The Consequences of Introducing a Sniper Rifle Into a World Without Bullets

Kyle’s village was abuzz with activity. Men of fighting age were riding in from all directions, having heard the call to action. After all, it would be them next. They would not be spared if they lied low and hoped the Prince would ignore them.

From what little Kyle saw of their drills, they were quick studies. They had experience with their tools and what knives they could get their hands on. But the issue of being outranged by the Prince’s archers and mages still weighed on his mind.

He considered his sniper wand. It had been very effective against the mountain ogres. Kyle was confident that this was the answer to his problem.

Only that solution raised its own dilemma. He’d not cast may spells with the wand during that encounter, yet he still had to get help staying upright on a horse the rest of the day. If they were going to win, he needed to stay conscious.

He looked the wand over, eventually landing on the wooden block he’d glued to the bottom as a sort of stock. In real life, guns had a limited number of shots they could fire before they’d need to reload. He’d gotten around the problem of inventing bullets by making the spells cast by the wand act in a similar fashion, but he’d run into a more serious problem with capacity. Instead of running out of ammunition, he was running out of stamina.

Office Kyle leaned over Real Kyle’s shoulder. “It would be easier if we just invented bullets and be done with it.”

Real Kyle refused. “The world’s not ready for advanced firearms.”

“Then how are you going to fix this?” Office Kyle mimicked reloading a gun. “They make it so easy. Pop out the clip, pop in a new one, start firing.”

Real Kyle paced around the room. It was easy. But it still relied on firing a bullet. Except what if it didn’t?

“The batteries,” Real Kyle realized. “The batteries!”

Peasant Kyle peeked out from the bathroom. “What about them?”

“We’ve already invented something to contain magical energy!” Real Kyle began pounding on the wooden block, eventually breaking the glue sealing it tight to the fused pipes. “We don’t have to create a case that contains our ammunition. We just have to create a battery that stores excess magical energy for us to shoot! Same idea, still keeps us from starting down the path of inventing modern firearms or explosives.”

Peasant Kyle looked to Office Kyle for his opinion. “I mean, it makes sense to me.”

Office Kyle wasn’t so sure. “Even if you can create a container for it, you’re still storing your own energy into something else for later use. There’s no telling how many we’ll be able to make before it’s time to fight.”

But Real Kyle was resolved to try.

----

“What on earth do ye think they’re doin’?” York looked out from the edge of the forest to the peasant village beyond. “They look like they’re beggin’ for a fight.”

“Beats me.” Benny was relieving himself on a nearby tree. “Can’t imagine they’re trying to drive us out unless that punk Kyle decided to screw us.”

York didn’t think that was the case. “Looks more like they’re tryin’ for a bigger fight than us. But for the life of me, I can’t imagine who that’d be.”

Benny pulled his britches back up and wiped his hands on the grass. “Let’s go see what the farmhands are up to.” Not like they had anything better to do.

It had been more than a healthy shock when their leader had been exposed not just as an oni, but a female oni. There were a lot of mixed opinions about that. But the consensus had been that Fiona had been effective enough a leader that they were willing to give it a shot. They were even willing to look past Fiona being smitten with the peasant.

But the payday they’d gotten from the job of a lifetime had forced them down to a man to reevaluate their choices. They’d effectively tricked the Prince into paying the ransom they’d wanted all along. And it was without the trouble of having their faces on wanted posters for the rest of their days.

That kind of clean break didn’t come to men but once in their lives. There was no mutiny, no final straw that severed their ties forever. It was simply Fiona acknowledging that they had a chance to lead a better life without her.

Those who remained were either the loyal amongst the loyal or those who didn’t think they had better prospects elsewhere.

Benny had been in the village a few times. Everyone had, with how much bread and meat they were getting when the band was helping out. But he’d never seen so many of them in one place before and he’d been here enough times to have a good idea how many lived there.

York was right, Benny admitted. But to what end?

“…There’s one guy in this town who might know what’s going down,” Benny told his friend. “Let’s go pay him a visit.”

----

“Lad…. Does it look strange to ye?”

Benny and York stood before Kyle’s cottage, equally confused.

“No, but that’s what’s strange about it.” Benny walked around the entire building, coming back to York. “This thing is tiny. How did the boss get inside?”

“Beats me. Ye think he’s home?”

Benny knew there was only one way to find out. He pushed open the door to the cottage and entered.

“Whoa.” That’s all Benny could muster. He moved inside, back outside, then returned inside. “It’s bigger on the inside.”

“How ye think that’s possible?”

“Magic is weird,” said Benny. “Probably the witch. …The heck’s all this garbage on the floor?” He kicked a scrap of metal across the cottage floor into more scraps. Those scraps were littering the floor, not so much to make it impossible to avoid stepping on it but still quite the mess.

Benny and York found Kyle bent over the bed, panting for breath. He was covered in sweat and soot, holding scraps of metal in his hands.

“Whoa laddie.” York poked Kyle’s side, pulling back when he groaned in pain. “What happened to ye?”

“Keep getting the amount of energy stored wrong,” he mumbled.

“Nevermind you.” Benny sat on the bed. He didn’t get back up because he didn’t want to admit it was the most comfortable thing he’d ever touched. “What’s going on out there?”

Kyle tried pulling himself onto the bed, only to flop backwards and sandwich himself between the bed and the wall. “That son of a bitch. The Prince lied, Benny. To my face. He’s coming to destroy this village and replace it with more forest. All so he can have a bigger hunting ground.”

Benny was prepared to tell him that it sucked to suck. But a new horror found a home in his mind. If the Prince lied about this, what else would he lie about?

“Laddie,” York grimaced. “Can ye excuse me for a moment? I’ve got a bit of an intestinal issue.”

Kyle raised a finger. “Toilet. Right back there.”

York went back there, confused and closing the door behind him but not before the words, “The devil is the lever for?” came out.

Benny stared at Kyle’s crumpled form. “You really can’t get up, can you.”

“Nope,” Kyle breathed. With a roll of his eyes, Benny pulled Kyle onto the bed.

“…You know, if he messes with the forest, he’s gonna probably kick us out too,” Benny admitted. “Which means you better have a plan.”

Kyle looked at the scraps in his hand. “I have a plan. I just need a plan to do the plan.”

“It’s not a plan, then. It’s a goal.” Benny sighed.

Benny was ready to read Kyle the riot act until York came running back into the room. “Benny! Benny! Yer not gonna believe this! The lever! It gets rid o’yer wee and poo!”

He was pulled in by York, who showed him what looked at first to be a chamber pot with a lever attached. But when York poured some of his flask into the pot and pressed the lever, the liquid disappeared into thin air. No smell, no vapor, gone.

Then he saw a glass cube with two handles. Turning one, he leapt backwards as water came out at a high pressure from the faucet above him, showering him in water. Craziest of all, it was hot.

If that peasant could somehow create that… Benny looked to the metal scraps littering the floor. He might find them a way out of this.

“I can’t believe I’m saying this. But… how can we help?”