ate the sweet cookies with lightning speed as the platoon's drill instructors started to bear down on them.

"Just eat them all already…!"

"This is not a restaurant or cantina! EAT! FASTER!"

As soon as she finished, she cleaned out the mess tray and ran out into formation.

After the entire platoon has formed up, the instructors marched them off towards the armory.

The stopped as Sergeant Paxe briefed them.

"You will be issued your combat gear shortly. All items are already pre-packed and fitted according to your sizes. Get your gear, come back here, and check everything. If there's anything wrong, don't hesitate to ask us. Don't lose any of this gear…! Here are your gear lists,"

The DIs proceeded to hand out laminated paper with the gear list printed on - a low tech, low cost solution - to the recruits.

She looked at the list.

MGR-30 Chest Rig - 1X

Magazine pouches - 4X

Grenade pouches - 2X

First-Aid Kit - 1X

BlasTech BT-27 blaster rifle - 1X

ET-6 1X-4X Variable Combat Optic - 1X

Weapon sling - 1X

Weapon cleaning kit - 1X

BT-27 power packs - 4X

LL-15 optical device - 1X

RD-70 Personal Radio Equipment

LMH-20 modular helmet - 1X

Front mounting device - 1X

Reversible helmet cover - 2X

Local laminated map - 1X

MCUU Mk4 Combat Uniform - Woodland - 3X

MCUU Mk 4 Combat Uniform - Desert - 3X

Beanie - 1X

WP- 17 Waterproof Poncho - Woodland - 2X

Entrenching tool - 1X

Sleeping bag - 1X

LP-6 Assault Pack - 1X

HL-10 Heavy Load Pack - 1X

She walked into the armory into a line of waiting recruits. One side was lined with counters, with Marines manning the counters. Behind them were lockers with rifles, magazines and optics.

When she reached the front, she was handed a rifle, as well as magazines, a sling, a cleaning kit and an optic in a small clear bag as the corporal at the counter told her, "If you lose or break any piece of equipment, it'll come out of your paycheck. You'll get the rest when you put in your ID tags into the machine in the next sector," in a monotonous voice.

She went into the next sector, which was lined with dispensing machines on one side and the exit on the other. It dawned on her - she probably went through here on arrival slotted in her ID tag.

The machine whirred for a minute before it opened. She took the heavy pack and opened it. Then, she strapped on the helmet for convenience before putting everything into the pack. When she couldn't fit anything inside the pack, she shoved everything into the seabag. The only things that weren't in bags were her rifle and sling, which she slung around her neck.

She then put on her pack, and with rifle in one hand and duffle in the other, she struggled to exit the building. She swore it was heavier than her. At 5'5" and 130 pounds, it might as well have been. She went out and rejoined the formation.

"Alright, PLATOON…! Sound off…!" The platoon sounded off. After everyone has been accounted for, Sergeant Darrow spoke.

"Now that you've gotten your combat gear, you will be moving into the next phase of training. You will still be doing PT and have classes, but more combat-oriented than before. We will be marching towards the Basic Combat Center 12 miles away. That'll be your new home from then on. But first, we will brief you on the basics of the gear you have just been issued. You will be moving to the staging area there," as he pointed towards a large hall. "DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" "AYE-AYE, SIR!" "Good. FO-WARD…! MARCH!"

They arrived at the staging area. It was a thin-walled hall with a small stage in front with a display monitor. Some of the other platoons were already there. Kat counted- it's possible that the entire batch was there - all five battalions. "Alright, you may sit, but keep a distance! You will have to lay out ALL your gear for the briefing!" a voice boomed. She didn't recognize the voice.

The recruits eased out and started laying out their gear. Kat tried to stretch out her legs. She knew there was a long, long day ahead for her.

Shortly after, a short but stocky Arkanian arrived onto the stage. He appeared on the display in the front. Behind him was a Wookiee pushing a cart with equipment on it. The Wookiee carted it to his side before leaving.

"Good afternoon. My name is Gunnery Sergeant Mano from Systems Command. I'll be instructing you on the basics of your equipment today. Pay attention! We will teach you again, This will be the gear that you will be living in throughout your service time. Do it right once, and you'll remember it always. ARE WE CLEAR?" "AYE-AYE, SIR!" The echoes of nearly 2500 recruits reverbated throughout the walls. GSGT Mano picked up the rifle.

"First off, we will start with the BT-27 service rifle. This is a gas driven, crystal-powered, particle beam blaster rifle. It has three modes, semi-automatic, full automatic, and safety mode. It fires at 700 bolts per second. You can originally load it from the right side, but can be loaded from the left if you adjust the magazine well. You will learn more when you reach the Basic Combat Center. Next up is..."

The briefing was long, and included things from learning to put on and adjusting the chest rig to simple things such as inserting batteries into the optical devices. By the end, they were all in full battle gear, bar loaded rifles. Kat was relieved when they were called out to march. She checked the chrono.

1600 hours.

Time to go!