by Randal Sloan
When it was time to take the real test, Miranda deliberately placed her shots, each time hitting the exact spot where she aimed. Now that she was being watched, Miranda made sure that she was firing her shots slowly, so that to her it seemed like slow motion. She put the first one slightly away from the center grouping but almost within them. The next three were placed in the area around the bull's-eye. Finally the last one was again inside the bull's-eye, slightly off from the center.
When they scored her test, Miranda found that she had a really good score that was in the top five for the class. The instructor requested that she stay after class with the other top five shooters to discuss putting together a shooting competition team for the school. Realizing that she would get advanced training, Miranda agreed. She was surprised to see another girl in the top five, but she was glad to see her. The instructor requested that they think about it and return the next day if they decided they wanted to join the team.
Classes for the rest of the week continued in the same vein. At the shooting range, they all returned to be on the team. The team practiced together separate from the others in the class for the rest of the week. They learned to shoot with light rifles, a different kind of pistol, and on the last day long rifles. Miranda continued to place her shots where she thought they should go, but when she came to the long range she was the first one up. She was not sure what was expected of her at that range, so she hit the furthest target with her shots.
The instructor gave her a surprised look and instructed her to do it again. When she again hit the same target, he proclaimed that she was going to be the long-range shooter for the team. No one else was even able to hit the last target, so they all agreed and one of the guys slapped Miranda on the back saying, "You get to buy the beer when we win the first match!"
Miranda laughed and said, "Sorry, underage." Miranda tried not to act like it was a big deal, but she really liked being accepted as part of the group.
The instructor told them that they had a virtual shooting range that they could use outside of class for practice work, allowing extended practice without using ammo. He gave them all an access code to the VR system that operated in the warehouse type building near the shooting range.
Stopping Miranda before she could leave, he asked her, "Since you did so well at the long rifle, would you like to take a try at the sniper rifle? Although they do not officially have a sniper rifle event in the competitions, they are doing sniper demonstration events with the idea of adding a sniper class event in the future. I personally served as a sniper in my military years, and I believe I will be able to teach you to shoot very well. You are a natural. I'm not easily impressed, but you impressed me today."
"Sarge," Miranda told him. "If you will teach me, I would love to learn. That's one of the reasons I am here, to learn and to be the best that I can be."
"Come back tomorrow at this same time slot and we will begin your training. And I warn you now. I'm going to give you the full training program, so that if you complete it, you will receive the sniper accreditation which will be included in your permanent military record. But it is not going to be easy."
"Thank you, Sarge. I will be here and promise you that I will give it my best, and I will consider it an honor."
#
That night Miranda used her special access to research her shooting instructor, Master Sergeant John Lewis. Although she could not find any details about specific missions, she was able to determine some of the locations where he had served, and she found out that he had received a Purple Heart and a Silver Star for his actions in saving several of his fellow soldiers after being injured in a battle. Her opinion of the man increased even more, and she decided that she would not hold back in her shooting while he was teaching her. He deserved that much as a measure of respect.
The next day Miranda showed up early and watched her instructor finishing up with the class before her time slot. For his part, the Sergeant had begun to wonder about this new student. He actually believed that she had been holding back in her shooting. Now that he had seen her shoot, he believed that he had been mistaken that first day when he had been checking her first target. He now believed that she had actually hit that first bulls-eye all five times, but for some reason did not want it to be known. Ever since then, he could almost sense her choosing where she would hit the target before she fired her shots, and that she was also shooting much slower and deliberately than she was capable of doing. Already competing at an amazing level, that was absolutely unbelievable, but after all the number of years at this that he had, he had learned to stay with his gut feeling. That had saved his life more than once.
When she came up after the previous class left, he walked her to an area in the armory that no one else could enter without his access code. "I need to clear one thing up with you before we get started," he told her. "We have complete privacy here, so no one will be able to hear our conversation. I promise on my honor as a soldier that I will tell no one your answer. When you have been shooting in our class, are you really showing me all that you can do, or are you deliberately shooting at the level you are expecting others to see?"
Miranda gave him a big smile. "You know, I researched you last night and found out about the Purple Heart and Silver Star medals you have." He gave her a look at that. He had no idea a student could find that information. "And Sarge, I decided then that you deserved the best that I could give you. I have been trying to keep a low profile, so I have very definitely been shooting at the expected level. I can hit any spot on a target that I aim for as long as the shot is physically possible. I don't know my limitations at this point, although obviously in the sniper training, I will have much to learn such as handling the effects of the wind and other things."
"So that first target on the first day, just what did you really do when you fired those five shots?"
"You already know the answer to that. Of course no one but you and me would believe that is what happened." Miranda smiled at the look in his eyes. She knew he was pleased, something not easy to do with this soldier who demanded perfection from himself, if not from his students.
"So if you can shoot for this training where we cannot be observed, will you promise you will do your best?"
"You've got it, Sarge. I promise I will give you my absolute best, and will attempt to learn everything you can teach me. And Sarge, don't hold anything back from me either, and I will try to do you honor if I ever have need to use my training in real combat."
"It's a deal," he told her, shaking her hand with a big smile on his face. "First, we have to choose your weapon and get your scope trued up. After that, you will be the only one who will handle that weapon, and you will carry it with you when you leave this training."
He led her past a number of weapons hanging on the racks in the room. Finally near the end, he came to a rack that held a very small number of rather large rifles. Pulling one off the shelf, he told her, "This is the M-99D. It is the longest range rifle currently in use by our military. It uses new materials from Space Tech to reduce the size and weight considerably from the original rifle, while maintaining or exceeding the original specifications. I am looking forward to seeing you shoot with this rifle."
He carefully went over the procedure to load and fire the weapon, and also how to break it down to allow easier transport. When he was satisfied she understood everything, he led her out the back of the building to the sniper range, and helped her set up her rifle. When he pointed to the nearest target, Miranda fired a single shot. It was to the left and slightly above the center. Instantly she knew she really didn't have to adjust the scope to true it up. Her brain would automatically handle the adjustment. However, she made the adjustment anyway and fired an additional shot, hitting the target in exactly the center of the bulls-eye.
That brought a huge smile from her instructor. This was going to be such fun!
#
Early the next week, Miranda returned to try out the VR shooting range.
She had completed her sniper training in record time, and her official record would show her certification. What it would not show was all the extra training she had received. The Master Sergeant had been as true to his word as she had been and had taught her everything he knew. He had also showed her how to use the VR shooting range, and disable the recording so that she could try everything without revealing her full abilities to others. She was excited to be able to give it a try.
At first, Miranda started by using the target-based simulations in the virtual shooting range. However, she quickly tired of them since she never missed a target that the VR system decided was in range. Even in the number of extreme sniper courses available, she was able to totally kick butt. Then she discovered that the system also had virtual world simulations, where she was able to practice against real world targets. In fact, they were set up as obstacle type courses where she had to evade attackers and clear a path to a goal, often having to attempt to avoid collateral damage to civilian targets.
Miranda initially struggled with those courses, not sure how to proceed, and especially when they required her to protect civilian targets. After running through some of the simpler ones, she gradually got the hang of it, taking advantage of the fact that the system allowed her to select more than one virtual weapon on a course. Miranda learned to select the appropriate weapon for the task at hand, and the civilian casualties went down. She would often start with a silent attack, clearing as many of the combatants as possible from around the civilians by either using a silenced weapon or her sniper rifle. After taking out as many as she could in this fashion, she would then choose an assault rifle or similar weapon and work to clear the rest of the range. She could shoot a semi-automatic weapon so fast, that to her it performed like a fully automatic weapon, but she was so accurate that the results were closer to someone firing individual shots.
Miranda had just found a higher difficulty course, an urban environment where she was able to practice both long-range sniping and short-range shooting, and could have the computer vary the combatants and requirements, when she realized she had only enough time for one round before having to stop for the day. It would give her an extra sense of urgency, she thought, so she would have to go all out on that course. It would give a little more sense of a real life situation. She knew she wouldn't have time to set up and shoot from a sniper position, so she chose a virtual pistol with a silencer and a virtual assault weapon. The scenario she had chosen was that of a group of soldiers holding a number of civilians hostage, with supporting troops guarding the periphery. Her plan was to slip into the area where the hostages were, kill the guards holding them with the silenced pistol, and then escort the hostages out, shooting anyone who got in the way with the assault rifle.
Starting the virtual timer, Miranda rapidly moved through the first stages, easily evading the exterior guards. When she got to the interior, the prisoners were all at the end of a long hallway with several guards scattered along the path. Knowing she had to take them all out together or they would kill the hostages, Miranda ran into the hallway, shooting the guards close to the entrance with several rapid shots. Before the guards at the other end could realize what was happening, she ran the length of the hallway and was among them. Firing even more rapidly she took them out too, but just when she thought she had them all, she saw one man who had been hidden from the other end of the hallway. He was standing to the rear holding a pregnant woman, and was raising his gun to shoot her. Without a second thought, she fired a single shot from the pistol, aiming for the man's head. The bullet passed within a fraction of an inch of the to strike the man, killing him instantly. Dropping the silenced pistol, Miranda switched to the assault rifle and quickly herded the civilians together.
"Follow me," Miranda told them. Pointing to one of the stronger men of the group, "You, help her!"
They all moved down the hallway to the door. "Wait here one minute," Miranda told them and cracked the door so she could slip out. Somehow sensing a movement, she dropped to the side, spotting a man aiming where she had been standing and three others behind him coming into position. Firing four shots from the assault rifle she dropped them all. Spinning to face the other directions, she saw more coming toward her from that direction, so she took them out too. Spotting a stairway behind her, she rapidly climbed up to the first landing and dropped down on the floor facing out. This gave her the high ground, so she was able to quickly dispatch the remaining guards. Dropping back to the ground, she hurriedly led the group of hostages to the exit.
The VR system announced, "Simulation completed!" Miranda dropped to the floor in total exhaustion. She barely managed to keep one of her headaches from coming on. But she was still shaking. It had felt so real to her that she had forgotten that it was a simulation. The total time from start to finish was four minutes and forty-five seconds. If she had been recording her results, she would have been under the previous record by nearly two whole minutes.
On other days, Miranda would complete many more simulations. None of the rest would be quite as real to her as that one had been. She didn't realize until much later that evening that she was no longer walking with her limp. She also realized that somehow she had subconsciously turned her monitoring device off during the simulation.
#
Zeke had quite a few friends on campus that he had asked to look out for Miranda and to try to make her feel welcome. One of them told him about her joining the shooting team. He was really excited. "I have never seen her miss a shot," he told Zeke. "I think with her help we have a good chance of winning our competitions this year."
"I'm not surprised," Zeke replied to his friend. "The way I've seen her work a VR, it is like a dance. She has the best hand-to-eye coordination I've ever seen." Then he went on. "With you on the team, you can keep an eye on her. I don't think she knows the effect she has on other people, and she is just a little naive about their potential actions. Not everyone is as good intentioned as you and my other friends are."
"Ok, I will pass it along to all the guys on the team. And you are going to be so jealous when you see all our trophies!"
"Yeah, I count myself lucky if I even hit the target when I'm on the shooting range. Or the target of the guy next to me." They both laughed at that and then moved on to their separate classes. He was glad that all his friends were being so understanding. But he guessed it was time he introduced her to Joe too. He knew his best friend would be a good one to have looking out for her. He would just have to make sure he got his friend to behave for once.
#
The next day, Miranda ran into Zeke and another one of his friends. That had been happening a lot and he would always stop to introduce her to them. This time, Zeke was with a tall athletic guy with dark hair and a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Zeke introduced him. "This is Joe Thomas and although a big troublemaker most of the time, he is my best friend. We roomed together until this term when I dumped him for the RA job. I've also tried to teach him everything I know about computers, but sometimes he just doesn't get it."
Joe gave her a fake bow and kissed her hand. "Sir Joe at your service. I have eagerly awaited the opportunity to meet you, and find out who has distracted Zeke so much that he can hardly manage to walk. So you are the one."
Miranda had never had her hand kissed before. At least not that she could remember. Slightly taken aback by Joe's behavior, Miranda smiled and said, "It is good to meet you. I'm not sure what you are referring to though, because Zeke seems to be walking just fine. He has actually been a lot of help to me and of course I am rooming with his sister, Emily. Hopefully he hasn't been telling you too many tales about me."
"Well, he hasn't told me that much. I think he wanted to keep you to himself and now I see why. You and I should sneak off without him."
"I'm standing right here, guys," Zeke managed to interject. "We have to get to class before we all get demerits. Otherwise we could just stand here and let you guys talk about me the rest of the day."
/>
"Seriously, Miranda, if you do need help at any time," Joe said, "Let me know. I would be glad to help. Despite you hanging around with this big lug."
Miranda considered what she had just experienced as she headed to her next class. You can find out a lot about someone by seeing who their friends are. And I think Joe is a pretty good indicator!
#
On Friday, Doctor Ted came to give her the weekly exam and checked the status of her nanites. He told her, "Everything is green!"
Feeling a little guilty about turning the monitor off when she did the simulations, Miranda admitted, "I still sometimes experience dizziness and headaches, mostly when I overdo it. But I hardly have a limp at all now."
Doctor Ted then looked her in the eyes. "I know that you have figured out how to turn off the monitoring, and I'm not trying to invade your privacy, but it is very important that you record readings for me at least daily and especially if you experience dizziness or head pain." He paused briefly and then said, "Got to be sure my girl is doing all right."
Miranda could tell that he really meant it, too. "Thanks, Uncle Ted," she told him as she hugged him in a show of affection.
He beamed at that. "Perfect. Call me that from now on. Just between you and me, of course."
Gathering up his things, he stopped and looked at her one more time. "Keep up the good work and remember our plan to keep everything low-key. It is entirely for your safety."
Miranda quickly agreed. The doctor left, reminding her that he was only a call or a VR message away if she needed anything medical or otherwise. After he left, Miranda wondered if she should have told him about joining the shooting competition team, but decided she could continue to play it careful and not give anything away. And she and the Sarge were cool. She was so happy that she didn't pay any attention when Caitlyn and her cronies walked by with their noses up in the air.