The Mechanical Era

As Kyle walks past the knight, he finds himself waiting in a long queue of farmers. The area in which where the farmers get to use the weapon is separated by a wooden fence, about 5 feet tall. The fence, however, allowed them to give a good visual of what was happening on the inside of the shooting range.

After Kyle gets a good view, he looks around to see what he should anticipate. The shooting featured circular wooden targets, all lined up at various distances for the farmers to shoot at. Some of the targets were even tied to a rope, swinging from side to side, imitating a moving target trying to dodge.

The farmers currently training were seen behind a table, next to men wearing hemp hats to help them resist this sunny day. The farmers held, what Kyle thought to be a rather long wooden stick. They pour a black powder inside, taken from the wooden barrel to the left of them, followed by the insertion of a stick, before taking that out and putting a small metal ball inside it. They then aimed the weapon at the targets and pulled the trigger at the command of their instructor.

Almost immediately, another clap of thunder is heard, with large amounts of smoke leaving through the stick. Once the dust cloud clears, Kyle can see with his own eyes that the targets had been hit with some kind of projectile.

"Alright. You seem to have gotten the hang of it. Now, reload and fire it again." a man wearing a hemp hat instructed. The farmers take another few shots at the targets before clearing them out, and ready to leave. As those farmers leave, the queue started to move up before it stops again.

This process repeated until Kyle got into the shooting range. He had to hand a man inside a wooden box with iron bars his slip, before being allowed entry. It was when he came up to an instructor, who had put a smile on his face.

"Good morning gentlemen. May I ask what your name is?"

"My name is Kyle Moneymaker, sir."

"Kyle Moneymaker? That is a very unique name! Believe me, most of these guys have similar-sounding names. It is hard to remember all of them," the instructor commented while chuckling. He then takes out a rifle from the crate and hands it over to Kyle.

"This... is an FLM-18RC, made to be used for civilian purposes such as defending yourself, and your family from demons, or just for plain old hunting! Whatever it is, you will like it."

The instructor handed the weapon to Kyle, who takes some time to examine it. It was made of wood and polished wrought iron, with the letters 'FLM-18RC' engraved into the stock. The barrel itself was long, about 1 and a half arms long, and it contained a small hole at the front end. The rifle itself had a leather string, that would allow Kyle to carry the weapon wherever he wanted to go.

"Is there a difference between this and the other versions?" Kyle asked, a little curious about the other versions of the weapon.

"Well yes. The FLM-18RC is a .4 caliber weapon with a rifled barrel, whereas a normal FLM-18 is a  weapon with a .7 caliber smoothbore barrel. There is a rifled version, but they are still trying to find a way to mass-produce it."

"I am sorry sir, but I do not understand the terminology. Can you please elaborate?"

"Of course! What do you want to know? Caliber? Smoothbore or Rifled?"

"Possibly both?" Kyle asked. The man kept on smiling.

"Alright then. Now, listen very carefully." Kyle leaned in.

"In simple terms, caliber is just the diameter of the borehole of the barrel. Considering that you are using this to protect yourself and your farm, there won't be any reason to have a high caliber.

By that point, you might be able to penetrate the armor of a hard-working knight. You know what I am saying?"

"Yes sir. What about the... smoothbores and stuff?"

"Smoothbore refers to the lack of grooves inside the metal barrel. In the rifled gun, there are grooves inside that cause the projectile to spin as it leaves the gun. This will increase the accuracy of the weapon, and allow you to hit the intended target.

Considering that you will be working alone, the palace has decided to issue rifled versions to civilians only, because, with smoothbores, you won't get the accuracy you will need while working alone."

"I see, sir. Can we start?"

"Yes, we can." The instructor then goes on to explain what he needs to know; how the gun works, what he needs to load the gun, what the correct proportions are, and so on. Once the weapon was safely loaded, he was given a pair of rubber bongs.

"You should put these two on for ear protection. You heard how much noise these weapons make. Don't want to lose your hearing now, would you?" Kyle takes the rubber bongs and looks at them. Before he puts them on, the instructor gives him one last piece of information.

"Aim for the nearest target. Before you will the trigger, make sure that the gun is fully cocked. Once you have fired, you can take off the rubber bongs."

With that, he puts on the rubber bongs and presses the stock end to his chest. Kyle aims down the barrel and takes sight of the nearest target, and focuses on it. He lowers the hammer to full-cock position and fires.

Click. Bang!

The gun fires, creating a large cloud of smoke and a loud bang. Once the dust cloud clears, he can see that he managed to hit the target, with only a few centimeters apart from a bull's eye. Kyle takes the rubber bongs off and looks over to his instructor.

"How did I do?" The instructor had his hand holding his head while looking at the target.

"Hm... not bad for a first attempt. Let's do another one. Try hitting the target behind it." he instructed. Kyle loaded up his gun, put on his bongs, and fired once again. This went on until he landed a hit on the swinging target, where the instructor told him that that is about it.

"Alright. That is it! That is all that you need to learn. Now all you got to do is just buy a cleaning kit, a bag of projectiles, and gunpowder, and you should be ready to go!"

"Right... say sir. Where can I buy... the things that you told me?"

"Oh right! You have to buy it from the, so far, only 2 approved stores in the city. Just look for a building with a long rifle as a sign, like the one you are holding. There should be one at the end of Grover street, alright?"

"Right... sir. I understand."

"Good! Now, you are free to go." with that, Kyle leaves the stables, carrying a firearm in his hand. He used the string to strap it onto his shoulder and enter the city again. Almost immediately, the people stayed clear of him, with the police even asking if he has a permit to carry. Considering that he had the slip, he was completely fine and even asked where a firearms dealer was.

He eventually made it to his location. Kyle walks through the door, causing the little bell to ring on the way inside. The store owner, seeing that Kyle was carrying a gun, proceeded with caution. Although he knew that he most likely received those weapons today, he wanted to be careful.

"May I see your permit, please?" he asks. Kyle hands him the piece of paper, allowing him to examine it. The shopkeeper leans down and uses a magnifying glass to look at it closely.

"Hm... seems to be legit." he hands back the piece of paper and stands straight.

"Well, how can I help you today Mr. Kyle Moneymaker?"

"I would like to buy a cleaning kit, please."

"You got the money with you?"

"I got 2 silver coins I saved." The shop owner smiled.

"That is more than enough. Just wait here for me," he said. The man went to the back, came back with the desired goods, and placed them on the counter. The 'Cleaning Kit' featured multiple items, including a cleaning rod along with a cleaning jag, cleaning patches, and a bore brush. He was also given wooden bottles filled with cleaning solvents, lubricant, and a small brush.

The cleaning kit came in a box for him to store everything he needed, even the bottles themselves. What there wasn't space though, was a place for his firearm. From what he knows, concealed carry was not permitted due to it posing risks to the citizens of the city.

"How much is this stuff?"

"About 210 copper coins. If you want, I can add in some gunpowder and bullets and round it up to 300." The shopowner suggested. Kyle takes out one silver coin and places it on the counter. The shopowner happily takes the money and places it inside a drawer.

"Enjoy your weapon, sir!"

"Thank you." With that, Kyles leaves the store, heading back home.