mini guns on the roof." Robert said, then cackled.
Remy couldn't tell them about some of his most interesting finds, but he had enough others that he could join in the game.
* * *
It had been a factory once, but now it was two and a half walls held together by metal arches coated in crackly brown rust. The thick concrete floor was being cracked open by the slow progress of straggly brush from the collapsed wall inwards. The curving and knotting branches of the invasive shrub were dusty pale brown and looked like they would turn to powder at the slightest touch, but the deep green spikes that passed for leaves were viciously sharp.
They had skirted the bush and headed across the floor to stand beside the upright of one of the steel arches. It still supported a few rectangles of roofing, but the spars running to the next arch had all collapsed and tumbled corrugated metal rectangles to the floor.
Chloe had a metal framed catapult with a carved wooden handle. She held it in her left hand and was lightly pulling then releasing the elastic with her right. Today she was dressed for kicking around the ruins of the town's collapsed recent past. She had big boots on, and faded denim dungarees over a long sleeved top with a hood to protect her fair skin from the sun. Maxine wished she had long sleeves as well, rather than the cut off ones of the tight top she had chosen to wear. Her right forearm stung where she hadn't been paying attention and had scraped a needle leaf across it.
"There are rabbits in the bushes, but too deep to go after them. Sometimes they come out and I shoot one for the pot. But mostly, this is where I come to practice." Chloe said.
"And bring boys?" Maxine asked.
Chloe went a delicious shade of red. "Sometimes. There was one.... Andre. I shared him with my friend Tania, though he didn't know we knew. But she's pregnant now, so he's marrying her and I'm...." She picked a dart from the bag slung over her shoulder, loaded her catapult and pulled the elastic back.
The darts had fascinated Maxine. Perhaps she was far too interested in weapons, but she always wanted to know about new ways to defend herself and her family. Chloe had mentioned that she fired darts with her catapult- not the bearings or stones Maxine had expected- and handed one over for inspection. The dart was about the length of her thumb, with twin strips of fabric, about the same length, bound to the blunt end. After a moment of studying, Maxine recognised what it had been, before repurposing. A nail, the tip had been rounded and sharpened and the head had been weighted by the wire holding the fabric on. Launched tip up, the drag from the streamers would turn it around to point at the target.
Chloe had the dart in her catapult, point up and tail hanging below. The twin strips of red fabric fluttered in her breath as she drew it close to her cheek and aimed at a section of roofing propped up against the opposite upright of the arch. It had three crude, concentric circles marked on it and was pocked with the holes of old practice sessions. Chloe released the dart, seeming to jump up a little at the snap of the elastic. There was a clang from across the building, and Maxine spotted red material fluttering near the middle of the centre circle on the target. To prove the shot hadn't been a fluke, Chloe reloaded and fired another dart, landing blue trailers within centimetres of the red ones.
"Nice shooting. What's the penetration like?" Maxine asked. Chloe went red again. "Let's go and have a look."
The catapult's range was better than she had expected, Maxine thought as they walked across the floor to the target. Not as good as her bow, but for hunting small game, or in certain circumstances where sneaking was needed, it was ideal. The darts hadn't penetrated very far into the metal sheet, but they had at least punched a hole into it. Against softer targets, they could be very effective. It took some working and a sharp tug for Chloe to get
Remy couldn't tell them about some of his most interesting finds, but he had enough others that he could join in the game.
* * *
It had been a factory once, but now it was two and a half walls held together by metal arches coated in crackly brown rust. The thick concrete floor was being cracked open by the slow progress of straggly brush from the collapsed wall inwards. The curving and knotting branches of the invasive shrub were dusty pale brown and looked like they would turn to powder at the slightest touch, but the deep green spikes that passed for leaves were viciously sharp.
They had skirted the bush and headed across the floor to stand beside the upright of one of the steel arches. It still supported a few rectangles of roofing, but the spars running to the next arch had all collapsed and tumbled corrugated metal rectangles to the floor.
Chloe had a metal framed catapult with a carved wooden handle. She held it in her left hand and was lightly pulling then releasing the elastic with her right. Today she was dressed for kicking around the ruins of the town's collapsed recent past. She had big boots on, and faded denim dungarees over a long sleeved top with a hood to protect her fair skin from the sun. Maxine wished she had long sleeves as well, rather than the cut off ones of the tight top she had chosen to wear. Her right forearm stung where she hadn't been paying attention and had scraped a needle leaf across it.
"There are rabbits in the bushes, but too deep to go after them. Sometimes they come out and I shoot one for the pot. But mostly, this is where I come to practice." Chloe said.
"And bring boys?" Maxine asked.
Chloe went a delicious shade of red. "Sometimes. There was one.... Andre. I shared him with my friend Tania, though he didn't know we knew. But she's pregnant now, so he's marrying her and I'm...." She picked a dart from the bag slung over her shoulder, loaded her catapult and pulled the elastic back.
The darts had fascinated Maxine. Perhaps she was far too interested in weapons, but she always wanted to know about new ways to defend herself and her family. Chloe had mentioned that she fired darts with her catapult- not the bearings or stones Maxine had expected- and handed one over for inspection. The dart was about the length of her thumb, with twin strips of fabric, about the same length, bound to the blunt end. After a moment of studying, Maxine recognised what it had been, before repurposing. A nail, the tip had been rounded and sharpened and the head had been weighted by the wire holding the fabric on. Launched tip up, the drag from the streamers would turn it around to point at the target.
Chloe had the dart in her catapult, point up and tail hanging below. The twin strips of red fabric fluttered in her breath as she drew it close to her cheek and aimed at a section of roofing propped up against the opposite upright of the arch. It had three crude, concentric circles marked on it and was pocked with the holes of old practice sessions. Chloe released the dart, seeming to jump up a little at the snap of the elastic. There was a clang from across the building, and Maxine spotted red material fluttering near the middle of the centre circle on the target. To prove the shot hadn't been a fluke, Chloe reloaded and fired another dart, landing blue trailers within centimetres of the red ones.
"Nice shooting. What's the penetration like?" Maxine asked. Chloe went red again. "Let's go and have a look."
The catapult's range was better than she had expected, Maxine thought as they walked across the floor to the target. Not as good as her bow, but for hunting small game, or in certain circumstances where sneaking was needed, it was ideal. The darts hadn't penetrated very far into the metal sheet, but they had at least punched a hole into it. Against softer targets, they could be very effective. It took some working and a sharp tug for Chloe to get
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