He awoke with pins and needles in his foot. It wasn’t a new feeling, in fact he’d lived with it for years now, but it still managed to drain him every time he had to get out of bed with that pain. He sat up with a sigh, looking around the room he’d been so graciously given by the Rakyat and rubbing his eyes, brushing away the sleep that had collected there. He didn’t know the time, but the morning light was streaming through a window, meaning it was time for him to wake up anyways.
It had been a year since Jens had moved into this place. Maybe two, he’d lost track of the time and wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to try and catch up. It would only be a reminder of how far away his goals truly were. He groaned, another sharp pain stabbing through his foot, and he threw the covers back, turning to hang his legs over the side of his bed.
The stump had healed nicely, at least he had that to be thankful for, he thought bitterly as he rubbed it, trying to alleviate some of the ache. These phantom pains were getting on his nerves, however. He could almost feel it in his toes, longing to wiggle them and make his foot wake up, but there was nothing to wake. He massaged until the pain was mostly gone, groaning again as he noted where his leg had been left, leaning against the wall and not next to his bed where it usually was.
That meant some awkward hopping, another thing he’d grudgingly gotten used to. Jens decided to forgo that for a moment, instead shifting down to the end of his bed, pulling off his tank top and grabbing his binder, which he shimmied into. He wasn’t supposed to wear it for too long, the local doctor had told him, because it made it harder for him to breathe, but at this point he hardly noticed it anymore. And so long as it kept his chest flat and people’s eyes away, he didn’t really care.
He paused, picking up his pants and setting them aside, not excited to get up, and took the moment to instead grab that ratty, extra pair of socks that had been sitting next to his binder and stuffing them into his boxers. He looked down at himself, chest flat, the slightest hint of his abs underneath, a bulge where there was supposed to be one, and found himself feeling a little better about all of this. But only a little, he was no where near where he was supposed to be, he decided, rubbing his hairless chin.
He pulled a sock onto his foot, and then what he considered his ‘sock’ onto his leg, rubbing the stump one more time for good measuring, as if telling it to behave for the rest of the day, before he finally willed himself to stand. Jens had so much practice doing this, he wasn’t even shaky anymore, but that didn’t making the hopping any less awkward. One, two, three, fuck.
He feel forward, hitting his wall with the flat of his palms and catching himself, hissing curses under his breath. He shifted forward and turned, leaning his back against the wood and sliding down to sit, reaching to grab his leg and slide it into place, adjusting it to fit properly. He didn’t like the blade, it garnered more attention than he liked, but for running, he needed it, and it had been fit for water in case he needed a quick escape via the ocean.
He ran a hand over his hair, taking a moment to mentally prepare himself before standing. This had become easier over the past few years, and even now he might have been one of the faster runners on the island, but he still found himself wondering if it was worth it. He shot a look at the rifle he’d been maintaining the night before. Yes, it was worth it. He sat back down on his bed, carefully maneuvering his pants up to his hips, and slipping his shirt back over his head, before slipping on and lacing his boot.
The weight of the sniper rifle on his shoulder and the machete on his hip were welcome as he stepped out into the sun. People who didn’t have to struggle just to get their shoes on were already outside, exchanging gossip, preparing breakfast, tending to the animals. They didn’t stare so much anymore, which was a blessing, but sometimes he still caught the kids’ eyes on his leg or on his face, or even sometimes on his chest.
A few mumbled greetings and a nabbed banana and he was heading out of Amanaki, using the trails he’d created for himself the first few times he’d gone out alone. People had given up on stopping him, knowing fully well that he knew the risks. If he didn’t come back, they knew precisely what had happened.
It was nice to get out into forest, where everything seemed to be at peace. At least, until he got to his destination. Even then, the gunfire and shouting weren’t permanent, more an unnecessary addition to the environment. One he intended to erase.
Climbing hills wasn’t so hard, and neither was finding a good hiding spot in the brush. What was hard was making the decision of which asshole to pick off, first, or what flammable substance was likely to do the most damage. He crouched, pulling his rifle over his shoulder and setting it down, letting it rest on its little legs. He positioned himself to be more comfortable, before peering through his scope. One, two, three, four… Fifteen pirates. He had enough ammo to put a little bit of lead into each of their skulls, and then some. Good.
Time to fuck with these bastards.