Ann Vinh Mulhaney’s ‘s targets were marked with kill zones, too: centered around the human torso and braincase.
Margo looked a little green already. Malcolm, lounging comfortably on a bench nearby, felt sorry for her.
”Get used to it,” Ann told her. “Time scouting is not a picnic.”
So everybody keeps telling me,” Margo said with a shaky little laugh that didn’t fool anyone.
”Did anyone talk about the dangers of tangling with people who can’t be killed down time?”
Margo nodded. “Last night, yes.”
”Good. People who are critical to history can often be …dissuaded …even if they can’t be killed. Self-defense is a dangerous proposition at best, but self-defense down time is really tricky, because you never know if what you try will actually work. So it’s good to have a variety of options-fast legs, the ability to ride horses or drive a harnessed team, a good grounding in martial arts. Remember, the first lesson of self-defense…”
”Avoid the situation in the first place,” Margo sighed. “That’s what Sven said.”
”Then you’d better remember it. All right. A gun is only one layer of your defense. But if you’re going down time, it’s useful to know how to use one. You won’t carry one with you, because you’ll never know whether or not a firearm will be an anachronism there. But once you get where you’re going, you may need to pick one up in a hurry, if they exist. Firearms have changed a lot since their invention in the 1300’s. So we’re going to start with something simple and fairly modern, something easy to shoot, just to get you used to marksmanship principles. Once I’m convinced you can hit what you’re shooting at, I’ll start teaching you historical firearms all the way back to the early pole guns. You’re going to have homework, too.”