Shadow Author

Shocked beyond belief I stared at the high-tech weapon that shouldn't have existed.

When I first wrote the rough draft of Eminence I included guns and other high-end firearms that were evident in the current age.

However, before serializing the series I ended up removing them completely as it wasn't something I wasn't.

I made the emphasis on magic so having technology-based weaponry made no sense.

That's why I was so confused as to why Miss Smith was currently pulling one out right in front of me.

Wanting to make sure that the sniper wasn't what I thought it was I asked Miss Smith for clarification.

"What's that?"

Miss Smith continued to pull out parts and set up the gun on the ground while she voiced out a simple answer.

"Something that will eradicate those damn birds."

"Oh."

There wasn't anything else I could say or do to prevent her from firing which meant I had to take action myself.

I couldn't be having my new pets get killed right after I worked so hard to get them so I had to think of something quick.

While Miss Smith pulled out the scope and laid the gun on its stand my mind was racing for ways to save them.

I already had them flying toward the sun and Miss Smith didn't seem bothered by it so that wasn't helpful.

By this point, I began to regret pointing them out to her.

The realization that I might be the one responsible for their deaths began to haunt me as I gave the only suitable command that I could.

'Scatter!'

Instantly the small black dot off in the distance began to fade away as the birds moved away from each other.

I hoped that if they got far enough away from each other Miss Smith would have a harder time hitting them.

However, Miss Smith didn't stop even after the birds were no longer visible.

"Will you still be able to hit them from here?"

"No."

"Then why-"

"I don't need to hit them, I just got to get close?"

"What does-"

"Watch."

After that Miss Smith was finally set up and she loaded a shot into the chamber before laying down prone on the ground.

I watched nervously as she took the butt of the gun and rested it on her shoulder while lining up her sights.

'What does she mean by close… wait, don't tell me.'

As soon as I understood that she wasn't planning to snipe them down but rather blow them to smithereens I sent out more commands.

'DIVE!'

I prayed that Miss Smith lost track of them and that she would just shoot at their last known location but I doubt that would happen.

I could only hope that the birds would put enough distance between them and the soon-to-be explosion.

If they dropped down far enough they might be able to get out of the blast zone.

I couldn't see with my own eyes what was happening but Miss Smith was now looking down the scope lining up her shot.

My heart raced as I hoped they would all survive but that's when Miss Smith finally shot.

"Die motherfuckers"

As a loud explosion shook the area I could only watch in horror as a large and fast beam split through the sky.

It blew through clouds and tore the sound barrier before arriving where the birds once were and exploding with a terrible force.

The shock wave was visible as a rush of energy soon came back at us causing trees to be uprooted, debris to fly, and me to be knocked back a few meters.

When I looked around at the destruction caused by the aftershock I was terrified at what would have happened to anything caught up in the explosion.

Once I recovered I watched from a distance as a large mushroom cloud formed in the sky.

In a way, it seemed as if I'd just watched a single person launch a miniature nuke.

Realizing that the world was much more dangerous and full of unknowns than I had originally thought I couldn't help but compare myself to the weapon.

I knew I would have zero chance of surviving something like that so knowing how weak I truly was didn't leave a good taste in my mouth.

The explosion was still roaring off when Miss Smith started taking apart the rifle.

I walked up to her brushing off some of the dirt that covered me.

"Well, that's one way of getting rid of them."

Miss Smith paused and turned to look at me.

"You might think it's overkill but for what those terrors have done it was more than deserved, do not underestimate them."

I raised my hands defensively.

"Oh, I know."

Then I pointed at the pile of dead ones that I slaughtered while hiding in the bush.

"They are quite formidable."

She looked at the masses of dead birds before sighing to finish taking apart the gun.

Once she was done she looked up at me expectantly.

"How far are we?"

I smiled.

"Close… super close."

Thanks to the scouting I did with the puppet birds I knew how far away the cave was and the direct path to it.

Therefore it didn't take the two of us long to reach our destination. Coupled with the fact that the Terror Birds had wreaked havoc in the area we didn't have any trouble.

All the monsters were either hiding away, devoured, or fleeing.

Since Miss Smith and I had gone through so much already it was nice to not face any trouble.

In the end, we made it safely to the base of the cave entrance where beyond would be the final resting place of Miss Smith's sister.

"Are you ready?"

I asked this question before we made our way in to get an idea as to what her mental state was like but instead of responding she took a step forward and entered the dark.

I sighed.

'I was even going to give you a warning.'