"Elizabeth," Candace's Rail Gun
Yurihausen and I decided Candace didn't just need a sidearm, she needed a hand-canon. And a futuristic one at that.
Meet "Elizabeth."
Weapon designation: “Elizabeth”
Open-vent energy dispersal: The weapon ejects the electromagnetic (EM) energy created by the weapon firing the shot out of these ports, which are open to the air. This energy dispersal would be analogous to the muzzle flashes associated with today’s weapons.
Rifling EM field coils: These electromagnetic coils wrap around the barrel of the gun and spin the ammunition as it exits the chamber, not unlike the rifling etched into the barrels of today’s weapons. This spin increases range and accuracy.
Impulse EM field coils: These create the electromagnetic impetus that moves the ammunition out of the gun. They can change polarity to push or pull the round, depending on its position. This is controlled by internal computer.
“Hot-knife” laser-powered projectile cutter: This micro-laser slices off part of the solid-core ammunition to prepare it for loading into the chamber. The ammunition size toggle determines how much is sliced off. “Hot-knife” is (fictitious) jargon.
Chamber: Where the round resides before firing.
Chamber attitude EM field coil: This pulls the round up from the ammunition slot after it has been cut off by the “hot-knife.” It also keeps the round suspended in the chamber and in the correct orientation for firing. If the calibration of the latter is off, it could result in a disastrous backfire.
Solid-core metal ammunition slot: The ammunition for the weapon is a solid, circular bar of dense metal. This is cut into usable rounds by the “hot-knife” laser cutter. The loading port is in the rear of the gun and is covered when not in use. An indicator light shows how much weight is left in the slot, as the adjustable size of the rounds makes showing the number of shots left inaccurate. The firer is trained to quickly calculate how many shots of each size she still has in the weapon at any given time.
Genetic verification grip molding: Every legal weapon in the UN must be linked to the genetic code of one or more owners. The molding on the grip contains a series of genetic scanners that confirm the person holding the weapon is the proper owner. If it is not, the internal computer shuts the weapon down.
Ammunition size toggle: This dial allows the user to select the size of the round being fired. Larger rounds do more damage, but require more energy to fire. Smaller rounds are able to be fired quicker, but may lack some of the punch of larger ammunition. The setting tells the “hot-knife” how much of the solid-core ammunition to slice off for loading.
Options hard-point: This bay allows the weapon to receive one of a number of optional features. When none are installed, it is filled with a placeholder block to keep debris out of the internal workings of the gun and provide a consistent weight for all weapons.
- “Slingshot” EM range-extender: This is an additional impulse EM field coil to extend the range of the weapon. “Slingshot” is (fictitious) jargon.
- Laser sight: This is a constant, low-power laser that helps in targeting. It is the same as today’s laser sights.
- Low-capacity auxiliary weapon: This is a secondary weapon option for the pistol, though the size limitation means the weapon’s power and/or ammunition capacity is quite small. Examples include mini-explosive launchers and one-shot beam weapons.
Well worth the price.
