At Crescent Moon Lane, inside an eminent two-story building, A girl stepped into the basement, an indoor shooting ground inside the opulent building, her Raven-black and waist-length hair swaying with every step, the room wall was well studded with acoustic panel to muffled gunshot sounds.
Targets were lined up on the far wall, some simple bullseyes, others more complex silhouettes with steel backstops behind them to catch any bullet that missed the target except would they?
The girl in question was Silvia Martins, the only daughter of Mr. Martins, the current president of The Hunters, a secret organization that dated back a thousand years ago, an organization whose main and only goal was to eradicate werewolves.
As the daughter of the president, Silvia was the next in line, as the presidency is based on a monarch system, the Martins being the sole family whose ancestor first created the organization.
Silvia bound her flowing hair, and picked a handgun from the wall rack where different arrays of guns were arranged, she pointed it up with a scrutinizing look.
Bright fluorescent lights illuminated the space, casting no shadows to ensure clear visibility.
The .357 Silvium handgun was silver in color as it shone in the bright light of the room.
Silvia loaded the handgun with practiced ease, each click of the ammunition sliding into place a reassuring sound.
She took her stance, only gun in her right hand, to her right, a sturdy workbench held her cleaning supplies, ear protection, and safety goggles, she didn't even glance at them, how skill was she not to need any?
She focused on her target, exhaled, and slowly squeezed the trigger. The gunshot echoed softly in the padded room. The Silver bullet hit dead center. She took another shot, and again, and again, all hitting the bullseye like a machine programmed for perfection, the spent casings clinking as they hit the floor. The ventilation system hummed quietly, ensuring the air stayed clear of gunpowder residue.
Silvia stopped and breathed out heavily, wiping away the sweat that started forming on her furrow with her left hand.
A clap sounded from the entrance of the room as a boy stepped down the stairs, donned in a black T-shirt and grey baggy shorts with white sneakers. He looked to be in his preteens, with brown hair and matching eyes. Slightly chubby and of average height for his age, he wore a smartwatch and seemed to glance at it amidst clapping like a businessman checking his schedule. His eyes, sharp and calculating, darted around the room, giving off the impression of someone who had timed his entrance with precise accuracy. The clapping continued, his face breaking into a mischievous grin as if he were savoring the dramatic effect of his perfectly orchestrated arrival.
"That was awesome, sis!" he exclaimed, still clapping.
"Who is your sis? And what are you doing here?" Silvia asked coldly without glancing at him. "Besides, what's awesome about what I'm doing?" She loaded the handgun with ammunition.
"You didn't miss a single shot, of course," he replied and chuckled.
"Dan, are you mocking me? With this short distance, even a blind man wouldn't miss," Silvia said.
"The blind man must have an impeccable sense of direction before he could achieve such a feat," Dan replied with a grin.
"Says a twelve-year-old boy genius who finished the Tome of Hunters Journal with fifty thousand chapters in a week, all set in memory," Silvia replied, raising an eyebrow.
"You flatter me; that wasn't much of a feat, though," Dan said frankly. "I have accomplished more untold feats than that"
"That is a .357 Silvium, right? A handgun with a velocity of 1,500 mph, ten times faster than an Omega, five times faster than a gamma and beta —awesome, awesome!" He concluded with a clap as if he were applauding a magic trick, smiling at the same time.
"As expected of the Silverleaf Clan, the best gun manufacturing company. But you should have used ear protection; a 150-decibel noise level could damage your hearing, even though this room is well padded," Dan said, beaming cheerfully.
There was a moment of silence as Silvia sat on the bench near her.
"So why didn't you go to the headquarters to train?" Dan asked with a serious tone, breaking the silence as he brought out a bag of chips from his pocket, tearing it open and munching on the chips.
"Don't want to"
Silvia said with her head hung low
"I've got you, Sis, our dads are both stupid after all," Dan said and winced after noticing Silvia's slightly gloomy expression.
"That doesn't cheer me up, your dad would scold you if he heard that," Silvia said softly and glanced away.
"Leave that science junkie, he is much more engrossed with his experiments than me," Dan said, giving Silvia a thumbs up, he finished munching at the chips and went to throw the chip nylon into a trashcan.
A figure walked down the stairs.
"Is that Dan?" They asked, it was a woman in her early thirties, slender with an hourglass figure, she looked beautiful with a few streaks of grey hair in her long black hair, she looked a lot like Silvia, her voice was soft-spoken. She held the handrail when she climbed down
"Hey, Mom!" Dan glanced back and rushed to hug her.
Silvia's face contorted slightly in fury.
"That's not your mom!" She mumbled.
"Hi Dan, how do you do?" Silvia's mum asked softly as she gave Dan an embrace.
"I'm fine, what about you Mrs. Martins?" He asked.
"Good" Silvia muttered.
"Same here," she said releasing Dan from the embrace and ruffling Dan's brown hair fondly.
"Hope you are planning to stay," she asked as she stooped low to Dan's height.
"What!" Silvia exclaimed from her seat.
"Dearie, you should be nice to your brother a little," Mrs Martins said compassionately, glancing at Silvia.
"I'm sorry Mrs Martins, I'm not staying long, I felt I missed my cold sister and just came for a short visit to see how she is doing," Dan said, glancing at Silvia with a smug expression.
"Ok, take your time dear," Mrs Martin said smiling as he turned and climbed up the stairs.
Immediately Dan turned, Silvia was already looming above him.
"I owe you a punch, brat!" She said glaring at him with a burning gaze as she made a knuckle-cracking gesture, terrified Dan turned, sprinted up the stairs, and fled.
"Mom! Silvia is so scary!" He whined.