When We're Rollin Through the Wild Wild West

[geonomy]

Who: Everyone! EVERYONE!
Broadcast: IF YOU WANNA
Action: Everywhere! EVERYWHERE!
When: Mid-September - Mid-October

[How's your ship doing, pardners? Is it still pretty damaged? Is it glitching out hardcore? Well, there is one place to land to take care of all that, and that's on a dusty old moon in front of a planet that no one wants to go to. On this moon, you'll find a civilization that looks a lot like one's stepped into a wild west movie, hardened cowpolk and mutant horses and all. Will you become a vigilante, hunting bounties and stopping gangs from doing their dirty work? Will you go exploring planetside, with a cowboy hat and a stalk of wheat in your mouth to complete the look? Good luck with that; there is no wheat. This town ain't big enough for all you flooters, but make it so! For the ratings!

In other words, it's a planet mingle! Get 'er done!]

[September Planet info here]

Comments

[reconstitution]

[ The sound of gunfire draws Winter's attention away from exploring in lieu of investigating who made the noise. It's not like the sound of the firearms the fleet is equipped with- more like the distinct sound of a handgun being fired, followed by the disappointing sound of hitting the ground.

It doesn't take much to find Axel out on his own in the middle of the prarie with the gun still in hand. ]

You're holding it wrong.

[ As soon as he steps closer, he can somewhat identify the gun- it's similar to a Colt single action with its long barrel..but it's space. It can't very well be the same thing.

He keeps a respectable amount of distance between Axel and himself- not wanting to intrude, but he's holding it all wrong, and his posture is off. If he were an assassin or a marksman, he'd be dead. ]

[got_it_memorized]

[Axel looks up when a voice breaks through the quiet of the empty prairie, and he regards the man a moment before looking back down at the pistol in his hands.]

Am I? [He scratches his head.] I don't actually have the slightest idea what I'm doing, I just thought I'd give it a try. [A bit of a laugh and he shakes his head.] They make it look so easy in the movies, you know?

If this sort of thing is your area of expertise, I'm always up for learning something new.

[reconstitution]

It's not so simple as that.

[ He moves into Axel's space, pointing to the ground. ]

Feet apart. Straighten your back. [ He points to his eyes, then over to the rock. Winter reaches out to grab the other's wrist, pulling his arm and putting it in position. ]

Look down your arm. Do not take your eyes off the target, and breathe out when you pull the trigger.

[got_it_memorized]

[Oof, this guy's all business! Axel guesses that's all right, he's used to linefaces after all. As the man rattles off instructions, he quickly corrects his stance, stiffens his spine, tries not to let his kneejerk danger sense take over when his arm is grabbed. He adjusts his grip and looks down his arm like he says, glancing at him and then quickly turning his eyes back to that rock. Right, eyes on the target.]

Okay. [Okay, he can do this. He holds his breath, then has to tell himself, no, exhale when you pull the trigger, like he said. He does, and the recoil startles him less this time. The bullet still doesn't quite hit its mark, but he's only off by about six inches this time. He turns and gives the man a big grin.] Hey, you're a pretty good teacher! [He switches the gun to his left hand and offers his right to shake.] Name's Axel. You really seem to know what you're doing.

[reconstitution]

[ He watches carefully as Axel shifts his stance and actually starts to focus on the target in front of them. It doesn't matter that he misses the target- he got far closer than he did the first time. All that comes next is practice.

The grin throws him off, and he looks unsure for a moment before nodding his head diligently. Axel honestly didn't do too badly for his second shot- most would have missed by a higher margin.

Of course, not everyone gets pointers from The Winter Soldier. ] It's Winter, and thank you..

[ A pause. ]

It's my job to know how to hit a target. [ That's all he's going to say on that particular topic at the moment! He casts his gaze around the immediate area before looking Axel in the eye again, expression serious. ]

Again.

[got_it_memorized]

Winter, huh? [Like the season? Well, it's hardly the most unusual name he's heard. Somehow it suits this guy.] Nice to meet'cha. [When he says it's his job to be good at this, though, a look of understanding flickers across Axel's face.] Ah. I know how that is. [He'll leave it alone; he's got his fair share of war stories, even if 'war' is just a metaphor in his case. He's certainly curious, but he's not going to pry.

[Again, Winter says, and Axel practically snaps to attention. Man, there's just something really commanding about this guy. All right, game face on. He shifts the gun back to his right hand, then pauses and puts it back in his left.]

I'm ambidextrous with my weapons of choice; I wonder if I can shoot with both hands. [Can't hurt to try. He levels his arm and narrows his eyes, exhales, pulls the trigger. The shot still misses, by about the same margin, and he frowns a bit, shaking his arm out.] This thing's got a real kick to it. I think that's what's throwing me off. [How the hell did Xigbar do it?] Is it just a matter of getting used to how much recoil it has? Or is that something you just have to compensate for beforehand?

[reconstitution]

[ Exactly like the season. He's grateful for the lack of snooping, and he'll offer Axel the same courtesy. Winter allows him to attempt the same shot with the opposite hand and nods his head when he's finished. ]

Make sure your hand is steady; loosen your grip a bit. Too tightly and you lose control.

[ He motions for Axel to raise the gun again, stepping over to his other side. ] Steady the gun with the other hand until you can hit the target.

[ He glances at his feet. ] Take one half step forward with your left.

Follow-through with the shot- don't release the trigger immediately. How many shots do you have left?

[got_it_memorized]

[Loosen the grip, all right. He adjusts his fingers and then glances at Winter as he moves to his other side.]

All right. [He brings up his other hand and sort of cradles the butt of the gun.] Like this? [One step forward, okay, he can do that. He pauses for a moment then and frowns.] Ah... actually I'm not sure how many are left. [He turns the gun over in his hand, then pushes on the chamber. That's where the bullets are, right? It gives, and he turns it carefully.] Three, looks like. I can probably buy some more bullets, though, they're not like super expensive, are they?

[reconstitution]

Ammunition should be fairly easy to acquire. Make your shots count until then.

[ He nods back toward the rock, taking a step away. ]

Just as you had it before- concentrate. [ He has confidence that Axel can make it in two, if not the first bullet. ]

[got_it_memorized]

Right, make 'em count. [Three left, let's do this.

[He adjusts his grip as he had before, bracing the gun with his other hand, and aiming carefully. He exhales and squeezes the trigger, prepared for the recoil this time, and when the bullet hits its mark with a little show of sparks as it strikes the rock, Axel lets out a triumphant laugh.] Hah! I did it! Maybe this isn't so hard after all.

[He gives Winter a big grin.]

You're pretty good at this teaching thing. Were you some kind of instructor back home?

[reconstitution]

[ He watches silently as Axel adjusts his posturing as instructed- it's just as he should be standing, and he's proud the redhead is a quick learner. He fires, the bullet hitting its mark, and Winter lets out the breath that he'd been holding as Axel moved.

The smile he gives in return is surprised, but it's definitely a fraction of a smile with less hesitance in it. It's still quick to leave his face, but it's not quite so emotionless. ]


I've been firing weapons for a long time. It's my job to hit a target.

[ Instructing is a larger fraction of his past, though he remains unaware of that particular part right now. Maybe in time.. ]