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      Four men and two women entered James' office. There were three in front. They were dressed in uniforms and held tablet computers. The woman at the front approached James. She was about 5 foot 3 inches, and had brown hair, at 16 inches, per the dress code. She had an authoritive look to her, she did not look stern, nor beautiful, but a professional balance of the two.

      'Hello Mr. McFadden. How do you do? I am Dr. Sinclair. I am the head of ONI Weapons Development. I will be overseeing the testing of your rifle at our complex.'
      'Yes Dr. Sinclair, I received the memo. And my team from Provov-Trell?'
      The figures in back waved. 'Hi James, we're here, finally.' Said David, James' associate.
      'Yes, the team has finally arrived, there were some complications because of a virus that infected their ship's nav computers, luckily they found the error before they entered slip space.' The woman turned and walked over to the black case. 'Is this the rifle?' she asked. The others approached. James stood up and approached the case as well. He unlatched it, and flipped open the lid. There lay the rifle as if it had just come off the production line.

      'Oh, man. This rifle looks just awesome, James. I feel real good about this thing now' Proclaimed Dave

      'Yes, McFadden, this is exactly how I envisioned it. Its great that the project has come to fruition. I'm anxious to start!' added Martha, a rather, stiff, associate of James'

      'This is certainly interesting McFadden. I will give you and your team an hour to look it over before we start the testing, The timetable is very tight around now, we have a team already selected for field trials, however we first must affirm the extents of the rifle's capabilities.' Said Dr. Sinclair, before she turned and left. The two officers followed her out.

      'So, Lets have a look see. Shall we?' said Dave, anxious to get a hold of it.

      'Yes, we shall' as James lifted the rifle from its position in the case. He lifted it up and held it with his right hand. He grabbed a clip and slid in into the slot. It clicked, and the yellow LED lit up. 'See, this means the rifle has a round ready to be loaded.' He pulled back the cocking knob and then let it go. It jolted forward, and then the green LED illuminated. 'OK, this means it's loaded' He finished, and attached the scope.

      'Right, yes we know. Now, lets disassemble it, and make sure everything's all set.' said Martha, as she took the rifle and searched for quick release pin.

      They examined and handled the rifle for an hour. James sat back, and let his team look at it, he already had his share.

      After the hour was over, the Dr. Sinclair called. It was time to take the rifle for trial runs. If the rifle functioned as planned, more prototypes would begin production.

      'OK guys, its finally time, we finally find out how well our rifle actually works. The testing facilities at range 5-C are free for our use, and we should take advantage of this.' James announced to his crew. 'If we hurry, we will have all afternoon until our session ends for a training class of Jr. Cadets at 1600 hours.'

      The rifle and magazines were slipped into the case, and then McFadden took it. They proceeded out from the office block and took a tram to the other end of the facility, after ten minutes they were at the entrance. James stepped from the tram car, and looked around. They were on a ten foot by thirty foot platform, twelve floors above the main floor of the complex. Another MP stood guard, and asked identification of all personnel. He also had the case placed on an X-ray, and electronics scan. James showed the MP his credentials, and his wired appointment document. The MP apologized, and let them in quickly. They retrieved the black rifle case and continued down a short hall. They came upon a glass railing and proceeded down a short flight of steps. James peered around five technicians worked on various testing machines. at the far end of the room Dr. Sinclair and her two associates were sitting overlooking something on her tablet. James approached and called their attention. She stood up, and walked forward. 'Lets have a look-see' she said, motioning towards a table in the middle of the room. A machine was suspended two feet above the table, bright lights shown on the while table.

      'We are going to run a diagnostic. A computer will ascertain weather it seems fit for further testing, and make sure it meets the specifications of your drawings. Please place the CR-21M on the table.'

      James lifted it from the case, and set it on the table. It turns out that it is made of a form-fitting gel. The rifle sank in and then the gel around it hardened. Then, like a metal cast, the machine above lowered down onto the top. Dr. Sinclair stood next to the console next to the table. She tapped the screen a few times and then a light on the machine lit up. then a blue light, and then a green one. Then a slight noise, like a door unlocking and then the top lifted off the table.

      'Lets see here. OK, the rifle IS in GOOD order, and is deemed suitable for further testing.'

      'What shall we start with?' James asked. He lifted the rifle and followed Dr. Sinclair to a firing range. She fitted small electronic sound mufflers over her ears, and gave a pair to James. He put the on, and then set the rifle down on the bench. Ammunition was in a box on the bench as well. The rest of James' team walked up and stood behind the red line. 'Clips, guys.' James instructed. Jon handed James a magazine. James proceeded to load a full 40 rounds of 4.5x40mm caseless, with depleted uranium core Armor Piercing rounds. then he took the second clip, and loaded it with 40 rounds of Shredders. He snapped the two clips together and slid them into the rifle. 'Ready?' he asked.

      'Proceed, McFadden' Dr. Sinclair stated.

      He lifted the rifle to his cheek and aimed downrange into a large target, modeled after a Covenant Elite. He recalled the time, when the Covenant were still a mysterious Alien Race. They had Glassed a planet, something that could only be speculated, nothing they had could be so powerful. And he remembered the briefings that had been given, orientations to whatever the UNSC thought a soldier needed to know about the new threat. He remembered seeing holographic pictures of the various classes, and remembered the first time he saw an, Elite. They were said to be more powerful than any human, had shielding that could protect them against all but continuous fire, or a well placed sniper round. He Hated these creatures. They were so sleek, Intelligent, they weren't beasts, but were like sleek killing machines. He steadied his aim further and pulled lightly on the trigger. a shot spit out, but, except for the head of the manikin getting a hole torn through it, he would never have known. Even with the usually high recoil round used, the recoil shocks, and moving barrel, reduced the recoil to that of an air powered rifle.

      He removed the ear muffler, and readied for another shot. he pulled a little harder than last time. the gun coughed three times, and the manikin was pierced three times. He glanced at the screen beside him, 1/2 inch group from 30 yards, not bad. He aimed again, and pulled harder for full-automatic. He fired until the clip was exhausted, and then without missing a beat, it clicked. James released the trigger before a Shredder round could be discharged. He took another glance at the monitor. 1' grouping from 35 rounds in 12 rounds per second full-automatic. This was superb. An MA5B could get that from only most steady and strongest of hands, from about 3/4 the range. He was not the best shot himself, and still managed such a score. Only the best rifles could perform this, James was overflowing.

      He engaged the safety, and placed it down. 'Martha, your an excellent shot, see how you perform with our new rifle.'

      She fired off the shredders, and came out with half-inch groups at full-automatic. 'Lets see this on a bench rest, no?' Martha asked the Dr.
      'of course,' she turned, and tapped on the console. A tech with a bench rest came forward, and attached it to the bench. Dr. Sinclair mounted the rifle, slid in a clip of AP rounds, and she herself bent down and grasped it. She fitted a scope onto the sight rail, and peered through. She pulled the trigger lightly in semi-automatic in rapid succession. round after round seemed to impact the same spot on the manikin. after ten rounds a hole had passed straight through the dummy, and the computer displayed, ë1/4' Grouping, at 30 Yards'

      'unbelievable' James said, mainly to himself, 'I didn't even expect this level of accuracy.'

Over the course of the afternoon, they ran all sorts of tests. The rifle never skipped a beat, except for once, during the Deformed Ammunition test, in which a round jammed between the bolt and feed port. The problem was correctly identified by the new diagnostic system designed for the rifle, so the fault was actually that of the ammunition. However, a slight modification would prove to solve the problem, and a James quickly modified the drawings to accommodate the change. Everything was working smoothly. Tomorrow would prove very exiting, for forty more prototypes were to be made, and, the squad assigned for field testing would arrive.

0430 Hours, May 16, 2552 (Military Calendar)/ Epsilon Eridani System, ONI Weapons Research Facility, Planet Reach

      In the Weapons Research Facility, it was cold. But in the dormitories things were colder. Dave came from a cold climate, and so the room temperature was very low. James thought he was going to need to visit the Med office all night, but he was too tired to bother. He had spent all night with his team, talking things up, and generally celebrating. He still could taste the Vodka that David had smuggled along. It was a relief, and funny as well, Martha always had a low tolerance for alcohol, and after one swig was out for two hours. James glanced over at the clock, 4:30. He gazed out the window across the room, suddenly a bright light poured through the window, illuminating the room and casting long shadows on the walls. It moved across the window and McFadden realized that it was a Patrol ship. They would scan the buildings and surrounding area, patrolling like drones. James should know, for two months he was reassigned to temporary Air Patrol, nights were long, and strictly monitored. The light passed. He glanced up at the ceiling, and dozed off again.

1025 Hours, May 16, 2552 (Military Calendar)/ Epsilon Eridani System, ONI Weapons Research Facility, Planet Reach

      'Long night, huh?' David asked.

      'Yes, yes it was, how about you?' James replied

      David leaned up from his seat, and stretched. 'Oh, yea, this place is crazily busy with air traffic, lights all night man, what's up with that?' He paused. James shrugged, and stared at the leg of the table. David leaned his head back and yawned. 'Oh man. Well lets see what the schedule is today, huh?' David handed the Tablet to McFadden. James picked it up and withdrew the stylus. He began to probe around the general schedules, there was a Board of Directors meeting at 1230 hours, and at the Weapons facility there was an early morning annual refresher for agents and then it was reserved for ëmiscellaneous military testing (code 40-2C)' It seems that the project was a little more hush-hush than they were told, but James also didn't talk to anyone he wasn't told to by default, as did all other Provov-Trell employees, so that wasn't of worry. After looking over general notices, James learned that the central vending machine/ATM AI had crashed, and would need to be replaced, that meant that he'd have to walk farther for a Cheeseburger today. After finishing his general overview, he scanned his memo inbox. Sinclair had sent a message, as well as Chuck.

Hey, were is my 50 credits? Order 0937694B-3 Encryption Code: Blue Public Key: file/personal/ From: Charles Adam Hammond ONI To: James Robert McFadden Subject: Monetary Concern Classification: Public Domain (BGX Directive)

      /start file/ Hey man, remember that bet from the other day, where I said, 'I bet its a virus screwing with the machines', and you said 'no, its mechanical failure, again' and we bet for 50 credits about the stem of the problem? Well, it WAS a bug, so you better wire me my 50. I need lunch today, and the vendors are having a picnic over the vending machines being down, so prices are 20% higher than they should be. Anyway, I am feeling better about these covenant, I just heard a release today, they said that we just had another victory. I guess they are finding weaknesses in these guys, just like the movies!
      /end file/

      James closed the file, moved some windows around, and quickly wired the credits. He disclosed them under a file titled ëI still think they're' full of it' and let it go. He opened the second memo, from the Dr.

Change of Schedule Order 0937780B-3 Encryption Code: Yellow Public Key: file/WeapR&D/ From: Dr. Karen Cynthia Sinclair To: James Robert McFadden Subject: Schedule change Classification: Secret (BGX Directive)

      /start file/ McFadden, we have had a few schedule changes. Due to a Covenant assault on the station our team was prepping to depart from, they were forced to drop everything and depart immediately, and they will be arriving ahead of schedule. And to prepare for this, we have rearranged some things on the assembly line, to provide the Rifles in time for immediate orientation and training. In three months (give or take) they shall depart, make sure they are ready when that happens.

I hope you will be able to orient these soldiers successfully, its hard to find soldiers fit for the 105th.
      /end file/
      Attachment.
      Press ENTER to proceed.

      'The 105th!?' James gasped. Those were the ëHelljumpers', the Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. They were renowned for brutality and for success. They would certainly put the rifle through it's paces, but would they put James through his first?

      'Helljumpers?' David asked, 'what about them?'

      'I don't know how, Dr. Sinclair must have some friends in high places or something, because she has arranged a squad from the 105th for the initial field testing of the CR-21!' James replied. He checked the schedule that was attached to the memo. They only had 20 minutes to get to the range, the squad from the 105th was supposed to arrive in ten, and would be in the prep hall ten minutes later.

      'Dave, we HAVE to go, we have 20 minutes before we greet these helljumpers!' James exclaimed. Dave quickly threw away the rest of his breakfast, and brushed himself off.

      'Lets do it then'

      'First, where's the rifle?'

      Dave looked around, then he shrugged, 'Still in the weapons range, I believe.'

      'That's right, Lets go' James exclaimed while grabbing his suit, slinging it over his shoulder.

      James, Dave, Jon, and Martha, entered the weapons range. Inside, four techs, Dr. Sinclair, and her two associates were inside. They entered, proceeded down the steps, and greeted the Dr.

      'Hello Dr. we are here, as directed. So, from what I gather, we are giving these rifles to Helljumpers?

      'Yes,' she replied. 'And we have something to show you.' She picked up a small controller, and pointed it at a wall. She depressed a button and suddenly a large, box, lowered from the ceiling. In came into contact with the floor, and then unfolded. Before them 40, brand new CR-21M's were neatly held on racks. Below each rifle, were 8 magazines, which were two clips attached as one. Each magazine could hold 100 rounds.

      'Beautiful,' said James, 'This is exactly how I envisioned it'

      'Yes, we followed all of your sketches, and drawings. This is a Standard Deployment Rack. It will come with each set of 40 rifles, and will be able to fold into small spaces. We are also developing a rack for fitting on a Pelican, to act as weapons for those without them. Each rack holds 64,000 rounds of ammunition. A normal load, using eight 100 round magazines, will support a person with, of course, 800 rounds of ammunition. If this is given to each rifle, that equals an impressive 32,000 rounds of ammunition. We provide an extra 32,000 rounds. This is to aid situations when extra ammo is needed. You should remember this from your sketches.' After her speech, she received a message. She read it over, quickly, and closed it. 'The 105th has landed, and are to arrive in five minutes. Are you prepared, McFadden?'

      'Of course, I am. I can teach them what they need. If I may, however, where are these 105th headed?'

      'That, is still undecided. We have multiple contingency plans, while we have no real initial plan. Wherever they go, whatever they perform, they MUST be ready.' she exclaimed. Suddenly, she turned, one could hear a lock disengage, and at the door were 40 soldiers. 'Sergeant Williams, come in, we are ready.'

      'Of course ma'am,. Men, form up, prepare for orientation.' The sergeant barked. He walked up to McFadden, and Dr. Sinclair. 'I hope this is good, we got pulled out of combat, and I hope it's for a damn good reason.'

      'Right Sergeant, we have something VERY special for you. If you will direct your men this way please.' James paused, through out his words, and continued, 'Yes, come with me and my associates to the weapon demonstration area.'
      The procession made way through a tech lab, and to the other side of the weapons complex. They arrived in a room, that featured 50 seats, each with their own video screen. In the middle of the room there was a highly placed pedestal encased in bullet-proof glass. From his position in the raised platform, James could communicate, and his height gave him confidence over these large men. 'Everyone please sit down, we must begin our orientation quickly.' James cleared his throat. Then he continued, 'You have been recalled from combat to take place in a testing program. To be precise, you are being given experimental weapons.' He tapped his tablet PC, and the monitors displayed 3-dimentional models and specifications of the MA5B assault rifle. 'You all should be familiar with the MA5B, 7.62mm Assault Rifle. This has been the mainstay of the UNSC since it's inception. However, today I present to you the possible replacement to the MA5B. Currently labeled the Concept Rifle-model 21M this is the latest prototype we have.' He tapped his PC again, the monitors in the room displayed 3-D models and specifications of the CR-21M. Then James lifted the first prototype from a case on the bench behind him. 'This is the CR-21M. This will take the place of the MA5B on your next engagement. Before this happens however, you must become accustomed to the features, and differences of this rifle from the MA5B.' Again he pressed his PC. This time there were cameras right next to McFadden. It showed him lift the rifle to his cheek, and then he fired. Almost no noise emitted from the weapon, but the target that appeared on-screen displayed a re-play of the firing. At 20 yards, there was a 1/2 inch grouping.

      'Amazing' commented Williams.

      'Yes, Sergeant Williams, the accuracy IS amazing. The rifles have been honed to high standards. The rifles, however, take longer to produce than an MA5B, so the rifle will take a long time to replace the MA5B for the average soldier.' As McFadden finished, he lifted the rifle again, and turned to a Covenant Elite manikin. He fired ten rounds, and the head was impaled 10 times. Through the video screen, on could see that pieces were missing, and orange ooze flowed out. 'As you can see, the round it fires is very effective. And, it uses caseless ammunition, so as not to inadvertently give away your position. All right, you know what it can do in my hands, let's see what it can do in yours.'

Part 4

      James stepped down from the platform. The men of the 105th stood. They formed into two lines, and followed James, along with the sergeant, back to the main firing range. The rifles were placed in the rack. Dr. Sinclair stepped forward. She spoke to the men, 'Gentlemen. As you know, we have a new rifle for you. Now come forward, as I call your names , to receive your new rifles.' She called their names, and they stepped forward and received the rifles, as ordered. 'Now, read off your serial numbers, for verification. They are located between the rifle's fore grip, and trigger guard.' Each soldier relayed the numbers to the Dr. 'Now, receive your ammunition for your first trials.' she paused, and walked over to the rack. 'Here's the ammunition, it's caseless, as I'm sure you know.' The men received their ammunition, before being allocated a firing booth.

      'Men, get your asses in gear' barked Sgt. Williams.

      'Now, gentlemen, to operate the rifle is simple. When first readying your weapon, activate the electronic trigger, by pressing the black button on the bottom of the grip. Now, you will pull the cocking knob rearward, until you hear it lock. The lock sounds as it does on an MA5B. NOW, make sure you have two clips, that are both locked together, good. Fourth step, insert the clip by pushing the front end into the locks in the front of the weapon, above the barrel. Proceed by sliding the clip down the length of your weapon, until it locks securely into place. You will see a yellow light, above your thumb. Do you see it?' The men confirmed in unison, no one voiced negative, so James continued, 'The rifle has a round ready to chamber. Drop the cocking knob, and release. Do you see the Green light? Good.' Williams was walking up and down the row of men. He looked at James, and nodded. 'Now, that green light means your ready to fire. Now, your rifles have standard, electronic precision sights, so, take aim at the targets and prepare to fire. The firing selector is automatic, pull lightly for semi-automatic fire, and a hard pull for fully automatic. Now, on my mark fire three semi-automatic rounds, with one second intervals. Mark!'

      Three distinct simultaneous coughs echoed off. The targets pulled back and were replaced.

      'You will be evaluated on accuracy, to compare between now and when you finish. Now, get ready to fire automatic, keep in mind you must pull harder than previously. Fire at will!'

      All at once a barrage of fire immersed the room. Smoke drifted up from the muzzles. Although one could hear the constant rattle, the sound was ghostly and sent shivers up Jamesë spine. Targets cycled, clips fell, and all the while James stood, watching the proceedings. There were no casings, and the absence of the hollow, bouncing brass was uneasy to James, used to firing the MA5B. The ordeal was overwhelming, and McFadden was bursting with pride.

      'Sir, my gun's acting up!' announced a ODST, waving his hand.

      'McFadden get your ass over here and sort this out!' barked Williams. James happily obliged. 'OK men, hold up, and listen up!'

      'The bolt, Its moving slow. What's the deal?' James took the rifle, removed the clip, and pulled the bolt back. Black gunk was smeared on the bolt, and brown grains were encrusted on the bolt, hot from use.

      'Fouling. The round must have been bad, any powder is usually vaporized.' James thought. 'OK!' James commanded, 'Everyone, drop clips, hit safeties and get over here!' James led everyone to a table in the middle of the room. and placed the rifle down on it. 'OK, Strip down drill, Sergeant Williams, you will be responsible for drill activities on the rifle, so listen too.' The men leaned forward and examined as James lifted the fouled CR-21. 'Listen, the step pin is a cross bolt type, and is swivel locking. It is located near the rear of the rifle, on the butt stock. Push the lever foreword 90 degrees and pull it out like so. After this, pull out the butt plate, and remove the bolt . Remove it by drawing the cocking rod back until the bolt has rotated 90 degrees. Then depress the knob on the cocking rod. this disengages the bolt from the cocking knob, and the piston. Draw it out, and make sure it is cleansed, and free of all foreign debris.'

      McFadden took the bolt and wiped it with a cloth, and the debris was removed. The Bolt, good as new was re-inserted. 'If the gun is still acting up, you may have also gotten junk in the gas piston. That shouldn't happen, the powder is all disintegrated by the time the bullet passes the gas trap. In this case however, the powder wasn't good. It refused to burn, and got Private Perkins' bolt fouled. lets see if the rod is gunned too.' James loaded a few rounds into a clip, and rammed it down the slot. ëclick'. He pulled back the bolt handle, it clicked into engagement, as all do when the knob connects with the bolt after a field strip. He stepped up to a firing booth, and pushed the safety aside. ëPoof, poof, poof' three rounds went off. the fourth cycle was impeded however. McFadden slid the clip forward and pulled the knob back. No gunk was on the bolt, but smoke rose from the chamber. James swiped it away and chucked the clip. Back at the table, he pulled the pin and drew the bolt

      'OK, the bot isn't the problem. Its something else I see. Ahh, Look here' James pointed into the clip slot, a bulge was visible at the base of the void. 'there, heat from the rounds caused this misformation. We'll have to replace the par...'

      Dr. Sinclair came up to James. 'you have a message, very important, you need to take it immidiately.'

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