SAGE (under edit)

Chapter Two

Sage woke after a restless night of sleep, having spent parts of the night either lying awake in bed or pacing around the living area. As quiet as she had been, though, Leon had still woken up and spent a solid hour wandering idly around the living area with her. Leon knew she often had trouble sleeping, though he respected her privacy enough not to pry but to simply offer company when he thought she needed it.

Given that she was used to having poor sleep, Sage had no problem dragging herself out of bed at the first signs of morning. Leon, on the other hand, woke with only moments to spare.

Waking first meant she had the luxury of a longer shower, and more hot water, leaving Leon to suffer through a bout of cold-water torture before coming out with a towel thrown over his hair. He had dressed in the uniform of his rank as well: black, fitted top with attached hood and black pants tucked into weatherproof boots that all Soldiers of any rank wore, but the detailing on the waist belt, the metal arm and shin guards and gloves was red. Fortunately for Leon, it matched his hair.

Being a Sai-Soldier, Sage had silver-white detailing on her uniform and since she was a female Soldier, she was required to bind her chest with protective bandages under her uniform. In the colder months, vests or woolen cloaks were added to the uniform but often Soldiers braved the cold without them because the added clothing could be a hindrance.

Sage finished strapping her holster around her thigh, which carried a sleek, nondescript black handgun fully loaded. There was nothing overtly special about the design, but it was the first weapon Sage had brought – and licensed – to herself after she became a Sai-Soldier. It wasn't necessary to buy your own weaponry, not when there were plenty to be borrowed from the arsenal in the Citadel and monitored by the division coordinators, but it had been somewhat of a gift to herself. To celebrate becoming a Sai-Soldier, especially considering how grueling the examinations were which she had to go through.

Spare bullet magazines clipped to her belt at the back, along with four slim throwing knives that were no wider than the width of two fingers and incredibly lightweight. She had a set of daggers as well, which were slightly larger and heavier than the knives but used solely for close combat.

Habitually Sage touched the pendant hidden beneath her uniform, where it sat in the hollow of her collarbones from a black chain. It was a pendant of Lion Crest's symbol which all Soldiers wore to identify themselves as Crest Soldiers, their names etched into the back of the pendant.

The necklace Sage wore, however, didn't say her name. It said her brother's.

Of course she had her own, but she only wore it when on duty. Dean's necklace was the last thing she had of him, save her own memories, but the pendant was more than just a reminder of her brother; it was like a comforting hand on her shoulder whenever she thought of him, whenever something worried her, whenever her mind was too scattered to think straight, Sage would reach for the pendant and feel Dean standing beside her, shaking off the troubles and encouraging her to do the same.

Other belongings of Dean's had been offered to her. After the apartment was investigated and Dean's body buried, Leon had accompanied Sage to collect everything she might have wanted to keep. Denial had her wanting to keep everything, had her refusing to throw away anything that belonged to their family, and so the apartment had remaining untouched for weeks while she lived with Leon.

Eventually, Sage had overcome the worst of her grief and began to sort through their possessions. Even now, at eighteen years old, Sage was surprised how clinically she had organised everything. Was detachment a stage of grief? Everything bar Sage's belongings and a few of Dean's was sold, but it had been during this time that she realised Dean's necklace had been returned to the Renark so she could stow it away with all the other necklaces of fallen Soldiers.