At that, I began.
It was frustrating, at least. I focused on getting it done right, and while my accuracy thanked me for it, my speed payed.
Soon enough, I was finished. At worst, my shots had been grazes, and I know I had hit every target, but needn't look at any scoreboard to see that my time did not stack up well. With a scowl, I turned to my CO. "Permission to go again, sir."
English
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"Go ahead, it looks like you already know what went wrong, if you can self correct I'm not going to get onto you. Remember slow is smooth, smooth is fast."
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With a curt nod, I headed back to the beginning of the course. Taking a minute to review the motions in my head - and, more importantly, the methodology - I began. Soon enough, I was done. Slightly more out of breath, I was nonetheless still not satisfied. I had done better, no doubt, but it wasn't good enough. Not by a long shot. So I did it again. And again. And again. When Blackburn came back again, I had gathered somewhat of a crowd. Whether they were laughing at me or genuinely interested, I didn't know, nor did I care. I turned to the corporal, sweat pouring down my face and my breath coming in deep gasps. "Sir," I got out between breaths. Damn, if the carapace armor wasn't heavy after a while.
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"Take five private, you kill yourself I'll have you shot for desertion. If someone could master this course in a single day, we'd be out here till you got it down. But it's only the first day, and you've made a lot of improvement. Let's keep that pace and you'll be more than just fine."
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"Thanks," I got out, heading to one of the benches and taking my helmet off. Nodding to the Guardsman that handed me a water bottle, I guzzled it down greedily, finishing it in seconds before sitting back, focusing on regaining my breath.
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"Only gonna have you run it one more time before you clean your weapons and armor for the day."
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I took a deep breath, nodding, before getting up. Walking over to the start point, I checked my ammo counter on my deece and the rounds in my 1911. Replacing both with fresh mags, I readied myself, awaiting the start signal once more.
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The signal was given and you see that yo are the last person to use the course.
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"Let's do this," I mumbled, moving quickly. I was still focusing on doing it right, but the payout and drawbacks were much better now. It also helped that I switched to my sidearm to finish a few rooms when my deece ran dry. Soon enough, I was at the end, all targets having been eliminated. A quick check of the results board showed that my time and accuracy were both far better than earlier, but still only mediocre at best. It would have to do, unfortunately.
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"Good enough for today, get that kit cleaned and weapons polished, then get some chow."
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"Yes sir," I said, heading for the armory. Needed to refill my ammo and get a knife, as well. Those tasks done, I made my way to the cafeteria - after asking for a few directions on the way - got my food, and sat down at a free table to eat.
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Warm food does the body good and you start to feel tired.
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Once I finished my meal, I headed for my quarters, dropping off my equipment and grabbing a set of sleepwear and a towel. After a quick shower and change, I fell into bed, exhausted from the day's training. Through the fuzz, I dimly noted this was only the beginning, before falling asleep. [spoiler]Quick question, do I get separate quarters, or do I sleep with everyone else?[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]eh, theoretically it's like four to a room but we're understaffed at the moment to only unlucky people have more than one person in a room.[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]I see. Wanna continue this instance here?[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]eh, I don't know where to go, the patrol?[/spoiler]
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[spoiler]Yeah. Probably start with you kicking me awake. Exhausted civvy, and all.[/spoiler]