Scene #6119: Artillery Training

Owner	Pose
Tanya Degurechaff	Courbevoie, France. A subdistrict on the outskirts of northern Paris, abandoned in the fighting near the end of the Empire-Republic conflict. It has yet to be repopulated and, as a result, has become rather overgrown and derelict in the past months. With plans to bulldoze and rebuild the region, it has been temporarily sectioned off for artillery drills, heavy weapons training, and Mage training. At the request of one Major Degurechaff, no less. In full battle kit, Tanya fits the linkage of her flight unit to the armored boot. Her rifle is slung under one arm, and it's the binoculars that she keeps in hand when the girl floats up from the ground. "The entire district is marked for demolition, so don't worry about collateral damage. You're just making their jobs easier," the little blonde explains. Effecient. "We will begin with the rifle, as I am most familiar with teaching it."
Asterios	What was built is ultimately destined to someday decay. That's just how the world works, isn't it? Of course, Asterios doesn't necessarily like breaking things down as much as he likes building things up. But with the way this place has gone to the birds, the only fix is to blow the entire place up and rebuild it! Right? Right. So. No guilt! Only boom. "Aa!" The colossal minotaur chrips and unlimbers... It's /technically/ a rifle. Like in the same way a grenades are technically fireworks. In this case though, it's. Um. It's big. Even on a scale of 'big guns' it's big. Basically a hand-held artillery piece more than even a mortar. Except there's a magazine attached to it that suggests that the massive bag slung over Asterios' shoulder is PROBABLY full of even more ammunition. Good thing this guy's a minotaur, or else there might be some trouble. "Ready, master!" Asterios answers, looking positively pumped to be testing out his ~awesome new present.~ "Should I. Fire at any target in particular?"
Theurgus	The sound of cards being shuffled, and footsteps, approaches from behind the firing line, the younger sister of the Diamond duo approaching casually enough. Her cards shimmer with elemental light as they slip past one another, a rainbow of elemental might, restrained inside the thin material that makes up these cards. Arcana is silent as she comes to a halt, watching the interaction between Servant and Master. "..."
Tanya Degurechaff	"The main purpose here is for me to see how comfortable you are with it," Tanya remarks, "Specifically-- I want to see what aim you are capable of, to see what kind of instruction you may need to hone it." The girl turns in midair and floats up to about shoulder level to the Minotaur, lifting her binoculars to her eyes, "Which means I will be determining targets, and gauging your skill at hitting them. After that, we will dial in on more precise instruction." She scans briefly for something, then nods once when she lowers the binoculars. Earmuffs are applied. A second set is unhooked from her arm and tossed towards Arcana, "I don't know if your sort of being suffers hearing loss, but you might want this." She's pretty sure it won't bother Asterios, at least. Turning back to the field, she raises her binoculars one-handed and points with the other, "There. Fifty meters, black Bugatti with no tires. Do you see it? Remove it. Take as many shots as you need, you obviously brought enough."
Asterios	Asterios stares at the earmuffs. The warm and fuzzy-looking earmuffs. "Aa," Asterios says, scratching at the side of his head. Alas, he does not get earmuffs. Not right now, anyway. He'll fix that before the day is out, probably. Earmuffs. They look. Cozy. Beat. "Aa, yes, okay," Asterios rumbles and sort of... Seems to be trying to mimic the way he's seen all those soldiers work their rifles before. Of course, the sight is kind of different, and Asterios. Uh. Doesn't... have /ultra/ awesome telescopic vision. But what he DOES have is a sound sense of geometry and distance. The minotaur huffs and fires his first shot-- Which causes the 'rifle' to sort of jump in his grip, because recoil is a pain. Asterios makes a sound of surprise as the round tears downrange and slams into a Napoleonic-era facade several meters past the intended target. Fortunately, he manages to catch the rifle before it hits the ground and produces an accidental discharge! But uh. Hm. Maybe if he just... tries to squeeze the back end a bit tighter against his chest...?
Tanya Degurechaff	"Mm," Tanya makes an appraising noise. It's not a pleased one, but at least it isn't a disappointed one. The binoculars are lowered, then left to dangle by the strap. She pulls up her own rifle, "Press the stock firmly to your shoulder." She demonstrates, wedging the curve firmly against her small body. "It is metal and you are more than familiar with your strength. Do not baby it. Hold it firmly. It will always try to escape, but you mustn't allow it." Teaching Asterios is an entirely different ballgame from teaching other soldiers. He is simultaneously a seasoned warrior and a complete newbie. Her eyes travel towards him to see if he's paying attention. This training is going to require a different touch. "Look down the barrel, like this." She demonstrates again, "There is a notch at the end. And a bar closer to you, with the engraved marks. See them?" She shifts, "One notch is ten meters. Five notches, fifty meters. Line it up this way, hold it tightly, and try again."
Asterios	Sure, Asterios might have some knowledge about how the modern world works, but this is still the guy who spent decades living in a maze devoid of anything even approximating human interaction. That he knows how axes and bows work is probably something of a miracle as-is. Guns are a totally different matter, especially guns like... this one. Can this even be CALLED a gun? "Aa," Asterios responds, tightening his grip somewhat. A little more and he might start to over-stress some of the weapon's joints. Wielding an axe or bow is one thing, but this... Has many different parts. It seems to take the minotaur a moment or two to figure out how to get it settled. Which then leaves the other part of the equation. Actually figuring out how to aim the darn thing. "Nnn," The minotaur grunts, leaning in ever so slightly to peer down the length of the cannon. His horns only just barely clear his shoulder enough to let him do so. Engraved marks, notches. Asterios adjusts, aims, fires... The spent casing clatters to the ground as its payload shrieks across the abandoned city and... Smashes into the street just short of the car. He grunts again, adjusts again, fires again, and... Well. What happens when an anti-tank round smashes into a car? Depends if it's loaded up with petrol or not!
Tanya Degurechaff	"Mm," Tanya's appraising noise comes out again when the next shot falls short, skipping off the pavement and through a storefront's broken front window. Critically, she observes the weapon is not kicking its way out of Asterios' hands this time. She lifts her binoculars again, "A little higher--" The third shot punches right through the forward grille with a horrifying shriek of abused metal. Its payload detonates, blowing the engine hood clear and filling the passenger cabin with flames. Shards of red-hot metal shatter the side and back windows, losing light as they cool. "You are a fast learner," Tanya remarks, "That was a clean hit. It would have taken out a tank nearly as--" The fuel tank detonates, flipping the rusted Bugatti forward to land upside-down, "...effectively." She lowers her binoculars, "...I'll dispatch a fire crew to deal with that when we're done." She scans once more, and then points, "Target, fifty meters. Red coupe, along the sidewalk. Take out the engine in the front." Similar distance, but a more precise command than 'kill'. "Bullets don't travel in straight lines. You no doubt noticed this. They arc and fall just like a stone. You've done that before, so apply your expertise here, as you grow more familiar with how the bullet behaves."
Asterios	Asterios isn't an Archimedean. Even so, he did spend his entire (original) life wandering through Daedalus' masterpiece maze. To say that he's got a certain knack for mathematics isn't exactly inaccurate-- he does have an appreciation for it. An innate sense of shape and form, geometry and architecture. He can, at the very least, compute an arc well enough. Bullets are, after all, just very, very fast-moving rocks. Right? Right. "Mmn, yes," the giant rumbles as he takes aim again. Take out the engine in front. Right? Asterios hoists his cannon, aiming ever so slightly overtop of the distant target. Picking off an engine at fifty meters is kind of... difficult, though. Especially for a first time shooter. The first slug smashes into another piece of Parisian architecture. Somewhere high above, a gargoyle is knocked loose of its moorings and tumbles down, down, down, and crumbles into so much rubble on contact with the ground. Asterios grunts and corrects just so. The bullet slams into the wrong end of the car this time, punching straight through the trunk. One last attempt. Asterios fires again, and this time the round sinks right into the engine block with a nice, meaty THUNK. Well. At least he's getting better...?
Theurgus	Arcana, in the interim, has put on the ear protection, just to be polite. She's continued to shuffle her cards idly, a soft sound of something-like-card rubbing against one another between deafening reports of the rifled cannon. As the two cars get taken out, she speaks up, a soft monotone as she stops shuffling to cover part of her face with a hand. "Perhaps a few moving targets, now he has the ranging down... they are more difficult to hit accurately, after all... and besides, he seems to be a fast learner."
Tanya Degurechaff	"Mm," Tanya makes that noise again. A sound of appraisal and little else. She lowers her binoculars, nodding once, "You seem to have a grasp of the basics." Eyes narrow, a wry smile crossing her face for a moment, "I'm thankful we chose this locale instead of a standard range, though." Perhaps its just the motion of her head that causes the girl's ahoge to sweep the way it does. It comes to rest shortly after the turn of her head is finished. "This time, I want you to select your own target. Estimate the range and eliminate it. Take the time to get familiar with the gun's behavior. The more comfortable you are, the easier it becomes." Her gaze returns to the field, the binoculars dropped to hang by their strap. One hand lifts and she sweeps it aside. A holographic green screen materializes, acquiring an overlay of the street all the way out to the weapon's maximum effective range. "After this exercise, perhaps," Tanya states to Arcana, "Leading a moving target is immensely valuable, after all." She turns slightly towards the blade magus, "Were you volunteering a skill of yours?"
Theurgus	"Of mine? No... but a borrowed one from my big sister." replies Arcana. "She can conjure walls of elemental energy, and she taught me the basics of doing the same... I could potentially create fragile copies of myself using the energy in my cards, but I am unsure of the viability of it." She goes quiet after that again, dropping her hand from her face and resuming shuffling. Shff, shff shff shff shff.
Asterios	Asterios is given leave to pick his own target. Uhhh. That's kind of a /slight/ problem, considering how much he can actually see from... here. There's a lot. A lot of different things to shoot, a lot of different targets to fire upon. Worse yet, he doesn't have Tanya to help him with the ranges! That's... kind of a problem! Kind of. Sort of. Asterios snorts softly as a pulse of magic shoots through the surrounding area. Suddenly, the ground all around him... begins shifting and rising to form what appear to be ankle-high walls, each spaced exactly ten meters apart. Is this cheating? It might be cheating. In any case, it helps the minotaur get his bearings well enough. But instead of shooting a target at ground level, he instead picks yet another one of those gargoyles to fire at. The first shot... Doesn't quite get to where it's going, due to differences in elevation. The second, though, hits relatively cleanly, turning the gargoyle into a cloud of dust and shrapnel. Asterios looks happy with himself. What a good boy, this minotaur.
Tanya Degurechaff	"Mm," Tanya nods once, eyes flitting to the waist-high walls the minotaur used to estimate range. A hand raises, and she rubs her chin in thought. A useful skill, but... "Clever solution to the range problem. However, you should not grow accustomed to this. It will not always be possible." The hand lowers, resting on her hip, "I will permit it for now. But as your training advances, I will forbid you from doing this, lest you grow over-reliant on it." She turns slightly, "I recommend you build a familiarity, a frame of reference." Looking back out over the field, she gestures, "Most passenger cars are about the same height, for instance. Any city's lampposts are likely to be identically manufactured. Doors are typically the same size in any country. As examples." The girl tips her head forward, "You already know the fruits of this training. Do you think I used magic when I told you those ranges, earlier?" "Select another target," Tanya instructs. She then glances over her shoulder once more at Arcana, "As for your offer, you may commence whenever you wish. I'm curious to see this spell myself."
Theurgus	Arcana nods, and summons her sword. It appears on her belt and with a deft slip of the deck into its holder opposite the blade, she draws her weapon. "Boundless wind, harken upon this blessed frame. Flow to the east and become the One. Ebb to the west and become the Zero. A beheld truth paints the Memory and begets the Script. Upon this stygian vista, etch thy confluence, draw back the Veil and bless this world with thy light." she recites, holding her blade in one hand, while gently tracing the edges of her cards with the other, a single finger seeking out something. With a motion, she plucks a card, etched with green runes, from the deck and tosses it forward, slashing through it in the same motion. "Mirror Effigy! A construct of magic, hued a faint green atop Arcana's normal colouring flies forward, landing in a crouch in the cityscape and running off into the buildings, never stopping for long and dashing between points of cover within the killing field.
Asterios	Asterios is... Chastised!! The minotaur seems to sag slightly. You can almost hear him deflating. Aw, the poor guy probably thought he had come up with a clever trick. Not so, unfortunately. Not so... But then! Arcana does... Cool magic! Asterios gawps with glittering eyes and briefly pauses to clap his hands excitedly. "Aa! So cool! Mmn, now it's. My turn...!" Asterios turns his gaze to the city and the minotaur begins eagerly targeting the little green Arcana mirage. Can the little construct outrun bullets!? Maybe. It can probably avoid getting hit by virtue of being aimed AT instead of being predicted. For now. But with every shot, Asterios is getting closer...!
Tanya Degurechaff	The miniature Major narrows her eyes slightly as Arcana begins her incantation. One eyebrow lifts when the card is sliced and the spell is cast. Does she have to get new cards every time, then? Eyes flit after the Mirror Effigy, Tanya's head turning to follow its movements. An indicator appears on her magical screen, indicating the Mirror's location and following it, but Tanya actually ignores the screen itself, chasing it with her eyes. "...Hm," she makes that appraising noise again. A hand raises to cradle her chin again, "Very nimble. This kind of target is somewhat above Asterios' current skill level." Eyes narrow slightly as she observes one of the near-misses. It replays on her floating screen, though she again ignores it. "This is a test, Asterios. For motivation, should you eliminate the Mirror Effigy familiar, you shall have your pick of dessert." No, that's not motivation enough. Her eyes narrow again. Desserts in the garrison are adequate, but not... "From LeChuck's." Oh, that high class pastry chef's boutique. Now there's some stakes.
Theurgus	"I used Wind element. I could have used Ice, but the effigy would likely have collapsed on itself on landing. Flame would not have had the cohesion, nor would Lightning. Light and Darkness would similarly have had unintended results." replies Arcana, sheathing her sword and drawing her deck again. She shuffles the cards, squeezes them to send them flying in a pattern, then clicks her fingers. The cards arrange in a 'screen' around her, forming six rows that all glow the same hue, like a miniature rainbow. The green row has a card missing, but appears to be 'filling in' with more energy that flows out of the young magus. "Your expression showed interest in my cards, Major... they act as a... battery of sorts to put it very, very simply."
Asterios	Dessert from... LeChuck's!? The famous once-in-a-full-moon travelling pirate patisserie!? The ghost ship what sails from down amidst the moonlit mists every month to deliver high-quality baked goods to those who possess the booty to trade for them!? The ones who produce desserts so delicious that they are said to steal away your very soul...!? Maybe. Maybe Tanya just means the almost-as-good LeChuck's down the Champs-Elysees. Or maybe... She means the other one...!? In either case, Asterios' eyes burn with a sudden fury. It's a light that any who look on could instantly recognize as desire! Passion! HUNGER!! "Nnnnn. I have. Brought. Enough ammo...!" Asterios growls and discharges his spent magazine, slamming another into place as he takes aim again. Quantity of fire isn't enough here. He needs to be able to accurately predict his foe's movement and fire accordingly...! Or. /Or./ He uses that other tactic the minotaur knows too well. Asterios takes stock of the double's movements... And begins firing on the buildings /around/ it. As stone and rubble pile up and cover is strategically eliminated, its ability to maneuver would be significantly restricted. All this means is that Asterios has to aim for fewer locations, and THAT means he can spend more time actually correcting for his shot...! ALL IN THE NAME OF DELICIOUS PASTRIES...!!
Tanya Degurechaff	Tanya nods once as Arcana explains her reasoning behind the wind elemental choice, "Sensible. This was the best choice, then. I was not admonishing you, for the record." Her gaze shifts to Asterios' renewed vigor. That seemed to put some pep in his step, at least. Her eyes return to the maneuvering Effigy, "Merely surprised. It is not what I was expecting, so I had to make the effort worth the outcome. That's all." The card trick attracts her attention, and the Mage shifts her gaze back to Arcana with a thoughtful sound, "I am often curious about magical disciplines different from my own. The trait of using cards such as this is interesting. A different approach from the usual incantation, which I see you also employ." Her eyes return to the 'battle', a hand raising and resting over the Computation Jewel hanging from her neck, "I am familiar with artifacts that can act as batteries or amplifiers. The Empire's computation jewels, such as my Type-95, operate on a similar principle."