Tuesday passed by without incident. Now It's Wednesday. Once again, Vorsichtiger has called us down to the bs in SIT along with the heroics trainees from css #2.

  It's the same room as where we repaired the battlesuits in, with a rge number of square tables and several boxes on each table. The st time Vorsichtiger called us down to the bs was to perform experiments on the cypress-bots. From the previous times I've been here, it seems like Vorsichtiger wants us to construct something.

  Vorsichtiger walks to the front of the room, and turns on the electronic board fixed to the back wall.

  "Today is the penultimate day before we break up for holidays. We're going to be doing something a bit special today. Before we start, we must look at some of the background information behind this. You heroics trainees take w. This knowledge is usually learnt in a second year course."

  Vorsichtiger writes a single word on the electronic board.

  'Firearms'.

  I have a bad feeling about today.

  "First, lets look at the firing mechanisms of a gun. There are two types of firing mechanisms. One is through explosives, the other is through magnetic fields."

  "The old fashioned combustion guns attach a cartridge filled with gunpowder on the end of a bullet. A lighting mechanism inside the gun ignites the gunpowder and the bullet is propelled through the gun barrel."

  "Then we have magnetic guns. A non-magnetic bullet is pced inside a magnetic holder. The holder is then accelerated by a strong magnetic force down the gun barrel. At the end of the barrel, the bullet leaves the holder at high velocities, and the holder returns to the inside of the gun."

  "I guess volt guns also exist. These work in the same ways as magnetic guns, except with electrical fields rather than magnetic fields. Because of this, the bullet has to be an electrical insutor."

  "But volt guns are very fragile, If any of the charged components lose their charge, the entire gun fails. This happens naturally over time, can be sped up due to the photoelectric effect if used on a sunny day, and can instantly occur in thunderstorms."

  While speaking, professor Vorsichtiger writes a paragraph of information about each gun type down. Accompanying each paragraph, he draws a diagram showing the main components of that type of gun.

  "It used to be that heroics trainees were not allowed to use guns unless they were in immediate danger. However, due to recent revisions from the board of health and safety in Trigon, heroics trainees who have went through the relevent gun-training course can use certain guns provisionally."

  "Of course, anyone who misuses a gun will still need to face the consequences. Any compints about the unauthorised usage of a gun will be handled on a case-by-case scenario with Trigon's board of health and safety."

  He waves his hand dismissively as he continues speaking. "As long as you don't shoot anything, you'll be fine."

  While the professor is speaking, my brain connects the dots between 'Vorsichtiger', 'firearms', and 'doing something a bit special today'. My past experiences with professor Vorsichtiger's happy-go-lucky attitude with machinery leads me to a foreboding suspicion.

  Board of health? Didn't Professor Vorsichtiger mention that before?

  I raise my hand and ask Vorsichtiger about it.

  "Ahah! I did mention it in passing before, didn't I? You are quite correct, The board of health and safety in Trigon is the one I am currently head of. In fact, it was I who suggested the recent revisions to the gun ws."

  In other words, any compins of gun misuse will be handled by professor Vorsichtiger?

  I was right; Something bad is definitely going to happen. No, thats not quite right, because that 'something bad' has already happened! Who let Vorsichtiger become the head of health and safety? Ah! Trigon's public safety is ruined!

  "Now, the next thing we need to look at is the lethality of a gun. We usually decide how lethal a gun is using the kinetic energy of a bullet leaving that gun. You know how kinetic energy works. The faster something is, the more kinetic energy is has. A heavier object has more kinetic energy than a lighter object with the same velocity. "

  Vorsichtiger writes 'K.E. = ? m v2' on his board while speaking.

  "Now, the kinetic energy that the bullet has after leaving the gun is called the muzzle energy. The muzzle energy of a combustion gun depends on the explosives inside the cartridge. Because of that, you aren't allowed to use them without a proper gun lisence. However, since magnetic guns have a known muzzle energy, you can use those. To simplify a complex matter, heroics trainees who pass a gun-safety test can use magnetic guns that have a muzzle energy of less than twenty-five joules. It's a mandatory part of the heroics course that trainees sit this gun-safety test to get their lisence before graduating."

  Someone raises their hand and asks a question.

  "When do we sit this test?"

  "Usually, trainees will learn relevent gun training in the middle of the second year. However, you'll be sitting it in-" Vorsichtiger hums to himself. "hmm. Is three hours enough time to get through everything? Eh, probably! You can sit it right after lunchbreak!"

  Upon hearing this, the room becomes deathly silent. Vorsichtiger tilts his head in confusion. After a few seconds, he arrives at a conclusion.

  "Ah! You're all suddenly so eager to learn. Is the thought of pying around with a gun so exciting? But this sort of contrast between now and your usual attitude is no good. You always need to be paying full attention in every css. With that said, lets continue."

  Though slightly misunderstanding the cause for the silence, Vorsichtiger joyously continues his lecture as the heroics trainees throughout the b scribble down notes as if their careers depend on it.

  After a chaotic lunchbreak filled with furious sweat and revision, the heroics csses #1 and #2 head over to SIT's dedicated exam hall. It's a rge, dull blue room with hundreds of desks and no windows. I've only ever been here once before, and that was during the written exam for entry into SIT.

  The room had already been set up, with test papers ready on the front few rows of desks. I find an unoccupied desk near the front, sit down, and read the front page of the test paper.

  Firearm safety test FS-09-B-3140-147

  45 minutes.

  All questions are multiple choice questions with four answers to choose from. Given to you alongside this paper is an answer sheet in which you may select your answers. When selecting an answer, please put a diagonal line inside the box underneath the letter you choose. If you wish to select a different answer after choosing, fill the box in, and put a diagonal line inside the box under your new answer.

  Spare answer sheets are avaible if you need them.

  There are 25 questions in this paper. Answer all questions using the answer sheet provided.

  After reading the front page of the paper and filling in the relevent details like name and date on the answer sheet, Vorsichtiger pulls up a digital stopwatch on the electronic screen.

  "Your time starts now. You may begin."

  The fpping of pages sound throughout the room. Fully concentrated, I start answering the first page of questions.

  Q1 : You should always point your gun...

  A: UpwardsB: At yourselfC: Towards other people.D: Away from other people.Q2 : Which of the following is it prohibited to shoot at?

  A: Children.B: Endangered species.C: Pets.D: All of the previous.Q3 : When handling a gun, you should always:

  A: Handle the gun in a casual manner.B: Ignore safety precautions and pull the trigger whenever you feel like it.C: Treat the gun as if it were loaded.D: Show off to as many of your colleagues as possible.Q4 : An arms dealer wishes to sell you a gun. However, he refuses to show you his license for selling guns. You should:

  A: Buy the gun off him.B: Walk away and let him bother someone else.C: Walk away, then phone the police.D: Shoot him.Q5 : In which of the following circumstances is it acceptable to shoot someone?

  A: When you dislike that person.B: When the system tells you to.C: When it's for a prank.D: None of the previous.After finishing the first five questions, I put my pen down and rex for a bit. Despite it only being about a minute since the test started, I had already done 20%. It appears that everyone worried too much about this exam. I look over at Vorsichtiger, who is simply smiling at everyone from his desk. He always wears those massive blue goggles of his, though, so I can't see his full facial expression.

  After taking a quick mental break, I turn the page over to read the next set of questions. Everybody knows that the first questions in a test are usually the easiest, so I assume the first few questions aren't actually meant to be failed. In other words, they're filler questions meant to make the examinee more confident and more rexed.

  Why would exams have these types of questions? I guess it's for the pcebo effect. Some people get too nervous about sitting tests, so it's a way of telling those people that they can perform well if they try.

  But that isn't what's important right now. What's important is that the rest of the questions are definitely going to be harder.

  I look down at the paper, ready to start the real part of the test.

  Q6 : It is illegal to:

  A: Shoot everyone you meet.

  B: Let someone without a gun license borrow your gun.

  C: Own a gun without a gun license.

  D: All of the previous.

  Q7 : You have an argument with your friend about guns. You should:

  A: Challenge him to a duel.B: Shoot him immediately. C: Phone the police for disagreeing with you, then shoot him immediately after.D: Be polite, and respect his opinion even if you disagree.Q8 : Jimmy is walking in the woods and fires a gun without looking in front of him. It happens to hit Kate, who is also walking in the woods. Who is responsible?

  A: It is Jimmy's fault for not looking where he was shooting.

  B: It is Kate's fault for getting in the way.

  C: It was nobody's fault; accidents sometimes just happen.

  D: It's the gun's fault for being loaded.

  Q9 : True or false, safety always needs to be considered when handling a gun.

  A: True.

  B: False.

  C: Neither.

  D: Both true and false at the same time.

  At this point, I put my pen down and rub my eyes. After re-reading question #9, I come to the conclusion that I did not make a mistake while reading it the first time. Is this question really about guns? I feel like it's more about the binary nature of truth and falsehood.

  Q10 : Schr?dinger's pet cat is put inside a box, and you are given a gun to shoot at the box. Should you shoot at the box?

  A: No, it is illegal to shoot at pets.B: Yes, FOR SCIENCE!C: Yes, because it will be unknown whether the bullet hits the cat until the inside of the box is shown. So if the box is never shown, the cat will always be in a state where it is both dead and alive at the same time.D: Yes, because who cares about Schr?dinger's pet cat anyway?...

  The rest of the questions on the paper were no harder. I finish the entire test in five minutes, submit the finished answer sheet to professor Vorsichtiger, then leave.