Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

Everyone stopped in their tracks as I turned around to face Allan. He was wearing an excited look as he stopped waving his arms around but Jenny and I were shaking our heads as I said, "You already know how to use them, you're just bad at aiming…"     

'And a lot more...'     

"I-I could get better if I practice more, right?!"     

"Of course, that's why you volunteered for watch duty. I'm just training new people to see if they could be more… 'suited' to it."     

Allan was about to pile on but Jenny put her hand over his shoulder and said, "Hey... I think it's better to let him train more people. Look, you have a rifle already and this crowbar works really nice..."     

'Indirect way to say you really suck at shooting… heh.'     

Allan started to slump down but he immediately jumped up and pointed at me, "W-Wait a sec! Dude! How long did you t-train to master them?! Y-You took a while too, right? I'll probably take longer than you b-but-"     

"I never said I mastered them though, right? It would take decades to do and I'm definitely not Jerry Miculek. Well… I spent a day with my right hand and five days with my left hand to get decent. To get to where I'm at, I burned through a lot of ammo and spent a lot of time training when I could. With that said, it's different from the word 'master', right?"     

Jenny's eyes widened and said, "Wow. Really? It took me a few weeks to learn the basics and a few months to get 'decent' with just my dominant hand. How accurate are you? My effective range with a pistol is roughly 10-20 meters."     

I replied, "Oh? I could hit a non-moving target with a pistol accurately for around 70-80 meters, farther if I aim higher. It would vary if the target is moving or actively trying to avoid me. I'd do a few adjustments but I'd still nail them."     

"Damn. Seriously? Is that good, Jenny?" Allan said.     

Jenny chuckled, "That is way more than good. Why did you even say 'Damn. Seriously?' when you don't understand it?!"     

"I could show you a few awards if you doubt me but anyways, we'll go now," I said as I waved them goodbye.     

'It's more than 80 actually.'     

I led my group to the open court and we sat on one of the stone bleachers. Mark and Dong already had their own pistols so I handed Nicole and Alicia the same type. They were all chambered in 9mm and I had a few extra left in my pack. Coincidentally, Jonathan and Esther were close so I asked Andrew for permission to teach them as well. He readily agreed despite his wife's objections and I led them to my group that was currently familiarizing themselves with the Beretta M9's functions.     

I briefly greeted the two, "So, you two doing okay?"     

Esther instantly replied, "Yes! Really good! How about you?"     

"I'm okay, Jonathan?"     

"G-Good, sir."     

"Sir? Hah! We're around the same age."     

"Ah… I just-"     

"No problem, just saying. C'mon, let's start."     

The two of them nodded though Esther was smiling a little extra. She was also trying to get a little bit closer as she would slowly inch towards me, either 'clumsily' brushing her body against my arm or 'accidentally' leaning a bit too much to expose her goods. However, a few times of those 'accidents' happening made Jonathan notice what she was doing.     

It didn't take long before Jonathan pinched Esther's sides hard while giving her a glare. It made the 'accidents' stop, finally allowing me to start a short lecture.     

The first of many to come was basic firearm safety rules.     

"Okay, remember these words..."     

[1. ALWAYS KEEP YOUR FIREARM POINTED IN A SAFE DIRECTION.]     

[2. TREAT YOUR FIREARMS LIKE IT'S ALWAYS LOADED.]     

[3. KEEP YOUR TRIGGER FINGER OUTSIDE THE TRIGGER GUARD AND OFF THE TRIGGER UNTIL YOU'RE READY TO FIRE.]     

[4. BE CERTAIN OF YOUR TARGET, YOUR LINE OF SIGHT, AND THAT LIES BEYOND YOUR TARGET.]     

[5. ALWAYS WEAR THE PROPER EAR AND EYE PROTECTION WHEN USING AND MAINTAINING THEM.]     

I made them recite it back to me until we could officially start handling them.     

Esther interjected, "U-Umm… what's the trigger guard?"     

I drew my own pistol, "It's this protective loop around the trigger preventing unwanted contact with the trigger itself. It's there so we could avoid things like accidental discharges or something similar."     

"I-I see..."     

After Esther's question, I decided to discuss each part of the gun they were using before teaching them how to hold it properly. It took a few minutes but it definitely helped them converse and ask questions about their pistol without saying 'This thingy' or 'That whatchamacallit' over and over.     

When we started with properly holding their firearm, their only problem was that most of them were holding them loosely. All sorts of problems would occur from doing that so I opted for introducing them with some recoil. I pulled out a box of blanks from my pack and I asked them to load their own magazines.     

I demonstrated once and they watched me closely. I held my pistol right before firing two consecutive rounds twice then firing four times with a one-second lag between shots. I was using live rounds in my case yet my pistol barely kicked up from the recoil. It gave them the illusion that it was easy but they would soon discover that it wasn't like that at all.     

I turned to my group, "Your turn. Point them away from us and fire."     

Nicole asked, "I thought they-"     

"They're blanks, yes. But remember one of our rules?"     

"Oh… r-right."     

They at least followed the safety rules to the dot and when they started firing one after the other. After a shot or two, they instantly discovered that they needed to hold them as tight as they could. Their gun would either flick to a different position or would almost get dropped if they didn't do so.     

"You guys felt it, right? Now load another magazine and this time, hold them as tight as you could."     

They all nodded pensively as they loaded a fresh set of blanks. When they started firing, they were trying to do as I asked but they were still having trouble. Some of them would forget after the first shot and would get startled after the next one. However, a few of them showed promise but everyone still needed a lot to work on which was completely understandable.     

Everyone looked like they were enjoying themselves so we moved on with the next subject.     

"Alright, we'll start using live rounds after you guys manage to strip them successfully. I'll show you how to do it a few times first then you'll have to do it yourselves, got it?"     

Alicia raised her hand, "Strip? The gun?"     

I replied, "Just a term for disassembling them."     

Esther interjected, "What's the point of disassembling them? To clean them or something?"     

"Yes, that's the idea. When we fire, bring out, or use our gun, there would be carbon, dust, or other foreign objects that would build up inside it so I'd recommend cleaning them after each use."     

Mark raised his hand, "Boss, each use?"     

"Not all the time, realistically speaking, but it'd also allow you to inspect the internal parts to see if there are damages like the firing pin getting bent or a few cracks from the slide or the trigger. It's totally up to you but it's also on you if it didn't work when you didn't maintain it properly."     

"A-Ah… can we see it now?"     

"Sure."     

I pulled out my own M9 and I started disassembling it in front of them. I showed them my slow version, the normal version, and then the motherfucking quick version. They all watched attentively and after the last click, I placed it in front of them. I even cleaned it in front of them and I showed the places they should brush, lube, and etc.     

Nicole asked, "Are you gonna let us borrow those cleaning products?"     

"Of course. Where else would you get them?"     

After a while, they followed me step-by-step and I let them do it on their own after repeating the same actions twice. It took them a while but everyone managed to strip and assemble their guns with little to no help. I let them do it a couple of times more and I gave them a box of live rounds they could use.     

As they were reloading their magazines, I placed cardboard targets away from the neighborhood and signaled my group to walk on the opposite side.     

"From this side to where the targets are placed is about 30 meters. The challenge for today is to try and make all 15 rounds of your M9s hit the target. It doesn't matter if it's a graze or a scrape, as long as we could see 15 holes. After that, we'll work our way to make the shots tighter but let's focus on one thing for now. Remember, it's not time-constrained so take your time with each shot, understood?"     

Nicole added, "It's kinda far… can we really do it?"     

"Hmm~ Okay, Jenny said she could do it in 10-20 meters so let's go to the halfcourt to get a solid 15 meters. Is that okay?"     

Esther walked up to me and said, "Can you make a demonstration first? I'm kinda nervous..."     

Mark added, "Boss, you said earlier you could shoot accurately at 80 meters. That's real talk, right?"     

"Yeah! Show us, boss! Put your money where your mouth is!"     

'The fuck? Did my workers just turn gangster?'     

Mark and Dong started piling taunts one after the other and it ticked me off. I immediately pulled out my gun and aimed for the two targets to the right. After a short exhale, I unloaded four rounds just using my right hand, and before anyone could react, I switched hands and did the same thing with the targets on the left.     

When I looked at my group, they were covering their ears and fucked out of their wits. I was confused at first but the moment I saw the earplugs I was supposed to give them still in my pack, I gave them an innocent face while scratching my head. I could tolerate the sound without hearing protection but the people around me were sure as hell not.     

"Ahaha… I forgot live rounds are much louder than blanks… I forgot I got earplugs here, want some?"     

"YOU SHOULD'VE WARNED US, BRO!!!" Nicole exclaimed.     

I pointed at Mark, Dong, and even Esther, "They taunted me!"     

Esther protested, "I-I DIDN'T!!! IT WAS THEM!!!"     

"WE DID BUT- WE DIDN'T THINK BOSS WOUL-"     

"WHY ARE YOU YELLING?!"     

"YOU'RE YELLING TOO!!!"     

"MY EARS ARE STILL RINGING!!!"     

Things got chaotic for a moment but they soon calmed down while rubbing their ears.     

"Well, now you know what would happen if you do it without ear protection..."     

"Yeah, yeah..." Nicole said sarcastically.     

Everyone was still rubbing their ears but I continued, "Ok, let's go back on topic… You'll do what I told you earlier and remember what I taught you. We're just training for accuracy, not speed. Take your time between shots and I hope you should be able to do something similar to what I did at the targets. Want to check them?"     

Their eardrums getting murdered made them forget I took shots at the targets but when they walked to them and checked, their eyes widened in shock. Each of the four targets had a hole in the head and in the chest area and they were dead center. Lining them up would prove that they had a few centimeters of digression, but they weren't able to notice.     

All of a sudden, they got excited to try for themselves so they went into position while I stood back and watched them. They finally had the proper equipment and basic education to start firing and all they needed was lots and lots of practice.     

Before they started, I taped the holes I made earlier so we would know if they somehow hit the same place. Each of them took the proper stance and they pulled the trigger when they properly gripped their pistol and acquired their target. When they fired the first shot, they discovered how different it was but they adjusted and continued firing.     

Brass casings started dropping as they fired but I noticed that Dong's grip was slowly moving sideways. His stance was also deteriorating from what I instructed them to do, and all that was left to complete the look was baggy clothes that match their cap and shoes and leaning with their pelvis while grabbing their crotch.     

"Seriously? Come on man, don't give me that gangster grip. Do it the right way and you'll hit the target more than you hit the ground."     

The rest gave a chuckle but it seemed like Dong would go down swinging, "B-But in the movies-"     

I shook my head but I pulled my gun and started shooting sideways. I aimed at the same place I did earlier but it didn't help my case. The holes were only a teensy bit apart compared to last time, but I decided to roll with it.     

"See? The accuracy is much worse if you do it the w-wrong way."     

"..." everyone else.     

After a while, they continued shooting the right way and even Dong followed my instructions. He was still a little skeptical but a few wasted shots proved that what he was doing was wrong and doing it the right way was more fruitful. With that said, my cousin, Nicole proved herself as she landed everything on target. Granted a few were just scrapes, by the parameters I set, she had a perfect score.     

I gave her an approving look and said, "Keep that up and I'll give you a gun for yourself. You could even pick your own, understand me?"     

Nicole gave a proud smile, "Heh. I guess it runs in the family?"     

I chuckled, "Maybe, we'll see."     

I asked everyone to clean up but Alicia walked up to Nicole and gave her a peck on the cheek. The two started fooling around in front of everybody but I focused on picking up the brass casings on the ground. Jonathan helped Mark and Dong with the targets but Esther made her way towards me.     

"Hi!"     

"Hey."     

"Umm… Sky… you seeing anyone? I'm single~"     

'Direct, huh?'     

"Umm..."     

It didn't take long before Jonathan caught wind of what was happening.     

"What are you doing?"     

"What? We're just talking..."     

"Yeah, right. I heard you, alright? Sir- Sky, please forgive my sister. She's a little… you know. She knows no proper decorum, to say the least. Hey! Esther! Didn't you already know that Kaley's with him already? You saw them sitting next to each other last time, right?"     

Esther looked at her brother like an idiot, "I didn't see a ring though. They're just sitting next to each other, so what? That doesn't mean that they're together."     

"Idiot..."     

"You're the idiot!"     

As the two started arguing, I took a closer look at Esther and surmised that she was about the same age as Olivia, maybe older. Her face and body were a little bit developed compared to Olivia, but even if she was actually of age, I already had something going on for myself. However, she was looking at me like I would at a perfect steak and it was giving me signals.     

I immediately set boundaries before it got worse, "Your brother's right, Kaley and I had something going on."     

"Oh~ That's fine~ I'm okay with that if you two are okay with it… you know..." Esther gave me a suggestive smile.     

'What the fuck? Is she suggesting what I think she's suggesting? How old is she, really? I know people like that and there's nothing wrong with it but- but that coming from her is a little too… f-'     

Before I managed to form words, Jonathan just facepalmed before grabbing Esther's collar and dragging her back to their home. Luckily, only the three of us heard the conversation, or else different rumors would pop out.     

Jonathan just gave me a small bow before closing their door and throwing Esther inside.     

'This is why I advocate good ol' classic anime to be aired in the afternoon TV, not those fucking teen romance and those soap opera bullshit…'