Heavens Arquebus

As slowly the sun started to come up on the beautiful Januari morning, a loud bang could be heard in the far distance. The otherwise peaceful winter farmland was shaken, the birds fled from the barren trees and in the field a mouse quickly went back into his hole. In the distance there was a single light coming from outside a small smithy in the middle of a big field. The light emanated from a storm lantern that stood outside on a wooden table. In the light of the lamp a boy could be seen fiddling around with a long musket that was roughly the size of the boy himself.

About 30 seconds after the last shot, another bang followed, this time it was accompanied by the sound of lead hitting steel. The young boy ran up to the target he had just hit. With the musket slung over his shoulder, he peered at the target, there was a nice solid dent in the steel target. While Theo had hit the second shot, which had produced the violent sound upon hitting, the first bullet did not hit. After admiring his hit for a while, he slowly looked to the left of the target, where a big fist sized hole could be found in the wood/earthen barrier. Although the power of the bullet was evident by the fact that it had buried itself deep in the wood and mud. It wouldn't mean anything if it didn't hit its target.

After shooting twice I walked back to the table, where 4 more bullets remained on the table. I reloaded the musket one more time. I rested my weapon on the wooden table, as I looked through the telescopic sight and aimed at the target while slowing down my breathing. Then a millisecond before I was about to fire and nail the target… "Will you stop with that loud damned noise so early in the morning!!" I fumbled with the gun, almost dropping it. As I turned around I looked right in the eyes of my very very angry grandpa Kerkin, in his thick woolen pajamas. As he stood there in the door frame ready to kill me just with the look in his eyes, I could hear one of the remaining bullets fall from the table. As he put his hand to his wrinkled face riddles with burn marks, he disappointedly said "Damn youngsters these days… Nevermind, did you atleast hit the target once?". As I pointed my eyes down to the musket in my hands I answered "Yes, though it seems to hit a bit to the left of where I aim, so I'd like to try these last 4 bullets to see if the gun is accurate enough". But my grandpa Kerkin shook his almost completely bald head. "No son, we don't have the time for that, if it hits at least once every 2 bullets, then it's good enough for the frontlines. The king's army is asking for quantity, not quality… Those damned fools. Well, not like it matters to me… Get ready to bring these guns to the collection point at the military academy" As always grandpa was trying to hide his true feelings. He knew very well that lives were being lost at the front, and that at any moment his son and daughter in law could be the ones that ended up dead. Secretly this fact scared him to death, but he always tried to put on a strong face and not show his perceived weakness.

As I loaded up the cart with the last couple of muskets that were bound for the military academy, I stared at the one I'd just test fired half an hour earlier. I wasn't happy with it, it just didn't shoot straight, it had no business going to the front line. However it was like grandpa said, the foolish king Herald had ordered masses of weapons from all across the country to be made for the war against the demons. To keep up with the demands of the old king, sacrifices had to be made in the form of quality. In fact, there muskets that were being made for this war where quite old technology in some regards, a lot of newer weapons were being made but because of perceived complexities in their design they weren't pushed into service It pained me, because these weapons would end up in the hands of soldiers not unlike my own parents. Soldiers without magic would get issued muskets instead of swords, spears and alike. This was because magic users could not only wield powerful spells, but also enhance any object they touched with mana, however as soon as they'd let go of the spell that enhanced the object would quickly fade object from the object. This meant that soldiers with magic were best off using close-in weapons or casting spells and amplifying the spells with magic stones. These were usually embedded in wands and staffs for ease of use. This left muskets and other firearms to be used by people who couldn't use magic to level the playing field. After all, a hit from a gun was way more powerful than a hit from a normal sword that was not enhanced with mana. But In reality however these magicless soldiers were cannon fodder and only the most skilled soldiers would survive longer than a month. To then give them weapons that wouldn't even hit their target felt to me like I was an accomplice of the very demons who killed them. Then again, a weapon is better than no weapon. 

As I slowly opened the big barn doors I was blinded by the now low hanging sun that was slowly rising toward the sky. Now that shooting had stopped for a while the birds had flown back to the barren trees and were sending their song across the quiet winter landscape. Before I set out on my 2 hour long journey with the sluggish cart, I grabbed my personal weapon. Of course the chance that a situation where the weapon was needed would arise was small. However if it did, then i'd like to make sure i could do something about it. Inaccurate or not, 25 muskets and their spare parts would make for a good profit on the black market for any bandit. So with that in mind I grabbed my gun from the rack on the wall.

The rack had space for 5 guns in total, however these days it was quite empty. My mother and father had taken their own guns to the front when they were called up, grandpa Kerkin liked to modify his own gun a lot so his was gone as well. So that only left my own gun, a long rifle with a revolving magazine. After taking my weapon from its wooden supports it left the rack empty. Sometimes i did wondered why there even was a 5th spot on the rack, but whenever i asked Grandpa about it, he'd smile and say something along the lines of "Well, if your curious about it, then go find someone who can fill that spot with a weapon" After that he'd return to his work with a stupid smile

The snow was thick and it creaked a lot under my boots as I struggled to keep the cart going through said snow. If i wouldn't be dragging a cart behind me i would've actually enjoyed this nice long walk along this dreamy winter landscape. However the big block of dead weight on wheels constantly brought me out of my dreams back into reality. If only my family was a little richer to afford a horse and carriage like all the big blacksmith companies that get to live inside the city walls. Even the student blacksmiths at the academy could make use of the academy's carriages for transport. Sadly my family didn't make enough money to get a horse and a carriage. "The Strikte family is a long line of blacksmiths that prefers quality and tradition over money!" has always been grandpa's motto. In reality though my family was quite poor and couldn't acquire the right materials to make quality products. This is why, unlike the big blacksmiths in town my parents were called up to serve in the army. Our blacksmith wasn't big enough to be considered critical, or even necessary for the war effort.

While I was thinking about all of this I looked down at the thick layer of ice covering the lake I walked past. In the summer this lake served as my grandpa's favourite fishing spot, causing us to frequently eat fresh fish, something even most nobles couldn't claim. This now ice covered lake also meant the beginning of the Underwood forest. a nice calming forest where the old pine trees towered over you as you walked through. As sturdy and old as the trees, however, they also made an excellent source of wood. This was demonstrated by the local lumberjack Gary, who was always up early to cheerfully knock the old and trusty trees. Normally I would greet Gary, however today he didn't look cheerful and greetable as he stood there arguing with a guard… It didn't seem to be just any guard. It seemed to be a guard from the military academy. Apart from guarding the school grounds, they also guarded special events like training exercises and other events outside of school grounds. Though I didn't specifically stop to hear what they were arguing about, from what I could make out Gary wasn't happy about something and was letting that fact be known. All the while the guard stood there with a apologetic smile as if saying "i'm very sorry, but please don't shoot the messenger"

As I walked into the forest a guard came walking towards where Gary and the guard were arguing. Clad in pure white uniform with yellow decorations the guard strided on with an air of confidence. When we were about 5 meters his eyes fell on me, and he called out. "Hey boy, yes you" Really not wanting to talk to the guard that had a stern look on his face, i quickly looked around for an escape, but alas. When the guard closed in he spoke with a serious voice "You better get out of the forest quickly, we're closing it off." I was slightly confused by this information, so I asked "Ah, why..? And for how long?" If I really had to talk to him, then I'd rather finish up the conversation quickly and get on with my trip. The guard replied "A combat examination will take place in the forest, it will be dangerous to be close to this place, especially for someone like you without any mana…" he said condescendingly while his eyes glowed from what I presumed was a mana detection spell. At the sound of his words my eyes turned slightly cold. I didn't mind the fact that I had no magical powers. But the fact that people who did have those powers used that fact to look down on me was something I minded. Not that I had the confidence or power to do something about it, but that exact fact that I couldn't change it is what annoyed me so much. I replied to the guard with a simple "Ok" and lifted the cart off the ground before moving on slightly annoyed.

 About halfway through my journey I put down the cart and quickly ate something. As I sat on the cart and rested my cold feet, I could hear the drum of feet in the distance. After a while of wondering what was approaching I could slowly see a group of academy students. Likely the ones that were about to have a combat examination in the forest. Approaching in their Navy blue uniforms. From the looks of it the large guy wearing the same white uniform as the guards was their teacher. Now looking at the students I could see that a lot of them were having a hard time marching in the cold. Not that I had any sympathy for them, most of them looked like rich snobs who'd spit on me for looking poor if they got the chance. As they walked by 4 students in front stood out to me though. Compared to the others they looked way less tired while marching along with some serious firepower in their hands.

One of them was a short student with a bit darker skin than the rest, this was rare in the Kingdom of Auria, let alone here in the north of the country far away from most major cities. That combined with her out of place looking weaponry in the form of a large club embedded with black mana stones and her large wooden shield probably meant that she was an exchange student from a different country. Next to her was another female student who was happily chatting with her. This second student had long blond hair and green eyes. On her back was a big quiver with abnormally long arrows sticking out, in her hands was a large long bow that from the looks of it had a very high draw weight, meaning it required a lot of strength to even attempt to use. Behind them were 2 male students. The first one was a large guy that looked like a giant, especially compared to my short stature. With big friendly eyes and orange hair he looked like he wouldn't even hurt a fly. However the great sword at his hip told a different story, a story you wouldn't be able to tell if you crossed its owner the wrong way.

And last but not least there was a gloomy looking guy with long black hair. As his dark eyes met my blue eyes I sensed something was off. Where the rest of the students were looking forward to the forest, and paid me no mind, this guy looked me right in the eyes as if sizing me up. Of Course not wanting to look intimidated I stared back. Then i realised it, there was something in those eyes that wasn't completely human. Sadly I couldn't put my finger on the cause of that feeling before the student quickly looked away at a tree in the distance. As I followed his line of sight into the distance I saw a black dot take off from the tree, which I presumed was a bird. However there was no way that a normal human would've heard that bird take off from its branch from this range.

By the time I was done looking into the distance in amazement and pondering this guy's humanity the group had already walked by. And since my snack was also long gone, I decided to put my thoughts on hold and continue down the icy road with my horrible cart, to the military academy that slowly came into sight through the morning mist.

When I arrived near the gates of the academy grounds I waited in a long line of other blacksmiths and their assistants who were also delivering their weapons that day.So I decided to follow the pack and stand in line. In front of me was a large carriage carrying a lot of weapons. Because of that fact there were guards in armour standing in front and behind the carriage. As I dropped my cart down onto the cobblestone road that led into the academy grounds, the 2 guards at the back looked back at me. One rather quickly turned around again when he had determined I wasn't a threat. The guard on the left of the carriage looked at my cart curiously for a second, and then his face lit up, seemingly having recognized something. "Hey you are Kerkin's grandson aren't ya kid?" I looked up from the cobble road surprised, I had not expected anyone to recognize me here. So I answered with an uncomfortable "How do you know that?" The guard laughed and answered. "You sure are straight to the point, just like your grandfather. I recognized your cart from last year's blacksmiths guild meeting. You see my master and your grandfather go way back. Is the old man doing alright?" Now it made more sense, my grandpa somehow always had connections in high places, even though we were a rather poor and backwater blacksmiths family. He always received praise from his colleagues, Sometimes it seemed like some even revered the kind old man's name. After thinking that over, I told the guard. "Ah I see, he's doing mostly alright. However, lately his back is hurting a bit, which is why I'm in charge of delivery this time." A shout came from in front of the carriage, and before walking up to the gate the guard quickly answered "I hope your grandpa gets better, best wishes kid. Sadly I have to go deliver the goods now." And so my brief conversation with the carriage guard ended as they moved to the interior of the Academy grounds.

After waiting for a while I was called up by one of the guards so I picked up the cart and moved up to the wooden box that had been erected for the verification of the many blacksmiths and their paperwork. As I walked up to the box a guard happily greeted me. "Hello kid, you seem a bit young to be an independent blacksmith, where is your boss?" I told him "Oh I'm from the Strikte family, my grandpa is at home with a sore back so I thought I'd deliver our weapons this year." And the guard now understanding the situation replied. "Oh that is very understandable, well i suppose as long as you have the paperwork it won't be a problem." While the guard was going over the papers I gave him I thought to myself that this was the friendliest guard I'd run into all day. Then again I also couldn't imagine that many of the rich snobs that called themselves blacksmith would take it well if a guard was rude to them while also making them wait in the cold. After putting a couple of stamps on my papers, the jolly guard returned my papers with a smile. "You may proceed kid" 

I picked up my cart and moved through the massive iron fenced gate that shielded the academy from unwanted visitors. As I stepped foot inside the massive grounds of the military academy I saw plenty of white and navy blue uniforms moving around like colonies of ants between the massive buildings. A guard in a white uniform pointed me towards the storage building where all the weapons were collected. Before I was allowed in, an employee of the storage building checked my papers again. While that happened I observed the big and slightly cumbled logo above the big doors of the storage building. The logo showed an old arquebus style firearm descending from the heavens onto earth. Sadly the letters under the logo were too damaged to read, though I did recognize the logo from somewhere. In fact I was pretty sure I'd seen it before on one of grandpa's old books. I should have asked him about the logo when I got back home. However before I could finally go home, I had to now put all the weapons in a crate as per the employee's instructions. After that however the hardest part of my job would be done.

As I was putting the guns and their spare parts into an assortment of boxes, I overheard a conversation between 2 of the storage building's employees. "Have you heard? Apparently the top brass's personal men are searching for a demon spy" said employee number 1. His colleague replied nonchalantly "Oh don't worry Jim, that happens all the time, I mean this is a military installation after all, you'll get used to it if you work here as long as I do." The first employee, apparently called Jim, sighed "Well fair enough I guess, tho isn't it at least a little exciting boss? I mean it could be literally anyone. It could be you, it could be me!" Employee number 2 who was apparently the more senior one of the 2 shook his head "Jim shut up and get back to work before I take your talk seriously and report you to top brass for being the suspected spy." As I turned around, having finished unloading my muskets I saw Jim quickly walk off and help one of the blacksmiths unload their cargo. 

Now that the hard part of this small journey was over, I picked up my now empty cart and started to head home back to Grandpa Kerkin. If anything the now empty card was a blessing compared to the block of deadweight i was carrying behind me before. It no longer got stuck in the mud nor did it require as much strength to move on the unpaved road back. With the sun now right above my head signalling the start of afternoon. I couldn't wait to get home and eat lunch. However as the forest once again appeared in the distance it very quickly became apparent that getting home was going to take a while…