Tom steadied himself again and went back to thinking about his breathing. In is down, out is up. In is down, out is up. On the third cycle, as the sight was in place he held his breath and gently began to squeeze the trigger. Bang! Immediately afterwards he heard the clang of the plate target; another good hit. Time to move.

The searching group were only ten metres to his left as he slid away into the longer grass towards the third hide point he had scouted on the walkthrough before. All of the aspirant snipers had to find their own hides and their own routes between them before the test. It was as important a part of their skillset as actually being able to make the shot, if not more important. A good scout sniper can enter a forward position, kill the enemy and then leave, unmolested, ready to do so again the next day, and the next.

They never even saw him, and now he was in position again. He checked the wind, using the pennants on the radio antennae, adjusted his scope, in and out and hold and squeeze.