Let me preface this by saying that I would love to know who makes this as well, as we have no clue which company manufactured the VK-78 in Halo: Infinite. As soon as we learn that, I would be more than happy to paste the logo on here and give it a prefix.
The VK-994 turns heads on first sight, distinctive for its curved magazine - the faces the wrong way. Though initially causing confusion and irrational anger from those with military service, it also stands as a fairly accurate rifle with a free-floating barrel and somewhat ancient but time-proven recoil-operation. First rolling off the assembly line in the year of its production, 2994, the rifle found its first usage in Colonial Administrative Authority forces on the distant rim as far as Buffer Space, typically being fielded by one man in a fire team of Colonial Rangers. Because of its general cost, adoption was deferred to only the wealthier clients, with the UNSC taking more of the lion's share of production orders as of 3050 when the effectiveness of the free-floating barrel recoil was proven as marksmen reported lower levels of felt recoil, allowing follow up shots to be performed with minimal losses to accuracy.
The curved magazine of the weapon houses 9.5x40mm Lange cartridges, the bigger brother of the cartridges chambered for the ancient BR-series of Misriah battle rifles. Over the centuries as the proprietary round was released to the firearms community and the manufacturers that go with it, the full-sized round found usage in DMRs and SDMRs alike, with some light sniper rifles also being chambered in it. The round's ballistics when considering the 297 grain projectile is optimal, offsetting the long action recoil by spinning more through a 1:5 twist ratio. Because of the mechanics of the long action recoil, the barrel does not move until the pressure inside builds to a suitable level, allowing the projectile to pick up enough spin before exiting. This does not mean that the round is perfectly on target every time, but the hit probability is favorable. The magazine itself houses the rounds in a curve, following the shape of the mag. This unusual shape does not seem to have any significant advantages, but jams are few and far between, possibly as the rounds slot into a rim catch at the back, ensuring that they follow a comfortable path to the receiver. The magazine is placed into the well by sliding a catch into a rail and pushing upwards, resulting in a successful feed every time. The release is a small wing-like paddle that can be pressed with the index finger, releasing the magazine and allowing gravity to pull it out of the well.
The charging handle of the weapon is actually located at the front of the body as a small cylinder on a cam track. As with most closed-bolt weapons, the operator must chamber a round using this handle, The handle itself is actually simpler than it looks, with a latch attached to the upper portion of it. When the handle is reciprocated, the latch catches on a small portion of the barrel assembly, locking it in place and pulling, and the bolt backwards to chamber the round. It does not reciprocate when firing. This manufacturer claims that with the charging handle close to the shooter's support hand, it can be easily operated and jams can be cleared faster. The lesser known and more robust feature of the loading mechanism is the forward assist system, located just behind the ejection port. The purpose of a forward assist is to ensure that the bolt and the round are properly seated into battery. This is primarily an emergency system and is not meant to be used in everyday operation, though some CAA units instruct their soldiers to make use of it on a reload. Pushing the assist forward engages teeth on the bolt, edging it forward into a more secured battery position.
The barrel's rearward motion on firing pushes the bolt back into the recoil spring. A secondary spring located above the ejection port slows down the barrel itself before the final arresting at the rear of the body. The barrel moves back into position first before the bolt, not far behind, strips a round from the feed lips and chambers it. This means that in essence, the upper assembly only has a total of six moving parts, and disassembly is simple.
The stock of the weapon can be pulled out to two additional positions, though many marksmen choose to utilize it closed. It's composed of a shock-absorbing gel-coating that can absorb some of the felt recoil even further, though the kick of the 9.5mm round still requires some bracing.
The railing system is relatively sparse, consisting of two short distance rails on the top of the rifle and two side mountings. All of these result in lower wasted space and marginally reduce weight. A front folding sight is hard-installed onto the rifle while the rear aperture can be removed and replaced, in this case with a CR2 COG sight.
Despite large numbers produced and a large CAA backlog, the UNSC does not make heavy use of this rifle, insisting that the cost is far higher than that of the current MA-5 series of Misriah-produced models. The dismissal could also be a result of the UNSC desiring more interchangeability with their ammunition, preferring to keep their weapons systems using more or less similar cartridges. This does not mean however that it is entirely unused within the military, as it is speckled about in military police divisions, special forces divisions, and most impressively, in the hands of Spartan operators. In the end, the rifle sees enough action and garners enough respect to justify its costs and production, and its genuine effectiveness at dispersing felt recoil through its admittedly primitive recoil system make it effective over mid to longer ranges.
https://www.deviantart.com/chris000/art/Chaos-Chronicles-VK-994-S-DMR-859120048
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