Fianna Kelly Versus the Jeebees: A Collection of Steampunk Stories Read Online Free PDF Page B

with it under the blankets. I tried
to keep that image from my mind; and failed.
    I
replied, "I will take good care of it."
    "The
word going around is that you saved two soldiers from hundreds of jeebees?
Where do you keep all the cartridges?"
    "I
have a special pocket on my skirt which holds eight. Since there were only six
jeebees, I had enough."
    "Did
I mention that you can attach a magazine of eight cartridges onto the right
side of this rifle? You won't need to keep them in your skirt any longer."
    I
laughed and said, "I have to admit that it was embarrassing to walk around
making that clicking noise."
    "Have
you ever fired a rifle using a telescope for a sight before?"
    "I
haven't."
    He
said, "You need to get comfortable with the telescope first. It is an
important part of this rifle. It is different from most in that you can adjust
the magnification. The adjustment nearest you controls that. The other one
controls the focus. However, when you change one, you disturb the other. Try it
out. When you feel okay with it, I'll show you how it mounts on the
rifle."
    He
was right. Just when I'd get one setting right, the other would go wrong. This
was frustrating as it would seldom end up where I wanted it. After a minute, I
realised setting the magnification too high then adjusting the focus would
reduce it to where I wanted it in the first place.
    I
looked over at him and he continued, "Now you know how to set it, you need
to work on where to set it. You want to set it so your target is always in
view, especially when you or whatever you are standing on is unsteady. With it
on your rifle, set it as close as you can on the nearest target. Try to keep
the centre in view at all times."
    This
was another challenge and even more frustrating than before. Trying to hold the
rifle on target with one hand while adjusting the telescope with the other was
difficult.
    I
asked, "Why can't I just use the sight on the barrel? Those have always
worked well for me."
    "I
don't know why you can't, but I don't know why you'd want to either. Keep
working at it and you'll see what I mean."
     I
finally got it where the target bobbed up and down as I breathed, but stayed in
view. I even got it properly focused. It was nice to see the target up close
instead of aiming for a red dot in the distance. I think that was what he meant
about not wanting to use the steel sights when I had the telescope as an
option."
    "You
might want to loosen your corset; get some more air in your lungs."
    I
looked at him sharply, then realised that he could hardly know the advantages
of a well-fitted corset, "I have better breath control with it tight,
thank you."
    "Let's
sight it in now. I'm sure you know how to do that. Start with the nearest
target."
    It
took four shots for me to get the exact centre of the target. I would need more
practice before I could use this at the tournament.
    "Now
try the farthest target and then I'll let you practice while I talk with the
crowd that you have attracted."
    How
did he know I was thinking about practicing? Perhaps all the soldiers ask for
time to get used to a new weapon. I glanced over my shoulder briefly and saw
five people watching. This rifle, now my rifle, was better in every way from my
old one. It was funny how I was thinking about my rifles. So much had changed
in just a short time. I couldn't bring myself to stop until I ran out of
cartridges.
    He
noticed when the firing stopped. "Finished so soon? Clean your rifle, put
it away, and we'll see how you did."
    We
walked in silence to the other end of the range. I knew what we'd see since I
had seen it clearly through the telescope on the rifle.
    He
took the target down and inspected it. He said, "These three that are too
high were probably before you were sighted in so I will ignore them. The rest
show good accuracy, but your precision needs work."
    "I
need more practice with it... I don't know how to thank you."
    "Don't
thank me yet. Let's check out what else I have." He