Waters of Lethe, Book 2

57. Release

I was crazy to step back onto the training floor without protection, or at the very least someone to watch my back. Maybe I should have let Alex tag along. My pride was too big, though, something that I didn't need to have. It was something that could get me killed if I didn't let the people I trust watch over me. 

I stepped on the floor, now hearing Jai's hits even louder than before. I scurried to the weapons room. T was no where to be found. It was close to lunch, so he could be anywhere. He could have even gotten the day off, due to the fact no one was obligated to train under the new brain monitoring circumstances. I was surprised to find the weapons room unlocked without someone present, though, in case some rogue kid who went off the deep end came in and decided to borrow a shotgun. That was the only thought I had as I picked out a standard issue M16 rifle.

I tried looking through the huge selection of rifles, trying to remember which one I liked, which one fit me the best. I wanted the type of rifle I shot Jai with, but had no clue which one I had used. So I settled on the M16. 

Thankfully, I was the only one who decided to come in for some midday practice. I laid a few extra magazines on the table in front of me that separated me from my cardboard human targets. Although I didn't want to, I put on ear and eye protection. If T were to walk in and see me without it, I'd get a lecture on how I would be deaf and possibly blind within the next 5 years. I always wanted to tell him that he was full of it, that, for starters, we were tough cookies to crack. We weren't human, and even if we did go deaf after a few too many rounds, our hearing would find its way back to us within a couple of days. Another reason I didn't like the protection was because we didn't have it in the field. It threw me off, having something strapped around my ears and eyes. Not enough to effect my shooting, though, so I didn't know why I complained.

"You pick up sounds better than normal people," he told me once. I remember recoiling at the way he implied I wasn't normal, but I knew he was right. More importantly, I knew he didn't mean anything by it. "Sounds come louder to you! A gun is already loud, my dear. You're eardrums will thank me later."

I shook the thoughts from my head and picked the gun up, the butt against my shoulder. I looked through the scope, finding the human's heart in half a second, steadying myself the next half. A sharp, quiet sound filled the space beyond my ear muffs. I never blinked, watched the bullet as it hit dead on in the cardboard cutout's heart.

I bit my bottom lip and moved the cross hairs to the little area between the cutout's eyes. Again, the sharp sound filled the air as my finger squeezed the trigger and the bullet met the mark. Dead on.

I laid the gun on the table beside its clips, took the ear muffs and glasses off and put my hands on the table, leaning into it, supporting my weight and my thoughts.

I didn't believe for a second that I just randomly missed my target and hit Jai, especially not multiple times. I didn't. I didn't. I didn't. I picked the gun up again and, in an angry fit, aimed back at the cutout's heart. I wasted no time as I emptied the rest of the rifle's clip, twenty eight rounds, the shells landing on the floor at my feet. Ping. Ping. Ping. Ping.

The noise was music to my ears, not only that day but the days to follow. Two weeks ended up passing. Each day, I was in the range, proving to myself that I was right and not letting anyone else tell me otherwise. With each new day, I found myself more and more confident in my accuracy.

And with each new day, I avoided Jai.

It was fairly easy. Mainly because he planted himself in the weight room or gym from sunrise to well past sunset. I saw him a few times in group training, but Alex made sure to stay by my side, partnering up with me when we were told to. We both ignored Jai's angry glances easily. We even found ourselves laughing a time or two, mainly over idiotic things. My guess was that we were both tired of the tension, and it was finally starting to wear down.