Chapter 51

Each floor of Climber’s Rest had communal bathing areas, similar to how it had been during our past eight years of training. With the inventory system granted to us by the Tower’s magic, we didn’t even need to head to our rooms to drop off our gear. The three of us made our way quickly up the nine flights of stone stairs to our floor and walked together towards the baths.

The three of us were silent during our walk, each seemingly lost in thought. I knew, at least for myself, the interaction with Alexandra had been unsettling. Her insistence that we deserved our rewards, felt wrong. And yet, it was extremely clear that telling her otherwise was not a wise choice.

And then there was Hans. I had no love for the guy. He deserved to be punished, that much was clear. He’d literally been trying to kill us. Past that, he’d seemed to enjoy hurting us. He reveled in causing pain to his fellow Climbers. And for what? So he could feel strong? No, he definitely needed to be punished.

But the way Alexandra had spoken, how she’d seemed to change right before our very eyes, it was chilling. There was something about her that scared me. Something about her that spoke to a primal instinct of mine, that told me she was dangerous. I thought back to how Commander Phyr had interacted with her. A man who’d trained us for eight years, a man who’d made it all the way to the 75th floor of the Tower. A man who wielded a weapon that possessed powers we couldn’t even fathom. And yet, he’d shown Alexandra a form of deference and respect that made it clear she was positioned higher than him.

At first I’d wondered if it was part of some strange hierarchical structure I didn’t understand. Being Overseer of Climber’s Rest, it made sense that she was ‘in charge’ of the Climbers. After all, she oversaw the jobs we did, and took care of our rewards and who knew what else. But no, how Commander Phyr had acted, it felt different. There was something else about her, that commanded his respect. If I had to guess, she was stronger than him, much stronger. Yet, she looked so young. Too young to have that type of power.

“Looks like its just the three of us,” Lyn’s words pulled me from my musings as we stepped inside the bathing area. It was a large, square room, situated down an opposite end of the hallway of the floor, away from the living quarters. This section of the floor actually had not just a bathing area, but a lounge for relaxing, and even a self-service kitchen. We’d passed a few of our peers in the lounge, but the bathing area, as Lyn pointed out, was empty.

The massive pool, that looked to be about four feet deep at its center, was rounded, with waters warmed by the Tower’s magic. Steam hung in the air, while excess moisture from the extremely damp atmosphere clung to every surface. The moment Lyn had opened the door, a blast of heat had wafted over us. A crisp, sweet scent trickled through as well.

The back wall of the bathing area, which I’d neglected to use yesterday, considering my body had been completely fresh and cleaned when I’d come to within the resurrection chamber after the Reaping, was lined with a variety of soaps and scented cleaning supplies. It was much nicer than what we’d had to use during our time as trainees. Another obvious advantage to being a proper Climber. There was no doubt Climber’s Rest offered all the right amenities for Climbers to enjoy after a hard day inside the Tower.

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“Fine by me,” Nyle said as the three of us stepped inside. The door closed behind us, and he instantly removed his clothes, the outfit magically disappearing inside his inventory. Lyn and I did the same. I shivered as my bare skin prickled, the damp air quickly assaulting my flesh. I took a breath, and it was heavy. I was immediately reminded of the jungle on the second floor and had to fight an involuntary shiver as I thought of the slimes.

Splashing caused me to look towards the water. Nyle had fully submerged himself into the waters, and was now swimming lazily across the bath, towards the scented supplies on the other side.

“For once, he’s the first to action.” Lyn said with a laugh. She grinned at me, her ivory flesh covered in water droplets, same as mine. Eight years of training, eight hard years of constant fighting and fitness, had ensured all our bodies were toned to perfection. She was thinner than Nyle and I, but appropriately muscled. For most of our platoon, it was common to have thinner forms that were made up of strong, firm muscle. The only outliers were those like Jaxon, who towered over the rest of us, who’s muscles had grown two to three times larger than our own.

“He’s not one to let a chance to relax pass.” I said grinning at her. “And he’s probably feeling a lot safer here, than he was when he fell asleep by that stream.”

Lyn laughed and stepped towards me. I glanced down as she closed the distance. She was a few inches shorter than me, so I needed to look down to hold her gaze. She smiled up at me, mere inches from me.

“You seem pretty relaxed too,” she said, her breath tickling my skin.

“After the day we’ve had,” I said, returning her smile, “I think it’s deserved.”

“I’d say,” her eyes sparkled. “You’re covered in filth.”

Before I realized it, she’d grabbed my wrist in hers, and was rotating her body. She spun around, and executed a proper throw, sending my flying the final foot or two over the tile floor, splashing and sputtering into the water. Heat assaulted my body, water fought its way into my gasping lungs. I splashed about, my wet hair dripping into my eyes as I shot her a glare. All she did was laugh as she slowly stepped into the water, her form easing below the warm water, while her eyes slightly closed, and she let out a contented sigh.

She ignored my glare as she made her way towards me. Once she got closer, it was all she could do not to laugh. Behind us, Nyle had reached the other end and was pulling himself out of the bath, to sort through the scented options for bathing.

“What was that for?” I asked her. My anger had already fizzled. It had been a perfectly executed throw, and honestly, it was more than a little impressive.

“Flint’s first lesson,” she said with a grin. “You’ve got to be ready to dodge at any moment.” She laughed and splashed a bit of water towards me. “Plus, I wasn’t kidding. You really do smell.”

I splashed her back and began backstroking towards Nyle.

“I get it,” I said, making sure to kick extra water at her as I glided through the water. “I need to bathe.”

Our laughter filled the bathing room then, the sound carefree and light. We’d had a long day, and with the warm water seeping into our bones, the scented soaps cleansing the final remnants of the Tower from our skin, we were able to release the final bits of stress from the day and wash away the worries that had been clinging to us. For that moment, in the bath, the three of us were nothing more than friends enjoying a restful bath, celebrating our first official day as Climbers.