It was a hard day of training at the academy for Finn. Everything that could have gone wrong…did. His gun jammed in the middle of training. He tripped against the track field, and fell on his face in front of his commanding officer, and to top it all off, he had to deal with Terrance and his gang. The biggest jerks that academy had ever seen.

Terrance came from a rich family, and expectations were high. Anyone who could be a threat to his status as top cadet was instantly targeted, and Finn had had a target on his back since day one.

Whenever Finn tried to get lunch from the mess hall, Terrance screwed with him. Whenever Finn tried to shower after a long day, Terrance and his crew found ways to corner him, and today, was the worse of them all. Terrance had snuck into Finn's personal barracks (a major violation of Academy code), stolen his Trooper boots during lunch, and threw them up onto the roof. Finn had to finish the rest of his training barefoot.

This was getting ridiculous, but it wasn't like he could fight back. At least, not yet. The senior officers had been cracking down on fightning, and with Finn's luck, if he got into a scuffle, it would be his ass in the fire, not Terrance's. Funny how rich kids seem to get away with everything.

Finn pulled off his Stormtrooper uniform, and placed it into his closet. It needed polishing, but he simply didn't have the energy to deal with that now. He was hungry, tired, and wanted to head to the nearest Cantina to drown his frustrations in a cold one.

Cadets were allowed leave from the grounds, as long as they came back before curfew. On Saturdays, most of the others would head downtown to get smashed, and return the next day with hangovers the size of a Jedi Temple.

Finn was never invited to these outings, with Terrance on his back, most people didn't want to suffer abuse via association. At the academy, it was everyone for themselves. But Finn never believed that, no matter how hard things got.

Finn reached into his closet and pulled out his old jacket. It was a souvenir his father gave to him when he left for the academy.

"Make us proud," his father said.

Those words were tattooed inside his soul. His family, his galaxy, the people he wished to protect more than anything. He was a soldier. A fighter. A protector of peace. If he could attain that goal, protect the peace as he dreamed, then it was worth dealing with jerks like Terrance.

He pulled his jacket tighter over himself, and walked out of his barracks. He deserved a little drink for all of his hard work…surely.

The cantina was packed that night. Cadets, officers, and drunkards were everywhere. Finn simply shrugged, sauntered to the front bar and slapped a few credits down. "Just give me something strong," he said.

It had been a long day for all of them, and he still needed to get new boots for his uniform. How exactly was he going to explain this? He couldn't say Terrance stole them (he had no proof, and even if he did, no one would believe him). Maybe he could just say he misplaced them? Or they had gotten ruined during training that he could no longer use them?

"You think you're so fuckin' clever?"

Finn's ears perked up at the sound of a loud, brass voice echoing through the Cantina. He'd know it anywhere. It was the same voice that taunted him during training, and insulted anyone that dared challenge it. Terrance.

And there Terrance was, on the far side of the Cantina with his buddies, circled around some poor cadet like vultures. Terrance towered over nearly everyone, and it was one of the reasons why many never questioned him, or dared to challenge him. That, with his parents' money and connections, made him pretty powerful within the ranks. Even some Commanding Officers were intimidated.

And now, Terrance used that fear to harass another person. A cadet who stood a full two feet below Terrance, who had a black eye and a bleeding nose. Who had, what looked like, beer poured over his uniform, and peanut shells in his hair.

Force, was Terrance really that threatened of everyone that walked into the Academy?

The bartender came back with Finn's beer, placed it down and took the next customer's order.

But what was worse, what was even worse, was that no one was doing anything to stop it. There were other cadets here, commanders, people Finn trained with every day, and no one stepped in to do anything.

They were soldiers, they were all soldiers and here they were, sitting while this injustice was going on. How could they protect the galaxy if they couldn't even watch after their own?

Make us proud…

Would Finn's family be proud of this? Him sitting on the sidelines like a coward while Terrance ruled the Academy like Emperor Palpatine? If he couldn't stand up to some bully, what chance did he have against a real enemy? If he couldn't stand up for what was just, what right did he have to even wear his uniform?

"Enough!"

And before Finn knew it…his voice had cut through the noise of the Cantina, straight to Terrance's ears.

"You say somethin' Nerf-herder?" Terrance asked, a cruel glint in his eye.

Finn stood from his chair, and the cantina fell silent. "Yeah. Leave that guy alone Terrance." It was one thing for Terrance to harass him, Finn was used to that. But what kind of soldier could he call himself if he let something like this go without notice?

Finn squared his shoulders, and walked over to Terrance and his gang. Three…no, the four of them stood tall, their chests puffed out. The cadet Terrance harassed had long since fled the scene. The air grew still. Something was going to happen.

"So you think you're tough, boy?" Terrance asked.

"Well, I'm certainly tough enough to deal with someone without a gang of buddies at my side. And I'm certainly tough enough to stand up to bastards like you who think they can treat anyone they want just because of Mommy and Daddy's money."

And Terrance, in a fit of rage, shoved Finn away. His hands were massive, and his body had more power in it than a Clone War cannon. "Never talk about my parents you bastard."

But Finn never wavered. "I'm gonna give you one chance. Leave that guy alone, and get out."

But Terrance only weaved his head, and his goons surrounded Finn on all sides.

"How about this," Terrance said, "You start begging for mercy now, and I'll think about going easy on you while I'm stomping your face in."

Finn took a deep breath, and place his fists up. It was now or never. Back in training, they had taught him this scenario a hundred times. The opposition, when stronger in numbers, will always attack at the same time. Especially when the enemy is alone. Finn only had one shot at this…his first move would determine whether or not he'd be able to walk out of here.

The goons leapt, each one lunging for Finn's arms, his legs, and even his head. He dodged, the top of his scalp just nearly missing someone's fist. And without a second thought Finn ran towards Terrance. The man's eyes turned from cocky and cruel to scared and angry. The first rule of warfare…always take out the leader. Without the head, the animal will die.

Finn slide behind Terrance's back, and wrapped his arm around the man's neck, holding him in place against Finn's own chest. If Terrance so much as flinched, Finn could snap his neck in an instant.

"S-stop. Stop!" Terrance yelled, his hands out and his arms flailing. Typical, as soon as his own neck was in danger, suddenly the fun stopped.

Finn only squeezed tighter, "Get your men," Finn seethed, "And get out of here." With a hard shove, Finn released Terrance, and he and his men walked away.

"This ain't over," Terrance said.

The entire cantina only looked on, and it wasn't until Terrance and his gang left, that the bar slowly went back to life, as if nothing had happened at all. In fact, it almost felt like they were trying even harder to ignore Finn.

Well, not that Finn could blame them. He just made Terrance, one of the biggest and most powerful men at the academy look like a joke. It would only serve to make the target on Finn's back bigger.

He just shrugged, "Oh well."

Finn knew that tomorrow, Terrance would be even tougher on him. And he'd probably be disciplined by the higher-ups (no doubt paid off by Terrance) for "disorderly conduct befitting the uniform".

But none of that mattered. Finn looked back into the Cantina's bar, and fixed his jacket's lapel.

"I hope I made you proud dad."