ODE TO SLEEP

「004. a goddamn weapon」

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      "YES, you are a part of the Blackstorm now,"

The chair creaked as Maddox leaned back in it. His arms crossed over his broad chest, brown eyes set on me from across the desk. In his right hand, he twisted a pen through his fingers. He did that when he was thinking.

"But you're also only sixteen," He sighed after a moment. "Let up on yourself, Isaiah. You're still a kid."

"I'm not a kid," I mumbled. "Don't call me that."

"Well, you're not an adult just yet," He shrugged. "You still have a few years to do...teenage things. Go to a party. Go drinking. Smoke some pot. Do normal teenage things."

"Consuming alcohol and doing drugs isn't considered normal things," Leo chimed as he walked inside through the open door. "Maybe sneaking off with a few girls and making out in her old man's car."

"See, even Leo agrees," Maddox said, lifting his hand.

"I'm not interested," I said. "I just came for another mission."

"Another? You just finished with the last," Leo hummed, plopping in the other chair.

"It keeps me busy," I muttered.

"Why do you want to keep busy?" Leo asked, looking over at me.

"I can't sit still. Everyone knows that,"

Leo glanced down to where my leg was bouncing under the table. "You keep picking at your gloves and we'll have to replace them. Again."

Leo was kind of like an equipment manager. He took care of all of the weapons we use, including the ones we used for training. He made sure that whatever we wore out on missions was protected in case we would be attacked. He made sure that we were all safe and guarded before we left.

He sort of took a liking to me. Especially after I would spend hours in the weaponry, learning about every single gun, sword, and knife in there. He was the reason I was as skilled as I was in marksmanship. He told me that he used to be a tactical sniper in the US Army, and traveled overseas. He showed me how to load and unload a gun, how to shoot one, and how to properly aim.

I didn't realize it until later, but I spent a lot of time with Leo. He was like how Maddox was to me. I was close to him. He helped me get through some of my...episodes. He could calm me down after a freak-out. I always came to him or Maddox for help or advice.

"He can't help it, you know that," Maddox said before I could groan the same thing out to Leo.

"You need to pick a different habit, kiddo," Leo joked, ruffling my hair. In the process, he'd accidentally knocked the band that held my mask to my face loose. But before it could fall into my lap, he was holding it to my face.

"Sorry 'bout that," He said, fixing the strap. "Just blends right in with your hair."

"It's alright," I replied.

"But, if you're wanting to keep yourself busy doing something," Leo smiled at me. "I got a job for you."

I agreed to help him with whatever it was. I knew that if I sat there any longer, I would start to drift. I hated to drift. It always led to an episode. But if I kept myself busy, and I focused on something different, I wouldn't drift.

Leo gave me the task of polishing all of the swords in the weaponry. He was in there as well, cleaning all of the guns and making sure they were loaded, and extra ammunition was stocked. I took the swords down one by one and wiped the rag over the silver blades until I could see my reflection. Then I put them back to collect more dust.