Unknown Soldier/Chapter One

SELSOR, EXPANSION REGION 3 ABY

Amniva shuddered for a few seconds as a thermal detonator exploded to his left. Undaunted, he looked down the scope of his E-11 blaster rifle and looked around for a new target. A Rebel soldier crouching behind a pillar on the side of the corridor! Amniva pointed the blaster and fired, killing the man instantly. There goes one more enemy of the Empire, Amniva thought. Looking around to his fellow troopers, he saw his battalion leader, Commander Kisoyt Soliger.

The officer looked briefly at Amniva and then looked around at the others. "Come on, forward!"

They had been fighting on Selsor only a few days now. The Rebel insurgents were dug in pretty good, which was probably why the Imperial Army guys were not able to break the siege for almost a year. Finally, it seems Imperial Central Command has gotten tired of this thorn in their side and had deployed one of the most elite snowtrooper units (as it was winter on the planet, which were known for their harshness) in the Stormtrooper Corps: the Snow Hawks. They had attacked an outer perimeter base, what the officers referred to Outpost Beta. The other three battalions of the unit were attacking other outposts, with AT-AT and AT-ST support.

Looking forward, Amniva ran ahead with the other troops down the corridor, taking cover behind another pillar. They were in one of the main halls of the base, and at the end was the command center. The terrorists are putting up a good fight. Amniva thought. Now I'm not that surprised that the Army was unable to break through. He fired off some more blasts from his E-11, hitting a Rebel soldier standing at the center of the hall in the chest, and ran over to the other side of the hall to Kisoyt. Nearly everyone in the unit knew each other personally, and so they were pretty lax when not being monitored by other personnel. Another trooper, Captain Auddo Slokay, an aide to the commander, gave him some cover fire as Amniva ran.

"Glad to see you're still alive, lieutenant!" Auddo exclaimed amid the blaster fire.

"Don't worry, I'm not going down at least until we get to the main Rebel base!" Amniva replied, only half jokingly.

Everyone in the Snow Hawks was selected for their outstanding performance in combat and in training. After selection, they were tested, and if accepted, given more rigorous training. Everyone in the unit was good, but despite that, there was always still was a chance of death on the battlefield. They all lived knowing that, after joining the Empire. Facing death was a nearly everyday task, and many had simply put that thought out of their minds while fighting. He briefly thought about out it, until another blaster bolt passed by and hit a trooper behind him.

"Looks like one guy's been hit!" Amniva called out, to no one in particular.

He couldn't recognize the injured (and possibly dead) trooper, but like most others, he knew almost everyone in the battalion on a personal level. Those in other battalions of the unit also acted to each other as if they did know each other. It seemed like something that was absent from the rest of the Imperial military, so Amniva was glad he got accepted into the Snow Hawks. Quite surprising to him, due to the fact he was part of the Imperial garrison on Akuria II, which nearly got mauled by the Rebel forces and native resistance fighters. Sometimes he still did not know how he survived it, but was thankful, as most of the garrison did not.

Amniva killed another soldier who ran into the hall, and then the last two remaining Rebels, crouched behind pillars, tried to run through the doorway into the command room. Neither of them made it. At least a dozen blaster bolts were fired, and several had found their mark. Seconds later, Commander Kisoyt got up and approached the doorway, with Amniva and other troopers behind, following. This took longer than I expected," Amniva thought. But then again, what should have I expected?''

As they neared the doorway, Auddo through in several flash bangs, and as did a number of other troopers. Kisoyt got onto the right side of the open doorway, and Amniva followed him, standing by the wall. Captain Auddo and the other troopers went onto the other side of the doorway, preparing for a standard break in procedure.

"One. Two. Three!" Kisoyt said quietly.

The troopers ran in, blasters blazing in all directions. Amniva fired randomly, but then they realized no one was in the room. So professional, he thought. He fanned out with the others, checking the computer consoles, and looking around for any other Rebels hiding behind the tables and consoles. Finding nothing, the squad took up positions near the doorway on the opposite side of the room, which was closed. Amniva crouched behind what was probably once a holographic battlefield map, and aimed his E-11 at the door.

Kisoyt counted down from three, and the explosives a trooper planted earlier were detonated on the door. As expected, a hail of blaster fire came from the open, smoke-filled doorway. Though he saw nothing, Amniva fired into the doorway with the other troopers. Hearing several shouts and screams, he knew his shots found a target. As the smoke cleared, they saw the hall was full of dead Rebels. Kisoyt came out into the center of the room from his cover.

"Alright, Colonel Vandalor has called in. He says the Army troopers outside the base have secured the perimeter and told us to meet up with him at the front entrance," the commander said.

Amniva got up and followed the other troopers as they cautiously moved through the outpost, passing the bodies of the Rebels they killed on the way in earlier. Though he was not counting, Amniva believed he had at least six kills from the battle. The commander told everyone to not brag or talk about how many people they killed in action, but often times others did not listen. Amniva lined up with the others as they got outside, assembling in front of Vandalor.

"The interior has been secured," Kisoyt reported.