Shooting for Friendship
Chapter 8: Episode 3-1: War is Kinda Funny...
Previous Chapter Next ChapterBreath coming slightly short, Sunset lowered her pace and adjusted her backpack, wiping her brow with the sleeve of her sweater as she slowed to a walk. So far, her day had been just about perfect: the first week of school had started back up without a hitch, she had finished the biggest essay of the year for Equestrian History, not one word from her fellow classmates about dark magic and she made good time on her jog from her apartment to the middle of town. The assistant manager at Quill's & Sofa's had messaged her that he had found someone knowledgeable about some of the more exotic Airsoft guns and offered to take a look at Pinkie's broken AKM for free.
Sunset pushed open the door to the hobby shop and rewarded Berry with a smile as she swung the bag off of her back. "Hi! I got your message, did he come?"
"Indeed." Sunset's Good Mood faltered as the clerk's face betrayed something much like annoyance. He nodded his head curtly toward the back of the store. "Although I just learned that introductions will not be necessary. Which would have been great information several hours ago, not as an offhand remark ten seconds ago!"
Sunset turned in the direction the scathing comment was directed, and her Good Mood promptly threw up its hands in exasperation and left the room. Her eyes narrowed as a tall male with impeccable blue hair stepped around one of the shelves.
"Hi." Flash Sentry raised his hand halfheartedly, trying to look small.
"You..." Sunset dropped the backpack and crossed her arms. "... are a dick."
Berry snorted from behind the counter. "Yes, you are. 'We dated,' indeed. Leave me out of whatever this turns into. And you, Mr. Sentry, are not allowed in this store again as long as Miss Shimmer wishes to shop here."
Flash's eyes went wide. Sunset wanted to give him a hug for the guileless look of hurt on his face. A extremely small part.
"What was the point of this?" Sunset advanced on him, fury rising. "You know where I live. You knew what I wanted. For pony's sake- for puh- Rrrgh!" Sunset couldn't remember the right curse, and just got around to the point. "You have my phone number! You could have called if you wanted to talk to me, instead of pulling this smoke and mirrors prank!"
Flash had backpedaled all the way to the back of the shop, back bumping against a shelf of remote-control airplanes. "I was, uh... I was kinda scared to..." He looked away, cheeks and neck turning red.
Sunset leaned forward aggressively, but her initial bout of rage was simmering down. "Oh? And how do you feel now?"
"Terrified." Flash Sentry's Fluttershy impersonation was flawless.
"And?"
"Very, very stupid. 'Prolly shoulda' called."
Sunset eased up on him, shaking her head. She walked back to where she had dropped the backpack, kneeling to unzip it and pulling out the heavy if compact frame of the AKM. "So, why did you want to trap me here while you fixed your old gun? I'm not stupid, Flash. Setting up 'coincidences' is what I'm good at, and frankly, you suck."
Flash took the mini-assault rifle from her almost reverently. "I really do want to help fix it. It shouldn't take too long..."
"Ok, cool, I'll just leave it here with Berry and come back tomorrow to pick it up-"
"No, wait! Ga!" Flash slumped as he realized he'd just been completely had. "Look, I wanted to see how you're doing, ok? We don't really see each other at school-"
"You've been avoiding me."
"-every time I see you you have new bruises or cuts-"
"Two cuts, both accidents." Sunset resisted the urge to check her left arm for the thin scar and right cheek for the healed nick. They aren't that obvious, were they?
"-and you've been acting so differently when I do see you, it's got me worried!"
That caught Sunset's interest, but Flash did not seem to notice, turning away toward the workbench in the shop, next to the model train display. He did something to the Airsoft rifle that popped the casing open without tools and began looking at the insides.
"How am I worrying you, Flash? As hard of a time as I'm giving you right now, it's retaliation for tricking me into coming here. I don't want anyone concerned about me." She stepped closer and put a hand on his shoulder, gently. "Or afraid of me, although it might be too late for that."
Flash nodded, squinting a small part he had removed. "I dunno, Shimmy. We can really see it, you just go through the motions of a school day, then you vanish. And show up again glued to Twilight's friends. I mean, it's nice to see you looking happy, but I never see you doing anything else!"
"I'd like to make a correction there." Sunset took her hand away, folding her arms across her chest again. "They are not just 'Twilight's friends,' they are my friends, too. And we have most of our fun away from the school, where no one will freak out if they see me."
"T-thats good to hear. Airsoft, mostly?" Flash asked, wriggling a piece back into place.
"Among other things. But mostly Airsoft on the weekends."
"And how's that going?"
Sunset thought for a second. "Fantastic, really. We make a good team, we all learn something about ourselves and each other when we play, and we totally kicked the Diamond Dogs' tails twice in a row."
"Aww, the Diamond Dogs suck, me and my brother took them apart on our own once. I've been talking to a guy I know who would probably love to play with you and your team. He should be around." Flash snapped the frame of the AKM shut with a metallic "snick" and checked over it one last time. "Do you have a magazine?"
Sunset took out one of the curving "banana clip" magazines out of her bag and handed it to him. Slowly, Flash rocked the mag into place, then turned the gun sideways and pulled back the charging handle with his left hand, checking inside before letting it snap back into place. Berry came over to watch.
"Test-firing outside, please. You can go into the alley and shoot up some cardboard boxes." He insisted.
After propping open the back door so they could get back inside, Flash handed Sunset the short rifle. Sunset inspected it herself, conscious of the fact that Flash had loaded it, and braced it on her shoulder, pressing her cheek into the wooden stock as she settled her eye behind the square-notch rear sight. She noticed the faintly luminescent red tab below the back sight was really quite helpful in finding her eye position. With a flick of her thumb, she removed the safety and set the selector to "Semi," drawing the front post over a stack of old cardboard.
*C-C-CLACK!*
Sunset's eyebrow shot up, and she took her finger off the trigger and looked at the AKM in confusion. Not only had it fired an extremely fast and loud three-shot burst, but she was certain the shots had literally curved upward and over her target mid-flight. She gave Flash a questioning glance.
"O-oh! Yeah, Sterling liked a ton of hop-up in his gun. He said all the backspin gave him more range." Flash supplied.
Sunset nodded. The barrel of most of their guns had a small device that gave the pellet backspin to aid with accuracy, and strongly affected the arc of the shot. "I get the hop-up, I helped Fluttershy tune hers. What's with the burst-fire? And why was it so loud?"
Flash shrugged. "He liked burst, I guess. The main components inside are from a Polar Star hybrid system, so you can tune just about everything, and it's a bit overgassed for the 'cool noise' factor. Biggest problem is your fire selector only has two settings other than 'Safe.' That and you might go through more gas than you think. Want me to change it?"
"I'll try it as-is for now..." Sunset stopped, something Flash had mentioned catching up with her. "Did you say... Sterling? This... this was your brother's gun?"
"Yeah. Before he joined the service." Flash rubbed the back of his neck, and a dark cloud passed over the mood in the back alley. Sunset had never met him, but the Sentry family's heartbreak had been the main reason she had never singled out Flash for punishment after he had broken up with her. Sterling Sentry had been a big part of Flash's life.
"They... they all belonged to your brother, didn't they?" Sunset confirmed. "That's why your parents wanted to get rid of them."
Flash nodded. "I still wished they had checked with me and gotten a better price. I'm glad it was you girls that got them, though." He stuffed his hands in his pockets nonchalantly, but Sunset could see he wasn't making eye contact.
Sunset brought the stock back to her shoulder, and pressed the fire selector one more click. She aimed low this time, and pulled the trigger all the way back.
*CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK-CLACK!*
The AKM clattered with each shot, and stayed perfectly accurate the whole while. The rate of fire was slower than the burst-fire mode, but it only served to make the gun feel more powerful. Sunset lowered her aim and removed the magazine as soon as it was empty.
"It's great. Thank you, Flash."
"You're welcome. Good aim, I had no idea you knew how to shoot." Flash seemed properly impressed as he walked over to the box she had shot and ran a finger around the single ragged hole that had been torn in the side. Torn between accepting the complement and a smart-ass remark, Sunset stayed silent.
Back inside, Berry had moved Sunset's bag off of the floor and onto the workbench. She set about getting everything to fit again as Flash stood awkwardly beside her, looking for something to help with. Flash broke the silence. "So... you still play guitar?"
Sunset sighed. "I haven't for awhile, but I still have the one you bought me. I get it out every once in a while. Have you started drinking real coffee instead of that sugary Starcolt's stuff yet?"
"Most of the time." Flash chuckled. "It's nice talking to you again, Shimmy. I really was worried about you for awhile."
Sunset nodded, keeping her eyes on her bag as she slotted the spare magazine back into place. "Same. A lot of things have happened, huh?"
"Yeah, not as surprised as I thought I would be to learn you're a dimension-hopping magical pony." He shrugged, leaning on the table. "I feel like that should have been more of an earth-shaking revelation."
"You always were quick to accept the ridiculous. What was my story when you first picked me up?" Sunset asked.
"The excuse before or after 'argle bargle wargle'?"
"We agreed to never mention that again."
"So we did. So we did..." Flash shook his head, bemused. "Sunset?"
"Mmm?" Sunset zipped the bag shut, swinging it onto her back.
"Can I... can I have a do-over?"
Sunset blinked. "What? Are... are you kidding me? You just went there?"
Flash smiled nervously. "Yes?"
"No. No, seriously, go to hell." Sunset stated. Flash's mouth fell open. Sunset wasn't finished, either. "I don't know what your damage is, but you burnt that bridge. It was one thing when you dumped me, I saw that coming before I even started dating you, but when you betrayed me, it was over. Forever."
"B-betrayed?!" Flash shook his head as if dazed. "I... how? I never meant to hurt you, Shimmy! Ever! I lov-"
Sunset grabbed the front of his shirt with her left hand and raised her right, elbow back and fist cocked. "Finish that sentence, I dare you."
Finally, Flash made full eye contact with her, and Sunset held the gaze. Shock and animal terror were the most prominent, but as Sunset twisted his shirt for a tighter grip... Flash relaxed.
"I... I made the mistake of seeing some of you in Twilight..." He muttered. Sunset relaxed her grip, shocked. Twilight reminded you of... me?
It only took her a moment, however, to rile right back up again and slap him across the face with all her might.
"Oh, snap!" Berry shouted as Flash stumbled back into a shelf, and Sunset slung her bag over her shoulder and marched out, fuming.
***
Thankfully for Sunset, the Carousel Boutique was just far enough away for her to cool down her head of self-righteous anger to tolerable levels. Rarity was kind enough to provide a degree of sympathy, and Sunset found herself modeling in exchange.
"And then he has the gall to compare me to Twilight Sparkle!" Sunset fumed, holding up the dress Rarity had handed her with a critical eye. As usual, it looked gorgeous, a pleasant orange cream halter top with white trimming, but Sunset was not in a complementing mood. "Me! To Twilight!"
"There are some parallels." Rarity pointed out patiently. "And it was not very tactful, but do remember who this is. Mr. Sentry is not known as a master gentleman."
Sunset snorted. "Not for lack of trying. He's just as liable to stare dreamily into a girl's eyes as he is to walk into a glass door. Probably both at the same time."
"You need to do something else, dear. You're obsessing over this." Rarity said.
"I am not obsessing!"
Rarity just raised an eyebrow. Sunset deflated.
"Maybe a little. Got anything in mind?" Sunset hung the dress on the hook just inside the dressing room door to try on in a minute. Rarity nodded as the bell over the boutique's door gave a cheery jingle
"A few things. But first I had best do my job and find out what this gentleman who just walked in wants." Rarity stepped neatly around her and headed toward the front of the boutique, where a young and apathetic looking man had just, in fact, walked in. Rarity began her spiel as Sunset stepped into the dressing room.
"Welcome to the Carousel Boutique, where everything is chic, unique and magnifique. My name is Rarity, what can I do for you? While we do specialize in woman's wear, I can happily claim that I can make absolutely anything work."
Sunset smiled wryly as she set aside her daywear and pulled the dress off the hanger, thought going to the empty holster in her backpack that Rarity had made as a prime example of "anything". She perked her ears, pausing halfway through stepping into the dress as what she heard next related directly to that.
"Hi. My friends are too uncomfortable with their sexuality to come in and ask if you knew where we could find an all-girls Airsoft team?" The bored male voice said.
"Well... yes! I'm a member myself, and our leader is just in the back, she will be out in a moment!" Rarity could not quite keep the shock out of her voice, and Sunset started and banged her shin on the dressing room bench when she heard the word "leader."
"Ah ha. Knew it." The bell over the boutique's door jingled again, and Sunset got the impression the most recent entrants had been waved in by the first. "I told you this was the right place, but no, you thought it was too girly. So ha."
"Alright, fine, your 'gaydar' was right!" A much louder, aggressive man's voice barked as Sunset hurriedly tugged the zipper of the dress up, anger forgotten. Confident she was decent, she burst out of the changing room and slid into the storefront on her socks. Three males looked up and blinked in surprise: the bored one, one rather chiseled one with short-cropped hair, and one nervous looking who looked like he would rather be anywhere else. Sunset composed herself and trotted up to the foremost man, who looked most confident and frankly oozed "military" through his t-shirt and cropped haircut.
"May I introduce Sunset Shimmer?" Rarity provided as Sunset held out her hand.
"Hi." Sunset stuck out her hand to the startled men. "De-facto leader of Shooting For Friendship, I guess. We're an amateur all-girl Airsoft team, but... you already knew that."
The chiseled guy shook her hand with a broad grin as he recovered, and Sunset made certain to grip a little harder than she normally would have as he introduced himself. "Yo, you can call me Pathfinder. We're most of the Equestrian Coalition Strike Force team outta West Cloudsdale. This is wuss is my brother Osprey, and this prettyboy is Prettyboy."
"Hi." Osprey waved, then stuffed his hand back in his pocket.
"He's serious, call me Pretty." The bored one noted. "Everyone does."
Sunset nodded, looking them over critically. Her first impression of Pathfinder was starting to feel more and more correct, between his bearing, haircut, aggressively loud voice and the U.P.E. Marines tattoo on his arm, he definitely looked military. She grinned, seeing an opportunity to make a good first impression, and maybe an unbiased new friend. "So, how'd you find me? Us. I mean, that we have a team?"
"Oh, your boyfriend told us to meet you at Quill's and Sofa's a while ago, he was gonna introduce us." Pathfinder nodded. Rarity winced as the temperature in the room dropped a few degrees.
"Well..." Sunset nodded slowly. Another attempt at a trick. What has gotten into him? "That's great. Let's pretend he does not exist, shall we?"
The boys all looked at each other, catching on to the minefield signs. "Oh, so that's why he didn't want to hang..." Osprey made a face. "I never get that dude."
Not... obsessing! Sunset ground her teeth, trying hard to relax. "So, where do you guys usually play?
"Easyglider Survival Field, it's just a few blocks away from the community college on the edge of town." Pathfinder explained. "Great place, s'got a bunch of shacks and opened-up semi-trailers, and then goes into a wooded area with all kinds of cool terrain outside, then the indoor area with the CQB maze. Pretty cheap membership, too."
"Cheap to you..." Pretty muttered.
Pathfinder punched casually at his friend's shoulder as Sunset's head spun. A whole facility, just for games? How big is this place? She refocused as Pathfinder continued talking.
"It might take a few days to get everybody on the same schedule, but I can set up a few games as practice if you girls can make it over to Cloudsdale sometime. There's a big milsim Op next month, it would be great fun!"
Rarity cocked her head curiously. "Mill-sim... Op?"
"Military Simulation Operation." Sunset and Pretty said at the same time. They looked at each other blankly, each expecting the other to continue, until Sunset gestured politely for him to go on.
"It's a survival game with a lot of people, and usually around more complicated objectives. Easyglider's Dark Business game is freaking awesome." He explained, flipping his hair back. "If you're cool with teamwork and stuff, you might wanna think about trying it."
Sunset smiled, raising her fist for a bump. "We just might do that. You want to try to set up a game for next week?"
Pathfinder returned the fistbump. "Heck yeah! See you there! Kill bodies!"
With a quick exchange of phone numbers, the door shut behind them with a quiet jingle as they filed out with a wave. Rarity sniffed.
"What a horrible thing to say. 'Kill bodies,' my word!"
"Marines are Marines, I guess." Sunset sat down to pull on her favorite black boots. "It'll be cool to see how we-"
Rarity gasped in horror, and Sunset looked around in sudden panic before she saw Rarity glaring down at her. "Darling, you will not wear those boots with that dress!"
Sunset slumped in total defeat. Some things could just not be avoided.
***
"Girls..." Sunset hiked her duffle bag further up her shoulder, glancing between the assembled team outside her apartment and her single, sporty convertible. A convertible meant to seat two comfortably, and four at the most. "We have a problem."
Applejack shook her head. "We ain't fittin' in that. Not the whole way to Cloudsdale."
"What about your truck, Applejack?" Rarity asked.
"Yeah..." Applejack rubbed her neck, embarrassed. "It's already over there, Big Macintosh took a special shipment this morning. Pinkie? Rares? Think yer folks would let me drive one o' their cars?"
Pinkie blew a raspberry. "Dad's outta town for the Canterlot Mineral Society thing."
"I don't think my mother would let someone she never met drive, I'm afraid." Rarity looked away, grimacing. Rainbow Dash ran her fingers through her hair, growling in frustration.
Fluttershy patted Rainbow on the back, pouting. "Ooh... this is terrible! We... we don't want to be late. Do we know anyone who might be willing to help?"
Rarity cleared her throat to catch Sunset's attention. "Well, dear, I know someone who would be willing. However, you're not going to like it."
Sunset quickly took mental stock of people I don't like who own cars and found the list to be startlingly long. She narrowed it down by people I really don't want to talk to and then, shortly, Airsoft. She rolled her eyes as her brain returned two results.
"You don't mean the Diamond Dogs, do you?" Sunset groaned, knowing full-well that was not the answer and pulling out her phone. Before Rarity could respond, she pressed speed-dial five and brought it to her ear.
It only rang once. Sunset took a deep breath.
"Hi, Flash, I need a favor."
"Uh, yeah... absolutely." Flash sounded reasonably surprised. "As long as you don't hit me."
I hate everything to do with reality right now... Sunset thought to herself as Applejack and Rainbow Dash quietly placed bets behind her.
***
It was only a half-hour drive following Flash's muscle car, with Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie and Applejack riding with him, but he seemed familiar with the area and led them right to Easyglider Survival Field. Sunset parked, and Rainbow Dash leapt out of the back as Rarity and herself got out at a more reasonable pace, taking their bags of gear with them. She could see Pathfinder sitting at a bench with a good-sized group of other males, most of them eating out of fast-food bags. Pretty saw them first and gave a nonchalant wave as all of them walked over.
"Hey. Welcome to Easy-G." Pathfinder stood up, wiping a bit of hot sauce with his sleeve and holding out his hand. Sunset did her best to match his firm handshake again. "Found it alright?"
"We had help." Sunset jerked her head back toward Flash, and the entire group of boys lit up.
"BRUUUUH!" The shortest one leapt up as dashed over, punching him in the shoulder. "Holy shit, man, haven't seen you in forever!"
Flash chuckled, swiping back at him. "Good to see you to, Mexi. How's it?"
"Pretty good, you missed a lot, though."
Pathfinder grinned down at Sunset, crossing his arms as the boys went about catching up. "Almost like the team is back together. Would you like a tour downrange?"
"Definitely. Rarity!" Sunset called over her shoulder. "Give AJ your stuff, I want you with me!"
The two girls followed him into the building, where a full-blown Airsoft and paintball shop was set up, and right out the back through a gate in a chain link fence that looked a lot like a baseball backstop. A scattering of detritus that looked much like a slightly organized junkyard awaited them, the first thing Sunset saw was the burned-out husk of a car. It really looked like a small-scale warzone.
"We call this Main Street, here." Pathfinder pointed out, gesturing down the lane, past a central two-story shack, and down to the remains of a second car. "The structure in the middle is Fort Effoff, no points in guessing how we named that. Real fun to attack and defend, lots of windows every directions, bit of a killzone around the whole thing."
Rarity nodded. "The whole thing has the feel of some kind of open-air market. A dreary, abandoned, dirty market."
"The west half is actually usually called West Market." Pathfinder confirmed. "It's a lot more open over on that side than you'd think, and it has the Tower of Doom."
Sunset raised an eyebrow, glancing over at the simple guardtower with a winding staircase looming over the ramshackle huts and stalls. Pathfinder was already moving along.
"East side is Residential, mostly Connex boxed divided into two rooms, very CQB. Not much to say but try not to trip on the tires or anything, and The Magic Chain-Link Fence."
Sunset and Rarity looked at each other and giggled, as Pathfinder kept a deadly serious expression. Sunset smirked and asked the question. "Ok, what is a magic fence?"
Pathfinder nodded gravely. "The Magic Chain-Link Fence is a four-foot wide strip of, well, fence, blocking off an alley on the northeast side of Residential that stops everything. Nothing can get through it beyond point-blank range. It's magic. We worship it as our guardian and savior."
"You said that with a completely straight face..." Rarity noted, bemused.
"The magic is real. Besides that, theres the forest and Alamo to the south, but that'll be out of bounds. We were planning on C.T.F. unless you had another idea."
Sunset laced her fingers together, scanning the field again and stretching. "No, capture the flag sounds good. Anything special you guys do?"
"Yeah." Pathfinder gestured over his shoulder. "Easyglider likes to run it with one briefcase in the central building, and you have to get it back to spawn. Keeps a fast fight."
"Single 'flag,' got it." Sunset confirmed. "Alright. Let's get set up!"
The entrance building had two floors, and Sunset was thankful for the cool air conditioning on the second floor and the big windows that overlooked the field. She took a moment to commit the view to memory, then joined the rest of the girls at the table where they had their gear spread out.
"Looks fun!" Pinkie chirped as she swapped out the batteries in her rifle's holo-sight. Rainbow Dash tossed Sunset her bag, she caught it and pulled her jacket off to fit her ammo vest over her shoulders. She popped open each of the pouches and slotted in the curved AK magazines in the abdomen, two pistol magazines on the side of her belt, her knife in the horizontal slot across her collarbone and picked up the short-barreled AKM, looping it's strap over her head so that it dangled in front of her.
"Oi, Sunset. Here." Applejack handed over a pair of soda-can sized plastic cylinders, black with pink grippy material around them and a toggle on the top. Sunset recognized them from their last fight with the Diamond Dogs. Airsoft grenades.
"Where did you get these?" Sunset took one and searched for a place to store it, waving over Pinkie, who took the second.
Applejack thumped the hatch on her machinegun shut. "Just bought 'em downstairs. They're impact-type, so they should go off when they bounce offa' something."
"Cool, they can't be thrown back that way, then. Thanks!" Sunset rearranged some of her magazines to put the grenade on the chest of her rig, next to the knife, before clipping her Sigma holster to her jeans and snapping the last magazine into her rifle. "Set!"
"Rock'n roll!" Rainbow Dash rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck, raring to go.
Pinkie Pie braced her rifle on her shoulder experimentally, then lowered it with a wide grin and a thumbs-up. Fluttershy slapped the bolt of her Mosin closed, taking a deep breath as she stared hard a spot on the table. "I'm... ready."
"What's our plan?" Rarity asked, looping her own rifle sling over her head.
Sunset made a face. "I'm not super sure. We gotta get someone to the building and back, that'll probably be Rainbow Dash, she's the fastest. Everyone else is gonna have to help with that, so... Applejack and Rarity, you go to the market and lay down suppression, everyone else goes through the residential and surrounds the building. Dashie blitzes straight up the middle. Heck, I wouldn't even take your gun, just a pistol."
"Oh yeah!" Rainbow Dash folder her MP5's stock and dropped it on the table, bouncing on her toes. "When you gotta go fast, I'm your girl."
Applejack rolled her shoulders and cracked her neck, smirking. "Let's do it!"
Sunset held out her hand, and the girls stacked their hands on top. "We've been at this for months, now. Let's make a great debut! S-F-F!"
"WHOO!"
They trotted downstairs, where the E.C.S.F. team was waiting for them, Flash having finished catching up with his old friends. Now that the boys were wearing their own gear, Sunset noticed a stark difference. Full-body camouflage, helmets, facemasks, proper load-bearing vests completely covered with ammo and tools (and in one case, patches and emblems)...
They looked professional.
And despite how good Sunset was sure she looked, one carry harness and jeans did not really compare. The Diamond Dogs had practically been playing in tee-shirts and suspenders, so Sunset had half-assumed most teams played like that.
She didn't say anything, but she hoped nobody around her noticed how Pathfinder was getting a very sharklike grin.
Sunset had the sinking feeling they were about to get their butts kicked.
***
To be continued in... Episode 3-2: Do Not Go Quietly.
Next Chapter: Episode 3-2: Do Not Go Quietly Estimated time remaining: 48 MinutesAuthor's Notes:
I must request that any edits or writing recommendation be sent to me as a PM, not in the comments. Please. Otherwise I LOVE COMMENTS.
Ho-le-shit I fucked this up. This chapter was re-written so many times, and I just did not like it, but it's setup for the big one later. The E.C.S.F. is a real Airsoft team, in fact, based on some of the readers (I changed some nicknames to hold better)! Say 'Hi' in the comments, guys!
And I know, no actual game this chapter. Next one will make up for it, and not be as long of a wait.
Has a... connecting prequel-ish thing?