bang bang shoot shoot

[nofortunateson]

Who| North and Tucker, later open to others
What| Range time
Where| The shooting range
When| After Resistance is Futile
Warnings/Notes| Firearms, Tucker-standard double entendere cautions


[Closed to Tucker]

After the adrenaline of the mission, North's ready to relax - which, more often than not, means going back to routine as much as he can, as soon as he can. Showing a sim trooper around his rifle is hardly routine, but range time is, and there is something easy and almost nostalgic around the low-pressure act of blowing through ammunition with absolutely nothing on the line but vague intentions to keep improving.

He's there ten minutes before they're due to meet, out of his armor, gear in a long case tucked under his arm. Just enough time to put out some targets and get set up, he imagines.


[Open]

Maybe there's something infectious in the more constructive (or at the very least highly non-competetive) range time with Tucker. North's still there as much as he ever was, keeping sharp, but he's more likely to strike up a conversation, rather than get in, do his practice, and move on to the next item on the daily training schedule. After about a week of this he even puts up a standing notice near the entrance, around the time of his usual afternoon practice, which advertises the time slot as Unranked Marksmanship League. Not that he's actually going to point it out to York, but maybe there's something to his whole 'not everything has to be a competition' theory.

Comments

[calibrates_big_guns]

If she'd said that out loud, the non-competitive aspect of this little get together probably would have gone out of the window. It'd be friendly competition, of course, but Garrus has a reputation to uphold.

He wasn't that surprised to see her there. He hadn't exactly expected it, but he certainly wasn't surprised by it. Nor was he particularly surprised at fact that cool, amber eyes seemed to clock everything about him - weighing, measuring, dissecting. It was slightly unsettling - a running theme with a lot of things about her, really - but he expected it.

"Not joining in on the fun?" He asks, walking back towards her.

[araignee_du_soir]

It wasn't really fun without live targets, but Widowmaker kept that thought to herself. Instead she simple shook her head, her hair loosely braided back instead of in a rigid ponytail. She almost looked like a normal girl, if not for her skin tone and those piercing cold eyes of hers.

"Some things are better left as mysteries," she replied.

[calibrates_big_guns]

He arches an eyebrow and chuckles as he lifts one leg over the railing, and then the other.

"Well. Now I really want to see what you can do." He says, picking up his rifle. He doesn't quite offer it, but he doesn't immediately shoulder it. He lingers, giving her an opportunity to say something, to reach out and take it, whatever.

[araignee_du_soir]

"Perhaps some day you will," she said with a smile. "But not today. It would ruin the spirit of this little club."

Because it was impossible for Widowmaker to not be competitive. It had always been a part of her, from the rigors of ballet to her training with Talon to her ascension as a sniper. She knew she was the best - unless someone was assisted by superpowers like Locus was - and she didn't need to prove that to anyone.

And she'd learned her lesson about showing off thanks to a still-living Ana Amari.

[calibrates_big_guns]

He shrugs, casual but clearly disappointed as he takes a knee and shoulders the rifle.

"I'm going to hold you to that," He replies without looking away from his scope. Then, he squeezes the trigger and puts another round into the center of the target. He can play nice, but she's not the only one with a competitive streak. Just like her, the things he can do with a rifle in his hands are something he takes a lot of pride in. He's damn good. He knows he's one of the best out there, and he loves the opportunity to prove that.

It isn't often he has someone who presents a challenge, and he'd hate to get lazy.

[araignee_du_soir]

"I would suggest paying attention during missions, but really, you should not be focused on my shooting at that time."

There was no consideration to keep quiet while Garrus took his shot. Any sniper worth their salt could maintain accuracy during casual conversation. "But maybe I will be nice and let you take a look at Widow's Kiss. Not shoot it, of course, but get to take a look. Do you have conversion rifles in your world?"

[calibrates_big_guns]

"I'd need details." Garrus snaps off another shot. "Most of the weapons back home are collapsible. Let's every soldier carry almost any tool they might need to get the job done in a combat zone."

Another shot into the tight grouping.

"If that's what you mean by conversion, yes. Otherwise ..." Fill in the blanks and he can give you a more precise answer.

[araignee_du_soir]

Collapsible weaponry. That would be useful. Sure, her world had some tech that was getting there with special storage methods, but it was still limited. She had a special means of hooking her rifle to her back when it was in assault mode to allow her hands to be free. Even then, it was still bulky and had to be accounted for.

"That is not the same. I mean a rifle that is capable of switching from one kind to another through an internal mechanism. Widow's Kiss can be either an assault rifle or a sniper rifle. As needed."

[calibrates_big_guns]

That actually gets him to pause momentarily.

"No," Garrus replies. "But that does sound useful."

"No weighting issues? No drop in stopping power?" His eyes are still downrange, but you've definitely piqued his interest.

[araignee_du_soir]

"Non. It is constructed with a high tech polymer - strong and lightweight. As a sniper rifle it is better than a Kinamura rifle," she replied, quite proud of her chosen weapon. "It does suffer from accuracy while in assault mode, as do most assault rifles." And it chewed through ammo like that. "But it is quite effective."

[calibrates_big_guns]

"Interesting." Garrus looked away from his scope to nod approvingly. His eyes are unfocused, elsewhere as he tries to assemble the rifle in his mind and picture how it works. Then, they focus on her.

"We'll have to compare notes some time."

[araignee_du_soir]

Perhaps. Talon secrets were not for non-Talon ears, but she wasn't entirely sure if her rifle was a custom Talon model. It could be, for all she knew, but it was hers. But the odds of Garrus causing problems for Talon were low.

"What is your personal rifle like?"

[calibrates_big_guns]

"Ironically, the model was called the Black Widow." He says, mandibles twitching in what could be read as a grin before he sights his rifle again. "Human-made, so the grip was a little awkward, but it packed more than enough punch to make up for that."

He slams another shot into the target.

"Only held three shots before you needed to reload, but one round could cut through almost any shielding a target could have without losing enough velocity to make the shot non-lethal."

[araignee_du_soir]

"Good taste in names," she replied with a chuckle. "You should see my back tattoo." Her glorious ink wasn't as on display as it used to be since she switched to an older style that didn't expose her back. Usually, only her forearm tattoo was visible.

"How was the rate of fire?" Three rounds and that much power? Widowmaker couldn't imagine it being particularly fast, even for an energy weapon.

[calibrates_big_guns]

He'll pause for a moment, flash her an arched, oh really eyebrow and settle back behind the scope of his rifle.

"Semi-automatic." Another crack of his rifle. "Nothing amazing, but better than the heavier, single-shot variant."