Infinite Farmer

Tulland thought he knew what being in shock was like by now. He had been through life and death combat, fled from near-certain death, been suspended by spikes in a briar patch, and had broken bones. Compared to his life before coming to The Infinite, he was living in a constant, horrible waking nightmare that hit him like a sledgehammer from unseen angles at unexpected times. He thought, reasonably, that he was starting to get used to it all.

This was different. This was much worse. Head swimming for an entirely different reason now, he shot back from the helmet, only to rear forward again almost immediately as he lost the contents of his stomach. Wiping his mouth without thought, he looked back at the glinting metal, now almost in shadow again. His torch had gotten lost in the shuffle somehow, and Tulland had no motivation at all to know how and where it had gone.

"No. No. I just saw you," Tulland said into the dark. "I just saw you. How did you do this? How?"

He was aware he was not making much sense, at the very least because he was talking to someone who couldn't possibly talk back. He also just didn't have the vocabulary to talk about what he was feeling. She had just been with him a few days ago. She was just not only healthy, but healthier than he had ever been able to imagine a person being. Strong. Invincible, even. She was a literal giant built to survive things. She couldn't just die.

And yet there her helmet was. Cold. Bloodied and broken. Contorted in a way that simply could not allow for life.

"No. No. Absolutely not." Tulland said. He could not accept this. He would not accept this. And he simply didn't. He sat, for a while, not accepting it. "No."

You've been there for hours. Are you aware of that?

Tulland wasn't aware, actually, even though he saw the fire had burned itself down to the soft glow of embers and even though his eyes were now red from exposure to the smoke.

I was aware. I'm just thinking.

Lies. You are lying.

You are one to talk.

Fair. And yet, you have been sitting there for hours, staring a helmet. Why?

You know full well why. You know what this means.

There was a specific feeling to when the System was thinking about something. It was different from how things felt when it was done talking, or when it was without the words with which to reply. Consideration left a certain taste in the air between them that Tulland had long since become familiar with.

I do, and I am sorry. But you must be aware that it does not necessarily mean that. It's a likelihood. A probability. It's far from a proof.

Then what's your explanation of what happened here?

That I'm sure of? Nothing. But imagining a situation where your friend was being chased so closely that she could not recover her helmet after some misadventure knocked it from her head is not difficult. This place is chaotic, Tulland. This floor in particular is so. In a place where anything can happen, anything else can happen as a result.

Tulland mulled that over as best he could through his shock and despair. The System wasn't wrong, exactly. It wasn't overplaying its hand, demanding that he accept Necia was just fine in a situation where it was clear she probably wasn't. That made it harder to simply dismiss the idea that something had happened besides her dying and getting dragged off by some horrible monster. It was possible.

So how do I find out then? How do I prove she's alright?

Frankly, you can't. Not unless you see her out there. Not unless you find her by happenstance. And you may not be able to do that at all, depending on the reality of the situation.

The System paused here, as if being careful with its words. For what it was worth, Tulland appreciated that more than he liked to admit at that moment.

But you certainly can't do that here. Unless she comes back to here, that is. You need to be on the move, as soon as the weather allows you to. To establish your farm here. To push forward. As you have before.

Tulland nodded reluctantly. He couldn't find any fault in what the System was saying. In the way that had become more and more odd to him as time stretched on, he was finding that the System at least occasionally actually tried to help him and gave him advice that was, in the moment, solid advice.

Alright. Then what's my next move?

First, you need a plan to leave this place. If Necia did run into a force that could injure her here, it is a risk to you as well. Likely more so. You need the safety of shelter. And if you are to have that, you must build your own farm.

And then the System was gone. Tulland had cut the connection in case the System tried to leverage this moment for some kind of gain. Days ago, he had realized the System didn't actually have the ability to see him during the times he did this, at least not in any way that mattered. He had confirmed as much with The Infinite, who was more than willing to answer when he asked.