Black Sun
Chapter 13
"I guess we all already know how it started," Jaune offered. "Something happened on top of Beacon tower. What it was, I don't think any of us actually know, but that doesn't matter – what matters is that now we're here. Unless someone has a theory?"
"We'll get to that," Cinder said, impatient. "Continue."
Jaune nodded. He didn't miss how Pyrrha gave Cinder a baleful glare for ordering him around like that, but he didn't say anything about it, instead moving on.
"I take it we all woke up in different places," Jaune said. "I woke up in the Garbage."
"Rookie Village for me," Ruby added.
"Army Warehouses," Pyrrha explained.
"Dark Valley," Cinder grunted.
"Sounds about right for everyone," Jaune muttered. "But anyway, I… didn't have a good time starting out. I doubt any of us did, but for a while there, I was on very thin ice – I had failed a number of jobs for Barkeep, I was deep in debt with no way to repay it, I barely knew my way around a gun, and I'd already almost died a number of times. So when I got a simple job to go investigate what was causing Stalkers to disappear out in the Dark Valley, I took it."
Pyrrha turned towards Cinder, her eyes narrowing dangerously. "So it's as I thought."
"Keep listening," Cinder said without looking towards her.
Jaune hesitated, then nodded. "...I'll admit that it started that way – Cinder was killing people to survive. But things changed – when I found her, she was about to be raped and killed by some hostile Loners. And even for someone like her, that was too much, I think you'll both agree with me there."
Pyrrha and Ruby both nodded. Jaune took a breath. "...Well, I saved her. I intended to just threaten the Loners into letting her go unharmed, but things didn't turn out that way, and we were forced to kill them."
"Jaune…" Pyrrha said softly.
He held up a hand. "I know, Pyrrha, I know – but it's fine, believe me. These guys… they weren't your standard Loners. They were part of a big group of hostile Loners. One of them got away from us and made it back to the group, and at that point, Cinder and I both knew they were going to hunt us down in revenge. So we had no choice but to stick together."
"I… suppose that makes some sense," Pyrrha reluctantly admitted. "You're right, those people would have hunted you down… but to agree to work with her so quickly, after knowing what kind of person she is?"
"And what kind of person would that be, Nikos?" Cinder asked, crossing her arms.
"You already know what kind."
"Put it into words for me, if you would be so kind. I want to hear you say it."
Pyrrha's eyes narrowed. "You're a complete monster. You've been killing people for your own gain for awhile now, I'd bet. There's no other word for someone like you."
"And if I told you I had my own motivations?"
"There's nothing that could justify doing that."
"You mean to tell me that you've been in the Zone for as long as we have, yet your hands remain free of blood?" Cinder shook her head. "I don't believe you. This place… it changes you – makes you do horrible things."
"Speaking for yourself?" Pyrrha challenged.
"I'm speaking of Jaune, and the two of you. Unless you plan on continuing to insist that you've never purposely hurt someone during your time here."
"She's right…" Ruby said softly.
Jaune turned to her in surprise. "Ruby…?"
"I… I haven't been a good person, since coming here," Ruby confessed. "I've tried, but… it's impossible, sometimes. I want to do the right thing so badly, but every time, it just leads to me having to kill someone." She sniffled, then brought a hand up to rub at her eyes. "I hate it here, guys… I want to go home…"
"We'll make it home," Pyrrha insisted. "The three of us will."
"How convenient of you to leave me out," Cinder surmised. "You must not plan for me to be around for much longer. Luckily for you, I intend to stay."
Pyrrha turned to her, surprised. "What do you mean, you intend to stay? That makes no sense."
"I have already told you I have my own motivations for what I do here." Cinder crossed her arms once more. "If you're so curious about them, ask Jaune. I am sure he'd be more than capable of filling you in."
Jaune shook his head. "That's not my story to tell, Cinder."
"Then I suppose it will go untold."
"None of this changes anything," Pyrrha cut in. "We're all here because of her. All the recent misery in our lives is because of her, whether directly or indirectly. How you can continue to work with her-"
"Pyrrha, that's enough," Jaune said sternly, causing her to fall silent. He took another breath. "I will make no excuses for Cinder's earlier behavior. I won't even claim that she's changed, because that's something she'll have to prove to you two if she's so willing. But I will say this – she's been nothing if not reliable while working with me, and I don't see that changing any time soon unless she plans to go her own way. And judging by her reaction when I threatened myself with a gun, I think that's the very last thing on her mind. Am I correct, Cinder?"
Cinder merely nodded. Jaune turned back to Ruby and Pyrrha, then let out a sigh. "Look, I don't need you to trust her fully. I just need you to believe that she won't do either of you any harm, and that we can rely on her to watch our backs, just as she can rely on us to watch hers."
"That's a stretch, Jaune," Pyrrha pointed out. "You're asking us to rely on someone who's a trained killer-"
"I'm asking you to rely on someone who's already proven to be ready and willing to keep an eye out for me," Jaune corrected. "I don't think that's too much to ask. You don't need to be friends with her, you just need to know that she'll watch out for you, and vice versa."
"And what makes you think she's capable of that?"
"Because if either of you were to be injured or die, Jaune would be very upset," Cinder pointed out. "Normally I would not care about such things, but he has proven to be a capable and valuable ally, and I would like to keep him that way for the foreseeable future. I owe him a debt, of sorts, and I intend to pay it back in full. If that means having to keep you two alive and in good health, so be it."
"And, of course, that goes both ways," Jaune hurriedly added. "Cinder, I expect you to rely on Ruby and Pyrrha as well."
"Hm. So be it," Cinder said.
Pyrrha grit her teeth. "This… what is going on? Is this really what we've been reduced to – working with the enemy?"
"I am not your enemy any longer," Cinder insisted.
"You will always be my enemy," Pyrrha said with a snarl. "But fine. If this is what Jaune thinks is best, then who am I to argue with it? Just know that I'll watching and waiting for the moment you step out of line, and when it inevitably happens, I will stop you this time."
With that, Pyrrha stalked off angrily. Jaune watched her go, dismayed, and his disappointment only grew when Ruby took off after her.
"At least that's done…" Cinder muttered. "Come, Jaune – we have work to do."
"We do?" Jaune asked.
"Indeed. To the victor go the spoils, after all."
Cinder motioned to the dead bodies they'd left behind, and a fresh wave of nausea overcame him. Still, he managed to keep it held within, and instead meekly nodded.
At the very least, they'd dealt with those hostile Loners and reunited with Pyrrha and Ruby… even if doing so had left a pit in his stomach.
"What's the final tally?" Jaune asked.
Cinder grunted as she set down a rucksack full of gear. She took a moment to catch her breath, then opened it and began to look through it.
"For just the things we can actually carry right now?" Cinder questioned. "Plenty of weapons, ammo, and other assorted goods. Lots of money. Some grenades. Food and water to last us awhile, of course."
"How much money?"
"Quite a bit, I'd say – not unusual, given how many Loners we needed to go through. I'd estimate around fifteen-thousand."
Jaune let out a low whistle. "And that's before we sell off the weapons and ammo we don't need."
"Indeed. This has proven to be quite the unexpected windfall."
Cinder motioned for him to look inside the rucksack. "I recommend replacing any ammunition you used, if you haven't already. There are plenty of shotgun shells in there, plus some .45 caliber ammunition."
"Yeah… it's just a shame how we got it all."
Cinder's expression darkened. "Stop that."
"Stop what?"
"Feeling sorry for yourself. We both knew this would happen, and those Loners knew what they were getting into when they came after us. They did it anyway; at that point it was self-defense for us. Lamenting their deaths won't bring them back, and they are not worth your tears, anyway."
Jaune wanted to argue, but couldn't – like it or not, she had a valid point. Those Loners had been scum, no different from the average Bandit. Taking them out was a net positive for the whole Zone… and yet, Jaune hated it. Moreover, he hated the fact that Cinder was so at ease with herself afterwards – not because he distrusted her or thought she was evil, but rather because her lack of care towards killing was indicative of exactly the kind of environment she'd been exposed to while growing up.
"You're right," Jaune reluctantly conceded with a nod. "Sorry."
"Don't be," Cinder admonished. "You three aren't like me; I understand that, to a certain degree. Believe me, you're better off for it, too. But there is a limit to my patience, and expressing sympathy for people like Bandits and these Loners is a good way to test it. Don't feel sorry for yourself for doing what needed to be done."
Jaune nodded again. Cinder gathered up the rucksack and was about to throw it over her shoulder when Jaune placed a hand on one of the straps.
"Allow me," he said.
Cinder rolled her eyes. "Such a gentleman."
Still, she didn't argue when Jaune slung the ruck over his own back, nearly buckling under the weight.
"Geez…" he managed to gasp out. "What's in here?"
"A few rifles and handguns, some grenades, and a lot of ammo," Cinder reported. "I figure that's what we can sell right now; the rest, we'll have to make a few trips for."
"It weighs a ton…"
"Don't be so dramatic."
"Hey, you were quick to hand it over to me."
"You were quick to offer to take it. You have nobody to blame but yourself."
She had him there. Jaune shook his head. "What now?"
"Now, I suppose we discuss with our new… companions," Cinder said, all but spitting out the last word. "We will need to decide what to do next."
Jaune winced. "That's gonna be a rough conversation, I bet… but it has to happen, so let's do it."
They set the gear aside, then went looking for Ruby and Pyrrha. Jaune and Cinder found them sitting around a campfire, eating some military rations. As they approached, both girls looked up towards them and set their food aside.
"Something the matter?" Ruby asked.
"No, just figured we should discuss future plans, now that we're all together," Jaune said. Him and Cinder took a seat across from the two of them, setting their long guns aside. Jaune stretched his hands out towards the fire to warm himself, and after a moment, turned back to the two of them.
"So, I take it that nobody really knows a way back to Remnant yet?" Jaune ventured. "I'm certain one exists – I mean, we got here, after all, and I doubt that was a one-way trip, so there has to be a way back. But if there is one, I haven't heard of it yet."
"I actually might have something," Ruby offered.
They all turned to her in surprise. "You do?!" Pyrrha asked, excited.
Ruby shrank a bit under the sudden attention. "I said I might," she specified. "Getting to it would be incredibly dangerous, because it's in the very heart of the nuclear power plant."
"What is it?" Cinder asked.
"It's the Wish Granter," Ruby answered. "I don't know exactly what that is, only that it's a legendary artifact that's supposedly capable of granting any wish someone would ask of it. The problem is that nobody really knows if it even exists in the first place – it's just a legend at this point, one of many that the Zone has become known for. People have tried looking for it, and to my knowledge, nobody's survived the trip."
"Why is that?" Jaune questioned.
"Well, the center of the power plant is the single most dangerous spot in the Zone," Pyrrha said. "It's crawling with radiation, mutants, and Monolith."
"Monolith?" Cinder interrupted.
"One of the biggest factions in the Zone," Pyrrha said, though it was clear by her tone that she was reluctant to even be addressing Cinder. "They're a bunch of brainwashed religious fanatics who worship something called the Monolith."
"You've encountered them?" Jaune couldn't help but ask.
Pyrrha nodded. "Yeah, I have. I wound up with another faction called Freedom when I first arrived here. They share a border with Monolith, and often have to repel probing attacks. My squad and I served as reinforcements for Freedom during one such attack. I can say that the Monolith troops are something else – they have no care for their own personal safety, they just want you dead or converted to their religion, which involves them dragging you back to their territory to do Gods only know what with you. Oh, and for good measure, they're probably the single-most heavily armed faction in the entire Zone, aside from the Ukrainian Military themselves."
"Well, that's great," Jaune said sarcastically. "So that's what we're dealing with if we want to get home?"
"Don't forget the Brain Scorcher," Ruby chimed in.
"I'm sorry, the what?" Jaune questioned.
"That was my reaction, too," Ruby muttered. She shook her head. "The Brain Scorcher is… I guess it's some kinda device that emits a field that interferes with your brain waves? It's what's responsible for the zombified Stalkers people encounter out close towards the center of the Zone. If you don't know what those are, they're not literal zombies, but they are basically walking husks of former Stalkers. As it was explained to me, they have no higher brain activity aside from shambling around, moaning, and soiling themselves, but they are capable of pulling a trigger, which makes them very dangerous."
"What a lovely description…" Cinder muttered, the sarcasm all but dripping from her tone.
Ruby ignored her, instead looking back to Jaune. "Anyway, if we want to get to the power plant, we're going to have to find some way to get through the Brain Scorcher."
"Great…" Jaune said softly. "Any ideas?"
"As it would just so happen, I have a lead on that, too," Ruby offered. "There's an underground lab called X-18 – apparently, we can find what we'll need there. The problem is that it's locked. Barkeep has one of the keys, but the other-"
"Wait a minute," Cinder interrupted, her eyes widening in surprise. "Jaune, didn't we find a key here labeled X-18?"
Jaune perked up immediately. "Hey, you're right, we did! Hold on, I think I still have it…"
He reached into his pocket, his eyes lighting up when he felt the key brush against his fingertips. He pulled it out and offered it to Ruby, who accepted it with wide eyes.
"Wow…" she breathed. "So I guess we're actually doing this, then?"
"Of course we are," Jaune said with a grin. "All we need to do is get the other key from Barkeep, and we'll be set to head off for it."
"Do we even know where X-18 is?" Pyrrha asked.
"And we'll need to be properly geared up for it first," Cinder reminded them all.
Jaune deflated a bit at that. "Okay… so there's some work to do first. But still, this is progress! I mean, if anything, this is the first significant progress we've had towards getting home since we've gotten here. If nothing else, we know where we now need to go and what we need to do once we get there. Now it's just a matter of making sure we can get through it all in one piece."
"I suppose that's one way of looking at it…" Pyrrha agreed softly. "Well, if nothing else, it's good to see you two again. Hopefully, we'll be back home sooner than the three of us think."
Cinder rolled her eyes at that, but didn't offer a response. Instead, she stood up and began to walk away.
"Cinder, where are you going?" Jaune asked.
"To tally up the remainder of the gear from the fallen Loners," Cinder told him without looking back. "Don't wait up for me, I'll only be gone a bit."
This time, Jaune didn't listen. He rushed after Cinder, even reaching to grab her by the shoulder and stop her. Cinder rounded on him, a glare etched across her face, but Jaune was unperturbed.
"What's going on with you?" he asked. "I know you and Pyrrha don't like each other, but seriously, you both need to get over it. We're in this together at this point. I need to know I can trust you both to watch each other's backs."
"You can trust me to look after her just fine," Cinder growled. "Now let go of me."
Reluctantly, Jaune pulled his hand away. Cinder turned and marched off in silence, and Jaune let out a tired sigh as he watched her go.
"Jaune, what the hell is all this?!"
"Stuff to sell to you," Jaune said as he finished emptying the sack of gear out onto the bar's counter top.
Barkeep stared at it all, his jaw on the floor. "What makes you think I want all this shit?!"
"Because you'll buy anything if you think you can turn a profit on it. Come on, I know you're interested."
Tentatively, Barkeep reached for a short-barreled Kalashnikov. He turned it over in his hands, examining it.
"You cleared these, right?" he asked.
"They should've been," Jaune answered.
Barkeep pulled back on the charging handle. The weapon's magazine had been removed, but a bullet came flying out of the chamber regardless. He stared at Jaune, who stared back.
"Most of them should've been," Jaune amended.
Barkeep just sighed, then picked up the discarded bullet and placed it in a nearby jar that was filled with other bullets of varying calibers. He put the gun back on the counter, then looked back out over the spread before him.
"Alright, so let's see what you've got…" he muttered. "Looks like about a half-dozen Kalashnikovs of varying kinds, mostly in good condition. I see four AR-15 rifles in good condition, one with some kind of optic attached. A bunch of miscellaneous handguns. Ammo for days, grenades, rations, bottles of water, detectors… where did you get all this stuff?"
"Found it," Jaune said without any hesitation.
Barkeep rolled his eyes. "Whatever, it's none of my concern. For all of this stuff, I'll give you… thirty-thousand. Or you can trade it all in for something."
That got Jaune's attention. He looked back out to the other three. "What do we need?"
"The rest of us are mostly good on weapons, ammo, and armor," Ruby reported. "You, on the other hand, need both – your armor has seen better days and your shotgun got destroyed."
Jaune nodded, then looked back to Barkeep. "How much for a new vest to go over my Stalker Suit?"
"I'll take that direct out of your payment for all this shit," Barkeep grunted. "You'll still have about twenty grand left."
"Okay… got any good shotguns in stock?"
"Pump or semi?"
Jaune blinked, then looked back to Ruby for guidance.
"Semi," she said.
"Wait here," Barkeep said.
He disappeared into the back room. Jaune heard him rummaging around for a bit before he returned a minute later with a gun case. He placed the case on the counter, then popped it open and let Jaune take a look inside.
"Some Mercenary brought this thing in himself," Barkeep told him. "Dumbass got mauled by a pack of Pseudodogs; the gun didn't have an owner anymore. It's a bit used, but still in good condition."
"What is it?" Jaune asked, picking the gun up.
"Benelli M4. Seven-round magazine tube, plus one in the chamber for a total of eight; I hear you can also load one on the shell carrier for a total of nine, if you've got the time. This one looks like the really nice law enforcement model, so it has night sights and the telescoping stock."
"Sounds expensive," Jaune commented.
"For you? Thirty-five thousand."
Jaune let out a low whistle at that, then moved to put the gun back in its case. "Thanks, but-"
"We'll take it," Cinder cut in.
Jaune's eyes widened. "Cinder-"
"You need a weapon, and I'll be damned if I let you get another pump gun," she said as she fished a stack of bills out of her pocket and handed them to Barkeep. "The rest of the gear and that money should cover it."
"That it does," Barkeep confirmed as he counted the money. He motioned to the gun. "She's yours, Jaune."
Jaune grimaced, but picked up the shotgun regardless, running the bolt a few times to check the action. This gun was a lot heavier than the Remington, but the bolt was smooth and it was built like an absolute tank. The only defect he could find was a series of scratched on the left side of the receiver, no doubt from the Pseudodogs that had killed the gun's previous owner.
Jaune slung the weapon across his front, then looked back up to the top of the bar. Crocea Mors was still hanging there, waiting for him, and he grimaced again at the sight of it. He really wanted to buy it back, but at this point, it wouldn't do him any good – without his Aura, it'd just be more weight to carry around.
"Alright, I guess we're set, then," he said as Barkeep handed him a fresh bulletproof vest to replace his old one. "Next priority is getting you all outfitted even better than you are, I think. You could all probably use some better guns and armor at some point."
"That can wait for now," Pyrrha said. "We needed to make sure you could hold your own first."
"I know, but still." Jaune looked back to Barkeep. "You wouldn't happen to know where we could find X-18, would you?"
"Of course I do," Barkeep grunted. "What's it worth to you?"
"Two-thousand."
"Deal." Cinder handed Barkeep the money, and he leaned in. "I'll mark it on your PDA's map. You have both keys?"
"We do," Ruby confirmed.
"Hm. Well, for your sake, I wish you luck. The entire Zone could do with something being done about the fucking Brain Scorcher."
"We'll see what we can do," Jaune assured him. He cast a glance down at his PDA, then looked back to Barkeep, unamused. "Seriously?"
"What?" Barkeep asked. "You wanted the location of X-18, and I gave it to you."
"You could have just told us it was in the Dark Valley, considering we just came from there."
"And lose out on two-thousand rubles? What do you take me for?"
Jaune sighed tiredly. "Alright, whatever. Let's just go."
The three girls nodded, then followed after him as he led the way out of the Bar.
"Alright, gear check," Jaune said as they walked through the gates to their new headquarters. "What do we have?"
"Plenty of ammo," Cinder reported. "Same with food, water, and grenades."
"And the weapons the Loners dropped for us? Anything good in there?"
"Not that I saw. Looked like a bunch of Kalashnikovs to me, mainly." Cinder glanced back at Ruby, frowning as she took note of her weapon. "She might need something bigger if we're heading into the lion's den."
"I agree," Jaune said. "Ruby, go with Cinder and look through the weapons we've still got. See if you can't dig up something with a bit more kick than the gun you've already got."
Ruby nodded in understanding, then her and Cinder split off from the other two and headed for the barracks building where Cinder had stowed the rest of the gear they'd picked up from earlier. Her eyes widened when she saw the various guns laid out across the room.
"Wow…" she breathed, approaching one of the rows of short-barreled rifles.
"Pick something, already," Cinder said, impatient. "I want to get this trip over with."
"In a minute," Ruby said without looking back. "I just… want to take this all in for a moment."
Cinder rolled her eyes. "They're just weapons."
"But they're so cool! They're so much different from the weapons we use on Remnant. Makes me wonder what firearms development looked like on this world compared to ours."
"Does it matter?"
"Well, no, but it is interesting to me."
"It figures that you would be so easily excited by something so utterly mundane. You are, after all, ultimately still a child."
A vein pulsed in Ruby's forehead. She turned towards Cinder, her hands on her hips. "What's your problem? We're supposed to be on the same side."
"That doesn't mean we're going to like each other," Cinder said. "I am convinced that whatever happened at Beacon tower was down to something the two of us did, whether we know it or not. We are the reason that the four of us are here."
"What makes you say that?"
"Perhaps I'll tell you sometime in the future."
"We're going into X-18," Ruby reminded her. "I have to say it, but there might not be a next time for some of us. So you might as well spill. That'd certainly go a long way to helping us trust you, you know."
Cinder pursed her lips, but reluctantly nodded. "...You're right, I suppose. I am so used to seeing you as the enemy, ever since that time at the Dust shop. Never did I think the day would come when I would have to rely on you to keep me alive, and vice versa." She took a breath. "I'll give you the short version – magic is real on Remnant. I attacked Beacon to claim one person's magic for my own. I succeeded in attaining it, but then you stopped me before I could use it on Pyrrha. Whatever you did, I am inclined to believe that it was magical, too."
Ruby's eyes widened. "What are you saying…?"
"I am saying that, whether you know it or not, you have magic within you," Cinder specified. "That's why we're here – your magic reacted with mine somehow, and it transported the four of us to the Zone."
Ruby stared at her, then shook her head. "That's… Ozpin would have known…"
"Ozpin is a cryptic old man with plenty of secrets he wants to keep hidden away," Cinder told her. "Was there anything he told you during your time at Beacon that stuck out as odd?"
Ruby bit her lip. "...Now that you mention it, one of the first things he said to me was mentioning my silver eyes…"
"And I recall that the light came from your eyes on top of Beacon tower," Cinder said. "Unfortunately, that isn't much help to us now – you don't even know how to call upon that power. So we're stuck, same as always."
"Yeah…" Ruby took a breath. "Hey, Cinder?"
"Yes?"
"Why did you decide you wanted that kind of power, anyway? I mean… not to say you're evil or anything, but you were doing bad things in pursuit of it, right? So why-"
Cinder's eyes narrowed for a moment, but she took a breath and relaxed. "...I have not had a good life, we'll say. All I've done throughout my years of existence is trade one set of chains for another. This power is supposed to help me finally break my chains for good. And yet, it only ever led me here, with you three."
"Is that why you're staying?" Ruby asked.
Slowly, Cinder nodded. "It is. The Zone is a dangerous place, but at least here, I'm free. If I die here, I will die without my chains. And ultimately, that's why I'm choosing to stay."
Ruby fell silent at that, but after a moment, she looked back to Cinder. "For what it's worth, I hope you find what you're looking for."
Cinder was taken aback by her statement. She froze, but shook herself out of it. "...Thank you. And I hope you three are able to find your way back, too."
The conversation died after that as Ruby rummaged through the lineup of weapons, finally finding one that seemed to fit her. It was a very short rifle with a folding stock that seemed to take the same kind of ammo and magazines that Cinder's Kalashnikov did. Ruby racked the bolt a few times, then dry-fired it a bit and aimed down the sights before nodding. She unhooked her submachine gun from its sling, then replaced it with her new weapon and began to stuff magazines into her pouches. For good measure, she also replaced her old revolver with a new semi-automatic pistol.
"Satisfied?" Cinder asked, earning a nod. "Very well. Let us rejoin the others."
With that, they both left the barracks, then went looking for Jaune and Pyrrha.
"There you both are," Jaune greeted as the two of them came around the corner. "Find everything you needed?"
"We did," Cinder said.
"Great." Jaune turned his attention back to the PDA. "The mark Barkeep put on this thing says it's in the cellar of the factory on the western side of the Dark Valley. Unless anyone has a better suggestion, I say we head there right away."
Nobody argued, and Jaune exhaled.
"Alright. Let's get this over with."
What's up, guys? I am back from my trip to London. Came in late last night, as a matter of fact. I would have updated this story earlier, but I really wanted to play RE4 Separate Ways, since that launched while I was on my work trip. And now that I finished with that, I can move on to posting this update.
Anyway, not too much to say here. You know how it goes - filler chapter, yadda yadda. This one, I think, actually had quite a bit of meat to it, what with the character interactions... and the gun porn. Admittedly, giving Jaune a Benelli M4 is absolutely one big moment of author appeal for me - I actually own a Benelli M4, myself, and it is one of my very favorite guns. Probably my big favorite, if I'm being honest - it is always an absolute joy to shoot, it just runs and runs and runs without issue. I've got probably 5k shells through it since I bought it and it has jammed exactly twice, both of which I am convinced were ammo-related because both jams were with the same ammo (Nobelsport low-recoil 00 buck; the first jam, it fired the shell just fine, but the shell opened up a bit wide and got stuck in the action. The second jam was a failure to fire; I racked the round out to inspect it, determined it looked fine, shrugged my shoulders, stuck it back in, and pulled the trigger again, and that time it went bang without issue). So that's my main reason for letting Jaune have one - because I absolutely love the gun. My other reason is that I own one myself, like I said, and it's a lot easier for me to write stuff I know than stuff I don't.
But yeah, that's about what I've got for now. Hope you all enjoyed the chapter, and it's good to be back and posting again. See you all next time, and please take care!