"Holy Maker!" Klip yelled as he looked down on the former Rebel base. It was blown completely apart by the orbital bombardment. Numerous military troops were spread over the landscape. Their were bodies, and parts of Rebel equipment and weapons. Imperial soldiers were huddled together, obviously waiting for further orders. Charn shook his head. "Too bad. Like I was saying before Klip. Now I hope you see what I mean." Klip replied distantly, and to particularly no one. "Yes," he shook his head, "You were right. Right all along. No one has a chance against the Empire. Death awaits them all." Charn looked oddly at Klip but went on, "Yeah, and look at that. That could be you. You would have been a burning corpse. I'm afraid Tiv wasn't so lucky though..." Klip screamed and yelled: "NO!"

The civilians around the Rebel base were not so lucky either. The blast spread out dramatically. Klip did not blame the Empire now though, ironically. They were doing their job. It was the Rebels who decided to place themselves within the city. Their ignorance killed many innocent people. Rage built up within him. Fortunately his home and parents were safely far away from the base.

He could not find any trace of Tiv. He either escaped, was killed, or captured. Sullo grew quiet after the put down of the Rebellion. Klip spent many days secluded in his room, deep in thought. Charn, realizing what Klip was going through, went on his trade routes by himself. His whole family wondered what his destiny would be.

Klip judged both sides extremely fairly. The Empire seemed to move in, savagely destroy, and leave as nothing happened. However the Rebels caused chaos and disorder, and brought the battle and horror to people who would rather not get involved at all. He thought of striking with a large force and totally eliminating his foes, or constantly on the run to save personnel and lives. He thought of Order, Loyalty, Power..... or Disorder, Defiance..... More time flew by. He hardly ate, never slept. Just one question "Empire or Rebellion?" He tossed and turned. It was like two angels. One on each of his shoulders. One was the Emperor calling for Peace, the other was Mon Mothma praising Freedom and Justice.

Two months passed. It was time for a decision. He approached Charn and in a hypnotic trance mumbled, "You win Charn. I'm going to trust you on this one. I will serve for the Glory.. of the Empire." Charn chuckled and slapped him on the back. "Great!", he said, "I'll get you signed up. A shuttle will come within the week, for sure. I'm glad you made the right choice Klip. You're asking for death with the Rebellion. But the Grand Old Empire... Ahhh!"

Charn almost forced Klip into celebrating. He took him from planet to planet. Visiting almost all the cantina's in the known galaxy. So they went on, talking to Charn's friends, drinking a little to much. Finally they returned home. The time of celebrating was over. Now Klip's parents, Kahra and Owen, mourned for their son leaving. They understood though. Every adolescent felt the call of the stars. Few were able to reach them, but Klip would.

The Imperial shuttle arrived. With hugs and saying goodbye, Klip stepped into the shuttle and was gone. He did not know what awaited him. A long and distinguished service, or short and glorious? He did not care.

The shuttle took off, and sped out towards the stars. Awaiting him was the Star Destroyer Vigilance. He looked out in awe at the great ship.

It was an amazing sight. He always viewed the Star Destroyers as free beasts, who roamed space sector by sector and crushed all opposition. Now he would see the true side. The workers, the gunners, the crew, everything and everyone who worked in harmony to make the ship one of the greatest technologies of the time. The shuttle moved slowly and methodically to the hanger of the Star Destroyer. The great beast swallowing its prey. Landing beacons flashed, landing klaxons sounded. With a hiss the shuttle landed.

A stormtrooper motioned to the exit, "Alright, move!". They marched in single file out to a large dome. An ominous figure rose above them. "Welcome, Servants of the Emperor." The man stepped down. "I am General B'yorn Sivaar. You have fortunately, been accepted into the Imperial Academy. As we speak the Vigilance speeds off to a far away planet. Here you will be tested physically, mentally and psychologically. We will make sure you are battle worthy, for the Emperor wants only the best to restore peace to the galaxy." Klip took a moment to look around. The General addressed hundreds of beings. It was strange as Klip didn't realized all that was around him when he entered.

"Some of you will become stormtroopers, the elite shock troops of the Empire. The truly talented, skilled and lucky will go on to become starfighter pilots who liberate worlds and crush the Enemies of the Empire. Only time will tell how you may serve the Emperor best. During your training you will do as you are told. Negligence, arrogance, and attitude will assure for you a short career. Serve well, however, and you shall be rewarded." The General looked down at the new recruits, paused, and continued. "Now, I realize some of you have traveled long and require rest. So be it. You will be split up in groups and sent to your temporary barracks. Be ready to leave as we will reach the training facilities in a few hours. Appropriate information will be given such as location of the mess hall, etc." The General stepped down and disappeared. Once again stormtroopers huddled them together and sent them to their barracks. Klip was tired, but did not sleep. He wanted to remain alert until they reached the facilities. He studied in silence the many manuals and maps. He even tried on his uniform, which had no rank. He was a fresh recruit. He wondered if he really would make the cut.

Time passed. He heard a muffled rumbling sound and his vision was dimmed only for a second. Obviously the hyperdrive powering down. Instinctively he began packing up and getting ready to leave. Surely enough, a lieutenant entered and had them moving. The marched and marched until they reached the hanger. Dozens of shuttles laid waiting to carry them away. Off again he was, this time to a new world.

It was rough from day one. The sergeant in charge pushed them to their limits. He wondered how he would last five more months. The months went on, however and soon he was on his way to take his class courses. They covered everything. From the History of the Galaxy, to the specifications of the Rebel Starfighters. Klip admirably passed and graduated from the academy. Next stop: Hands on training.

Coincidentally, he was stationed on the Vigilance, which was where it all began. After numerous tests on the simulators, he was taken out in a trainer fighter with his instructor. The trainer was a modified Tie Bomber. Everything was the same, except the missile launcher was turned into a cockpit. Here the instructor could give control to the pilot when needed or he could take control if something dangerous would happen.

Klip had an amazing ability overall with the fighter. However as always, the instructor was cynical. Despite his ability, Klip did learn alot such us with energy management. After weeks of more training, he was finally passed on to active duty as Flight Officer Klip Narhalley. The instructor congratulated all the officers and a there was a small party. Little did Klip know, that the ultimate test was coming up. In a week they were all called down to the hanger.

"This is it," the instructor said, "We try to get you accustomed as best as we can, but of course nothing can prepare you for this." The instructor put on his flight suit and demonstrated to the new pilots.

Klip was nervous; and he was one of many. He heard disturbing statistics, stories, and rumors. Tales that only the lucky few survived their first battle. Most were blown to bits.

"Alright" The instructor spoke as he patted on a nearby Tie Fighter. "We're flying these babies today. We found a Rebel patrol to test. The goal is simple. Destroy the bad guys, and survive. We'll go by Alpha squadron temporarily. The flight designation is as follows..." He looked around. "I'll be Alpha One. Kimba, you'll be Alpha Two. Narhalley! Alpha Three. Singe Alpha Four. Reem Alpha Five. Last but not least, Bonnn Alpha Six. When you're in the cockpit your old names don't matter. These are your names for the time being. Well, lets go. Get into your respective 'fighters and the hanger crew will handle the rest."

The instructor clapped his hands and yelled again. Everyone moved. Klip looked down the row and there it was. Alpha Three. He hoped Charn was right and jumped into the cockpit. A press of the button lowered the hatch. He laid back, and grabbed the flight stick. The instructor was going on about proper communications when landing and taking off. He followed the orders and they were off.

They formed up in a spread position. Klip looked around, but saw nothing. The Instructor's voice came across the comm. "Alright, move quickly now. Check your scopes, I read 4 hostiles. Activate long range scanners. Now check your CMD, I see 4 X-wings from group... Blue. Everyone acknowledge." They were quick to reply. "Good. Alright, 'bout 4 clicks and closing. Remember, if a hostile is headin' your way and is less than 2.5 clicks away... consider yourself under attack. Or in this case us! Everybody break off now!" Red laser blasts buzzed passed them. Alpha 4 waited too long and the bolts shot through him. Everybody else cleanly got away without a scratch. The X-Wings shot by, and began turning to engage. Klip jinked and spun in wild directions as the X-wings took occasional potshots at them. Klip was lucky and was in a lead pursuit position.

He fired two dual-linked shots into the X-wing, and then overshot by it. At that the X-Wing made a error, it seemed to be stunned and slowed by Klip's attack. Klip took the opportunity and turned the X-Wing into a fiery cloud. He yelled into the comm. Despite his small victory, he learned an important lesson. Bolts came dangerously close by him. He knew they were meant for no one else. An X-Wing swooped down behind his TIE, like a vulture. The X-Wing pilot never seemed to let go of the trigger. Klip felt himself in a deadly force field, the slightest miscalculation would have him 'fragged. He breathed heavily, and sweat even more. He finally realized he wouldn't be able to hold out and pleaded across the comm, "This is Alpha 3! I need help! Blue 3 is all over me! Can't get rid of this scum!" He waited for a reply, but just dead silence. He temporarily lost the X-Wing, but sure enough it was coming on to him. This time it was making sure the shots counted. By miracle, Alpha 1 swarmed on the X-Wing. Skilled aiming had the back of the X-Wing completely destroyed, while the cockpit shuttled slightly over Klip's head and was dust. Klip caught his bearings. "Thanks Sir. You saved my life..." He was surprised to hear a chuckle and then the Instructor's voice. "No time to get emotional Klip. Just make sure you can return the favor sometime." he said with more humor.

It wasn't over yet. Disaster struck. The Instructor stayed distracted too long. A rebel blast caught him, obviously two more X-Wings joining the party. Something shot out of the cockpit and the TIE exploded. Everyone was shocked as they dodged the new Rebel attacks. They managed to keep themselves alive, but did little else. Klip took control of the situation. "ISD Vigilance! We're in trouble! Alpha 1 has been taken down! Alpha 2 and 4 are long gone also, and we still have 3 X-Wings to take care of!" he yelled. A cold officer replied, "What do you expect us to do? Complete the mission Alpha group. Out." Klip was puzzled. He radioed to his flight members. "Alright, stay sharp! They're coming around for another pass! Alpha 6, take Red 2. Alpha 5 take Red 3. As for me, the leader is mine!" Everything turned into a red haze. Klip imagined himself in a epic battle as he flew into glory. "You Rebel Scum!" were his words as the X-Wing flew helplessly into his sights.

"Alpha 3, you done yet? The shuttle is almost done picking up your ejected Instructor." Klip had a strange look on his face. The craft around him were turning away. In front of him was a molten piece of an X-Wing. He was shocked. It seemed his mind wandered as his body proceeded to destroy the X-Wings. He joined up with the remainder of his group. "We're done here?" Klip said across the comm. Alpha 6 picked up. "Yes sir. Time to head back... no more fun." They all laughed. It was uneventful as their ships entered the hanger of the vigilance. Klip was ready to get out. It was like he spent years in that cockpit. He hopped out and quickly pulled off his helmet. He spent a few minutes remembering what fresh air smelled like. He turned around and saw the shuttle landing. A few stormtroopers exited, and then came a group of men pushing a hover-table. On it was his instructor, hooked up into may life preserving machines. Klip rushed up to them. "Is he alright?" he asked. "Yes, yes. Shock, and some minor burns. He'll be out in a few days. You can see him then." at that they hastily made to the turbolift. Klip then turned around and saw Reem and Bonnn talking. He decided to join in. "Whats up?" he mumbled as they turned to acknowledge him. "We're going to the cantina! I think we've earned it. Want to come?" Klip was quick to answer yes. Of course, he'd only join them after getting out of the flight suit. As they headed away, he turned and went for the lockers and showers. A cold voice stopped him dead in his tracks. "Narhalley. Wait." Klip looked up to find a robed man. It was the strangest garb he'd ever seen aboard a Star Destroyer. "Yes?" he said. The robed man spoke. "Klip, I am a servant of the Emperor. My name is not important. I am sent to see all trainees first missions. I recommend the brave and skilled to take advanced training.. for the Emperor's Glory. In this mission, you have shown me much. Would not it please you to serve Him directly?" Klip looked puzzled, but nodded his head. "Good," the robed man continued, "come here tomorrow ready to be transferred. A shuttle will be waiting. We look forward to you joining us." Klip looked off into the distance considering all the man said. When he looked back, there was no one there at all. Klip shrugged and made a mental note to be here tomorrow, and then he was gone. The next day he was off again. Sharing seats with people he didn't know. It seemed every shuttle ride took him to something new and different. He wondered what lied for him next.

Images taken from X-Wing and TIE Fighter, both Registered Trademarks of LucasFilm Ltd. Star Wars is a Registered Trademark of LucasFilm Ltd. Opening Theme from the Empire Strikes Back Motion Picture Score, written by John Willams. The Empire Strikes Back is a Registered Trademark of LucasFilm Ltd. May the Force be with You :)