THE RECRUIT

TRILL: Jolted

Classified Imperial Base
49 KM, NORTH
Daro
LST: 18:45:12 // DAY: 17
RC-5570

"We'll bivouac here," Mech says kicking some twigs out of the small 10-foot clearing. He loosely carries his blaster. The area is a small hill with a decent vantage point.

Judging by the debris and gashes in the trees, a crashed TIE fighter cleared the space. Could make for cover in a pinch. He glances up at the fading light in the sky. "Here's to hoping the weather holds," he says dropping his pack.

Mech pulls out the heat generator setting it up in the middle. He feels Taipan's eyes as he lays out the woobie and secures the tie-cords to nearby saplings and a large piece of a TIE wing. He pulls the cords tight and the blanket forms an angled awning.

"Neat," she says.

"Where's your woobie," Mech says turning to look at her, "I need to lay it down so we aren't sleeping on wet leaves."

"My what?" Amusement in her voice.

"The poncho blanket," Mech says gesturing to the makeshift tent.

"Oh, so that's what it's called," she says and digs it out and tosses it to him. He rolls it out under the tent. She knows more about guns and blades than which directions the sun rises and falls. She could probably field strip my deece and put it back together faster than it would take for me to explain the water cycle.

Taipan's POV scans the shadows of the forest. Mech hits the button on the genny, it whirrs, he knicks it and it hums to life. Its warm light creates a bubble of visible foliage and darkens the environment that isn't as clear outside the bubble of light. At least the cave was fortifiable.

"What sort of predators live on this planet?" Taipan says tilting her head as if straining to hear.

"Nothing big enough to hunt us down," Mech says sitting on a rock to avoid the damp leaves and pine needles. He gulps a drink from his water canteen. "That I know of." He focuses on the creatures of the night listening for the distinctive sounds of stalking feet. So far, he could only hear the chirping of small insects and the faintest trickle of a stream.

"It's going to suck if we're ambushed in the middle of the night because of incomplete information," Taipan says sitting down on the ground. She takes off one of her boots, rubbing her foot.

"The Empire likes to keep secrets. Daro is listed as a terrestrial planet with no known settlements or installations. And yet, here we are," Mech says gesturing with his canteen to them, the base, and the Empire's presence on the planet.

"I'll take watch then." Taipan kicks off her other boot. "This armor sucks," she under her breath. She removes her helmet and rubs a hand across her horns.

"Original Republic Commando Kataran Mark Three was the best. This Imperial junk is di'kutla," Mech says rolling out his neck. "And no, I'll take watch. You've already been awake longer than the recommended time for any soldier in the field. In fact, you should've woke me up long before the sun rose."

"I'm not tired," Taipan says.

Mech sighs. Dark circles are ghosting under her eyes. Her right eye looks a lot more like her bruised left. Her eyelids are blinking more often. He tosses her a ration cube. She catches it with both hands when she normally uses just one.

"I know that look," he says, "Sleep deprivation isn't something to ignore. You lose focus and motor function. You get sloppy. And when you can't see straight you die."

She takes a bite out of the cube. Her nose scrunching in an oddly attractive way. "I said I'm not tired."

"And I said get some rest, soldier."