''Cadets of squad VSRC005 and 006, welcome to the main recruitment program of the Imperial Academy.''
Eva and the rest of her squad stand in a perfect line in a large training facility somewhere located in the Academy building as an officer is standing in front of them. She notices the officer is from the Navy like the officer who took her from the conscription office to the Academy, though it's a different person. Eva sees he wears the officer's signature grey suit with a black belt, but surprisingly, without the black hand gloves. Most officers wear black hand gloves, but this one doesn't. His rank insignia plaque shows two rows, one with three red squares and below one with three blue squares, revealing he's a naval captain.
''The recruitment program on Vaulent Capital consists of the Junior- and Senior Academy, both in one building,'' says the officer, glancing at the girls of both cadet squads. His tone is strict as if he's talking to a group of misbehaving hounds. ''Instead of spending one year at the Junior and then 4 years at the Senior, you'll spend 5 continuous years here in this building. I'm your taskmaster, and in those 5 years, you'll learn how to run, climb, kill, and everything in between and beyond.''
The taskmaster is someone who gives the cadets exercises to train.
Eva looks over her shoulder and sees the shiny, metal body of ACY-4, standing a bit further away next to a similar droid. The blue, bolt digits imprinted on its metal chest makes the two droids distinct from each other. Eva then shifts her head to Ashara next to her.
''VSRC, never heard of that abbreviation,'' whispers Eva while the officer speaks.
''Me neither,'' whispers Ashara, tilting her head.
As the officer goes on, Eva wonders what VSRC stands for. Vaulent blabla Recruitment Corps at least, but she doesn't know what the S stands for. She shrugs and shifts her focus to the officer.
''-but before you'll be able to follow our training at the Academy,'' says the officer, ''you first have to know how to march correctly.''
The officer grabs the comlink from his suit's chestpocket. ''Corporal, show what you have in store for our cadets,'' he says.
Then he turns to the girls. ''Cadets, look closely and write notes for yourself if you're forgetful.''
Eva then hears the sound of loud footsteps starting to fill the facility, and she sees a platoon of shiny Stormtroopers marching towards them, their white boots hitting the floor. They walk at a continuous pace, in a perfect arrangement of 6 rows with 2 Stormtroopers each. Eva's heart starts to race with excitement as the platoon marches towards them, holding their black E-11 rifles tightly, and they stop in front of the group of girls. Then the Stormtroopers turn 90 degrees towards the girls. Now, there are 2 lines of 6 Stormtroopers, standing in a perfect formation which fills Eva with pride at the thought of what she can become.
''This is how marching is done, cadets,'' says the officer. ''I'll teach you how it's done. Squad leaders, get to the left side.''
Then, Eva sees Roslin and a tall, blonde girl she doesn't know from the other team walk out of the group and go to the left side. Roslin walks past Ashara and gets back into line on the left side of Eva. The other girl stands behind Roslin.
''Cadets, when I say 'left face', you all turn left, 90 degrees towards your team leader simultaneously,'' instructs the officer.
''Blast it, we have to practice already?'' whispers Ashara. ''I'm not ready ye-''
''Left face!''
Then, Eva turns herself 90 degrees to the left towards Roslin with her heart pounding in her chest nervously, hoping she did it correctly.
''Cadet with the bun,'' says the officer. Eva feels her heart sink in her chest as she turns her head to the officer, knowing he's talking to her. ''You turned out of sync with the rest and you're not the only one who turned out of sync with the team leader.''
Eva nods. The taskmaster then stares at Eva's eyes, expecting a verbal answer.
''Sir yes sir,'' cries Eva, her heart nervously pounding in her chest.
''Well corrected,'' praises the officer. His tone is still as strict as before. ''Moving synchronized with the team leader is essential in showing the Empire's pride and power. Do it again.''
Eva hears other girls sigh out of boredom when they hear they have to repeat the exercise. She and the rest of her squad and the other repeat the exercise. Eva thought it would be easy. She'd seen many Stormtroopers marching through the streets of Vaulent Capital over the years, but she didn't expect it to be so difficult to learn. Turning 90 degrees in sync with the rest is harder than she thought, but after a couple of rehearsals, Eva and the others get the hang of it. After that, they learned from the taskmaster how to march in a continuous pace and formation. During that, Eva and her fellow cadets got pointed out many times for their out-of-sync pacing and wrong posture, but after marching around for perhaps 10 clicks in the facility, they all got the hang of it.
''What you have in your hands right now is an E-10 blaster rifle in safe mode.''
After the marching exercise, Eva and her squad now stand at the beginning of a shooting range for blaster practice. The shooting range is long and empty, and at the beginning is a long row of firing positions on which a shooter stands to practice firing. The air feels as cold as the E-10 blaster rifle she's holding in her hand as she inspects it. It's a weapon she knew her father had manufactured a long time ago when it was the main blaster rifle of the Army until it was phased out by the E-11. It makes her feel proud to hold the rifle in her hands, knowing it could have the fingerprints of her father when he probably assembled the parts together. The long barrel sticking out of the main body, the simple gun sight on top of it, the battery cell hanging horizontally from the main body, the glow rod attached to the barrel, and the retractable, sturdy stock at the back. These parts could have been put together with a drill held by her father.
''The E-10 is a formidable training rifle to train with,'' explains the taskmaster as holds the black rifle in his own hands, ''and you're all going to learn how to aim and hit. Get yourself to a firing position.''
Eva walks to one of the firing positions along a line on the floor that separates the grey flooring of the firing alley, in which cadets form up to shoot, and the white metal plates of the shooting range itself. She holds the E-10 rifle tightly in her hands as she waits for the rest to take a shooting spot.
''I never thought this thing would be this heavy,'' says Ashara, standing on the right side of Eva.
''Wait until you have to use an E-22,'' says Eva. ''Those are heavy.''
''Seriously?'' Ashara asks, surprised.
Eva nods.
''Cadets,'' says the taskmaster to get everyone quiet. ''To fire a blaster correctly, spread your feet a little more than a meter apart from each other, hold the grip tightly, brace the stock in the hollow area below your collarbone and inside the shoulder joint, and use your dominant eye to look through the gun sight to aim at the target. Left hand or right-hand doesn't matter, for both sides, it's the same.''
Eva puts her feet in the position the taskmaster told her to. Her feet a little more than a meter apart from each other and squeeze the handgrip. She doesn't brace the stock below her collarbone yet until the taskmaster instructs her and the others to do so.
The taskmaster then raises the rifle and does what he just told. In a quick matter, he positions his feet a meter apart from each other and braces the stock below his collarbone, and aims at the target dummy on the shooting range. Eva sees him hitting the target with near-perfect precision and the hit makes a metallic bang. The taskmaster then lowers his rifle.
''Whenever you're not intended to fire, aim your blaster towards the ground at all times,'' explains the taskmaster in a strict tone. ''Never aim it at others or walls, not even in safe mode. It's the risk of accidentally shooting someone we want to prevent, so never even think of raising your rifle when you're not intended to shoot. You, Pantoran.''
''Sir?'' Ashara asks as she pans around to the taskmaster.
''Are you intended to shoot?'' he asks.
''Yes sir.''
''No, you're not, I haven't given you the order to target practice, so are you intended to shoot?''
Eva hears Ashara heavily swallowing.
''No sir,'' she replies.
''So how do you handle your blaster?''
''Aiming it at the ground, sir.''
''Correct, and I want that ringing in all of your ears. You're only intended to shoot when somebody of a higher rank gives you the order, or you're in a dangerous situation that requires your shooting abilities without the order unless a higher in-command officer says otherwise.''
The strict tone of the taskmaster keeps Eva's heart pounding continuously in her chest of nervousness.
''Your blasters are currently in safe mode, which prohibits it to shoot,'' explains the taskmaster. ''To switch it from safe- to firing mode, rotate the switch above the handgrip upwards. Do this while keeping your rifle aimed at the floor.''
As Eva keeps the rifle aimed down, she looks for the switch above the handgrip and rotates it upwards. She hears the switch clicking as it goes into firing mode.
''Now, form yourself up into firing position,'' instructs the taskmaster. ''Feet apart, hold the grip tightly, brace the stock in the hollow part below the collar bone, and aim through the gun sight with your dominant eye. You may fire when I say so.''
Eva looks back at her rifle and positions it accordingly. She checks her feet, ensuring they are positioned correctly, and she braces the stock in the hollow part below her collarbone. In the left corner of her eye, she sees the officer walking in front of the cadets, ensuring they are in the right firing position.
''Pantoran, check your feet,'' points the taskmaster out.
''Yes sir,'' Ashara responds with a slight shiver in her voice, and she looks down at her feet.
''And you,'' says the taskmaster as he walks to Eva. ''You're swaying too much,'' and he positions her blaster more closely to herself, and she feels the stock putting more weight against her.
The taskmaster goes on to check if all the cadets have positioned themselves correctly. Then he steps a bit to the back and Eva sees more targets deploying out of the ceiling. They are all aligned with the firing positions of the cadets, and Eva sees the centre of the target through her gun sight.
''Open fire,'' the taskmaster instructs.
As the taskmaster gives them the order, Eva pulls the trigger. She feels the blaster pressing against her shoulder as she hears a loud bang and sees a yellow bolt fly out of the barrel. Through the gun sight, she sees the bolt flying past the target, missing it.
For a couple of minutes, Eva tries to hit the target, but she misses almost every shot. She either shoots below it, past it, above it, or anywhere else. Every time she curses under her breath, disappointed in herself.
Then she notices Roslin on the right of her. Eva looks over the gun sight of her blaster and sees that Roslin is hitting nearly every shot. She then looks around her at the other cadets and sees that they are struggling to hit the target too, just like her.
''How are your shots so accurate?'' asks Eva, lowering her rifle.
Roslin tilts her head to her, her jaws chewing on some gum. Is there a moment she doesn't chew on her gum?
''I already had some experience with blasters,'' responds Roslin.
''Did you have a blaster at home?''
''My father was a Stormtrooper guarding the city hall. He taught me how to shoot with an E-11.''
Eva nods. She's amazed that Roslin's father was a Stormtrooper, and by her little backstory, he seemed to be a pro-military who was loyal to the Empire. Eva kind of wished her father was a bit more supportive of the Empire too, but she feels proud of him nonetheless. The E-11 Roslin was taught to shoot with was probably assembled by her father at the facility, and it makes Eva forget his death. His legacy could be everywhere in the Imperial military. Maybe every rifle she could see in the Imperial military could carry the fingerprints of her father. It makes her feel good that her father is still with her, even though he himself is no more.
''I can't seem to hit it properly,'' says Eva.
Roslin lowers her rifle. ''Show me how you shoot.''
Eva nods. She raises her rifle and positions the stock correctly, pressing it against her collarbone. She looks through the gun sight and aims at the target and pulls the trigger. She misses again.
''I see what you're doing wrong, you're handling the recoil wrong,'' Roslin points out.
''How should I do it then?'' asks Eva as she lowers her rifle to look at Roslin.
''Apply more pressure to the blaster before shooting,'' she says. ''You should anticipate the recoil.''
Eva nods, and rises her rifle again and she looks through the gun sight. Instead of firing right away, she builds a bit more pressure and force on the handgrip through her muscles. She then pulls the trigger, but she misses again and Eva lets out a big sigh, disappointed in herself.
''Eva, practice makes wonders as they say,'' says Roslin, and she raises her rifle and continues shooting at the target, again with near-perfect accuracy.
Eva raises her rifle and does what Roslin advises her to do so again. After a few more minutes of shooting, experimenting with the pressure she builds up in her arms trying to anticipate the recoil, she slowly gets the hang of it. She slowly starts to hit the target more often, and at the end of the day, she feels a bit better that she made some progress. She knows how to shoot correctly but knows it's nowhere near good. She is still too inexperienced with a blaster, and she knows it can't be learned in one go.
After Eva fires her last shot of the day, the next training session comes up.
Entering a room with the walls, floor and the ceiling coloured in shades of grey, Eva sees there are black, rubber mats lying on the floor. As ACY-4 stays behind, standing in the doorway, Eva steps onto one of the mats as she sees there's a female human standing in front of the room, looking at the girls as they position themselves on the mats. As Eva looks around, seeing Peyton and Ashara standing on the mats next to her, she notices that there are metal rails between the fluorescent lights, going from the left to the right wall, and she starts to wonder what this training session will be about.
The woman seems to be a taskmaster too, as the other officer stands next to her. Eva notices she's black-clothed and has slightly tanned skin, brown eyes and black, short hair.
''Listen up, cadets,'' says the woman as the chatter between some of the girls ceases. ''I am Sergeant Seren,'' she introduces herself in a strict tone, and she starts to walk between the cadets. ''And what you'll learn from me is personal combat, one versus one fist fight, and in the case of getting disarmed, it is a necessary fighting skill as a soldier of the Empire.''
Approaching the last row of cadets, the sergeant turns around and walks slowly towards the front. Eva tracks her with her eyes, sensing that Sergeant Seren is a very disciplined trainer. Though her heart pounds nervously in her chest, she also feels excited, wanting to learn the techniques behind personal combat.
''But let's not get ahead of ourselves,'' says the woman, approaching the front of the room and turning around, looking at the cadets. ''First, basic fighting skills.''
The woman jabs a button on the floor in front of the room and Eva starts to hear a faint whirring sound and then sees a black punching bag coming out of the ceiling. It stops in front of the woman, and she starts to show the basic technique behind personal combat.
''For a correct stance, put your feet shoulder-width apart and the lead foot slightly forward. Angle the other to the side, bend the knees, and evenly distribute your weight,'' says Sergeant Seren, showing the correct stance to the girls. ''This stance gives you the stability you need.''
Eva looks at the Sergeant, trying to memorize everything she's showing to her.
''For a jab, position your lead hand a bit away from you and keep the elbow close to your body to guard your face and give quick jabs,'' she instructs, and Seren raises her hands. ''Position your rear hand close to the chin and give powerful punches. For a jab, clutch your fist and rotate it so the palm faces the surface upon impact.''
The Sergeant gives two quick jabs at the punching bag, and though they were short, they seemed powerful and painful for the person who'd be hit. The quick jabs create faint thuds, echoing through the room.
''That's just a jab,'' says Seren, looking to the side at the girls. ''With a cross, you want to deal as much impact force at the enemy. So, to do this, rotate your hips and shoulders to shift your balance from the rear foot to the lead foot, extend your arm forward and hit the bag with the rear hand.''
Then, the Sergeant rotates her hips and shoulders and extends her right arm, pounding her fist into the punching bag and creating a loud thud, echoing through the room.
''Your fist should follow a straight line towards the enemy for a blow,'' says the Sergeant. ''For now, that's enough for you. Practice for yourself and keep heightening your limits.''
Eva slowly nods as the rest of the girls remain quiet. Then, Sergeant Seren jabs another button on the wall and more punching bags start to come out of the ceilings, dropping just in front of the rubber mats the girls stand on. Eva sees her punching bag coming out of the ceiling and stopping in front of her, its bottom on the same level as her hips.
''Let's go,'' says the Sergeant, her voice echoing through the room, and the girls start practising.
Repeating the technique over and over again, Eva pounds her bare fists into the punching bag, hearing the thuds and memorizing all the steps. Each time she punches the bag, Eva feels her hands ache and burn and her knuckles become fiery red. It hurts, but it's a feeling she knows will go away with practice and time, so she continues to go on, pounding her red fists into the punching bag. Each time she feels her fists impact the leather, Eva thinks back to her parents, she's determined to avenge them and come back to Eline to protect her.
That night, as she's lying in her bed with her body aching from the intensive first training, she thinks back to everything she's learned so far. The marching, the marksmanship, and the personal combat technique. As the lights in the barracks go off and leave the sleeping dorm in total darkness, Eva makes a list of what she should improve in her mind. Her marksmanship is something to be definitely improved, remembering the near-perfect accuracy Roslin had, hitting almost every time bull's eye. For now, Eva clears her mind and closes her eyes, starting to fall asleep as her exhausted body finally has time to rest. Tomorrow is another training session, and she should be up and ready for it, and be the best she can be.
''You talked to them as if they were misbehaving Banthas.''
Kirbley walks through the corridor of the Academy with Captain Carter at his left. Night has fallen and the first day of the Junior Academy program is over.
Carter chuckled. ''I know, but at their age, we have to get discipline to ring in their ears or else Night Force will never become something.''
''I never knew you had the skills of an instructor,'' says Kirbley, shifting his head to Carter.
''My father was a taskmaster, so I learned a bit from him.''
''Where was he stationed?''
''Carida Naval Academy. When he served, I had my officer training there.''
''Your father was your taskmaster?''
''Yeah. He gave blaster training, and he was really skilled in teaching subordinates a lesson. He once let a misbehaving officer mop three-quarters of the entire building.''
''That's one way to do it.''
''And an effective one too. After he was done, he never misbehaved again.''
After the conversation between Carter and him ended, Kirbley enters his office room that is attached to his living quarters. It's a medium-sized room with grey walls and a grey, shiny floor. Fluorescent lights in the ceiling cover the room in a white hue as Kirbley sits down on his chair and stares out of the window. Vaulent Capital has plummeted into the night and turned on the lights, faint smoke plumes still rise into the dark sky. Reconstruction is happening slowly but steadily, reversing the city to before the Rebels struck it. However, it left Sector Command on edge, assigning the Eagleclaw Fleet to protect Vaulent 6.
It pains Kirbley to see how many lost their lives and houses, and he's confident that some of the naval forces of the Eagleclaw Fleet will protect the world from future attacks. However, the Eagleclaw, the flagship of the fleet, is not at their disposal, and the other two Star Destroyers have been mobilised to other regions of the galaxy to fight out the war. He's left with a couple of Arquitens, Gozantis, and some TIE Fighter squadrons to shield Vaulent 6. Nonetheless, he's determined to keep the people of this moon safe.
On his desk, the holoprojector started beeping, and Kirbley shifted his head around and reaches out to press a button. The holoprojector activates and a clear, blue rendition of his father appeared on the metal desk.
''Father,'' says Kirbley, leaning his back against the seat's backrest.
''Hello, son,'' greets his father. ''How is it there on Vaulent 6?''
''It's fine. We arrived yesterday after Sector Command assigned us to the Gorathion-system to protect.''
''Right, and has Night Force already started?''
''No, not yet. We're setting everything up, the organisation, registration, and training.''
''How long will it take until it's running?''
''At least two months. It's really time-consuming. Why?''
''I just came back from the Imperial Strategy Conference at Valor station and met with the Supreme Commander of Imperial High Command.''
''The Tagge guy?''
''No, Lord Vader himself.''
''Since when has he taken command over High Command?''
''Cassio Tagge was killed in action or so the death report states.''
Kirbley remembers when he first met Tagge at Imperial High Command, his grey jacket contrasting the white walls of the conference room on Coruscant. Knowing Tagge no longer matters gives Kirbley an uncomfortable feeling.
''Or so the death report states?'' repeats Kirbley. ''You're questioning it?''
''Tagge commanded Lord Vader, so I wouldn't be surprised if he was killed in a different way.''
Lord Vader? He had only heard that name a few times in some tabloids, but he has no idea what makes this man so different from the rest. Why does the name Lord Vader make his father conclude that Cassio Tagge wasn't killed in action? However, he doesn't want to ask.
''Anyway,'' continued his father. ''Imperial High Command is unsatisfied with the project's progress. They think it's taking too long and want you to speed up.''
''Speeding up? I understand why, but Night Force can't be rushed. The preparations are one of the most crucial phases of the project, and I can't let errors and short-cuts go unnoticed.''
''Son, we're at war for 4 years now, and Imperial High Command is starting to see the end of it, but we won't reach that point if Night Force doesn't come off the ground soon.''
''Father, you asked me to research it when I came to you in the Gordian Reach. I've seen the potential Night Force holds, but there are many dark areas and risks involved, and I don't know if there are more risks we don't know about yet. And that's just the research, I can't even begin about the horrible deal we had to close with the Army. Our cadets have to use those obsolete E-10s which tend to jam easily. All the other Academies elsewhere in the galaxy use the better E-11s, but because of that ass deal with the Army, we've gotten the rusty E-10s that aren't even used by today's security forces anymore. And I'm affraid the armour suits the cadets have to wear at counterintelligence operations is heavily affected by the deal too. Haven't had problems with them yet, but the concern is there and if we get obsolete, crap E-10s straight from the battles on Mimban, then I wouldn't be surprised if the cadets' body armour is bad as well. I know, we can't do anything about that deal now, but we can do something about the research, the foundation of Night Force. Just ask motherblasting Lord Vader himself for more time to flesh out the research.''
The frustration has arisen in Kirbley's chest as he sees his blue-renditioned father scoff.
''Asking Lord Vader for some time, hah. Son, understand the larger picture. The threat of the Rebel Alliance has never been bigger than before and it's still growing as we speak. Look behind you, son, and you'll see for yourself how much more dangerous the Rebels have become since we've talked about Night Force for the first time on Yavin 4. Time is running out while the war is speeding up. Night Force has to happen now.''
''But, Father-''
''It's an order of Imperial High Command. There's nothing more we can do other than follow through.''
Kirbley looks with frustration at the holoprojection of his father, and he knows he can't disobey the orders of Imperial High Command, and he lets out a sigh.
''Fine,'' he replies, and he reaches out for the button and deactivates the holoprojector. The blue rendition disappeared from the metal desk, leaving it empty.
Leaning on the backrest of his seat, Kirbley stares at the grey ceiling. He knows that speeding up Night Force will leave the dark areas of the project unexplored, leaving behind the errors that could be solved before they could happen. But now, Kirbley has to make a deep leap into darkness, unsure of the risks and problems up ahead. The Night Force Recruitment Program is a train wreck that must drive on no matter the damage or the risk of completely obliberating the survivors inside once it derails. Now, that train wreck has to double its speed, increasing all the dangers significantly, but Kirbley has no choice. Imperial High Command does not tolerate disputes.
Night Force has to speed up, but Kirbley is determined to do the best he can, aiming for the best.