Restart Again: Volume 1 by Adam Scott (pocket ebook reader TXT) 📕

side to side, unable to pinpoint her location with sound alone, until I realized she was standing directly in front of me, leaning down in worry. “Lux! Lux, what’s wrong?” She reached down and tried to tug me up, but she grabbed my left arm. I hissed in pain and rolled away, groaning.

“Not...that arm...please.” After taking a moment to regain my bearings, I managed to roll up to my knees. “I’m...fine, really...just a bit...tired.”

“No, you’re not fine!” Her voice broke as she shouted at me. I squinted up at her face and realized she was crying. “You’re hurt, and it’s my fault. It’s all my fault…”

“Lia, no, no…” I fought awkwardly to gain my footing for some time as the room spun around me, finally standing up enough and put a hand on her head. “I’m here because...I wanted to be...not because you made me. It’s my fault...they hit me at all.” Lia impacted my chest hard, almost sending me toppling over again as she hugged me. She cried into my chest, shaking her head. This is happening too often. She shouldn’t have to do this. I leaned my head forward, resting my forehead on the top of her head as I returned her embrace with my good arm.

She was muttering something into my chest, but I couldn’t make out the words. “We’re going to be fine...I just have to...get dressed, and we’ll be out of here.” I gave her a light squeeze. The bare skin of her back was hot against my arm, comforting in the cold air of the stone room. My brain, struggling to keep up with even basic input and thought, was slow to connect the dots.

This time, it was my modesty that brought on embarrassment. I broke off the hug and looked away awkwardly. “You can go...get dressed. I’ll be fine...on my own.” Shifting over to my box I tried to fish out the cloak with my sword to no great success.

Lia followed up behind me, grabbed the cloak and pushed it into my arms. “I think we have bigger problems right now, don’t we?” She echoed my words back at me. I coughed out a laugh and nodded. I piled my cloak and sword on the nearby table as she fetched the rest of my clothes for me. Although I tried to avert my eyes, it was hard not to see her standing right in front of me. Her skin, slightly paler where her dress would usually sit, looked smooth and firm, the muscles underneath toned but not defined. Her chest was well endowed, giving her a very classic hourglass figure combined with her wide hips. Aside from a small pair of underwear, she was completely naked.

In another situation, at another time, things might have been different, but in the moment I felt...nothing. Just pained, dizzy, and tired. After the initial awkwardness had passed it was easy to forget that anything was out of the ordinary.

Once she had stacked all of my belongings beside me, she paused. “Do you need any help getting dressed?”

I shook my head. “No, I’m fine. If I can’t...get myself dressed, we’re probably...in a lot more trouble than I thought.” I flashed a small smile. “You go get dressed, and I’ll...do the same.” Having sat down for a while, I was feeling a bit more confident in my balance than I was before. Pulling my pants from the pile I stood and put them on, using the table for extra support. By the time I had them fastened with my belt, Lia was already back, clothed in her blue dress.

I pointed to my coin purse on the table. “You can transfer all the coins...from your bags, and that dish on the desk...into that purse.” I slipped into my undershirt, wincing over my left arm and skipping most of the buttons.

Lia looked doubtful. “I don’t think they’ll all fit.”

“They will. Just put them in one at a time.” As she did so, I shrugged into my leather chestpiece and strung the bandolier over my shoulder. By the time she had finished, I was lacing up my boots.

“How did everything fit in here?” Lia shook the coin purse, listening to the contents jingle inside.

“Magic.” I picked up my scabbard and secured it to my hip. “I know that sounds sarcastic, but it actually is magic. I can...explain later, if you’d like. Add it to the list.” Finally reunited with my full kit I sheathed my sword, sending it away. After finessing my way into my cloak one-handed, I moved toward the door. “Now, I think...we should get out of here.”

She nodded in agreement and handed me the purse. Together we re-emerged into the hallway and continued to the right as Jack had instructed. Lia stopped me at the second to last door. “West Tower,” she said, pointing to the placard. I nodded and pulled the door open. A tight stone staircase spiraled up into near darkness with only the vaguest hint of light flickering somewhere above us.

Stepping through the door, I turned to Lia and offered a hand. “Let’s get you home.”

***

10. THE LONG ROAD HOME

It felt as though we had been climbing for ages. As we ascended through the near darkness of the turning staircase, the only indication I had that we were making progress was a new scent in the air. After being under so many layers of stone for a week, it was like smelling the most beautiful perfume in the world: fresh air. The stale, dusty air was mixing with the smell of rainfall, and I could feel the humidity increasing with every step. Petrichor, I thought with a wistful smile.

Finally, at one of the rare torches, we found a doorway. I pressed my ear to the heavy wood and listened for a long time in silence. The only sound I could hear from the other side was the constant pattering of rain on stone. When I was finally convinced the door was clear, I lifted the