I was given my first pistol when I was twelve. When it was placed in my hands, I couldn’t believe how light it was. It wasn’t the weight that was significant, but the fact that such a small weapon could easily take another’s life. I was so surprised at the discovery that I started giggling. I could tell my Artillery Officer was having second thoughts about giving the weapon to such a seemingly unstable little girl.

But if they refused, I would've taken it anyway.

My shoulders raised as I let out a deep audible breath. I then opened my eyes, letting go of any uneasiness or fear in my mind.

The room, in the shape of a silver box, glittered between my eyelashes with every blink I took. The square-shaped plates aligned on the walls moved melodically, each raising and lowering just enough to see the neon blue lights blinking below them.

A white-grainy table before me had several handguns, rifles, plasma casters, and laser cutters. At the far end of the table sat a Masacre-14 — 6-inch barrel, 11 inches overall, all around 14 pounds. While the entirety of the handgun was dark gray, the metal-blue slides covering the muzzle had circle cut-ins that acted as coolers for its inner-magnetic rails.

I studied the gun - angular shape, sleek polymer frame, and rare tang flap. It's my favorite pistol and exotic. No longer made due to the manufacturer's bankruptcy. Even rarer in the field, as kinetically charged weapons are becoming obsolete without magnetization or high fire rates.

The gun had a double barrel, with the top muzzle slightly bigger, and fired high-caliber bullets using directed electrical currents. The lower barrel was for suppressing fire with smaller metal balls. It had a two-finger trigger and no trigger guard, a common design for federal-licensed weapons that accommodated various hand sizes.

I took my XMS pistol from its holster and held it up. Its short barrel stretched, and its jet-black exterior shifted to mimic the cloudy gray of the Masacre-14 on the table.

Coordinant Emilia informed me that some personnel would oversee my Expert Voltobi Qualifiers as an introduction to the XMS model and out of general interest. Although I am comfortable using holograms and machines, most of my qualifiers were on open fields or facilities with live targets. I will certainly miss hearing the dying screams of my prey.

I closed my eyes and assumed position, extending my arms and placing my left foot forward. The cold metal of the gun was in my right hand while the rubbery grip rested against my left. I relaxed my shoulder muscles and took a deep breath, holding it in for a moment.

“Patroller Miya. Are you ready for your evaluation?” A soft and clear voice echoed around the room.

“Yes, I am ready,” I replied with a nod.

The table and the five other rifles and cutters sank into the ground. I am familiar enough with those models and have memorized them well, so I do not need to materialize them again to impress my onlookers.

The cubic tiles in the room flickered from blue to teal and then deepened their tone to signal the start of the countdown. As soon as I saw the bright red hue through my closed eyelids, I exhaled and opened my eyes.

For a brief moment, my eyes and body are in sync as I locate the first human-sized hologram to my left. My rail pistol swivels, and as I fire, I'm already scanning for my next target, visualizing it to my right.

Next, a Nuc'foh appears, a 2-meter amphibious brute with four massive arms. The recoil from my rail gun threatens to jerk it from my grip, but I steady my aim and quickly move on to the next target above.

A Stracnal descends towards me, a 6-meter sentient reptilian bird with two hairy appendages protruding from its neck and a pair of furry wings on both sides. It can maintain flight fifty kilometers above a planet’s surface while keeping sight of those on the ground below.

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Kinetically charged bullets won't penetrate its dense and tough feathers. According to the Terror Hunter Optunorary, Stracnal should be treated as Vanar Level-7 armored vessels.

My rail pistol transforms, with the butt-stock forming a hexagon and the upper receiver sprouting outward like a bird's beak. The transformation completes with a smaller beak growing below it at an angle. A cylinder-shaped wheeled energizer at the bottom of the gun begins spinning, emitting white electric flares.

The Matraden-L series laser cutter. Manufactured by Xecel Arc, a large corporate-owned planet belt of renowned arms dealers and weapon enthusiasts. All models except the L have been banned from civilian use due to the Nichol-Ro calamity. However, the cutter's small trigger is sometimes a challenge for me, as it was built for species under one meter, and I can barely fit my full index finger around it.

As I press onto the rubber-stubbed trigger, I feel the surge below my finger. The two beaks then clamp together and release a concentrated white beam of light, penetrating the Stracnal hologram through its head as I dive to the side.

As the room blinks red, several maroon holograms begin to virtualize at all my sides, their half-made legs already in a sprint.

I feel a burning sensation in my chest, and excitement from the tension overwhelms me. My veins bulge under my white-hexed bodysuit, and my lips curl into a grin. This feeling is familiar, reminiscent of my battles with Loliel on 4056-E and the Ya’valtian woman. I know I'm about to transform.

I dodge a clawed swipe and flip onto my hand a few feet away. My rifle transforms, thinning its base and stretching its sides to create a handle behind an outward curving disc. The trigger guard lets me grip it with all four fingers, and the two red triggers flick below them.

The Sonveroder. A favorite at Aestero Pol and most other law enforcement personnel in this quadrant. Great for disorienting multiple enemies, various attachment railings, and the only Level-6 disruption class sub that includes various ammo types.

Two four-armed holograms charge at me—one in front and another to my right. I jump back and fire a round, releasing several transparent waves that clash with the first opponent and shatter its hologram. I quickly turn to fire at the second hologram while my eyes scan the room for additional incoming targets.

To quickly locate my targets, I let my hand guide my gun toward their head or torso and then move on to my next mark. Since I can control the recoil of my gun, it has become easier to use this method the more I practice.

A hologram appears behind me, and I shoot it in the torso before it can move. I dodge a stomp from a three-meter, four-limbed hologram, then fire three shots: one in its leg and two in its chest and neck.

Holograms charge from all sides, but I activate the gun's secondary trigger, causing it to vibrate. I jump into an aerial spin and release three silver discs from the rifle's base. The holograms step on the discs, causing an ear-splitting ring that shatters them into smaller red cubes.

The room turns emerald as the front wall crumbles, revealing a black space. A pair of white glowing eyes appear in the darkness before a 7-meter TR-10 automaton charges with extended arms scraping the room's sides. Dark green sendragene-alloy covered its bulky humanoid shape.

These are usually used in team takedown exercises with hostile droids. They really want to impress someone up there.

The automaton's rectangular chest glowed blue, indicating that it was charging its main cannon, while its galloping charge and scraping against the wall made the room tremor.

I kneel and raise my elongating rifle to my chin, gaining six inches as the top flattens and the muzzle becomes a gray circle. I pin the butt stock into my shoulder, hold my breath, and ease my cheek down the side of the receiver to aim using the blue-dotted sight.

I fire a blue spiraling bolt from the rifle with a one-finger trigger click. The shot penetrates the TR-10's midsection, causing its eyes to blink before darkening, and the machine collapses to the ground as its core cannon deactivates.

While I enjoy firing the HEL-Rodarget for its high-precision laser density, it does take a considerable amount of charge from my XMS, so I only use it when I have no other options.

The room blinked blue, and I turned around to look at my scoresheet as it began calculating on a blue holographic screen. Unlike the other qualifications that scored me based on time, range, and precision, this was solely combat based. It also tested my intensity and weapon knowledge based on the scenarios produced.

Maybe this would’ve made a lot more sense if I’d read the qualifications portfolio before I came here or listened to the Administering Officer, but a lot has been on my mind since the last mission.

Two cubes near the room floor crumbled down, and a young near-human female with cotton-candy-colored hair and baby-pink skin ran into the room and latched onto me with a wide laughing smile.

“Wow, Miya! You were soo cool!” Orimi exclaimed while rocking me side to side

“When you shot those holos into dust and blasted that machine to smithereens, it felt like we were in a virtual game on the Q! Will you teach me how to do all that stuff when we go on missions?”

And this being at the top of my list of transgressions… How the hell did I end up squadding with this idiot?