Elias clicked his tongue, hefting the weight of it. "I’m tired of the reload drill at the range, Miller. I want to spend more time behind the trigger and less time fumbling with thirties."
The neon sign above "Miller’s Sporting Goods" flickered, casting a rhythmic blue glow over the counter where Elias stood. He wasn’t there for a standard box of brass or a new hunting scope. He was there for the "Drum"—the 60-round high-capacity magazine that turned a standard AR-15 from a precision tool into a marathon runner.
That Saturday, the desert air was still. Elias snapped the drum into the magwell of his rifle. It seated with a heavy, satisfying thunk . He settled into the prone position, the extra weight anchoring the barrel against the sand. He squeezed. Crack. Crack. Crack.
"You sure about this?" Old Man Miller asked, sliding a heavy, circular polymer casing across the glass. It looked less like a magazine and more like a miniature turbine. "They’re a bear to load, and they’ll make your rifle front-heavy as a lead pipe."