Introspection

Chapter 3 - Squad Green

"You're going to stand behind it, that is, unless you want to take a 22 to the chest." His words reverberated in Amy's mind as she and the others began the short descent to the range.

The sight alone was enough to make her heart start racing. Between Eggman's robots and the multiple team-ups with G.U.N, she wasn't a stranger to firearms, but the concept of them always made her uneasy. The Freedom Fighters were strong enforcers of "suppressing" their foes and, to some, their tactics could be considered harsh. However, they didn't hold a candle to the deadly power of a firearm.

When Amy had joined G.U.N, she was aware marksmanship would be a part of her training, but a wishful part of her thought it would come later. That, or that it would be taught on an individual level. Hell, on multiple occasions she'd hoped Shadow would've been the one to teach her the ropes, an homage to their friendship and previous team-ups. After learning his rank, however, the idea of the Commander taking time to train a cadet sounded ridiculous.

At the base of the pit, about 20ft before the range, Dimitri now stood beside a lioness agent. If it weren't for her enforcement blues, she would have blended in perfectly with the sand around her. She addressed Dimitri with a salute and then the cadets with a nod. They all snapped a salute until her order of "at ease" called out across the Wing.

"Cadets, I am Ordnance Specialist Keerava. Welcome to your first day of Marksmanship training. Behind me you will find, unloaded, standard issue M16 rifles. There is one for each squad. You will learn the basics of gun etiquette, how to properly load, unload, and fire a weapon. But let's start with level setting first, what are the primary rules when it comes to firearms?"

"Always keep the gun pointed in a safe direction. Never point it at yourself or someone who's not a target, and never put your finger on the trigger unless you're ready to shoot." Xavier spoke up before the others had a chance to mewl the question over. The steady confidence his voice carried pulled Keerava's and Dimitri's focus on him, earning him a smile from the lioness and a nod from the Doberman.
"Excellent." Keerava responded as she turned to the other cadets to re-emphasise and explain the reasoning behind the three core rules. It gave Amy and Gunner the opportunity to turn to Xavier but he spoke up before they had the chance to ask anything.

"It's rudimentary stuff. You're dealing with a weapon that can end someone's life in a second. Pretty self-explanatory how to be safe. The real challenge comes from knowing how to aim the damn thing. It's harder than it looks on TV." He scoffed and raised a feathered brow to his teammates.

"I take it, you've shot a gun before?" Gunner gave him a crooked smile and Xavier's little return smirk didn't go unnoticed.
"Yeah, couple'l times. But don't worry babe, swear on my honor it was only at pumpkins. Had a hill by my house, no need to be scared." His teasing tone caused Amy's eyes to narrow and for a second, the remnants of the bruise around his eye-socket pulsed.
"What about you, Amy?" Gunner let out a nervous chuckle as he observed the rigidity in her shoulders. "You seem a little tense there."
"I'm not scared. I've been around guns before. Just never shot one, and honestly... I don't really care for them." Amy averted her gaze, suddenly finding a specific grain of sand very interesting.

"Prefer to use your giant hammer instead?" Gunner chuckled out and the comment caught her by surprise. She was certain this was going to be a reoccurring inside joke from now on; she wasn't sure if she liked it yet.

"Alright, our first lesson will be how to properly check the safety, and safely handing the weapon to your squadmates. Dimitri and I will demonstrate and you will follow. Once you're all cleared by one of us, we move onto loading, unloading, and lastly, firing." Keerava methodically pulled an M16 from the table behind her and Dimitri. Checking to ensure the safety was engaged, she held the handguard and grip and kept the weapon lowered to the ground.