Kim
スター軍の司書
---//Pine house// early morning---
"Come on son, we're going out remember! Get your stuff and we'll head for the jeep." Jack shouted upstairs as he stood there in dessert camouflaged fatigues with various gear and kit fastened on with strap riggings of similar colorations and a large thermos that looked like a tank shell.
"It's like three in the morning..." Amit grumbled, his green eyes barely staying open.
Amit barely recalled this little going out thing, though you couldn't blame the child for not having a good memory on that. The lad most likely assumed that Jack hadn't really meant it at the time, what were they even going to go out an do at this hour? The clothes Amit had weren't really meant for hunting or anything like that. They were just simple pants and a shirt, bland colors with no patterns. In his arms was the long peach colored cat Companion; well not a real cat but a plushie.
"What are we doing?" Amit questioned without leaving his spot.
"We're going hunting remember." Jack said with a smile as he gestured for Amit to come on with the hand that held the tank shell thermos.
Aster yawned as she nodded on the Pine household's front door. She smoothed her hair back as she tried to wake up.
Amit raised a brow, not really sure if he heard the words right. Hunting? What would they even hunt? Why would they even go out hunting? The knock on the door came as a surprise to him and he merely gestured to the door.
"Door..." Amit muttered sleepily.
Jack answered the door, "Ah Aster, good morning, ready to hit the dessert?" he said in casual voice as the only one of the three wide awake.
Aster nodded but she was wearing the black undersuit for the Revenant armor. "Sure, it'll be fun," she smiled. "It was Rose's idea to use this. Cooling capabilities test, I think is what she said?"
The young lad was surprised to see Aster at the door, tilting his head to show his confusion.
"Why are you here?" Amit asked Aster, his voice showing his confusion.
This day was either gonna be really weird or just plain odd. Although to be fair, it could be boring. Hunting didn't really sound interesting.
"Well we actually have to stop by Rose's house across the street to pick up Sarah. And I'm actually wearing mine under the fatigues. Amit I got one for you in a case down here. You need to get changed into it before we leave. Well Aster feel free to take a seat in the living room while we wait for Amit." Jack said walking out to put some gear in the back of his jeep.
Aster smiled brightly at Amit, "Jack invited me along. Something about getting me out to see more of the planet than the lab and the university. It's not like I have anyone else out here," she looked around the house curiously. "The living room is which way?"
"Do I really have to wear one of those things? The collar is hideous enough." Amit replied, gesturing to the collar around his own neck.
A small brow was raised to Jack when Aster claimed to have been invited by the person. Really? He invited her huh? Welp, Amit honestly didn't know what to do with that information.
"It's not really that bad! It's actually kind of comfortable. It'll protect you from most things that could hurt you out there. The Revenant power armor is a bit much for a hunting trip," Aster shrugged.
"Yeah but..." Amit started to mutter though he merely gave a sigh. "I don't want to wear it, I have to already wear something that's a pain in the neck to deal with. Besides, wouldn't we be doing something that isn't as...dangerous this early in the morning? Honestly don't even know what he's hunting."
"It's fairly normal to go hunting early in morning from what I was reading, animals have different levels of activity at certain times of day. Depending on what we are hunting, most prey animals are most activity before dawn or after dusk," Aster thoughtfully tapped her chin.
"We shouldn't be going after anything really dangerous though, alas with him around that's another story." Amit said as he pointed to Jack, as if to accuse him of something but not saying it.
Jack re-entered the house, "Alright kids,....Amit come on and get your suite on. It's hot out in the dessert, your gonna need the suite to keep cool. I got everything packed in the back of the jeep, so we're waiting on you slowpoke. Besides I got something for us to drink later." he finished holding up the tank shell.
"He's concerned about it over the collar, Mr. Pine. He can't take it off?" Aster asked with a quick glance at Amit's collar. Her knowledge of the thing was only that Amit hated it. "Chaffing and all?"
"This coming from the man drinking out of a fake bullet shell of sorts..." Amit grumbled, rolling his eyes.
Of course the guy hadn't been in the room when he had been expressing his displeasure. Oh well, Amit hadn't noticed it so that was his own fault. Course he was surprised that Aster spoke up and gave some version of his displeasure with the situation.
"That's why I modified it to stop at the collarbone below the collar. I won't force him to wear it, but I don't want to have to explain dragging him home from heat stroke either. And fun fact Amit, this a month ago was a real tank shell, but has since been hollowed and now has a sterile lining on the interior. Perfectly safe to drink out of." Jack said with a shrug as he waited for Amit still.
"It would be a good idea to wear it. I'm sure he had one made to fit you. So it shouldn't be too bad. I was reading about how bad it is to get sand in clothing and then rubbing against skin too, so the suit should stop that too," Aster gently suggested. "It's not a bad idea to recycle materials, either."
"That doesn't help bud." Amit replied regarding the bullet bit. "Secondly, you do realize how useless that suit would end up being if this collar comes off?"
Fur was already a hazard but black fur with only a few areas of white on his body. Course the boy didn't want to admit it right off the bat with a stranger here. Sure Aster was, something of a friend. Where they friends yet? Hard to tell with their small interactions till now.
"There'd be two big issues with the suit, unless you somehow modified it without actually looking into the matter?" Amit added.
"Amit, you refuse to see anyone with the skills to "look into the matter" for one, and two what two big issues? It's basically just a body suite with extra feature." Jack said running a hand through his white hair, "Man we need to think about an alternative to that collar."
"OH For Death's SAKE!!" Amit hissed as he facepalmed.
Merely annoyed greatly due to being awake at a ungodly hour and having grown frustrated on this matter. Amit disregard the whole fact that Aster was here. Letting go of Companion, he grabbed the collar and took it off. The boy's body was quickly replaced with a fully grown black and white husky!
"BLACK FUR DUMBASS!! Heatstroke anyway!" Amit barked before picking up Companion in his mouth and rushing up the stairs.
Aster stared after Amit, blinking. So that's what this was about. And it was fascinating. "Dogs with double coats have other cooling mechanisms to help them deal with extreme temperatures?" Once the swish of fur and tail was out of sight she looked to Jack. "So that's what the collar does. We should be able to design something better than that collar, I think that'd be the easiest thing to redesign compared to the other projects we have?"
"I'm surprised you haven't questioned the transformation. Amit was experimented on prior to Saber finding him on Vice hiding in ruins of a slum. Our first mission actually. You now see why Amit doesn't talk to others much, and he's absolutely terrified of medical personnel. It sickens me to think that someone could be so twisted and cruel to use a child so young as a test subject." Jack said losing his previous energy as his expression began as depressed, but moved to a scowl as he spoke, "If I find whoever did this to my son, I will make sure to show them the same level kindness."
Jack moved to the couch and took a seat, "I may be his father now, but I don't know what I'm doing. No matter how hard I try, I can't seem to get through to him. I love my son regardless of if I'm his real dad, or not. Right now he needs a friend." he said feeling defeated.
Aster followed after Jack and sat down beside him. "I get it, I think? My mother isn't really my mother. I am was also adopted but I was younger than Amit. I don't remember my real parents but they died on Taiie when I was about 5. Belinda is the only mother I have really known. Our situation was different, the Mishhu destroyed our home, ripped apart our families so we had some commonality to united us." Her expression was thoughtful.
"I saw some strange things when we were on Mayer Station. Those two years were pretty rough before the crew of the Aeon rescued us... Amit's transformation is strange but he mentioned the experimentation before... just... briefly. He doesn't understand. I think because you are a scientist, he associates you with the people that hurt him." She pushed her hair behind her ears for a moment before she continued. "Human experimentation on children is unethical. Not all scientists are cut from the same cloth... he's too young to understand that. He might one day, but you are the one that is setting rules and limits on him, so you as the dad will be the bad guy" She offered an apologetic smile. "Belinda saved my life and others, we all struggled and suffered together, so we have become a real family, though none of us are connected by anything than kindness and tragedy."
"Maybe if I had been adopted when my parents died things would have been different. They died right after I was born during the Third Elysian war. I was put into an orphanage system that never even cared, so me and the closest I've ever had to a brother ran the streets. By Amit's age, I had a gun in one hand and blood on both as we fought to survive in back alleys controlled by thugs and gangs. Zeke was always there at my back, even when I decided to join the NSMC he was there.
Through five long years of hell, it was the same and worse. I considered my entire squad family, and I was there for when all but one died. Zeke is all that remains. I was never a scientist, just a soldier wondering when that bullet with my name on it would stop delaying and finally deliver the fate that had taken my brothers. I didn't even know about Sarah until the same mission that we found Amit on. The same emblem we use for S6 and Saber is the same emblem my brothers and I carried on our armor, the "Angels of Retribution" were what we were called, and were very popular apparently back on Nepleslia.
True family is not the blood that binds you, but the those who have the courage and love to walk with you on your darkest days so that you can even walk through hell with a smile and a straight back." Jack said as he shared his own past, which he didn't do often, "Isabelle is probably the only reason I'm alive today. When I came to this world early this year, I had almost nothing. I fought for the SkyGuard as a merc with no real purpose to keep going other than the next mission, the next job, and the next paycheck. She gave me a reason to actually live again. I may have started S6, but she gave me the will to do so."
"Amit doesn't talk about how you found him too much or what they did. He only hates the collar, that's about all I really know. I'm not sure why he thinks you are a jerk. Might be the early onset of puberty if he's aging in dog years," Aster suggested gently. She understood what he was saying despite the gap in their age and the breadth of their experience. "Does Amit know or is he still thinking he's alone in experiencing this?"
"The kid has already been through much, and to be honest I don't share this information with many. My wife, sister, and Rose are the only others. I would tell him, but there are things even what I just told you that were left out. Things I'm not proud of. Like him, it's not easy to talk about. I want my family to remember me how I am now, not as I used to be." Jack answered as he kinda slumped in his seat.
She settled against the back of the couch. "Some times, we need to know where our parents came from to understand where they might lead us. It's hard for people, especially ones so young to understand that someone else, especially a parent, might actually understand or have been in a similar situation when they were younger. At some point, we all feel like we are the only ones that have experienced something. It doesn't devalue what we lived through if someone else experiences a similar tragedy... people forget that it isn't a competition about who has suffered more. The idea is to build a connection between people so that they can stand together on that bridge." Her violet eyes watched Jack curiously as she spoke. Her youthful features sharply contrasted by the understanding tone of her voice.
"Even if that person has caused such suffering to others? I followed orders because I thought we were doing the right thing. All we did were kill people who didn't deserve to die, and for what. Because they were labeled rebels and insurgents? All they wanted was to live separate away from an empire, and to protect that independence. I am not a good man Aster, so how am I to console a boy who has very little innocence left? It should not be me who comforts him, not when i see the faces of so many when I close my eyes, and even when I'm awake." Jack said as his eye began to tear. What right did he have to be a father?
"War does strange things. We will never be 100 percent in the right, Mr. Pine. What matters now is what you do, what the results of your present actions will be," she placed a soft hand over top of Jack's, smiling. "Every day is someone's war, someone's struggle, all we can do it struggle and go to war beside them to help them overcome it. It's never as simple as right or wrong."
Huskies were dogs built for the cold weather, sure their coats were thick for that purpose. But that didn't mean they could handle extreme heat. So really, if he didn't want to have a heatstroke, he'd have to keep that collar on the whole time. Already not a desirable thing. But to wear one of those weirder suits as well? Nope. The boy was done. Even though he couldn't hear the conversation, he figured that Jack and Aster went without him. He heard no sounds of someone coming up the stairs after him, even after a good amount of time had passed. A glance to his clock revealed it to be closer to three fourty, so a good amount of minutes had gone by.
It wasn't that he hated Jack, he just butted heads with the man. A child whose had their trust in others broken twice by grown ups, doesn't really help you trust a new one. Let alone one saying that they'll be your father now when you know that they aren't. When you are aware that the real father, is somewhere back where they once where. Still that didn't mean he wanted his real parents. They probably went through that modification thing like they were thinking about. Oh well, at least they didn't waste more money by doing it to him as well since he ran off. Course, fate was cruel and wanted to be a pain in the ass.
Ears twitched as he laid there on the bed, having resubmerged himself under blankets after checking the clock. Companion was rather warm due to the heat of having Amit curled around em. So at least he still had a nice warm spot to curl up into underneath the blanket. So the boy merely stayed put, still in canine form and not really expecting much to happen or change.
"You're a good kid, Aster. I can see why Rose values your assistance in the labs. You seem to get along with him more than I have able to with him. He needs a friend, not a dad right now, maybe you should go talk to him." he said feeling somewhat better now.
Aster patted Jack's hand and rose from the couch with a smile. "I'll give it a try. Where is he likely going to be hiding? And will the suite fit him in this form or if he switches?"
"First part, his room, first door on the right upstairs. As for the second, it would have to be fitted for him in that form." Jack said pointing towards the stairs.
Aster nodded and headed for the stairs. It was strange walking through a house. She had spent her entire life inside a space station, it felt incredibly open, vulnerable. The white walls probably wouldn't be able to sustain much damage from heat. It seemed.. precarious without the durability of familiar Yamataium and Zesuaium. Her violet eyes scanned for familiar fire suppression systems and alarms as she came upon the door Jack had directed her to. She stood outside it. Noting that it was just secured with a knob, also a concern but easy to breach. She lightly knocked on the door. "Hey Amit, can I come in?"
"Unlocked, can't really lock anything like this." Amit replied.
His voice clearly muffled by him being under the blankets still, though it did give her the option to walk in. After all, he said it was unlocked. If she did open the door, she'd find that this room didn't really have a flare of personality. It just had some standard items like a desk an chair, a dresser, and some books. Amit really hadn't tried to personalize the room to his desire. Frankly he wasn't sure what to make it look like. The wood floors provided the only color compared to the white walls and ceiling. While any other color was given by the blankets and other items sitting around.
It wasn't a messy room at all, it was fairly kept. Sure books were on the floor but they were more at the walls edge than in the way. Kind of surprising to some maybe. Even from the doorway, she'd see the raised up section on the bed under the blanket where Amit was hiding.
Aster turned the knob easily and stepped into the room. Her eyes appraised the small room for a moment before she walked over to the bed. "Amit, why are you hiding?" Her voice was gentle as she sat down on the edge of the bed beside the lumpy blanket. "Why don't you and Companion come out so we can go play? There are some cool birds we can chase, and tag for tracking, won't that be fun?"
"Why shouldn't I? I ran from home because my parents wanted to make themselves fancier and I didn't want that, only to end up with this due to being stupid." Amit questioned. "I may look cute an such still but...that isn't the case all the time...I already bit Tank Shell Drinker once."
Amit remained under the blankets, curled around Companion and just wishing he hadn't taken the collar off. Now Aster saw and honestly, he felt like the only reason she was up here was due to Jack urging her it was safe. Not really. But that's what his young mind jumped to.
"Appearances are deceiving. I've never really seen a dog before, can you come out so I can see? We never had any animals on the space stations I grew up on. It's why Jack asked me along, so I could see an actual planetary ecosystem," Aster paused. "It's not your fault you know, what happened to you. It doesn't have to be all bad. It can get better." She coaxed.
"How can it get better? I wanted to stay normal but I got turned into something nowhere near normal." Amit questioned.
Ears twitched to her saying she never saw a dog before. That was surprising. Though Amit wasn't a good model for that. Sure he was a dog but he was a full grown dog despite being a child; which should've made him a puppy. But for some reason, the experimenting didn't work out that way. Oh well. Grabbing Companion his jaws, he slowly started to move around on the bed.
Having to use his head to find a path out from under the blankets. Once he managed this, his claws made a click clack sound on the hard floors and he took a seat on the floor. Dropping Companion so the big plushie wouldn't be blocking Aster's view. Though his ears were lowered as he sat there. His scar remained on the bridge of his muzzle, though he had some white areas on his body rather than being pure black.
Aster smiled brightly at Amit as he emerged and she shifted from the bed to kneel beside him on the floor. Her violet eyes appraised his form curiously. "May I?" She lifted her hand up and held it above his head, not lowering it unless he said it was okay. She waited for his response, her curiosity was counterbalancing how she was going to answer him.
Ears twitched as his head tilted a bit. What was she requesting? Oh wait, he was a dog. She was requesting to pet him since she had never seen one before. A slight uncertain expression came to his face as he straightened his head. A sigh left him before he gave a small nod, giving her permission.
She slowly lowered her hand to Amit's fur. Lightly running her hand through his coat and carefully touching the velvety fur of his ears. Aster smiled. "Kawaii desu ne," she said in an amused voice before she paused, running her hand down the fur on his back. "Well, if we can figure out what was done, we might be able to reverse the effects or find a way to better control the transformation than what I think is a suppression collar. There.. are more drastic measures but I don't think your father wants to have you die so your consciousness could be transferred back into a normal body. But, it can get better. There is always hope, it just takes some time and work, if you'd be willing to let me help you." Her long fingers continued to smooth down the fur along his back before she placed her hand back on his head, scratching between his ears.
Amit was with her for some of this conversation, however the canine part of them finally kicked in as she started to pet him more. The running of her fingers through his fur was a pleasant feeling; only due to how his current mind was working. He still had his intelligence unless the animalistic side of things got triggered. Which could be through emotions such as being frightened. However the action of petting him and even the gentle scratching was apparently another way to send him over to that side.
A pleased sound left him as he laid down, tail wagging slightly on the floor as the scratching on his head felt really pleasant. With his voice gone at the moment, the dog could only hope that she'd actually scratch behind his ears again. Those were itchy at the moment.
Aster continued to smile and she scratched his ears again. "Amit, let's go outside!" She hopped up, "Come on, let's go run!" She tilted her head as she watched him curiously. "There's a lot of space out there. It'd be a go idea to find out how fast you could go."
His tail wagged a bit faster as she scratched his ears, causing his eyes to close for a few moments. When she stood up though, he gave a whimper till she spoke up. Even though he was the size of a full grown husky, he still had the quirks of a puppy. Jumping up to his paws, he made a few sounds before bolting out the bedroom door. Although, he left Companion on the floor in the bedroom.
Rushing down the stairs, a few light barks left him as he took sight of Jack on the couch. Jumping up onto the furniture with his tail wagging and tongue hanging out.
Aster followed after the puppy, "Mr. Pine, we should probably get in the car. He wants to go run," she gently patted the puppy's head, scratching his ears again with a smile. "So we should get this trip started, right?"
Jack just looked between the two utterly confused, "Aster. Console. Not get him.....Alright let's get in the car. I'm just not gonna argue this."
Aster shrugged, and smiled innocently. "Come on Amit, let's go for a ride first." She started for the door, removing her hand from Amit's head. "Look at how happy he is, see how much his tail is wagging? This is a win." She smiled down at Amit again.
A whimper like sound left Amit, as if he was growing impatient. Course, he soon leaped off the couch and rushed to the door with his tongue hanging out. It may be a win but it was a temporary win. For one thing, there was no telling how long he'd be in this form for. That and he was going somewhere without Companion. Now canine, Amit didn't mind nor care on that part. But if Amit somehow changed back before they got home, oh boy.
With the full grown husky doing a few circles around the car impatiently. He stood on his hind legs and put his paws against the vehicle. Giving a few barks to show his excitement.
Aster stood beside the car and waited for Jack. She didn't know the pecularities of Amit's situation only that Jack had wanted him downstairs and in the car for this trip. She opened the car door for Amit. "Can you jump up?"
Lowering his paws when the door was opened, he adjusted his position slightly before jumping into the air. With the adult canine legs, it was a easy feat for him. Although he didn't stay still once he got in the car. He walked back and forth on the back seat a couple of times before taking a seat on the right. Panting a little bit as he waited.
Jack went upstairs for a minute, or two as he grabbed clothes for Amit later, and grabbed Companion off the floor before heading outside and putting them in the back. He then climbed into the driver seat and directed Aster to the back seat, "We still need to pick up Sarah."
Aster climbed up into the car after Amit and closed the door, "Ok, Mr. Pine. Is there a timer on how long he's like this?" She placed her hand on Amit's head again, scratching between his ears.
In truth, they hadn't done much experimenting on how long Amit could stay changed. From the times it happened before, it seemed random. Course he had to be sedated the first time that Jack had seen this form and that resulted in Amit changing back.So it seemed to be a unconscious bit for the time being.
A yawn left Amit as the dog laid there, though he leaned his head against Aster before resting it down on her leg. Wanting to be scratched more.
Out of reflex, Aster continued to scratch Amit's ears. "So is this is the off button, Mr. Pine?"
"I never did that before. I want to have a son not a dog, miss Blake. I already had a wolf become my daughter, I don't need a reverse." Jack said as he started the engine and pulled out of the drive way to pull over in front of the Ironhart/Pine residence.
Sarah had been waiting inside and now exited through the front door in a desert camouflage bodysuite, a large pack, and her personal rifle. "So what are we hunting today little brother?" she asked putting them in back before getting into the passenger seat.
"Please tell me you left the explosive rounds at home." Jack said eyeing the rifle as they pulled away.
Ears twitched to the sound of someone opening the door and Amit raised his head. When Sarah got into the car though, he gave a few barks at her. Tail wagging slightly as he laid there in his seat as he stared at Sarah.
"If this is how he is, then wouldn't be considered unhealthy to ignore or deny this side of his nature? I know he wants to go back to how he was.. there are easier solutions to the problem but they are drastic," Aster added gently. "I had never seen a dog before, so I asked if I could touch his fur. I didn't think he'd get lost in it. But he's happy for now."
Sarah looked between Amit and Aster confused, "Hey Jack, when did you get a new dog? I thought after Neera that would be it?"
"Fuuuuuu.....Yeah, that's Amit. Probably should have mentioned that ahead of time. Yeah,....I have been dealing with this all morning." he said at Sarah's even more confused expression.
"You ever realize just how fucked up our family is some days?" Sarah responded turning back around.
"Yeah, tell me about it." Jack said simply as he drove on.
It could be considered unhealthy, though was it really? Of course, Amit's current form was created through experimentation from something they had heard about. So it was really hard how to judge this. He was a human being still, with the mind of one. But he could change into this form and get lost in it. Changing was another problem, there was just so many uncertainties with this.
With no attention given to him from Sarah besides a confused expression, a whimper left him as he lowered himself down. Jumping down to the floor of the car. So he was no longer on the seat but the area gap between the driver seat and the passenger seat behind it.
Aster frowned as Amit jumped down. "I hope he's not going to be too mad at me when he comes back to himself. He didn't want to come along," she sighed and settled back against the chair, adjusting her seat belt. "Neera is your dog? I thought she was Amit's sister?"
"Actually she used to be a modified wolf, but decided to get a new body after.....um my geist implantation. I was subject zero and why we now know to put them into pre STed bodies. It was a horrible experience that only added to my list of nightmares." Jack said idly rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand.
"Again, point proven. And if you ever do something like that again, I will shoot you in the balls." Sarah said thumbing Jack in the forehead.
A few whimpers left Amit as he sat there, raising a paw and setting it on the seat. Only to drag his paw down. While he had already been up there, his canine mind wasn't sure if it was allowed back up there. It was a odd thing but it was how they were acting in this situation. His tail had gone still and he glanced up at Aster a couple of times. The conversation that Jack and Sarah were having was just gibberish to him.
Aster patted the seat beside her for Amit. She smiled easily at him "It's ok."
Jack had driven them out into the desert past the Section 6 facility and across the dunes of sand before pulling over next to a hill, "Alright kids, outta the vehicle, and that means you too sis."
Amit was about to climb back up onto the seat when the car finally came to a stop. Ears perking up, he glanced around. Waiting for a door to open as his tail started to wag.
Aster unhooked her seat belt and opened the car door, waiting for Amit to jump down before she followed. "What are we hunting, Mr. Pine? Good morning, Miss Pine." She finally realized that she hadn't greeted her yet this morning. She smoothed out the wrinkles of her bodysuite and glanced up to the sky for a moment before she took in the scenery. "It's so.. brown."
"Nothing large for sure, mostly squirrely small rodent like creatures. And Jack, who here is older little brother? Your what 18? I'm 37 buddy boy." Sarah said jokingly on the second part.
"21, Sarah, and who here is your commanding officer?" Jack said getting a pair of raised hands in surrender of the argument to him as he gave a smirk.
Course, Amit bolted as soon as the door was open. Leaping out of the car and running away from the group. Tail wagging as his black form was really visible against all this brown area. He did spin round and come back to the group, though he seemed to just being doing random laps. Glad to be out of that car.
Aster looked to the adults again. "So how is this going to work? I've only fired things on the range or been the target," she laughed nervously, running a hand over her hair. "Are we shooting small rodents with high powered rifles?"
"I brought my old rifle, my RKAR, and Sarah has her longbolt custom. I'll run you through a short firearms lesson. The M3 should be a good starter." Jack said moving to the back and pulling out a couple of gun cases.
"Well I technically have a high powered rifle, but I brought impact rounds today. meant to hit with force and not penetration." Sarah chimed in as she took the case that held her rifle. She the put the case on the hood and opened the case. Sarah removed the rifle in it's collapsed state and pressing a switch the barrel snapped forward to it's normal place as the scope rotated to the top mounting with a clink.
Aster had moved to watch the Pines unload the gun cases. "Isn't it a bit much for a small mammal? Won't they explode if they get hit by this sort of round? The expelling force wouldn't leave much behind?"
Sarah kinda grimaced, "Well when you put it that way. I believe it's a concussive effect actually." Sarah said with a chuckle from Jack as he uncased the M3.
"I think she got you Sarah, but don't worry I did bring standard munitions just in case. Ok, Aster come over here, this is the rifle I'm going to be getting you familiar with." Jack said as he held the rifle up for Aster to inspect, "This is the M3 assault weapon platform."
Aster moved over to Jack and watched him appraisingly.
Jack pointed out each major feature in order, "Here is the selector, which is set to safe locking the trigger, here is said trigger, this is your mag release, and this is your charging handle which you pull back to strip a round from the magazine and to chamber it. Never point at someone else, keep your barrel pointed down, or to the sky." he said as he tapped each feature.
Aster nodded her understanding, "These are solid projectile rounds vice energy rounds, right? This will fire like an Origin Sugar?" She asked appreciatively. "Mom was big on guns, but I didn't really go shooting with her and Marit." She leaned forward at his shoulder. She did glance every so often to see where Amit was behind them.
"Alright take a hold of the grip and keep your finger off the trigger until you actually plan to shoot. Always check to see if a weapon you pick up is loaded, and see if the safety is on, or if a round is chambered." Jack said offering the rifle to Aster.
Aster nodded and accepted the rifle, taking it by the buttstock, keeping the barrel down as she checked that the safety was on. She carefully slide the bolt forward to check if there was a round chambered as well before she looked up and smiled at Jack. "Like that?"
"Yeah. Alright, so before we start you're gonna want some practice," Jack said pulling a couple cans out of the back of the truck. He then walked off a little ways to a good sized rock and placed three cans across the top spaced within three inches.
"Alright, take aim and try to hit the cans." Jack said as he rejoined the group.
Aster nodded and moved to where Jack told her to stand. She lifted up the rifle to her shoulder and stared at the cans between the iron sights. She disengaged the safety and gently squeezed the trigger at the left can, holding the rifle firmly between her hands and the buttstock against her shoulder.
The sound of the gun going off would cause Amit to pause, skidding to a halt with claws digging into the dirt. Hackles stood up due to the foreign sound both being painful for his ears and terrifying. Dogs weren't accustomed to gunshots naturally. They had to be trained for that. And in his current state of mind, he had never heard this sound. Natural, instinctual fear took over him. He had paused near the vehicle and was looking in the direction of Aster and the gun.
Low growling could be heard as the dog's former happy mood went away. Replaced by being afraid and on edge due to the sound they had just heard. Their tail tucked between their hind legs.
Two of the three cans would flip into the air and hit the sand as they were hit with a bullet.
"Your a natural, keep this up I might have to recruit you some day for Saber." Jack said with a chuckle.
"That's because us ladies always have better eyesight then the men, better focus too." Sarah said sticking her tongue out at Jack.
"Hey I was shooting guns at half her age, so you can't say shit about my aim. I've gotten pretty damn good over the years." Jack said with a another chuckle.
Aster smiled brightly, her ears ringing a bit from the thunder of the gun. The recoil bucked lightly against her shoulder as she lined up her final shot for the can. Lining up the middle of the can in the iron sights, taking a deep breath and holding it as she gently squeezed the trigger again.
Ears perked slightly before loud barking left Amit as he looked at the group. Hackles rose up as high as he could as he barked. The sound was horrible, it was foreign to him in this form. He started to pace, glaring at the group who were making the horrible noise.
"Hey Sarah, go check on Amit will ya." Jack said as the last can flipped off the rock as well, "Very good."
"Hey boy, what's wrong, not liking the gunfire?" Sarah asked walking over to wher Amit was, "Come here and we'll cover those ears."
Aster beamed as she lowered the rifle and engaged the safety again. Her hands trembled slightly as she adjusted to having to hold the rifle with both of her hands and dealing with the recoil. "Is Amit going to change back soon so he can shoot? wouldn't this rifle be too big for him?"
Covering a dog's ears did little to help, their hearing was much better than a humans so the sounds would still end up coming through. Ears lowering, he backed a little away from Sarah. Giving a few whimpers and whines with a slight growl to it. He was on edge, and honestly he wasn't sure on what to do. Other than stand there trying to get these people to stop making that horrid sound.
