Now:

     "We're going aboveground," Claudia said. "You up for that?"

     "Seriously?" Skip couldn't remember the last time he'd seen sunlight, had filled with lungs with air not provided by The Lungs. "Sounds great, but...why though?"

     "Travel's too slow in The Cellars, at least around here."

     "Yeah, yeah, that's right."

     "They don't allow anything faster than someone can walk."

​     "Got the picture. Thank you."

     "I'll hire a hover once we get to the surface. We should be in the Club District within the hour."

     "Where it all began."

     "And, no, we're not going back to Hrrm's Hive."

     "Does Hrrm's Hive even still exist? The last I..."

     "They rebuilt it. Of course, they did."

     "Told you Whisper never left."

     "Two years ago, that wasn't true."

     "Where are the elevators?"

     "Elevators, my ass. You're climbing these stairs right here, buddy."

     "You sure? That's an awful lot of stairs." Skip climbed a single step, two, continued. "Wearing clothes feels funny after so many months with my ding-dong hanging out."

     "Those shoes you're carrying. You're going to have to put them on."

     "They'll pinch my feet."

     "You're going to need them once we get to the surface."

     "You really think I'm an asshole, Claudia?"

     "Of course, I do. The way you said good-bye to Lamna. She's a human being, you know. She's got feelings."

     "What do you want me to do, stay on the farm until I explode like a blubber bomb?"

     "I want you to be more awake. I want you to be more of an adult. I...You know what? Forget it. Forget I said anything."

     "How many of these stairs am I going to have to climb? It's been a minute or two since I've gotten any real exercise."

     "You've never gotten any real exercise."

     "That's what I'm saying. Maybe I'd better sit down for a couple of seconds, catch my breath."

     "I know you brought some donuts with you."

     "And some juice. Have to stay hydrated. How many of these stairs are there? I can't even see the top from here."

CONTINUE