Post by Sir Haymar Glen on Apr 21, 2014 9:54:41 GMT -8
Here's my third free build for April. Hope you all like it.
The New Weapon
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“Haymar, look out!” Mirranda’s voice cried, from behind him. He spun, and saw the Queen’s soldier bearing down, almost on top of him. With a single slash, the soldier toppled off the blood-slicked battlements, into the dark horde of men fighting below.
“Thanks!” He said, breathlessly, to her. She smiled at him, the relief written on her face.
“I was almost too late. Next time, you need to be more carf-.” She stopped in mid-sentence, her eyes widening in horror. He read what was reflected there, and spun, his shield coming up, just in time to block the stroke of a huge, double-bladed pole-axe, wielded by a massive outlaw. Haymar staggered, under the strength of the blow. The soldier hauled back the massive weapon, preparing to deal another blow. Haymar lunged forward, and jabbed at the other’s face. The outlaw dodged, and swung the pole-axe down.
“AAHH!!” Haymar yelled, in pain, as the axe cut into his arm. His shield was slammed from his grasp, and he was knocked off his feet, the air being expelled from his lungs, as he hit the battlement floor.
“NO!” Mirranda screamed. Nocking an arrow, she drew it back, aiming for the outlaw, and released. The outlaw turned, and deflected it off his axe. He swung the axe, and hit her with the flat of the blade, sending her sprawling. The brute turned back to the still-winded Haymar, and raised the axe above his head, preparing to bring it down, on Haymar. Laying there, Haymar realized this was the end, and he regretted it was to end this way, with so much of his life still ahead of him. I never even got to tell Mirranda how I feel about her, he thought. And now it’s too late. I’ll never—with a gasp, Haymar sat up, in his bed, his heart racing.
Whew, he thought, it was just a dream. A mighty scary dream, though. As his heart rate settled, Haymar looked around the darkened room. There were four sets of bunks in the room, two on each side. Haymar and Ana shared one, Mirranda and Ivan shared a second, Sir Rodney and Lord Barry shared a third, and Elfrida and Laven shared the final one. Haymar had taken the bottom bunk, Ana the top.
Mirranda’s bunk was next to Haymar’s. He looked over at her sleeping form, and thought about his dream.
Did he really feel that way, about her? Yes. He decided, he did. Mirranda had always been a good friend, since childhood. But lately, Haymar had began to care for her, as more that just a close friend. But what if she doesn’t feel the same way? Haymar thought. I’ve no idea how to approach her, and if—, a quiet knock, at the stout, wooden door of the room, interrupted his thoughts.
Haymar froze, wondering who was knocking, at this hour of the night. He slipped out of bed, buckling his sword over his back, and moved over to the door. He unlatched it, and opened the door a crack.
“Who is it?” He whispered. A short, fidgety looking man, with shoulder-length black hair, and a well-groomed mustache, moved into view.
“It is me, Arfondo.” The man said quietly. “I’m the chief engineer, and I’ve invented something you really ought to see.”
“Now?” The other asked, wondering if this was an assassination attempt. If so, it was a pretty poor one, which led Haymar to conclude that the man was legit.
“Yes, now.” The other replied. “And get Lady Ana too. She’ll want to see this.”
“Just a moment.” Haymar said, and, closing the door, went over to his sister, and gently shook her awake.
“Ooh, Haymar?” She said, groggily, as she came awake. “What is it?”
“There’s a man at the door. Says his name is Arfondo, and he’s the chief engineer here. He wants to show us something.” The other replied.
“Now?” Ana asked.
“Yes,” Haymar said. “Apparently it can’t wait. He says it’s very important.”
“It had better be really important, to warrant waking us, in the middle of the night, like this.” She said, and, after getting out of bed, and buckling on her sword, she followed her brother back over to the door. When they opened it, Arfondo was standing right where Haymar had left him, fidgeting nervously.
“Follow me.” He said, and headed down the passage, to the right. Haymar and Ana followed, trying to keep up with Arfondo’s quick, fidgety strides.
As they got closer to wherever they were going, they began to hear the distinctive sounds, of a blacksmith at work. Haymar and Ana exchanged a look. Who would be working at this hour of the night? They both wondered. Their question was quickly answered.
“Here we are.” Arfondo said, as they approached a thick wooden door, set into a frame of brick.
Arfondo pulled a key from beneath his tunic, inserted it into the lock, and turned it. With a click, the door unlocked. He replaced the key in it’s place, and turning the handle, beckoned the inside.
The room behind the door, was much longer that it was wide, and, Haymar immediately noticed, there were about a dozen target dummies, set up at the end of the chamber. Off to the right, was a small blacksmith’s furnace, with an anvil in front of it. There was indeed a blacksmith working there, forging a longsword. Next to them, was a small table, with a man assembling something on it. Across from them, were several larger tables, piled with stuff. In the middle of the room, sat a large, cloth-covered, object.
Arfondo closed the door behind them, and led them over to the cloth-covered object. Grasping a corner of the cloth, he said, “This is what I wanted you to see. It’s going to give us a great advantage over the Queen’s Soldiers. Behold, the Shard Sling.”
He yanked the cloth off, revealing what was beneath. Haymar, and Ana, gasped, in shock.
Beneath the cloth, sat a most unusual contraption. It had a small ballista’s carriage, but instead of the normal bow, it was a long, metal barrel, with spiked wooden limbs, extending from either side. At the very back of the weapon, were two handles, with a trigger in the middle. Just in front of these, was a small hatch, in the middle of the barrel. There were two, narrow, slots, cut into the side of the barrel ending just behind the hatch, into which a thick string disappeared.
“Well,” Arfondo chuckled, “I can see you’re speechless, so I’ll explain what you’re looking at.”
He gestured to the Shard Sling. “This is the result of many long months of experimenting, and lots of trial and error. I wanted to make something that was more powerful than a ballista, but also more mobile. The way it works,” He said, motioning them to look closely, “Is, attached to the middle of the string, is a round disc of steel, perfectly shaped to fit inside the barrel, with no space on either side. To load the weapon,” Arfondo said, motioning to a small lever to the right of the barrel, “You first, haul back this lever, til’ it clicks into place. Then, you open this hatch here.” He said.
“What’s the ammunition?” Ana asked. In answer, Arfondo reached over, to a table nearby, and picked up a handful of small, metal shards.
“These.” He said, holding them out, for the other two to look at. They bent close, examining the shards.
“Looks nasty,” Haymar said. “How’s it do?”
“Watch.” The other replied, and, walking over to the Shard Sling, he loaded the shards into the hatch. Closing it, he stepped aside, and motioned for Haymar to take the handles. He did, wrapping his fingers around the grips.
Arfondo pointed to the dummies at the end of the chamber. “Aim for those dummies, and when you’re ready, pull the trigger.”
Haymar sighted down the barrel, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.
WHAM! The string flew forward, releasing the tension on the limbs, and slammed against the stops. The weapon recoiled, almost causing Haymar to lose his balance. The several dozen metal shards shot out of the end of the barrel, and streaked down the length of the chamber, scything into the target dummies, with devastating results. The dummies were shredded.
Haymar and Ana stared, in amazement. The Shard Sling had destroyed over a dozen dummies, at a range of forty yards. Haymar turned to Arfondo.
“How far is the range on this?” He asked.
“It’s effective as far as one hundred and fifty yards.” The other replied. “After that, it becomes increasingly inaccurate. It’s meant as an anti-infantry weapon.”
“A hundred and fifty yards.” Haymar repeated, staring at Ana.
She grinned. “We’re gonna kick the Queen’s butt with this.”
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For those of you who’ve read the Shannara series, yes, I stole the concept of the Shard Sling out of them, combining the railgun, and the rail sling, that were featured in the novels.
I wanted a weapon that was more advanced than ballistas and catapults, but not utilizing gunpowder, which isn’t allowed in Lands Of Roawia. Thus, the Shard Sling was born.
Oh, and sorry for the absurdly long story.
The New Weapon
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
“Haymar, look out!” Mirranda’s voice cried, from behind him. He spun, and saw the Queen’s soldier bearing down, almost on top of him. With a single slash, the soldier toppled off the blood-slicked battlements, into the dark horde of men fighting below.
“Thanks!” He said, breathlessly, to her. She smiled at him, the relief written on her face.
“I was almost too late. Next time, you need to be more carf-.” She stopped in mid-sentence, her eyes widening in horror. He read what was reflected there, and spun, his shield coming up, just in time to block the stroke of a huge, double-bladed pole-axe, wielded by a massive outlaw. Haymar staggered, under the strength of the blow. The soldier hauled back the massive weapon, preparing to deal another blow. Haymar lunged forward, and jabbed at the other’s face. The outlaw dodged, and swung the pole-axe down.
“AAHH!!” Haymar yelled, in pain, as the axe cut into his arm. His shield was slammed from his grasp, and he was knocked off his feet, the air being expelled from his lungs, as he hit the battlement floor.
“NO!” Mirranda screamed. Nocking an arrow, she drew it back, aiming for the outlaw, and released. The outlaw turned, and deflected it off his axe. He swung the axe, and hit her with the flat of the blade, sending her sprawling. The brute turned back to the still-winded Haymar, and raised the axe above his head, preparing to bring it down, on Haymar. Laying there, Haymar realized this was the end, and he regretted it was to end this way, with so much of his life still ahead of him. I never even got to tell Mirranda how I feel about her, he thought. And now it’s too late. I’ll never—with a gasp, Haymar sat up, in his bed, his heart racing.
Whew, he thought, it was just a dream. A mighty scary dream, though. As his heart rate settled, Haymar looked around the darkened room. There were four sets of bunks in the room, two on each side. Haymar and Ana shared one, Mirranda and Ivan shared a second, Sir Rodney and Lord Barry shared a third, and Elfrida and Laven shared the final one. Haymar had taken the bottom bunk, Ana the top.
Mirranda’s bunk was next to Haymar’s. He looked over at her sleeping form, and thought about his dream.
Did he really feel that way, about her? Yes. He decided, he did. Mirranda had always been a good friend, since childhood. But lately, Haymar had began to care for her, as more that just a close friend. But what if she doesn’t feel the same way? Haymar thought. I’ve no idea how to approach her, and if—, a quiet knock, at the stout, wooden door of the room, interrupted his thoughts.
Haymar froze, wondering who was knocking, at this hour of the night. He slipped out of bed, buckling his sword over his back, and moved over to the door. He unlatched it, and opened the door a crack.
“Who is it?” He whispered. A short, fidgety looking man, with shoulder-length black hair, and a well-groomed mustache, moved into view.
“It is me, Arfondo.” The man said quietly. “I’m the chief engineer, and I’ve invented something you really ought to see.”
“Now?” The other asked, wondering if this was an assassination attempt. If so, it was a pretty poor one, which led Haymar to conclude that the man was legit.
“Yes, now.” The other replied. “And get Lady Ana too. She’ll want to see this.”
“Just a moment.” Haymar said, and, closing the door, went over to his sister, and gently shook her awake.
“Ooh, Haymar?” She said, groggily, as she came awake. “What is it?”
“There’s a man at the door. Says his name is Arfondo, and he’s the chief engineer here. He wants to show us something.” The other replied.
“Now?” Ana asked.
“Yes,” Haymar said. “Apparently it can’t wait. He says it’s very important.”
“It had better be really important, to warrant waking us, in the middle of the night, like this.” She said, and, after getting out of bed, and buckling on her sword, she followed her brother back over to the door. When they opened it, Arfondo was standing right where Haymar had left him, fidgeting nervously.
“Follow me.” He said, and headed down the passage, to the right. Haymar and Ana followed, trying to keep up with Arfondo’s quick, fidgety strides.
As they got closer to wherever they were going, they began to hear the distinctive sounds, of a blacksmith at work. Haymar and Ana exchanged a look. Who would be working at this hour of the night? They both wondered. Their question was quickly answered.
“Here we are.” Arfondo said, as they approached a thick wooden door, set into a frame of brick.
Arfondo pulled a key from beneath his tunic, inserted it into the lock, and turned it. With a click, the door unlocked. He replaced the key in it’s place, and turning the handle, beckoned the inside.
The room behind the door, was much longer that it was wide, and, Haymar immediately noticed, there were about a dozen target dummies, set up at the end of the chamber. Off to the right, was a small blacksmith’s furnace, with an anvil in front of it. There was indeed a blacksmith working there, forging a longsword. Next to them, was a small table, with a man assembling something on it. Across from them, were several larger tables, piled with stuff. In the middle of the room, sat a large, cloth-covered, object.
Arfondo closed the door behind them, and led them over to the cloth-covered object. Grasping a corner of the cloth, he said, “This is what I wanted you to see. It’s going to give us a great advantage over the Queen’s Soldiers. Behold, the Shard Sling.”
He yanked the cloth off, revealing what was beneath. Haymar, and Ana, gasped, in shock.
Beneath the cloth, sat a most unusual contraption. It had a small ballista’s carriage, but instead of the normal bow, it was a long, metal barrel, with spiked wooden limbs, extending from either side. At the very back of the weapon, were two handles, with a trigger in the middle. Just in front of these, was a small hatch, in the middle of the barrel. There were two, narrow, slots, cut into the side of the barrel ending just behind the hatch, into which a thick string disappeared.
“Well,” Arfondo chuckled, “I can see you’re speechless, so I’ll explain what you’re looking at.”
He gestured to the Shard Sling. “This is the result of many long months of experimenting, and lots of trial and error. I wanted to make something that was more powerful than a ballista, but also more mobile. The way it works,” He said, motioning them to look closely, “Is, attached to the middle of the string, is a round disc of steel, perfectly shaped to fit inside the barrel, with no space on either side. To load the weapon,” Arfondo said, motioning to a small lever to the right of the barrel, “You first, haul back this lever, til’ it clicks into place. Then, you open this hatch here.” He said.
“What’s the ammunition?” Ana asked. In answer, Arfondo reached over, to a table nearby, and picked up a handful of small, metal shards.
“These.” He said, holding them out, for the other two to look at. They bent close, examining the shards.
“Looks nasty,” Haymar said. “How’s it do?”
“Watch.” The other replied, and, walking over to the Shard Sling, he loaded the shards into the hatch. Closing it, he stepped aside, and motioned for Haymar to take the handles. He did, wrapping his fingers around the grips.
Arfondo pointed to the dummies at the end of the chamber. “Aim for those dummies, and when you’re ready, pull the trigger.”
Haymar sighted down the barrel, took a deep breath, and pulled the trigger.
WHAM! The string flew forward, releasing the tension on the limbs, and slammed against the stops. The weapon recoiled, almost causing Haymar to lose his balance. The several dozen metal shards shot out of the end of the barrel, and streaked down the length of the chamber, scything into the target dummies, with devastating results. The dummies were shredded.
Haymar and Ana stared, in amazement. The Shard Sling had destroyed over a dozen dummies, at a range of forty yards. Haymar turned to Arfondo.
“How far is the range on this?” He asked.
“It’s effective as far as one hundred and fifty yards.” The other replied. “After that, it becomes increasingly inaccurate. It’s meant as an anti-infantry weapon.”
“A hundred and fifty yards.” Haymar repeated, staring at Ana.
She grinned. “We’re gonna kick the Queen’s butt with this.”
——————————————————————————————————————————
For those of you who’ve read the Shannara series, yes, I stole the concept of the Shard Sling out of them, combining the railgun, and the rail sling, that were featured in the novels.
I wanted a weapon that was more advanced than ballistas and catapults, but not utilizing gunpowder, which isn’t allowed in Lands Of Roawia. Thus, the Shard Sling was born.
Oh, and sorry for the absurdly long story.
Keep up the awesome work Haymar!
