<b><u>Sergeant Twayne, Drill Instructor</u></b><br/>The tall young red-haired recruit had caught the D.I. by surprise, rushing up to him out of nowhere with that sucker-punch.  He was getting old, because he ought to have seen it coming.  That did not mean he was going to retire this instant and let the youngster get away with it.<br/><br/>As he pulled himself back up to his feet, the red-haired woman who Corporal Jannsen had been putting in her place before the D.I. had come back to get the line moving spoke up.  Impromptu demonstrations of hand-to-hand combat?  He worked his jaw with his hand and thought about it.  It could be a good thing.  These two recruits could be put in their place and the rest of the new soldiers would learn not to mess with their betters.<br/><br/>Sergeant Twayne called out to everyone within earshot, "At Ease!  All soldiers!  Gather 'round!  Gather 'round!"  When the nearby soldiers and recruits had done so, he instructed all but the two red-heads to make a big circle.<br/><br/>He walked a smaller circle within the big circle, smugly eyeing each man and woman and putting the fear of God into the recruits with a wicked smile, loudly saying, "Today, there's been a misunderstanding.  One of your fellow worms decided to sucker punch a Drill Instructor.  Me.  I could bring the worm up on charges and have him thrown into the stockade like...," looking at the tall boy he snapped his fingers, "...that!  Maybe until the next war is over!...."  He let that sink in.  "However," the Sergeant went on and began to cover for everyone, "The worm in question thought that the hand to hand demonstration was now instead of later.  He misunderstood the rules!  But I can adjust, so we're going to<b><u>train</u> </b>in some hand to hand fighting right now!"<br/><br/>The Sergeant first pointed at the woman and barked, "Soldier!  You will partner with Corporal Jannsen."  He then turned to Jannsen and informed everyone loudly, "The Corporal is<b><u>NOT</u></b>going to go easy on this recruit because she's a girl, because the enemy is not going to go easy on this soldier because she's a girl!"  Then to both of the combatants he ordered, "Into the center, you two."<br/><br/><b><u>Corporal Jannsen</u></b><br/>Jannsen smiled.  He liked taking care of trouble before it became 'big trouble'.  He'd turn this girl into his personal training bitch for this cycle of basic training.  Right now, he'd wipe that smirk off her face before she knew what had hit her.  He heard the Sergeant shout, "Fight!" and Jannsen stepped in with a quick right round house to her head..., but he missed?!?!"<br/><br/><b><u>Recruit Ó Floinn</u></b><br/>Fiadh watched the Corporal prepare for the fight.  He looked like a brawler.  She'd have to avoid being grabbed.  When the Sergeant began the fight, the Corporal eagerly rushed i' with a wild swing.  Fiadh easily ducked his right and then stepped to her right, like a bullfighter, and let him pass her.  He tried twice more to hit her with a big punch.  Fiadh evaded the second punch a' easily a' she had the first one.  She blocked the Corporal's third punch, opening his pitiful 'guard' and countered with a' upward angled punch into his gut.  The force o' the punch didn't just make him bend over i' half with the wind driven out o' his body.  The force o' the punch lifted the Corporal off o' his feet and he flew back two feet before landing on his ass.<br/><br/><b><u>D.I. Twayne</u></b><br/><i>'What The Fuck!' </i>thought the Drill Instructor.  Well, overconfidence could be a lesson, too.  He called a couple of older privates to take the Corporal to the hospital.<br/><br/>"Don't underestimate your foe, just because it's a woman, either!" Twayne loudly announced and then gave the red-haired girl recruit an appreciative nod.  She moved like she was used to fighting, like a boxer, and her strength..., he hadn't seen a gut punch like that in a long time.  He then motioned her out of the circle and beckoned the tall boy to join him in the center of the circle.<br/><br/>Now the D.I. took a fighting stance.  The boy was a little taller than he was and probably had a good deal of lean muscle mass, judging from the hit that Twayne had received early.  Probably fast, too.  Twayne was more heavily muscled.  His muscle tone was solid and would be like armor against the young man's strikes.  The saying went,<i> 'Old age and treachery will overcome youth and skill.'  </i>Time to put it to the test.  "Fight!" he ordered.<br/><br/>Staring the young man in the eyes, his peripheral vision saw the entire body of his foe.  The younger man threw some quick punches that the D.I. blocked.<i>'Old age and treachery', </i>without shifting his eyes at all, Sergeant Twayne stomped on the recruit's foot, pinning him in place, surprised and off balance.  The red-head's guard faltered and the D.I. struck him hard, in the face, twice, before lifting his foot and lightly dancing away.  It was a satisfying payback for the young man's sucker-punch.