Chapter 12 – Elemental Riffle

The three passed the Science department to buy some snacks on their way to the military department. The Science building had several food dispensers located in front and Dorin bought a lot of snacks from each. His satchel was near bursting when they finally went on their way to the shooting ranges.

"How come we don't have food dispensers in our dorms?" Dorin asked, popping some candy inside his mouth.

"Magic students kept messing around with it, the food inside always disappear in the morning" wrote Seb with a wafer stick sticking out of his mouth.

"Really, you two, hurry up and finish your snacks." Mar said with a frown, "Eating is prohibited in most areas in the Military department, particularly in the training fields."

"Roger" Seb gulped his wafer. Dorin placed the rest of the candy in his mouth and chewed vigorously.

"We'll be passing the Sky Gate." Mar pointed at a gatehouse with 2 guards standing in front.

The grounds of the Military Division were surrounded by a short wall with a gatehouse at particular locations. The nearest one was the North-East gatehouse called the Sky gate. "You can leave your things in the lockers inside, Dorin," instructed Mar, "Seb, leave your coat. You'll be in trouble if an officer finds out what your pockets contain." she added vaguely.

Dorin surrendered his bag and was given a silver key card with a number on it. Seb was reluctant, but finally handed his coat over after carefully folding it. He watched suspiciously as the guard placed it inside the small locker and handed him the key.

"So, where are the shooting ranges?" asked Dorin after they left the gatehouse.

"Just past those barracks." she replied. She faced the two, frowning. "Now, I want you to keep your mouth shut." she said, "It's not as strict since regular classes have not resumed yet. I'll be telling the Drill Officer that you are interested in joining the Military division for the coming school year." she explained, "Hopefully they will let you observe the class."

"Okay," Dorin grins at Mar, "thank you very much! I really appreciate this, Margarette!"

"Think nothing of it," replied the girl beside him, "and while you're at it, please also consider joining the Military Division." she says, eyes burning, "Our country can always use powerful mages such as yourselves to further lead our Empire into the bright future it rightly deserves! And what better way than to join the military in it's campaign to protect people and country from - "

[Are we there yet?] Seb writes in front of Mar.

"From..." Mar, loosing her momentum, glares at Seb and tries to grab the slate which was immediately snatched away by the silent boy.

"I hear some explosions..." Dorin says, "is that what you meant by black powder?"

"It's just behind that building." Mar pointed out.

They went past a barn like structure and saw a couple of student cadets in training. The cadets held long metal rods while kneeling behind bales of straw. Smoke rose from the tip of their weapons with every explosion, which sends small metal slugs to a target at the end of the field. The targets were propped against mounds of dirt, a hundred yards away from the firing area.

"So, this is a shooting range..." Dorin whispered low, the sound of the rifles drowning his voice. "It looks a lot like an archery range..."

"You two stay here, I'll ask the Drill Sergeant if we can look around." Mar went to a senior looking officer at the side of the ranks and saluted him. They talked for a while, looked at the direction of the two mages, and approached them.

"I am Drill Sergeant Robinson" the senior officer said, facing the two, "1st Lieutenant Margarette Gunnar here informs me that you two mages are interested in joining a marksmanship drill?"

"Yes sir." replied Dorin sharply, "If you would allow it, sir."

Seb simply nodded at the officer.

"Do you have something to say, boy?" Drill Sergeant Robinson says to the silent Seb.

"This is Sebastian Revius, sir, he has been unable to speak following a childhood trauma." explained Mar. Dorin looked at Seb, surprised.

"Is that so? Then a salute will do." said the drill sergeant, to which the two replied with a smart salute.

"If possible sir, could they look around while these cadets practice with their rifles?" Mar suggested.

"I have something better in mind." replied Drill Sergeant Robinson. He looked closely at the two mages. "What say you try using elemental rifles to gauge your ability for magical combat. It just so happened that we have one available inside..." he signalled to another officer by the barn door and called him by name. "Monroe, borrow an elemental rifle from inside and bring it here."

Mar looked at her two companions who stood still while the cadet went inside the barn.

"You seem pretty used to this?" she asked Dorin, but the officer arrived before the other could answer.

"Your rifle, sir." 2nd Lieutenant Monroe handed a long silver rifle to the drill Sergeant. There were intricate runes carved on it's black wooden barrel, trailing to the tip of it's metal muzzle.

"First lieutenant Gunnar, have you any experience in using elemental firearms?" he asked Mar.

"No sir," replied the lieutenant, "I am a Sword Master, Rapier Class, non-magic corps."

"I myself have very little aptitude for magic..." said the drill sergeant. "Let's get to a target first."

He led the small group to one of the bales of hay and gripped the pistol, aiming at the target.

"This particular rifle is an older model, it makes use of elemental bullets that the marksman mage can fills with their elemental magic."

The drill master took a silver bullets from a box in his pocket and placed it inside the rifle, cocking it. He then took aim at the target at the end of the field and concentrated. The carvings along the rifle's body slowly glowed red. When the whole length was aglow, Drill Sergeant Robinson pulled the trigger and released a red beam of light that hit the target which burst into flames.

"Woah!" Dorin said in amazement, "That was some reaction coming from such a small thaum of magic!" Upon hearing this, Drill Sergeant Robinson looked at Dorin, an eyebrow raised.

Without noticing the sergeant's reaction, Dorin went close and examined the rifle. "I see..." he mused, "this instrument is capable of turning even small amounts of magic into a formidable weapon by compressing it into an enchanted case made of metal..."

"Yes, that is the whole idea of elemental weapons." Drill Sergeant Robinson said flatly, an irritated frown on his face.

"Sir, may I have a turn, sir?" Dorin said, remembering his manners.

"You, mute boy, you go first." Drill Sergeant Robinson called Seb, "Call my magic 'small' huh? Little brat." he thought, snubbing Dorin.

Seb stepped forward as the officer handed him the rifle and showed him how to hold it properly. He aimed at the target which was freshly replaced by some cadets in the field. The body and the barrel glowed blue and gave a soft humming sound.

"Relax boy, let it flow..." said Drill Sergeant Robinson. He helped Seb steady the heavy rifle with a hand. "Now, squeeze the trigger."

Seb pulled the trigger. There was a flash of blue light as a faint trail led to the target that quickly froze and shattered to a million pieces. Even Seb himself looked surprised.

"Magnificent!" Gasped Margarette "I've seen high ranked mages use this same level of magic in Military Exhibitions!" she exclaimed.

"Can I have a turn now?" Dorin asked, looking so excited that he can't help but shift from one foot to another."

"I don't think we have any bullets left." the drill sergeant said flatly. Dorin looked crestfallen.

Drill Sergeant Robinson sighed. He reached inside his pocket and pulled out another bullet from the box. "I guess there's one more left."

Drill Sergeant Robinson took the rifle from Seb, loaded the bullet, and secretly switched on a clasp at the bottom of the barrel. "With the safety on, there's no way he can use that rifle." he thought to himself, snickering. "Here you go, boy."

He handed the rifle to Dorin with a smirk.

"Sir, thank you, sir!" said Dorin as he eagerly took the rifle from the senior officer.

Dorin raised the rifle, aligned the scope to his target, aimed, and tried to fill the barrel with his magic.

Nothing happened.

He tried again, concentrating his magic, but the rifle wouldn't glow. Dorin frowned and looked down at the rifle in his hands.

"Why isn't it working?" He thought to himself. Beside him, the drill sergeant had a smug look in his face. Seb, on the other hand, stepped back, as he felt Dorin's power collect around the rifle. He was about to stop Dorin when he felt the magic swell! Frustrated from the locked gun, Dorin decided to apply his own knowledge on the riffle. "The magic is channelled through the riffle, accumulates inside the 'bullet', and is then sent flying out of the muzzle!"

Dorin forced the bullet out. Seb was suddenly by his side, grabbing hold of the rifle's barrel. All at once, the barrel exploded, sending a sonic boom around Dorin and flooding the shooting area with blinding light. A trail of black energy left the muzzle, narrowly missing the target that disintegrated upon its passage and embedded itself on the mound of earth in a spiral motion, leaving a smouldering crater upon its wake!

"Seb!" Cried Dorin as his friend dropped to the ground, clutching his arm.

"Sebastian!" Mar ran to her friend's side. "Are you okay?"

"What the hell is going on out here?" yelled someone from behind. People in the barn rushed outside to see what all the commotion was about.

"Major General Muller!" saluted Drill Sergeant Robinson, his face turning pale, "There's been a weapon malfunction."

"Sir." Mar stood in attention, "A civilian has been injured by a weapon malfunction." The general approached and looked at the crater where the target used to be before checking on the two students on the ground.

"Would someone tell me what happened here?" he demanded, when Dorin suddenly looks up. "Dorin?!" the general said with a gasp. "What are you doing here?!"

Dorin stared at the general wide-eyed, thoughts swirling in his head. He looked down at his friend, unconscious in his arms. "Marcus." he said, staring back at the general, "My... friend is hurt."

Major General Marcus Muller stared at him. He then turned back at the cadets mulling around the place. "Is there a medic here?"

"Sir, Combat Medic 2nd Lieutenant Benette reporting for duty, sir!" said one of the cadets as he stepped forward.

"Give this civilian medical attention." ordered General Muller. "The rest of you, get back inside the barn and continue with the drill I gave you."

The cadets went back, soon only the 3 friends, General Muller, Sergeant Robinson, and the medic Lieutenant Benette where left outside on the shooting range.

Lieutenant Benette took a small bottle from a pouch around his waist, opened it and passed it under Sebastian's nose, who slowly regained consciousness.

"Seb! Are you okay?" called Dorin as Seb started to stir, "How are you feeling?"

The other lifted his right hand. It was shaking, blood still dripping from a deep gash on his palm.

"Let me look at your hand..." said the medic by their side.

"I'll take the riffle back to storage," offered Sergeant Robinson, "we should get it checked by the magic artificers to see what caused the problem..." he made to take the broken rifle on the ground, but General Muller stopped him. He leaned over to pick it up himself.

"I'll take the rifle." he said.

"Sir, you shouldn't bother yourself..."

"Sergeant Robinson, go supervise the cadets inside, I have been timing them while they clean their rifles when this incident occurred. I will take responsibility in this affair."

"Sir, yes, Sir." said Sergeant Robinson with a salute, looking worriedly at the rifle in the general's hand.

"Can you walk?" General Muller asked Sebastian as soon as the drill sergeant left. Seb looked up at him, his glasses glazed over, and slowly nodded.

"I have a vehicle parked this way." said the general, he looked back at the small company, "You two help glasses along. My car is just behind the barn."

Mar and the medic helped Seb as they made their way with Dorin to the back of the barn. There, a military jeep was parked. Its muddy wheels reached up to Dorin's thighs and its back was open. General Muller instructed the students to ride at the back with Seb.

"You, boy, sit with me inside." he said, pointing at Dorin. Dorin looked at the him, then at Sebastian who lifted his left hand weakly, holding on to his key card.

"That's right, our stuff is still at the check point at the Sky gate!" Dorin informed the general.

"Count on Seb to prioritize his stuff..." said Mar with a sigh. "That means he's doing okay."

"We'll past there on our way to the infirmary." announced General Muller, "Now, everyone in the jeep!"