I put the boys through hell that first day. By the end of the day, they were all grumbling and acting like they wanted a piece of me. That was exactly what I wanted. I wanted them in fighting spirit. A man ready to fight me was ready to fight in a war. Inwardly, I was grinning like a madman.

I paced up and down in front of the formation. "I have been asked to get this recon platoon ready for action. So far I have not seen one of you that would be able to fight to protect a trash midden." I noticed the Colonel and several of his officers and sergeants arriving. "Who here thinks I am wrong? Who here thinks they can fight?" I said as I stripped off the jacket of my dress greens and tossed it on a raised platform.

Several of the men raised their hands.

I pulled off my rank pins from my shirt. "I am going to give you your shot. I have removed rank." I then pointed at one of the soldiers with his hand in the air. "You! Come forward. Rules are off the table. All you have to do is knock me down."

The soldier smiled and stepped forward. When he stood in front of me I stayed in a completely relaxed position. Then he lunged at me as he threw a punch.

I sidestepped the well-thrown punch and caught his forearm in my grip. Then I spun, bringing my hip around. He hit the ground with a loud thud as I brought his arm around and behind his back. Then I dropped, with my knee in his lower back, and twisted his hand up and around.

His left arm flailed uselessly as he tried to roll out from under me. Then I applied pressure to his wrist. When he screamed in pain, I let go and rolled up and off of him.

The soldier came to his feet like a cat. He did not wait and immediately threw a punch with his left. I side stepped to avoid the follow-up with his right. I caught his left arm in passing and brought it up and around his own neck. Then I swept my leg up into the back of his knees and dropped on top of his lower legs. Leaning back I put pressure on his spine until I heard it creak in protest, and he screamed.

When he screamed, I leaped to my feet and let him go. He got up more warily this time. He started to circle and watch for an opening. I gave him one.

When he went for the low punch to my side, I caught his fist and lashed out with the side of my hand. It was just a light tap to his throat, but he got the hint. That would have been a death strike if I had struck full force.

When I let him go this time, he backed away with his hands in the air. I motioned for him to rejoin the platoon and started to speak again. "How many of you still want your shot?"

One soldier raised his hand.

I motioned for him to come forward. When he arrived he stood in front of me in his boxer shorts and bowed. I returned his bow. I recognized the style of the bow. He was into an ancient earth art known as Tae-Kwan-Do.

"What rank?", I asked, as he assumed his stance.

"Fourth dan," he answered.

I took the first strike this time. He blocked cleanly and launched into a spin kick. I had expected this and stepped inside his kick. His leg connected but not his foot. That threw him off balance and he started to fall backwards. I caught his shoulder and helped him balance.

He nodded to me as he stepped back. Then he bowed and put his hands in the air.

I motioned for him to rejoin the platoon. "Please explain why you acknowledged your defeat."

"From your position, you could have launched over a hundred different death strikes. I lost the battle as soon as I lost eye contact with you." I nodded.

Started pacing in front of them again, I began my lesson. "As a soldier, you have to be ready to fight in any way you can. I will teach you to fight but it is up to you to know when..."

Ryu'ven System: Planet Yunque

Our first drop was two weeks later. Our platoon was going in first. Our job was to establish the safe landing zone on Fanfier III. We hit the ground in a fast drop shuttle. The craft was on the ground for less than three seconds as our cargo pod was dropped.

My men moved out and established a watch perimeter. We did not detect any activity in the area. We sent the call up and several fast drop shuttles were dispatched. These had the prefab building that would become our temporary base and the general's headquarters.

The shuttles were arriving at the clearing before the sound of their atmospheric entrance reached me. Then the radio bob in my ear spoke. "Shielded bunkers inside lines..." whoever was calling quit talking as soon as he spoke.

I activated my bob. "Get the package off the ground! The site is not safe!"

"It is too late, the package has been delivered and shuttle is in return mode." The voice that spoke sent chills down my spine. This group of Spinners had some pretty sophisticated gear. We were in trouble.

I turned to run back to the clearing. "Recon, we are on the hunt. Terminate all suspect hostiles with extreme prejudice."

I pulled my service sidearm as I saw a hidden bunker opening in front of me. I ran up and leaped on the top of the trapdoor as it rose. My sudden weight caused the man below the surface to fall off his ladder.

I rolled past the door and pulled a torque grenade. I remained silent as I heard someone else coming up the ladder. When their hand touched the trap door, I let go of the grenade handle and started its five-second countdown.

The door lifted and I rolled the grenade into the crack, then I fired my pistol into the insurgent's face. As I rose to run the grenade detonated below the surface. There was a muffled boom, and the trapdoor flew up and out.

"The rats are in holes. Move back to cover the package," I said over my bob.

I ran into the clearing to see several of the others from my platoon entering from different directions. I only counted fourteen at a glance. "All recon, return to nest, rats are in the henhouse. Launch control, get a shuttle down here for the package."

I saw General Tainer trying to cover behind a set of crates. The problem was that only covered him from one direction. I ran towards him as a trapdoor opened on the edge of the clearing. It was on his unprotected side. I dove over the top of the crate firing into the trap door. My free hand lashed out and pushed the general aside as the insurgent fired. I felt the round rip through my shoulder and into the crate exactly where the general's head had been a split second before. My shoulder jerked at the impact. 

I rolled up onto my feet as the adrenaline surged through my system. "Get in the cargo module!", I shouted as I drew another grenade.

My toss was perfect. The grenade arced through the air and passed through the opening as a second insurgent opened the trapdoor. He tried to scramble out but only the front half made it. His back half arced through the air and landed among the trees on the opposite side of the clearing.

I stood as my men started to open fire at the insurgents. That was when I saw the second trap door opening. Three steps put me between the general and the trapdoor. I barely made it in time. The slugs ripped into my body as I returned fire. By now my left shoulder was useless. My arm had quit responding. I winced as my body hit the ground with a thud. 

My men did their job and turned the terrorists into mush inside that trapdoor. I was proud of them. 

I sat up as the general's evac shuttle cleared the trees. Then fast attack craft zipped over us and started to open fire. The jungle around us turned into shredded vegetation. I looked around the clearing as my head started to get woozy. I counted heads. Forty-one, my men were all here. One was either wounded or dead but he had not been left behind. My corporal was dragging him towards the shuttle.

With great effort I lifted my arm and fired at two insurgents daring to enter the clearing. Then darkness enveloped me, lulled by the sounds of shouting. 

Some Days Later

My eyes opened. The room was bright and there was a young nurse looking over me. Blinking several times, I became adjusted to the bright, whitewashed room. When she saw my eyes, she spoke to someone behind her. "Doctor, he is awake."

A woman in a military lab coat stepped into my field of view. "Staff Sergeant Daemon, can you understand me?"

"Sergeant," I corrected, with a voice that sounded like a cheese grater on rocks.

"Staff Sergeant, actually. You received a promotion while you were in the nutrient tank. I will need you to move your left arm for me."

I tried to move my left arm. It felt a little sluggish, but it responded.

"Very good, now can you wiggle your toes for me?"

I did as she asked. She nodded, jotting down a note on her clipboard. 

"General Tainer asked that he be notified as soon as you woke up." She motioned to the young nurse to go make the call. "I am afraid he is going to add some more weight to your chest. How do you feel?"

"I feel like someone used my throat for a grenade testing range."

"That is pretty normal. Do you think you can sit up?"

I nodded and she pushed a button on my bed. The back started to rise and lifted me into a sitting position. I had no sooner gotten comfortable when the general entered the room.

"Staff Sergeant, I am so glad to see you with your eyes open."

"My men?", I asked.

He smiled and nodded in approval. "They all made it. One of them was wounded but your corporal brought him home. The rest of them stayed planet-side and had the area nearly pacified by the time backup troops arrived. It looks like you rose to the challenge. Your men are a real recon platoon and more."

"Thank you, sir."

"No, thank you. You saved my life at least twice down there, as well as the lives of my staff. As soon as you are out of this bed, we are going to pin a few more baubles on your chest, as well as several of your men's chests."

"My dress blacks are too heavy now, sir."

He chuckled. "I suppose that means you won't want to carry this." He lifted a case up and sat it on my lap. When he opened it I saw a brand new Kitan Mark VII rail pistol. Most of the soldiers would give up rank to carry one of those beauties. I was stunned. My mouth opened and closed like a fish for a minute before I could regain the ability to speak. 

"Sir, all I did was my duty-"

"No," the general interrupted, "you did above and beyond your duty. Your duty was to establish a safe landing zone. We sent you in with the wrong equipment. We should have given you the equipment to locate the shielded bunkers. You overcame odds that should have left us dusted."

Three days later, I had a gold cluster pinned to my bravery medal, a heroics in the face of the enemy medal, and another Purple Heart pinned to my chest.

Planet Mud: Present Day

I woke up in the hotel room. My dreams were always about my life anymore. I never got away from the fighting or the dying.I stood up from the bed and looked out the large window. After rubbing my eyes, I peered out over the city and where the green fields met the horizon. Somewhere out there was my new ranch. Maybe there, could I let my past rest. Maybe there, could I find peace.