Chapter 99: How To Take Down A Dragon
By the time the sun began setting, the firing range looked completely different from when training had started.
Empty brass casings littered parts of the ground while the wooden targets had been reduced to splintered messes filled with holes.
The ten soldiers looked exhausted, their shoulders sore from recoil and their ears probably still ringing slightly, but despite that every single one of them now handled their rifles with a confidence that had been completely absent that morning.
One after another they headed back toward the barracks carrying their weapons.
Some were still talking excitedly amongst themselves.
Others were already discussing how their fellow soldiers would react when they saw the rifles.
A few simply kept staring at the weapons in their hands.
Finn and I remained behind while workers began collecting the spent casings.
Finn watched the departing soldiers before letting out a low whistle.
"That was stupidly fast."
I stretched my back before nodding.
"It was."
Finn shook his head.
"They’ve only had these things for a day."
"Exactly."
He looked at me.
"That’s one of the biggest strengths of firearms."
Finn crossed his arms as I continued.
"A knight requires years of training."
I held up a finger.
"A bowman requires years of training."
Another finger.
"A mage requires talent, resources, education and luck."
Then I pointed toward the departing soldiers.
"But a farmer with a rifle and a day of practice?"
Finn’s grin slowly widened.
"Has the capability to kill all three."
I nodded.
"Exactly."
The implications still felt absurd whenever I thought about them.
For thousands of years, warfare had revolved around individual skill.
Now?
Now skill mattered a lot less.
Tomorrow’s soldier didn’t need to spend a decade mastering a weapon.
They just needed to learn how to use one.
Finn looked toward the damaged targets.
"That’s terrifying."
"It is."
"And we’re the ones making them."
"Correct."
Finn laughed.
"We’re definitely going to cause problems."
I couldn’t argue with that.
—————————-
The two of us slowly began walking back toward the workshops.
Tomorrow would be considerably easier as the difficult part of training was already over.
Now they just needed to learn maintenance procedures, cleaning methods and practical field advice.
"The workers that participated in the reclamation on the mine in Blackwater can handle the rest."
Finn nodded.
"They’ve actually used rifles in combat."
"And survived."
"Which helps."
Finn smirked.
"Once they’re done learning maintenance and cleaning, we’ll hand them over to the veterans from Blackwater."
Finn nodded again.
"They can explain what actually happens when somebody starts fighting back."
"Exactly."
There was a difference between firing at targets and firing at people or beasts trying to kill you.
A very large difference.
As we walked, I stretched my arms above my head.
"After that, we start preparing."
Finn immediately knew what I meant.
"The dragon."
"The dragon."
His grin returned.
"Still can’t believe we’re actually doing this."
"We need the oil."
The two of us exchanged a glance and simultaneously nodded.
*******
A few moments later I looked around.
Then frowned.
"Where’s Silvia?"
Finn immediately sighed.
It was a very tired sigh.
The kind of sigh someone makes after enduring something for several hours.
Without saying a word, he lifted one leg.
I blinked.
Silvia was attached to his trouser leg.
Chewing it.
The beastkin girl looked up at me ignoring me and continued chewing.
Finn pointed downward.
"She’s been doing this."
"For how long?"
"Long enough."
I stared and Silvia stared back continuing to chew on Finns leg.
"Why?"
Finn shrugged.
"I think she enjoys it."
That somehow felt worse.
Eventually Silvia released his leg wandering off toward the nearby forest.
I watched her disappear between the trees.
Finn looked relieved but I headed into them looking for her as we had to go home now.
Five seconds later—
A white blur dropped from a tree directly onto my head.
"Found you."
I sighed.
Naturally.
Silvia looked pleased with herself and Finn immediately laughed.
"Good luck."
"See you tomorrow."
Then he left.
*******
After a bit of searching through the trees, Silvia and I eventually headed back toward the manor.
The journey was peaceful.
Mostly.
At one point Silvia asked why explosions were so loud.
Then why steel was heavy.
Then why birds could fly.
Then why fish couldn’t fly.
Then why people couldn’t fly.
By the time we reached the manor my brain was tired.
The beastkin child somehow had more questions than an entire classroom.
—————————
The following day passed quickly.
Most of the morning was spent teaching the soldiers how to properly maintain their rifles.
How to clean the barrels.
How to disassemble parts.
How to inspect components for damage.
How to keep moisture away from ammunition.
By midday they had largely mastered the basics.
By evening they were already teaching each other, which was exactly what I had wanted.
The rifles were no longer something strange and mysterious.
They were tools and soon they would spread throughout the territory.
As the session ended, I stood in front of the soldiers one final time.
Each man now carried his own rifle.
A sight that would’ve been impossible only a year ago.
"You’ve all done well."
The group straightened immediately.
"The remainder of your training will be handled by the veterans from Blackwater Hollow."
A few soldiers exchanged surprised looks and several men looked considerably more interested.
"Listen to their advice."
I pointed toward them.
"They know what works."
The soldiers nodded.
After a few final instructions, the group dispersed.
Their training was effectively complete.
Finn walked over.
"Done?"
"Done."
He grinned.
"Dragon?"
I grinned back.
"Dragon."
The two of us headed toward the workshop.
There was a lot to discuss.
Supplies.
Weapons.
Manpower.
Routes.
Contingencies.
Ways to avoid being roasted alive.
The usual.
Then halfway there I stopped.
Finn immediately groaned.
"What now?"
I looked around.
"Where’s Silvia?"
Finn sighed so hard I thought his soul left his body.
Without saying a word, he lifted his leg.
Again.
There was Silvia, chewing on his trousers and the beastkin girl looked perfectly content.
Apparently she had somehow reattached herself without either of us noticing.
Finn pointed downward.
"She came back."
"I can see that."
"Please fix it."
I looked at Silvia.
"Stop chewing on Finn."
She shook her head.
"Nuh uh."
Then resumed chewing and Finn looked ready to cry.
I thought for a moment then shrugged.
"No meat tomorrow."
Silvia immediately froze.
The chewing stopped.
Slowly she released Finn’s trousers.
Then looked up at me with absolute betrayal in her eyes.
"You wouldn’t."
"I would."
Silence.
Then she stood up.
"Fine."
Finn nearly collapsed from relief.
The three of us continued toward the workshop.
And for the first time since deciding to hunt a dragon—
I finally started thinking about how we were actually going to kill one.
—————————-
The three of us eventually arrived back at the workshop.
The moment we entered, I cleared one of the larger tables and spread several blank sheets of paper across it. Finn immediately dragged over a chair while Silvia climbed onto another one and sat there swinging her legs while watching us curiously.
For several moments, neither Finn nor I spoke.
The reality was simple.
We wanted the oil, but, the oil was guarded by a dragon.
Therefore—
We needed to kill a dragon, Finn eventually broke the silence.
"So."
He leaned forward.
"How exactly are we supposed to kill something that normally requires an A-rank mage or an army?"
I crossed my arms.
"First, we gather more information."
Finn blinked.
"That’s it?"
"For now."
I pointed toward one of the papers.
"We don’t know enough about dragons."
"What do you mean?"
I sat down.
"We don’t know how thick their scales are."
I began sketching while talking.
"We don’t know how durable their bones are."
More lines appeared.
"We don’t know how much punishment they can actually take."
I paused briefly.
"So until we know otherwise..."
I drew a large dragon scale.
"We assume the worst."
Finn frowned.
"The worst?"
I nodded.
"We assume its scales are equivalent to thick steel armor."
That immediately silenced him since if that assumption was even partially correct—
Our rifles weren’t going to do much.
I tapped the table.
"A standard rifle round isn’t enough."
Finn nodded slowly.
"So what do we use?"
I smiled.
"Something bigger."
————————-
A few minutes later, a rough outline began forming on the paper.
Finn stared at it and blinked.
Then stared again.
"What’s that?"
"A cannon."
Finn looked confused.
"A what?"
I pointed at the drawing.
"It’s basically a very large gun."
His expression immediately became interested.
"That’s it?"
"Pretty much."
He leaned closer.
"You know, when you say it like that it sounds much less impressive."
"That’s because it is."
I continued sketching.
"The concept is exactly the same."
I pointed toward the barrel.
"Long barrel."
Then the breech.
"Large charge."
Then the projectile.
"Very large bullet."
Finn rubbed his chin.
"Actually that makes sense."
I nodded.
"It usually does."
Silvia raised her hand but neither of us acknowledged it, leaving her looking very offended.
Finn continued studying the design.
"How are we moving this thing?"
I immediately pointed toward another sketch.
The old steam car.
The prototype vehicle we had built during the early stages of experimenting with steam engines.
Finn’s eyes widened slightly.
"That thing?"
"Yep."
He looked unconvinced.
"It still works?"
"Mostly."
"Mostly?"
"It hasn’t exploded yet."
Finn sighed.
"That isn’t reassuring."
I ignored him.
"We’ll improve it."
I pointed toward another section of notes.
"I still have some rubber some from Cedric ."
"The stuff we bought before."
His eyes widened.
"You’re finally going to use it?"
"Part of it."
A grin slowly appeared on my face.
"Lillith still needs to grow the saplings."
"But until then..."
I tapped the paper.
"We can improve the wheels."
Finn immediately understood.
Less vibration.
Better traction.
Higher efficiency.
The steam car would still be primitive.
But it would be enough.
Eventually the discussion shifted toward ammunition.
More specifically—
How we intended to punch through dragon scales.
I began drawing another sketch and Finn watched quietly as the design took shape.
At first glance it looked like an oversized rifle round.
But there were several obvious differences.
The projectile was much larger.
Much heavier.
And considerably more complicated.
Finn stared at it.
Then pointed.
"This just looks like a giant bullet."
"It is."
"Then what’s special about it?"
I pointed toward the front section.
"The cap."
Finn frowned.
"The copper part?"
I nodded.
"Soft copper."
"Why?"
I continued sketching.
"When the shell hits the dragon’s scales, I don’t want it bouncing or to ricocheting off."
Finn immediately nodded.
"The copper deforms."
"Exactly."
I drew the impact.
"The softer material spreads across the scale."
Then I tapped the center of the projectile.
"And while it’s doing that..."
I grinned.
"The actual steel penetrator remains perfectly aligned."
Finn’s eyes widened.
Realization appeared immediately.
"Meaning all the force stays concentrated."
"Exactly."
Now he was getting it.
——————-
Finn then pointed toward another strange component.
A hollow pointed cap positioned over the copper section.
"What about this?"
I tapped it.
"Ceramic."
Finn blinked.
"Ceramic?"
I nodded.
"Think about it."
I pointed at the projectile.
"If I make the copper cap pointy and aerodynamic, what happens?"
Finn thought for several moments.
Then his eyes widened.
"It gets thicker."
"Exactly."
"And the penetrator has to travel through more material."
I nodded.
"So instead..."
I pointed toward the ceramic shell.
"This gives us the aerodynamic shape."
Finn immediately understood.
"And then it breaks?"
"Immediately."
I smiled.
"The moment it hits."
His grin widened.
"So the shell flies like a spear."
"Then strikes like a hammer."
"Then penetrates like a drill."
"Exactly."
Finn looked genuinely impressed.
Then his finger moved toward the center of the shell.
A much smaller mechanism hidden inside.
"This part."
I smiled.
"I was waiting for that."
Finn immediately became concerned.
That was generally a reasonable reaction whenever I smiled like that.
I pointed toward the rear section.
"When the cannon fires, two primers ignite."
Finn nodded.
"One for propulsion."
"Correct."
Then I pointed toward the second.
"This one ignites a delayed fuse."
His eyes widened.
"How delayed?"
"Five to seven seconds although we may adjust this."
Then realization appeared all over his face.
"You want it inside the dragon first."
I nodded.
"Exactly."
The room became quiet.
I tapped the center section.
"The shell punches through, allowing it to embed itself."
Then I drew a small explosion.
"And then detonates internally."
Finn slowly leaned back.
The implications were horrifying, especially once he realized what else was inside.
"The penetrator becomes shrapnel."
I nodded.
"Lots of shrapnel."
Silvia blinked.
"What is shrapnel?"
Finn looked at her.
"Pain."
"Oh."
For several moments Finn simply stared at the sketches.
Then eventually he laughed.
Not because it was funny.
Because it was insane.
"You know..."
He rubbed his forehead.
"I almost feel bad for the dragon."
I laughed.
"Almost?"
"Almost."
Then he pointed toward the cannon.
"This might actually work."
I nodded.
"It will work."
The confidence surprised him.
It probably should have since I wasn’t completely sure myself.
But if a dragon could bleed—
It could die.
And if it could die—
Then I could kill it which was all the reasoning I needed.
Eventually I leaned back in my chair.
The plans were still rough.
There was a tremendous amount of work left to do.
The cannon needed designing.
The ammunition needed testing.
The steam car needed upgrading.
And most importantly—
We needed more information about dragons.
But despite all of that...
For the first time since hearing about the dragon, I felt confident.
Finn looked at the sketches one final time.
Then grinned.
"So."
I looked up.
"So?"
"When do we start building?"
"Tomorrow."
Finn’s grin widened.
And somewhere in the workshop, Silvia quietly asked if dragons tasted like chicken.
