Page 1 of 2
Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2022 5:46 pm
by Vanessa Quill
Zaichaeri Controlled Woodlands
The chill of Frost had begun to fade, brushed aside by the gentle warmth of the coming Glade. Even still, Vanessa had made sure to pack an assortment of blankets and furs in the back of the carriage. The absolute last thing she needed was for Anton to catch cold and for her to be blamed for it. No, she was taking her job more seriously now, and even wore a new dark blue jacket with House Michaelis' heraldry on her left sleeve. It was well tailored, clean, and did not even smell like stale grog. Those all mattered to Vanessa far less than the magical cloth that had been stitched along the lining, and of course the appropriate documentation sitting in her coat pocket just beside her flask.
They had begun their trip before the sun had rose, but she hadn't once complained about the dire hour of their departure. She was instead excited to be out of the city's walls, every day seeming more labyrinthine and claustrophobic than the last. She did complain about the bouncing and jostling of the carriage as it rolled over uneven, unworked ground on its way to their destination.
She had even spent some of the trip trying to read a collection of leaflets she had gotten from locals down in the Knob. None were particularly riveting. If they were, she surmised, Zaichaer would not have let them be distributed. What was instead important to her was that she continued reading as voraciously as she could, whether she read about rising tensions between nations or a new business offering discounts for its grand opening. It was still slow going, but she no longer had to speak the words aloud, and was recognizing more of them by the day.
After some time, the carriage finally stopped, and there was a knock on the roof of the cabin, the driver. Vanessa still found it difficult to believe that House Michaelis, and by extension her, had personal chauffeurs.
Peering out the window, Vanessa saw enormous old growth trees towering at the edges of the clearing, snow melting from the branches and leaving the ground wet as she opened the door and stepped out. She breathed deeply, the scent of pine and rain heavy in the air, and smiled.
The clearing was large, and was a well known camping site for those who traveled the roads without coin for an inn. The forest seemed to stretch ever onwards before them, and there were no small number of trees back the way they had come from either.
"C'mon, Anton. Help me unpack." Vanessa said as she circled around to the rear of the carriage and begun unloading her armaments. Four pistols far too expensive for her paygrade, a similarly filigreed rifle complete with an already fixed bayonet, and ten boxes of caster shells. She also had brought along no small amount of empty bottles and chipped plates to serve as targets. She had yet to figure out precisely how she might set up the targets such that Anton might hit something, but Vanessa's best plans had never been planned.
The carriage driver, Walter, tipped his hat to the both of them as they retrieved their gear. He was an older gentleman, wings of grey hair well styled on either side of his head. "I shall be back for you come evening. I would love to stay and observe, but these horses are not cavalry stock. Unused to the roar of battle, and I'd hate to spook them as such to delay your return trip."
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Mon Feb 28, 2022 6:44 pm
by Anton
"Thank you, Walter," Anton said cheerfully as he began to unpack his own supplies. They were considerably more eclectic than Vanessa's collection of guns, ammunition, and targets, but to him far more vital. He had spent half a year switching between farms and laboratories, cow shit and chemicals, and at last he thought he had something to show for it. Something thankfully more in the veil of the latter than the former.
An Imperial chemist had divined a process by which artificial fertilizer might be made, greatly expanding crop yields in their attempt to match the prodigious output of Ecith. Sourcing the nitrogen and hydrogen needed for the reaction was as trivial as in his earlier experiments, even easier with access to the Institute's chemical stocks. Said resources were even more useful for the process itself, the young student taking advantage of pressurized reaction vessels on offer.
It had taken months of research and weeks of work, but he finally had what he hoped would be an explosive: ammonium nitrate, pure fertilizer. The container it came in was quite small, at least when taken in context of the massive chest he unloaded next. It was almost as large as he was, and about as heavy, the effort almost immediately winding him.
He didn't know where she had gotten a cannon, and he wasn't entirely certain he wanted to know, but it'd do its job.
"Right. The pistols first? Work our way up before we do the actual test?" Camping was not precisely his forte, and frankly he was glad that this excursion did not call for it. But shooting... he was already accustomed enough to that. Even if only with small arms. Yes, best to start with the pistol before daring to touch the rifle, let alone the cannon. "Or would you rather make sure we aren't about to goad a bear into mauling us in the middle of the woods?"
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2022 10:41 pm
by Vanessa Quill
Once the chest was on the ground, Vanessa hefted it by one of the handles and dragged it off to the side. The cannon inside was one of the swivel guns from her airship's deck. A small cannon, but best suited for something like this. Easily transported, and the ammunition had been easier to come by as well. A stonecutter had provided three round balls the exact size and shape of caster shells. She would have preferred metal, but without existing molds that had been prohibitively expensive, at least for a preliminary test.
"What, scared of a bear? Just do what you did to the last animal that got in your way while shooting." She joked, face pulling into a grin. Then she finished unloading, the last of her gear a set of long wooden stakes and a single flat plank of wood. With them under one arm, and an armful of bottles and plates gathered in the other, Vanessa stepped further into the clearing.
Driving the stakes down into the earth wasn't terribly difficult, though the ground was still hard from Frost's lingering grasp. Once the line of stakes was driven in deep enough that the breeze didn't wobble them, Vanessa set the plank over the stakes to make a very rudimentary shelf. From there she places the bottles one after another in a long, almost unbroken line, and with a length of twine she hung the chipped plates down over the side where they swung in the breeze. By the time she had finished, the carriage had rattled off back towards the road, and she could no longer hear its wheels.
"So, what exactly made you such a damned good shot that day? Couldn't be dumb luck, you're too damned smart." Vanessa said as she stepped back over to him and proffered a pair of pistols. The stocks were ivory, each one bearing a roaring lion's visage, and there was gold accenting up and along the barrels. Perhaps they had once been a family heirloom, but now they were Vanessa's. "You still remember how to- " she almost said aim, "-Hold 'em properly so you don't feel like your wrist is gonna break, right?"
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2022 2:05 am
by Anton
Embarrassment was a rare sight from Anton, and an even rarer one in front of Vanessa. But he was clearly evading the question, focusing on anything except for the conversation at hand. The stakes were double checked, the targets ranged, and the makeshift shot checked for any imperfections until he was at last left with nothing to do but grab the pistols. "Of course I do," he muttered softly, taking the pair in hand with a practiced ease. He had rather more experience with weapons than one might expect of a blind man, hunting and sporting being expected of a noble, to say nothing of his military lineage.
"It was the loudest sound in the sky," he eventually relented, deflating slightly as he checked the weapons, ensuring that they were clean and ready for use. He didn't doubt Vanessa, but such was a reflex honed into him from the first time he he held a gun. "It wasn't too long after I got the Rune. Father wanted to show how... normal I was now, and uncle Sig went along with it. He knew, but he didn't... know."
Anton fiddled with the pistols for a moment as he relived the memory, his face contorting into a wince. "Living things are loud, only magic is louder. I tried to find the target to shoot, and the bird was the strongest thing I could see. That's all, really. I was just a dumb kid with a gun and magic eyes. Turns out it's easy to shoot center of mass when that's where most of an aura comes from. Sorry, I know you were wanting a story of... well, of not that. Believe it or not though, I actually did have to learn like everyone else. I just started when I was twelve."
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Thu Aug 04, 2022 9:34 pm
by Vanessa Quill
Had she struck a nerve? It was almost foreign to her that she might have done it accidentally. Anton's keeper was many things, but backhanded in her insults she was not. It had been a novelty to her, a story worthy of sharing in a bar if it wouldn't have gotten Anton burnt at the stake. At first she thought he was simply too modest, but even modest men tended to preen whenever she paid them what could generously be interpreted as a compliment.
Then he told her, and she understood even less. She actually laughed, an untethered 'Hah!' from deep in her chest. She couldn't help the reaction, but did try to save face afterward "Storms, lad. That makes it even better!" She said, clapping him on the shoulder and bringing herself near to his side. "You weren't even aimin' for the bloody thing and you knocked it right out of the sky." She was trying, in her own way, to soothe any lingering ache he might've had from that day. "Besides," She continued. "Lucky for you most things you' shoot are alive, so your little mix-up was just getting you practical training."
Vanessa then put a couple paces between the two of them and drew her own pistol. It was weathered, and clearly maintained by other firearms being sacrificed to keep its lineage alive. The grip appeared original, and the burnt walnut wood was worn down precisely where her hand liked to settle. From the barrel to the hammer to the pan, the rest of her had been scavenged in the name of keeping some small part of the pistol alive.
Lastly she dug into her pocket and held out a small handful of caster shells to Anton. "Your project, you take the first shot."
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Sun Aug 14, 2022 2:20 am
by Anton
"I didn't shoot what I was supposed to shoot," Anton struggled to explain, letting out a frustrated sigh as he tried to distract himself by checking his weapon yet again, refusing to look Vanessa in the eye. "Would you trust someone who shot the brightest thing they saw? Of course not, it's ridiculous. I was stupid and untrained, but it's fine now. I can.. separate what I hear, and that's what matters," he continued, still refusing to accept his actions so many years ago be seen by him as anything other than a mistake.
Anton at last had something to do when she handed over the caster shells, and he went to work loading each gun. Holding two pistols reminded him of nothing else than one of the dashing cavaliers who served his uncle, the mounted soldiers masters of firing at massed formations with twin weapons at point blank range, and it wasn't long before his morose expression had faded from his face and the hint of a smile graced it in its place. While a part of it was due to him having something to do with his hands, despite his serious demeanor he was still only barely into adulthood and could be as taken by flights of fancy as anyone.
"As you like it, Dame Quill," he replied, teasing the woman lightly as he raised both guns up to fire. One very convenient fact about being him is that he did not have to bother having to make sure he had line of sight in order to aim, and so took his shots with both eyes staring wide open and straight ahead. Each pistol fired but once, twin shells arcing towards the target and hitting them square in their centers, the songs that once announced their presence cut short in a crescendo of horrid dissonance.
"What next, then?"
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2022 10:30 pm
by Vanessa Quill
"And I'm telling you that it doesn't matter." His bodyguard replied, equally frustrated that he couldn't so easily see things her way. "Sure, you missed. But you're avoiding the part where you hit something that was both smaller and fucking moving. For storm's sake, it's not like you drew iron on your own blood. Just a mix-up that makes for a better story than a boring day of shooting." She dropped it after that, not wanting to sour his mood with an argument over something she had never witnessed firsthand.
She watched him then. When his expression took a change for the fairer, it was impossible for her not to follow suit. She was meant to be making sure his posture was proper and his aim level, but he had no need for her guidance on either front. She stopped herself from commenting on it. He had begun training at a young age, after all. It wouldn't do for her to compliment him on something he might have seen as childish. Her time plundering gave her a different perspective, one that said any man that could shoot was worth his weight in gold.
Then the crack of the caster shells filled the air, lingering among the dense trees like an uninvited guest. When Vanessa turned to inspect his shooting, she couldn't keep herself from uttering a bewildered "Damn..." under her breath. She'd expected his aim to be good, but not 'shoot the wings off a dragonfly' sort of good. If this was the sort of thing magic could help with. She was starting to see the appeal.
She took her own shot a few seconds later when she'd managed to stop looking so gobsmacked. Her expression of skill came in how swiftly she raised her gun and fired. It was all one smooth motion, with only a single gossamer thin moment in time for her to be sure of her aim. It was elegant, more elegant than she'd ever been. An effortless draw across the chest from where the weapon would normally sit among a brace of pistols. She kept the weapon angled downward until the last moment her wrist and forearm snapped straight to fire. The gun tried to jump, but her grip on it was iron and it barely flinched.
The bottle exploded spectacularly, ceasing to exist save for a small portion of the bottom lip still resting on the makeshift shelf.
"Now," Vanessa said, stowing her pistol and opening a long, flat case. "You'll fire off a few shots from my rifle while I get this cannon ready to go."
The rifle was beautiful, made from exquisite hickory and polished iron. A swirl of an accent was carved into the far side of the stock for display, while the one near to the shooter had handcrafted shell storage with enough space for nine extra shots. She lifted the case with both hands and held it out to Anton. "Here y'are. Careful she kicks like a mule, but I ain't seen anything shoot farther than her." Vanessa paused, considering something she'd never thought to ask before. "Does distance... matter to you?" She asked with predictable bluntness.
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Mon Aug 15, 2022 11:09 pm
by Anton
Vanessa's soul began to sing as soon as she raised her pistol in hand, a distant part of Anton's mind unsurprised that she was at her brightest when about to commit violence. Hand and pistol melded together into one, the weapon a mere extension of her person, and the shell it shot an expression of pure will. It may have only been a moment, but it was the single most beautiful chord he had ever heard.
Anton's confidence with weapons clearly did not extend to rifles however, and his grip upon this one was awkward and uncoordinated. "I... don't really know," Anton admitted as he tried to get familiar with the longarm's shape and heft, accepting any adjustments that Vanessa had for him. "I've never fired anything heavier than pistols," he continued, not that that was particularly difficult to tell. "Distance shooting was never really a concern with them, just sport and targets."
When his form was finally to Vanessa's satisfaction, Anton took in a soft breath as he shouldered the rifle. Despite his unfamiliarity with it, the benefits of not having to aim with his eyes remained paramount, and he ignored the sights entirely, staring blankly forward as he found his target. "I can't 'see' forever, but... it's far. I don't really know exactly how far, I've never checked."
The crack of the gun was louder than that of the pistols, overpowering all other sounds for a precious moment. This was a massive relief to Anton, should anyone for some reason be close enough to somehow overhear him immediately thrown upon his ass by the unexpectedly strong recoil. Vanessa had warned him, but there was really nothing compared to experiencing it.
"Oh," he murmured, picking himself up off of the ground. At very least, he had hit his target.
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2022 7:48 am
by Vanessa Quill
He looked less certain holding the long gun, to be sure. That made some sense, she thought. She had often seen nobles with a pistol on one hip and a sword at the other. They were decorations of station as much as for personal defense.
She helped adjust his grip, standing behind him while she raised his arm or brought the stock against his shoulder more squarely. She couldn't help but focus on how he stared. She'd seen that sightless gaze before, of course. That alone wasn't enough to be notable. But there was something innately bizarre about holding a weapon and aiming it without so much as bringing his cheek down against the stock.
But she shouldn't gawk, and instead turned to begin setting up the swivel gun. With its relatively small size, Vanessa was able to lift it alone and set about getting it anchored down into a solid block of wood. A hole had been cut out for the swivel stand, but the fit was snug enough that actually getting the cannon secured took most of her attention and effort. And so she was absorbed in it until the very moment she heard the familiar crack of the gun... not followed by another one shortly after. She turned halfway, and barked a laugh. "She got you, eh?"
While not the most compassionate response, she still stepped over to him and looked him over to make sure he hadn't hurt himself. "If your shoulder bruises, I'm not taking the blame for it." She teased. "You didn't drop her at least, that's better n' most their first time." She retrieved the rifle from him and returned it to its case. "Anyway, cannon's ready."
She hefted it with both arms into position beside Anton. It was a heavy iron thing, with a litany of runeforger's work put into it for reinforcement of the barrel. She reasoned If it couldn't withstand whatever Anton was cooking up, nothing could. "So we put your powder in, then the ball, and pack it in tight with the rammer. After that we just light the fuse like normal, yeah?" She had heard enough small scale explosions from Anton's study to presume that much at least, and so was more speaking to show she understood the basics.
"After we light it we should probably get back a ways. No telling what'll happen."
Re: Shootin' The Breeze [Anton]
Posted: Wed Aug 17, 2022 11:12 pm
by Anton
"You weren't kidding about the kick," Anton murmured, checking the weapon for any remaining ammunition before handing it back off to Vanessa. "Bruise must have come from all of those books I lug around, nasty habit that," he added with a small smile as he looked over the cannon. It was small compared to the artillery pieces he had seen before, but it wasn't as if he had ever fired any of those himself, so the distinction was rather academic.
The ammonium nitrate was packaged nearby, and Anton gave Vanessa a nod as he went about getting it ready. Inside the container was a finely ground powder, off white in color, that could kill the both of them if handled improperly. There was little actual risk of that here at least, but stranger things had happened. The odds of a rogue Elementalist slinging a fireball was low, but never zero. He precisely measured out the powder, opting for a conservative estimate for the first test. It wouldn't do to burst the cannon on the first go, though looking over its enchantments he doubted that would be a real risk.
"Help me with this, would you?" he asked as made to pick up the cannon ball. Anton was many things, but strong was not one of them. With the ball loaded and rammed, all was set. "This shouldn't be too dangerous with how little I poured in to start, but, yes, let's," he agreed with her as he measured out and snipped a long fuse, far longer than anyone would actually use for battle. Lighting the end, he swiftly scurried off, making for behind the carriages.
From the cannon, there was, after a tortuously long pause, a muffled bang. As the smoke and haze cleared away, the results were... less than inspiring. The ball had left the cannon at least, but it hadn't gone very far, rolling over the ground scant yards from where it started.
"Perhaps more powder next time," Anton muttered, rushing over with a measuring span before hastily recording the information in one of his countless notebooks. "Underwhelming, but a good start. Very good," he said, mostly to himself, his mind entirely focused on his work.