Michael pivoted on his heel, reacting on instinct as the slightest sound of a drawing weapon reached his ears. His brain took a microsecond to verify the target while his synapses sent a signal down to his finger, reflexively pulling the trigger.

In the space of that millisecond the trigger was pulled, a burst of ionised gas was injected into the firing chamber, contained in a tiny magnetic shield. A powerful arc of electricity, like that found in an arc welder, split through the gas, super-heating it to phenomenal temperatures. The shield collapsed inwards, compressing the superheated gas into a tiny packet of plasma energy.

Magnetic rails activated along the length of the barrel, drawing the charged packet out of the chamber, before ejecting it violently out of the muzzle. The shot screamed through the air and impacted his target, the magnetic shielding collapsing, releasing the superheated gas.

Michael let out a grim smile as his target fell back, a tight hole of seared flesh smoldering satisfactorily.