[center][h1]Fire in the Hole[/h1]


[img]http://i.imgur.com/XZCyPaz.png[/img]     [img]http://i.imgur.com/OiIXHEg.png[/img]     [img]http://i.imgur.com/55cuDim.jpg[/img]     [img]http://i.imgur.com/jw3F1O9.png[/img]
[h2][color 33ec06]Marcus[/color] | [color 9e0039]Angel[/color]  |  [color 662d91]Kusari[/color]  |  [color B0C4DE]Brent[/color][/h2]

[color=9e0039][img]http://i.imgur.com/3R5vYYi.png?2[/img][hr][color=silver]𝕋𝕦𝕖: 𝕊𝕖𝕡𝕥. 𝟚𝟡, 𝟚𝟘𝟚𝟘   / /   𝔹𝕒𝕝𝕕 ℍ𝕖𝕒𝕕 𝕀𝕤𝕝𝕒𝕟𝕕   / /   ℤ𝕙𝕒𝕟𝕘'𝕤 𝔼𝕤𝕥𝕒𝕥𝕖   / /  ~𝟙𝟘𝟘𝟘[/color][hr][/color]
[/center]
[hider Fire in the Hole]
[i]BANG! BANG! BANG![/i]

After the pain inducing and mystery solving escapade that was his hunting adventure with Ernie and Brent, Marcus had finally managed to make his way back up to the shooting range. Apparently, there were bear and shit on this island too, so carrying a pistol around with him might not have been such a terrible idea - hopefully he'd be able to request one. For self defense of course.

[i]BANG! BANG! BANG![/i]

Which, if he was going to be carrying a pistol around, it made sense that he should train a little bit with it in the upcoming weeks, just to keep himself sharp. The few targets that had been helpfully put out for him had a fair number of bullet holes in them, and ever since Marcus had started learning to aim for recoil, the holes were getting closer and closer.

Plus, he'd only fumbled with the reload a little bit. Dropping the clip straight out of the gun and onto the ground wouldn't be a problem in combat as long as he could quickly replace it, so he probably didn't even need to embarass himself trying to catch it when it had just plummeted out. Thankfully, there hadn't been anyone around but the staff to see, and that guy had been kind enough to say he hadn't seen it.

Of course, if he were going to be out in the field more often, perhaps it wouldn't hurt to try some other equipment as well. Maybe panicking civilians would be less inclined to do things if he had a bigger gun. Maybe he wouldn't have to do things that he'd regre-

Marcus tried to distract himself from that line of thinking by examining some of the other weapons that were around, his eyes immediately falling on the unmistakable form of a shotgun. Lawrence had a shotgun way back in Wisford, hadn't he? That other guy had one too, that's what he'd been holding when he got knocked out of the APC. What he'd used against the gargoyle.

Maybe if he'd been better with it, Savannah would still be...

He shook his head again, his blood starting to boil at himself. He wasn't doing any favors thinking about these kind of things, so why did they keep coming up? All he was doing was making himself angry at this point. Fortunately, he had a couple of targets to take his anger out on.

He set himself up, adjusting his ear protection and glasses once before taking aim. [i]Arms loose. Don't let the elbows lock. Deep breath[/i]

[i]BLAM![/i]

Even through the earmuffs, the shot rattled Marcus slightly. More than that, the gun had nearly flung itself from his hands, blasting backwards and slamming his shoulder back, a small '[i]pop![/i]' and small shoot of pain accompany the impact. He probably hadn't dislocated anything, but the sound of static and sudden rewind made it apparent that he wasn't taking any chances.

It was early in the morning. Angélique’s mind had been occupied with what she had seen in the town the past days, so much that she did not know that she had been jogging way more than she usually did in the morning. Reaching the premises of the mansion, she heard gunshots coming from the shooting range. Strange, someone had decided to train this early in the morning. Then again, America was notorious for gun fanatics, something that was still very rare in Canada despite the country changing its firearms policies a few years back, considering the world was unsafe from both Subnaturals and monsters.
 
Curious as to who was training at this time of the day, Angel jogged towards the firing area, only to find an inexperienced Marcus falling over after taking a forceful drawback blow from the firing shotgun. She couldn’t restrain a chuckle at the scene, finding it however quite convenient of his ‘Rewind’ power to recover from a fall.
 
[color=9e0039]“Gee, be more careful when firing that thing. You’ll blow yourself a hole before long.”[/color] Angel’s voice came from inside Marcus’ ear muffles, as if they actually had been headphones broadcasting her words.

Kusari arrived to the shooting range on one of the white bicycles available. She could have walked, but it had been a while since she'd rode a bike. Her long hair was tied into a ponytail, lest it catch onto some part of the bike. It was a nostalgic feeling peddling along a smooth rode and feeling the wind on her face. She still remembered the days her father taught her to ride her first bike. She fell so many times, and wanted to quit many times. But her father told her to keep going, and she always listened to what he said. She wanted to be just like him after all. She looked at her right palm, there was once a scar there from her many times falling, it was gone now. What did it look like again?...

She set the bike against the shed just as she heard the sound of a shotgun go off. Walking over to the range she saw Marcus and Angel, the latter teasing the boy for apparently mishandling the firearm. [color=662d91]"Maybe you should practice with something that doesn't kick as hard first."[/color] She said, walking up to the two.

Marcus made an involuntary noise as someone began speaking directly into his brain, jumping and nearly dropping the loaded shotgun as he did so. He looked around quickly, being sure to set the gun down [i]very[/i] gently before he swung around wildly, finally spotting Angel approaching the range.

"[color 33ec06]Stop that![/color]" he yelled at her rather indignantly, probably louder that necessary because of the muffling effects of the ear protection. He moved one of the 'cups' off his ear to compenstate, which would hopefully allow him to have a normal conversation without shouting at Angel.

"[color 33ce06]Sneak up on people at the shooting range, and you're gonna be the one with extra holes, Angel.[/color]" Marcus joked, his eyes flicking past the raven-haired form to spy a form nearly on the other end of the spectrum: Kusari and her snow white locks.

"[color 33ec06]I've been practicing with handguns all morning, and I was gonna try and broaden my horizons a little bit.[/color]" Marcus said, pondering the theoretical 'kickback' of other guns. Clearly he wasn't very good at estimating that factor if the shotgun had nearly wrenched his arm off his body. "[color 33ec06]Either of you have any suggestions? Baby's first high-powered shotgun?[/color]"

He had heard the gunshots as he got closer, and had even came in expecting someone else to swap gun tips with. What Brent didn't expect though, as he came in with his three remaining handguns holstered on the utility belt he looted from DC, was that there were three people, a whole trio of individuals that he hadn't ever really seen together before. Angelic, Kusari, and Marcus? That was definitely a strange group.

Knocking the side of the shooting range to announce his arrival, the arbiter waved at the group, one brow arced.

[color=B0C4DE]"What's this, you're giving gun safety lessons, Marcus?"[/color]

Angélique was taken aback by Marcus suddenly yelling at her. Jeez, did he got from the wrong side of the bed this morning? It's not like she meant to scare him, it was probably better speaking through his muffles than just show up right behind him and tap his shoulder. 

[color=9e0039]"Given how you shoot, I wouldn't even be surprised."[/color] she answered to the guy just as Kusari and Brent arrived, nodding to the two as they made their presence known. 

[color=9e0039]"How about you just take a proper stance first, then try and get used to the recoil?"[/color] the sole Aberration in the group walked towards Marcus, arm extending her hand to the scarred Arbiter [color=9e0039]"You handy with handguns? Let's make a deal then. You show me how to use pistols, I show you how to use a shotgun, a rifle, or both even."[/color]

"[color 33ec06]Yeah. Perfect examples of what [i]not[/i] to do[/color]" Marcus said, giving a small nod to Brent as he arrived. He took a moment to raise his eyes in surprise as Angel mentioned her proficency with shotguns and rifles, putting his hands on his hips as he smirked.

"[color 33ec06]Now wait a second. When did you become the master of all things firearm? I don't think I've even seen you [i]touch[/i]  weapon, and you're telling me that you're proficent enough with both shotguns [i]and[/i] rifles to [i]teach[/i] people how to use them? Skill set like that starts to raise a couple questions, Angel.[/color]" he said, a slight grin on his face.

"[color 33ec06]But, I guess I can do that. Don't exactly know how [i]well[/i] I can teach you, but probably enough to at least get the basics down. 'Pull the trigger', 'Try not to shoot your friends', stuff like that.[/color]"

Angélique scratched the back of her head, slightly embarrassed by Marcus' eulogy as she chuckled faintly. "I wouldn't say that I am master-level like Lawrence is, but he spent quite some time showing me how to use them. After that, I just went training on my own and improve, really." 

"I mean... I've got to find something to do with all that free time we have, yeah?"

[color=B0C4DE]"A summit between gun nuts then, eh?"[/color] Brent chirped in. [color=B0C4DE]"Mind if I leech off some rifle advice, Angelic? Gotta move up to bigger guns if I want to do work anyways."[/color]

"Oh... sure. That'd be even better than the Desert Eagle you requested, all things considered with your powers."

While the others were talking Kusari picked up a handgun. After examining it for a moment she took out her cell phone, scrolling through notes she had taken in the library. She recognized the gun, and had learned as much as she could about it. She slid the phone back into her skirt pocket and picked up the gun once more. She flipped the safety on and off, getting a feel for it. She ejected the magazine and pushed it back in a few times. With the magazine out she pulled back the slide repeatedly. She loaded the gun and pointed it down the range. [color=662d91]"Oh."[/color] 

She lowered the gun and looked to the others. [color=662d91]"I'm about to fire this so uh, put on ear protection I guess."[/color] She said, waiting a few moments before aiming at a target again. She pulled the trigger, a shock going through her hands as the gun fired. She missed the target by at least two feet. She frowned at the gun, then aiming it again. She let out a breath and took another shot, this time hitting the target. She sat the gun down and looked at it with a contemplative stare. [color=662d91]"That wasn't nearly as fun as people make it out to be..."[/color]

"[color 33ec06]Do you want to do the teaching first then, since you've got the bigger auidence?[/color]" Marcus said, looking over to Angel. He was cut off by Kusari saying something, and between his confused stare as he tried to put together what she'd just said, he barely had enough time to slap his hand over his unprotected ear when he finally did figure it out. A little bit of ringing, but no permanent damage at least.

"[color 33ec06]Yeah, I always used to hear people from the country talk about how much fun it was to go out and shoot deer with these things. I guess it's better when you've got the thrill of the hunt behind you?[/color]" Marcus said, the strained explanation making it very clear that he was no expert on the subject.

[color=B0C4DE]"Eh?"[/color] Brent replied, removing his hands from his ears as well, [color=B0C4DE]"Don't feel that adrenaline pumping through your veins when the gun kicks back? Or any satisfaction at hitting the target dead center?"[/color]

Busy with what Marcus was telling her, Angélique did not notice Kusari preparing herself to shoot. 

[color=9e0039]"If you want me to, sure then. I'll just go and-..."[/color]

The shot made Angel jump, startled. Her ears were ringing, feeling it into her brain as she winced from the pain. Guess that's why everyone was bringing ear pads when gone to a shooting range, and why Lawrence had insisted on her bringing some when they went training. When her hearing returned, she could only discern what Brent had been talking about. The joy of pulling the trigger?

[color=9e0039]"I wouldn'T know myself, personally. Gun regulations has only been around in Canada recently. Used to be a country frowning on their use. Even now, people over there are reluctant to carry them around, if only to stockpile them at home if there's a monster showing up."[/color]

[color=9e0039]"I don't feel the thrill behind it. I guess it's just for training, or kill time."[/color]

"[color 33ec06]I've yet to hit the target dead center, so I'll have to get back to you on that one.[/color]" Marcus joked, looking back to Angel. "[color 33ec06]Alright teach, what do you have for us? What's our first lesson here?[/color]"

[color=662d91]"I guess I'm a little desensitized at this point."[/color] Kusari said, letting out a yawn. She placed her hands into her pockets and looked at Angel. [color=662d91]"Yeah, let's see what a rockstar can do."[/color] 

[color=9e0039]"Well, I suppose no one needs to know about gun safety protocols, given we're all handy using those already, yeah?"[/color] Angélique took the shotgun and flipped the safety switch on and off for good show, then turned to the shooting range. Unlike previously, when she had been practicing with Lawrence's breaking-action shotgun on her knees, she was standing up, bringing the butt of the shotgun on her shoulder bone. 

[color=9e0039]"Really, it's only a matter of stability and handling the weapon. If your stance is flawed and your footing insecure, your body will follow with the drawback. Considering a shotgun packs enough recoil as it is, it's normal you'll jerk back with each shot, but your aim will be affected if you back off too much."[/color]

Following the steps she undertook, Angélique positionned her feet as for the side where her arm was holding the furthest part of the shotgun was slightly placing itself in front of her, while the other side holding the gun's handle was perfectly aligned with her body and her foot facing sideways, giving her more balance. Her whole body angle was slightly angled sideways from the direction she was aiming.

[color=9e0039]"That's the stance you should be having if you want the best accuracy, and better absorb the impact if you take a standing shot. Naturally, I'm left handed, so if you are righ, just do the opposite." [/color]

Breaking from her stance, Angel went to take a pair of earmuffles and placed it onto her ears, waiting for the others to shelter their ears before returning to her stance. [color=9e0039]"Now let's see the results. Mind you, I'm still a novice, so don't be too surprised if I miss my shot."[/color] the firearm adept chuckled, her voice projected to her classmates as if nothing stoof in the way of their hearing.

Taking a breath, then slowly sighed, her finger pulled on the trigger in a moment that fit right. As she expected, her shot missed where it was intended, but the spray of bullets shredded one side of the target. But, the main point of her show was to demonstrate about the stance, not the shot itself. Effectively, when Angel took the shot, her body rocked slightly back with the force of the recoil, but her grip was steady and firm, and her body did not seem to have moved that much compared to Marcus earlier.

"[color 33ec06]Okay. I think I understand that much.[/color]" Marcus said, once again speaking slightly louder unconsciously to accomodate the somewhat muffled sounds of his own voice. He went over to where Angel was standing and gratefully accepted the gun from her, trying to mimic her stance and follow her advice as well as he could.

Positioned in the same way she had been, arm aligned with his body, foot facing sideways. He gave Angel a quick look for confirmation, before turning back to the target. "[color 33ec06]Watch your ears![/color]" he said, lining himself up on the target.

Deep breath. Don't hold it, don't try and anticipate the shot. Squeeze the trigger.

Marcus's body rocked, but the gun didn't fling itself from his grasp this time. He even managed to hit the target a little, most of the shot going too high because of the recoil. Still he'd managed to fire it without hurting himself, despite the slight sting that trembled where he'd been holding it. He looked towards Angel like a small child who'd just learned something all by himself; a kid-like look of pride on his face.

[color=9e0039]"There you go, hotshot! Now all that's left is to find that sweet spot where you think you can get the shot to go where you want it to."[/color] Angélique smiled proudly and raised her fist for a bump, reminiscent of that time back in Crimen Culpae when they exchanged a fist pump as rallying encouragement for their first fight ever as a team. 

"[color 33ec06]Awesome! You can just call me 'Tex', little missy.[/color]" Marcus said in a horribly butchered Old-Western accent, returning the fistbump with the excitement of a small boy being told he'd actually done well. "[color 33ec06]Anybody else want to try 'Angel's Shotgun School' before I show her the ins and outs of something  fair bit smaller?[/color]" Marcus asked, his eyes trailing over Brent and Kusari.

[color=B0C4DE]"See?"[/color] Brent grinned, slapping Marcus on the back, [color=B0C4DE]"Exciting after all, eh? And yeah, give me a go. Shame they don't have sniper rifles here, but these are functionally the same, right?"[/color]

[color=9e0039]"There must be rifles around here somewhere, no? I suppose the concept of shooting would remain the same, but you simply add a scope, right?"[/color]

[color=B0C4DE]"Feel like a pro military dude would slap you on the head for that,"[/color] the arbiter replied,[color=B0C4DE] "But sure, let's go with that. Marcus, the gun?"[/color]

"[color 33ec06]All yours, my shootliness[/color]" Marcus said, slightly (but safely) flourishing the shotgun to Brent. He at least knew how to shoot the thing without hurting himself - he'd likely spend some portion of the week trying to nail the whole 'aiming' thing.

But if there was one thing he knew about shotguns, it was that aiming was not a priority. And if there was one thing he knew about firearms in general, it's that Max would beat him about the head for thinking that.

[color=B0C4DE]"Thank you kindly, Sir Howell,"[/color] Brent curtsied gracefully, before receiving the shotgun himself. Adopting much of the same footwork that Angelic demonstrated. Plugging his ears with foamy bits, the arbiter's ears traced with silver circuitry momentarily, completely cutting off sound as the ear plugs transformed into some different. Was that good enough? Probably. Most of his past upgrades had made sound a non-issue, due to simply turning the guns into lasers, but now...

A thumb flicked the safety off, as Brent took aim, both eyes wide open, locked onto the target. His breathing steadied, and, almost naturally, he imagined the crusher once more. Correct after the first shot. Ready. Set. Fi-

[i]Click.[/i]

Brent blinked. Pulled the trigger again.

[i]Click.[/i]

[color=B0C4DE]"Goddamnit,"[/color] the arbiter laughed goodnaturedly, [color=B0C4DE]"Angelic, wanna teach us how to reload this thing as well?"[/color]

"Oh, right. My bad." Angel chuckled as she had forgotten about this important part of the lesson. Can't go about teaching them how to shoot a shotgun without telling them how to reload the thing. Fortunately for her, the shotgun looked very much like Lawrence's own, a double-barelled with break-action reload. 

[color=9e0039]"If I may?"[/color] Angel requested as she held out her hand.

[color=B0C4DE]"Go ahead, Shotgun Sista."[/color]

Taking the shotgun from Brent's hands, Angélique displayed the gun to her peers. [color=9e0039]"This one is basically a break-action shotgun. As the name implies..."[/color] Angel grabbed the gun by the handle with one hand while the other placed itself on the top of the barrel, pushing downwards forcibly to crack the gun in two. [color=9e0039]"You just need to reload from the slots there. It's easier than it looks. Simply put some pressure on the barrel." [/color]

The Aberration young woman cracked the gun back in one piece and held it out to Brent, leaving the whole reloading procedure to him.

Kusari stifled a laugh upon hearing Angel say "Hotshot," she sounded like a soccer coach. Her demonstration seemed decent at least, Marcus's shot wasn't half bad all things considered. She had to cover her mouth and turn around once Marcus opened his mouth however. The boy's humor rating was so low it had overflowed into infinity. She let out a cough and walked over to the shed. She picked up a hunting rifle similar to one she'd seen while researching in the library. She took a moment to pick out the right ammo before leaving the shed with the gun, just in time to hear Brent call Angel "Shotgun Sista." Kusari's mouth wiggled like a worm getting poked with a needle.

[color=662d91]"I-I found a rifle Brent. I'm gonna try it out first if you don't mind."[/color] She said, managing to not laugh. She could swear they were doing this on purpose. She sat the gun down and pulled back the bolt, then placing a round inside. She pushed it back in halfway, then thinking she might as well add another bullet. She pulled the bolt back again and the round popped out. [color=662d91]"O-oh,
right."[/color] She quickly picked up the round, hoping no one saw that happen. After properly loading the rounds in she took aim at a target, making sure to get into the right position. She wondered how likely it would be that she would be able to get in position in the middle of a fight. She supposed practice would help with that.

Letting out a breath she fired, just barely missing the target. She adjusted the angle of the gun and fired again, this time hitting the target near it's bottom. She ejected the empty casing and sat the rifle down. She rubbed her shoulder, the impact of the gunpowder would have likely left a bruise if not for her magic. It didn't help being nearly skin and bones.

[color=B0C4DE]"Oh, nice first shots,"[/color] Brent nodded at Kusari's attempts, before following Angelic's instructions. It was a bit unnerving how easily the shotgun broke apart, but on the other hand...the arbiter's mind naturally turned towards those Hollywood scenes where people reloaded shotguns by spinning them, and decided to make that a future goal.

Two slugs jammed in and locked into place, the arbiter grinned at the three of them, lining up his shots once more. Puffs of light burst within his ears, those plugs once again becoming extra-effective, before firing once.

A burst of force and a tremor shook his body. Left side. Adjust.

A burst of force and a tremor shook his body. On point. Celebrate.

[color=B0C4DE]"Oh man,"[/color] the arbiter remarked feeling the shotgun's power in his very bones, [color=B0C4DE]"This is way cooler than the DEagles. Might even knock off mountains with these!"[/color]

[color=9e0039]"Impressive!"[/color] Angélique remarked at both Kusari and Brent nailing their shots exceptionally well for first timers. She remembered her attempts took way more tries than this. [color=9e0039]"Who knows? With our powers growing so quickly, you might as well be blowing holes in mountain in no time with those guns." [/color]

Clearly those teams exercise did good to the rockstar's morale. At this point she didn't really mind her previous animosity with Brent. She was just glad to be around and improving with teammates. 

Turning to Kusari, the Aberration quirked up a worried eyebrow. [color=9e0039]"Are you alright, Kusari?"[/color] an ironic question, considering the girl was immortal, but it came out as sheer reflexes.

"[color 33ec06]Careful using mountains as shooting practice though.[/color]" Marcus started, having taken up a casual stance a fair distance away from the practice, while still allowing him a decent look at the targets as they were hit. "[color 33ec06]Every mountain you blow up is one that Kadabra could use later. Those might very well become a limited resource between you two.[/color]"

He gave Kusari a half-look as Angel spoke up, listening for her answer at least. She was immortal, that much he knew; even if she'd accidentally blown her arm off by accident, she'd probably react in the same way as if he stubbed his toe. A little misfire bruise would be nothing, even if she gave herself one.

Kusari blinked at Angel for a moment, wondering if she knew about the fact that she'd been having trouble focusing and sleeping lately. What happened in D.C kept bothering her, kept making her think that she had set herself on a course she could never steer from. She looked down at her hand, still on her shoulder. Right, she was just overthinking things. [color=662d91]"Yeah... I think I'll stick with handguns, anything larger might be too much for someone as light as me."[/color]

[color=B0C4DE]"Why're you interested in guns anyways, Kusari? Trying to pick up a new hobby after all?"[/color]

Kusari shook her head. [color=662d91]"I just figured I should learn at some point. I don't want to have to rely on cutting myself up just to be able to do anything in a fight."[/color] She said. It was half true, she also couldn't stand looking at those claws anymore.

"[color 33ec06]Always good to have a backup.[/color]" Marcus agreed from his position towards the back. Of course, for those of them without combat powers like himself, it was more like a 'Plan A' than a backup. This was the extent of his combat powers, with his only backup being 'call for someone who can actually do damage'.

While the others talked among themselves, Angel walked over the rifle, taking a long look at it. Bolt-action. Again a gun Lawrence had showed her how to use. Were the types of weapon he used just that common, or did he actually take them from hunting supplies? Fiddling with the bolt and the cartridges, the lone Aberration here made sure it was properly loaded, swinging it to her shoulder as she took the same stand she had positionned herself in earlier for demonstration. 

[color=9e0039]"Watch your ears."[/color] she called out softly with her magical whispers, waiting a few seconds of delay before taking a shot. She was surely more comfortable with that type of weapon as her shot, despite being rusty, managed to hit the target at a lower point. If that target had been a man, he would've got shot in his "assets".

[color=9e0039]"Whoops..."[/color] she muttered with a faintly amused grin.

Brent cringed, his nether regions tightening instinctually.

"[color 33ec06]Ooooh....oh [i]no[/i].[/color]" Marcus said, his quick inhale hissing through clenched teeth.

Kusari let out a whistle. [color=662d91]"Nice shot."[/color]

[color=9e0039]"Oh... uh... I meant to aim for the chest, really..."[/color] Angélique chuckled slightly, ejecting the spent bullet, reloading for another shot and taking aim. 

Another shot, this time way better, straight to the heart. Satisfied with this one, Angel flipped the safety on and lowered the gun upright to ground level. [color=9e0039]"Well, who's next?"[/color]

"[color 33ec06]Man. You [i]do[/i] give love a bad name.[/color]" Marcus joked, looking around the room as Angel called for volunteers.

There was a hard silence as eyes dashed to eachother, before Marcus finally stepped forward.

"[color 33ec06]I guess I'll give it a shot...a try...dammit.[/color]" he said, stuttering his way through accidental puns and grabbing the rifle quickly to try and just brute force his way through that embarassing exchange with minimal questions or comments.

He lined it up the same way he had with the shotgun, having to hold it slightly more forward due to the longer barrel. He took another deep breath, lining up the shot, squeezing the trigger. The only real mistake he made was trying to anticipate the kickback, which forced his shot a little higher than he'd intended. Or, quite a bit higher than he'd intended.

He'd meant to shoot the target in the center torso, or at least, that was where he had been [i]trying[/i] to aim. He was contemplating whether he should admit that as he stared at the clean hole right through the 'head' of the target.

[color=9e0039]“God, and the guys back then told me I was bad.”[/color] Angel laughed whole-heartedly at Marcus’ references. Not that it was the funniest kind of humor, but music-related bad puns were something she did appreciated. 
 
Had she known Marcus made a mistake, the Aberration girl wouldn’t have thought the Arbiter was a natural professional at shooting. It was just too unbelievable for a first timer to shoot straight for the head on his first try. Very impressive indeed.
 
[color=9e0039]“Wow… you do have a knack for [i]headbanging[/i]. That was pretty metal. You sure this is your first time?”[/color]

Marcus let out an audible groan. He thought his own jokes were terrible, but this girl. A joke like that was banned under the Geneva Convention last time he'd check. Psychological torture and the like.

"[color 33ec06]What can I say?[/color]" Marcus said, quickly drifting into smug territory. "[color 33ec06]Beginner's luck and all that. Not that I need luck of course.[/color]" he said, making a display of brushing he nails across his front and blowing them off. He was lying again, taking all the credit for his mistake, but with any luck nobody else had noticed it.

[color=662d91]"Huh..."[/color] Kusari looked at the hole in the target's head left by Marcus. It certainly was a good shot. After biting her lip and trying not to comment on the growing scent of cheese thanks to the bad jokes being flung around, Kusari turned to Marcus. [color=662d91]"That was pretty good Marcus, let's see another."[/color] She said, suddenly feeling like teasing him due to his bravado.

Oh boy, the beginning of a snowball effect. Marcus shrank nervously a little bit, before he puffed back up to his full, confident size. "[color 33ec06]Hey, don't be hiding behind me to try and get out of your lessons. Let's see one of you two hop up here and take a crack at it![/color]"

[color=9e0039]"Three's a charm, Zippy. Don't be content to sit on your laurels on the first shot. Give us at least another two, then we can switch."[/color] Angel remarked, approving of Kusari's demand. It would be a waste to just have him shoot a single time when they were here to train, no matter how muc marksmanship Marcus had. Overconfidence was no good either. 

"[color 33ec06]I thought it was a crowd?[/color] Marcus softly whined, picking the rifle back up and sliding his ear protection back over his head. It was simple, all he had to do was the exact same thing he'd just done - should lead to the same results. Scientific method or something like that.

He lined up his stance again, trying to mimick exactly what he'd done before. Take up the stance Angel had shown him, line it up, compensation for the longer barrel, aim for center mass, deep breath and squeeze.

Another shot rang out, this one going high a wide, just barely splintering the edge of the target in the right shoulder. No good. He was still trying to anticipate the recoil. He squeezed again, offering himself little time to realign the shot in favor of a quickened, nervous barrage. This one went even further out, slamming hard against the wooden wall opposite of him.

Dammit. One more.

He took another deep breath, his shoulder aching slightly and the gun drooping off to the side a little. [i]Compensate, lift it up.[/i]. Another slow exhale, and a slow squeeze of the trigger, without trying to anticipate anything; just like Max had taught him with pistols.

The rifle slammed against his shoulder once more, the shot firing a little far to the left and puncturing where one of the kidneys would be. Or at least where he thought it would be. He wasn't a doctor.

"[color 33ec06]Maybe it was beginner's luck after all.[/color]" He said sheepishly, sliding one side of the earguards off and setting the rifle down.

[color=B0C4DE]"No worries man,"[/color] Brent replied, [color=B0C4DE]"Not everyone can perform under pressure. I'm sure you'd be a sniper elite if no eyes were on you."[/color]

[color=9e0039]"It's alright Marcs, no one shot is ever the same, unless you're some sort of machine I guess."[/color] Angel encouraged with a small fist bump on his shoulder.

[color=B0C4DE]"Well, no, I'm pretty certain Marcus is a machine. With his endless array of dad jokes and all."[/color]

"[color 33ec06]I'm positive any loyal machine would have self-destructed itself after the first dad joke. Especially after 'headbanging' over here. That would have been a bluescreen at least. If the damn thing didn't just delete itself.[/color]" Marcus said, trying to hide his slight wince as Angel bumped his shoulder. Perhaps he hadn't been holding it exactly as Angel was. Or maybe that was just the price to pay for firing these things. Either way, it'd probably be an aching bruise before too long.

[color=9e0039]"C'mon, it wasn't [i]that[/i] bad! I just can't resist a bad music pun if you set me up for them. You're the one who started it."[/color] The controversial rockstar giggled gleefully.

[color=9e0039]"Think you're good on your own for the rifle while our resident dad teaches me about handguns, Brent?"[/color]

[color=B0C4DE]"I'm a fast learner,"[/color] the amethyst eyed youth said, [color=B0C4DE]"Probably won't shoot my eye out."[/color]

[color=9e0039]"Alright then. Have fun. I'll be just over there if you need something."[/color] the shades-wearing young woman told the Arbiter before grabbing Marcus by the shoulder. [color=9e0039]"C'mon Zip Zip, tell me your secrets!"[/color]

"[color 33ec06]I'm gonna show you the secrets of the inside of this barrel if you keep calling me Zip Zip.[/color]" Marcus joked, trying to pass his wince off as a slightly strained smile. Nonetheless, he picked up one of the pistols, making sure everyone who was interested was paying attention.

"[color 33ec06]Alright, let's see if I can remember everything she told me...[/color]" Marcus started, mind working hard to try and recall Max's exact words. First was the grip...maybe.

[i]You're gonna drop it holding it like that, dummy.[/i]

"[color 33ec06]Alright, hold your hands on the gun like I have mine here. Basically, you're trying to lock down the most solid parts of the gun so it doesn't force itself back if you're trying to get multiple shots off. It'll probably feel weird, but that's normal.[/color]"

[i]Don't stand so rigid, you look like one of Buckingham's boys![/i]

"[color 33ec06]Stance is basically the same one you showed us for shotguns, Angel. No need to compensate as much since it's only a pistol, but similar.[/color]"

[i]You're gonna break your elbows if you lock them like that; loosen up a little.[/i]

"[color 33ec06]When you aim, try to keep your arms a little loose. You want them straight out in front of you, but don't lock your elbows. Nice and easy.[/color]"

[i]There you go. Now just take a deep breath, and squeeze the trigger. Don't try and anticipate when it will go off, or you're going to throw off the shot.[/i]

"[color 33ec06]Breath in, aim, fire on the exhale. Same deal as the rest of them.[/color]"

He punctuated this by looking down his sight, and following his own instructions. There were two loud pops as the gun fired twice, the first shot nearly hitting the center of the chest where he was aiming, and the second being about an inch or an inch and a half to the right.

[color=9e0039]"I see..."[/color] Angel remarked, comtemplative over Marcus' demonstration. He really was quite the shot with handguns. So the basics kind of were the same, only that the stance and the way to hold the weapon were different. It couldn't be that hard, considering the gun was lighter, right?

[color=9e0039]"Nice shots. You really do know your stuff, huh?" [/color]

"[color 33ec06]I'd hope so. I've been forced to go over it enough times. Although I guess I can't complain considering the situation, can I?[/color]"

[color=9e0039]"Mhm... who though you to use firearms?"[/color]

"[color 33ec06]My sister. She's military, and I guess she figured it wouldn't hurt to make sure I knew how to work a firearm at least. She was right on that account, but I really don't need to give her any more reasons to be smug.[/color]"

[color=9e0039]"Damn, I'm surprised you aren't more disciplined, Marky. If I'd been military I'd kick my younger brother into obedience. Not that I've ever thought of being a soldier myself before."[/color] Angélique grinned at the younger boy, taking one pistol that had been left on the shooting counters. It seemed loaded? Inspecting the firearm more closely, she deduced where the safety switch was, flipping it off before taking the stance Marcus showed her.

Gripping the handgun with her two hands at the handle; trigger finger pointing where she was shooting; arms extended in front of her and at face level; legs firmly planted in the ground, one in front of the other, one eye closed and the other staring at the iron sights. The whole positionning and weapon in her hands felt less cumbersome. Why did Lawrence told her that it was more difficult to shoot these?

Breath in, relax, breath out, take a shot. She realized why it was more difficult now.

She let her guard down due to the lighter weight of the gun. Not that she dropped the weapon, but it violently jerked upwards as it fired as her hands and arms recoiled from the kickback, making her shot go completly astray above the target. 

[color=9e0039]"Uh... whoops?"[/color]

"[color 33ec06]Just because it's smaller doesn't mean you should treat it with any less care.[/color]" Marcus said, nodding for her to try and take another shot. "[color 33ec06]Put your hands together like I showed you, should help with some of the recoil.[/color]"

[color=B0C4DE]"Watch your wrists as well,"[/color] Brent said, peering over before turning back to his own shooting, [color=B0C4DE]"Gotta align it properly and all."[/color]

"Alright." the Aberration rockstar nodded at her two mentors. She took the stance again, placing her hands like Marcus indicated her, but unconsciously locking her wrists and arms while doing so. While her next shot did indeed not jerk her body backwards, her stiffened positionning made the gun lean down from it's intended target, hitting the target lower than expected. Again, a clear hole had ripped the region that should not be touched.

[color=9e0039]"I... I missed again..."[/color] Angel remarked as she took a long glance at the shot she just made.

"[color 33ec06]You gotta stop. I'm not gonna teach you shit if that's the evil you do with it.[/color]"

[color=B0C4DE]"That's not a miss, but...yeah, no. How bout you just stick with screams instead of castration?"[/color]

The situation would've been funnier had it not been for her small frustration at missing her targets, and the sudden reminder that her voice was indeed one hell of a weapon. Huffing angrily, Angel resumed to her shooting stance, this time evaluating what she did wrong the last tries. Not too stiff, not too loose. Firm, but not terribly so. 

Three was a charm indeed. Dumb luck or coincidence, her shot flew straight to the heart, again. 

Kusari avoided making fun of Marcus for missing his shots after being called out, getting exposed was bad enough after all. Instead she went back to the handgun she'd used before. She picked it up and took the proper stance. Before she fired however, she had to stop the giggling fit caused by Angel. She hoped she didn't get stuck with a nickname as bad as "Zippy," though never getting one at all would be just fine with her. She took a deep breath, focused, and fired. She hit the target, but not where she was aiming. She tried again, again and again until she ran out of bullets. Nearly all of the shots had hit, but none dead center where she was aiming. It was a bit more than optimistic to think she could become a master marksman so quickly, though she did seem to have a knack for it.

As she ejected the magazine she looked over to Angel, she'd just shot below the belt again. Good luck to anyone getting into a firefight with her. After some playful criticism from Marcus and Brent she took another shot, this one hitting the mark. [color=662d91]"Jeez Angelic,
you're making us look bad."[/color]

[color=9e0039]"I-it's just beginner's luck, really."[/color]Angélique chuckled in modesty. Looking at the white-haired Arbiter's shots, she had quite the talent herself as well. It felt strange to see her haughty figure smiling and giggling like that. Kusari always striked Angel as the serious and cold-hearted person, given their past interaction and her actions so far. Maybe she wasn't such a bad person after all? A flash of the time they drank against each other for contest in D.C. for their girls night in. She had promised the tall girl a rematch, or more like a proper time to drink together.

[color=9e0039]"Hey, those shots aren't bad either. Your hits are on target."[/color] Angel smiled as she turned to her own target.

Following Kusari's lead, she proceeded to empty her magazine as well. She always aimed for center mass of the target, but her shots had circled all around the intended target; pectorals, sides, throat, belly and shoulders. Eventually, the gun clicked as the raven-haired Aberration pulled the trigger. Empty. Unsure how to change ammo, she took a bit of time to examine the handgun, finding the trigger to eject the magazine, which fell on the ground as she did not expect it to come out this quickly. She fumbled around with the new magazine until it had properly clicked inside the handgun. 

"[color 33ec06]Not too bad! By the end of this, we'll have our own little gunslinging posse![/color]" Marcus said, stifling a small chuckle as the magazine hit the ground. He'd done a similar thing when he first changed magazines, although he had tried to catch it and ended up smacking it halfway across the range by accident.

"[color 33ec06]Unless you need any training, Brent, I'd say that today was a pretty successful set of lessons. We can all operate a small armory now - which I'm prefectly fine with![/color]"

[color=9e0039]"Yeah. Thanks for the help, Marcs. I'll have to train with what I own once we get back to the institute." [/color]

[color=9e0039][i]Hopefully we will use those on actual deserving people...[/i][/color]
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