"So, what is your plan?" Napoleon I asked.
"My plan? Well we'll match the British, even exceed them," Napoleon II simply stated and then turned to the officers. "Can I borrow that gun?"
The officer walked forward and handed him the rifle.
Napoleon II grabbed it and tested the weight. It was long, slimmer than a musket, the balance pulled slightly forward.
He ran his hand along the stock first.
"Industrial cut," he said. "Uniform. This wasn't shaped by a village craftsman."
He turned the rifle over and studied the receiver.
"No exposed pan. No flint." He looked up briefly. "So ignition is internal."
He worked the bolt.
It slid back with a dry metallic sound, clean and direct. No hammer. No external spring.
Napoleon II paused.
"So this is it," he said. "The needle system."
He leaned closer, eyes narrowing as he examined the chamber.
