Spring loaded

Sliding down the slick hull was faster than picking my way stud by stud. Tch. I hit the desk planks on two rigid feet with a solid clatter. Right there, lying beside a stack of papers, sat a heavy metal cylinder with a ribbed switch. Looked like a launcher of some sort. I didn't hesitate—I threw my whole weight onto the back end. *Snap-clack!* The internal spring shoved hard, launching the tapered tip outward against the wood and jolting me back a step. Hah. A coiled spring mechanism inside a pocket-sized barrel. Not bad.