Restart Again: Volume 2 by Adam Scott (hardest books to read txt) 📕

it was exactly, some sort of spark that was still inside of you after your body, uhm, died, I guess? Everything felt so strange, but I thought that maybe, if I kept talking to you, you would hear me and come back.” She shifted her weight and buried her face further against my neck, her voice taking on a timid quality when she eventually continued. “I know it sounds silly, but—”

“It’s not silly, Lia,” I comforted her, wrapping her in my arms and squeezing her tightly. “I can’t say for certain where I went, but wherever it was, I heard you calling to me. You brought me back.”

The familiar footfalls of Val’s heavy boots rushed across the council chamber towards us. At the sight of my head turning towards her approach, her face softened in relief, and a wide smile spread across her face. “Lux, I thought—” She froze as Lia and I came into full view, then turned her head away. “I apologize if I am interrupting.”

“Not at all,” I said jovially from my place sprawled out on the floor. “What happened while I was...otherwise preoccupied? Bring me up to speed.”

“Of course. I have taken the Strategist into my custody and interrogated him. In exchange for the promise of a fair trial, he has agreed to address his men at daybreak and call off the operation. The Company men will be allowed to board their ships unaccosted, should they do so immediately and without resistance, and the Unbound will be forgiven of any crimes committed during the occupation.” She paused as Lia shifted to the side and helped me up to a sitting position more fitting for a conversation. “Kaldan will offer support in reestablishing the Attetsian Council through a fair election, which should appease some of the rebels’ concerns.”

“That’s a good plan,” I said with a thoughtful nod. “Anything else of note?”

Val tapped her chin. “Two groups of Unbound soldiers arrived to investigate, most likely patrol groups that followed our trail here. Both surrendered without a fight after they came to understand the situation.” She looked to Lia for any additional input, then back to me. “Otherwise, it was a peaceful evening, all things considered.”

“Glad to hear it.” I pulled myself up to my feet and stretched my shoulders in a tight circle, eliciting a loud pop from each side. “Now, where’s the Strategist? I’ve got some questions for him as well.”

She motioned down to the first row of wooden benches on the assembly floor, where our prisoner sat with his wrists and ankles chained. “He has been less forthcoming with information since our battle concluded.” I moved to approach him, but Val stepped back and blocked my path. “Lux, wait. I...have something to say. To both of you.”

I stopped and raised an eyebrow at her with a mix of curiosity and trepidation before I nodded for her to proceed. She closed her eyes and tipped her head back, letting out a long sigh before she spoke. “I owe you both a great debt. You took decisive action and performed admirably in the face of great danger while I failed in my duties entirely. I would most certainly be dead if not for you.” Although her face and voice held their usual neutral quality, I saw a misty shimmer forming in her eyes. “It is a failure I do not take lightly.”

“Don’t beat yourself up over it, Val,” I said, clapping her on the shoulder. “Nobody could blame you for what happened. There’s no way you could’ve been prepared for what he told you.”

She gave me a small nod. “Yes. His lies were very convincing, but it is no excuse for my inaction.”

My brow furrowed as I withdrew my hand. “How do you know they were lies? Did he confess when you questioned him?”

“I do not need to question him to know his words were false,” she replied, folding her arms across her chest. “The Strategist will say whatever is necessary to gain the upper hand.”

“By that line of logic, he could have just as easily been telling you the truth about King Virram. Even though it revealed all of his secret scheming, it was the most effective thing he could’ve done to make you lose your focus.” I took a breath in an effort to resist my growing frustration. “I know it would be hard to accept, but don’t you think you should at least consider the possibility that he was telling the truth?”

“No,” Val replied bluntly, “I do not.”

I blinked at her silently, partially stunned by her stubbornness. I don’t need another fight right now. “Alright then,” I said eventually, walking away from the conversation without a backwards glance. My intended destination was an audience with the Strategist, but I took a moment to kneel at the edge of the platform when I passed by Solette’s body. I couldn’t help but feel a small twinge of remorse, despite the fact that she had intended to kill us. We could have learned a lot from you, had we met in different circumstances.

A faint glimmer caught my eye as I turned to leave, and I pulled back the large cuff of her sleeve to find the diamond orb still clasped in her cold fingers. I retrieved it with a hard tug, wincing as her arm jerked upwards before falling back to the floor with a dull thud. The surface of the orb was perfectly smooth and clear, and I could see the flickering torchlight around us bent into wild patterns by its fractal core. Just beneath my fingertips, I could feel the presence of Solette’s mana flowing in lazy, aimless circles.

Despite the abundance of questions that filled my head all at once as I stared longingly at the orb, I subdued the curiosity and shoved the gem away into a pouch on my belt. Magic study can wait. The Strategist can’t. I descended the steps and crossed to where he sat, bound and gagged in the front row