Chapter 6: Information

Picking up the bowls and spoons, Buckle moved to wash them while addressing me, “So, yeah… Not quite alone.”

“How, exactly is… I mean, is she actually your daughter somehow? I don’t mean to say the wrong thing, but…”

“My wife Devi is… was... a mage. She went on a trip to visit ‘er parents and she brought Jess along with ‘er. ‘Fore going, Devi made me Jess-doll. Jess-doll can chat fer a bit, usually fer a meal time er so afore she runs outa juice. Jess-doll also remembers our times chatting, but doesn’t know what Jess must from after it was made.”

“Interesting, do you know why Devi made… Jess-doll that way?”

“Only s’posed to be away fer a month or two at most I think. Maybe it was ta let the stored conversations be something Jess could hear when she got back. She never said, so I can only guess.” Buckle sighed as he sat back down at the table.

“So, I’m fine listening, and I’m curious about it. But I don’t understand why you are sharing this. I mean, we just met and I appreciate all you are doing for me already…”

Buckle interrupted her, “Monday March, you have some stuff goin’ on with ya. I don’ share much, but yer like a closed door. So, anyhows, Devi made the Jess-doll, ‘n took Jess ta see her folks. She was mmm... mebbe her folks weren't fond of her bein' with me 'cause of the goblin thing, ‘n while I knew ‘em from back a bit I felt no need ta go with. Work ta do ‘n homestead ta keep safe. So four days after they left, the stone in my bonding ring broke. Three ways that kin happen, so’s Devi told me; She’d be dead, she broke our bond, er a mage least as strong as her went ta the trouble to break her bonding ring.”

Sighing deeply the water goblin continued, “So there I am, worried ‘n a bit broken. But I’m no fighter, I’m a hunter by way a bein’ a trapper and not much fer stealth er tracking people o’er land. I send messages to ‘er folks ‘n pay a bounty ta the troublemakers to look fer them. No luck. Been just o’er two tears now. ‘Er folks say they ne’er arrived, ‘n I believe em. No sign from the troublemakers bounty either. I’m outa tears o’er it, but yer locked down like me in them first days, afore I let the rage ‘n sad out.” Looking over at me with his watery eyes he just watched for a bit without speaking further.

Trying to ignore the lump rising in my throat as an even bigger one was growing in my chest, I asked. “Troublemakers? Who are they.”

“Pffft. Adventurers, heroes, troublemakers, Syssies… rowdy ass bunch a ne’er-do-wells with quest access through the System, or contracts with the Guild, and too little love fer their own skin.” As he took a breath he was interrupted by Monday.

“System? Not everyone has the System?”

“Hells no, what a sh…” Eyes suddenly widening he looked like he was seeing something utterly tragic. “You poor girl, what are ya 10? 12? Who conned ya into that at your age, Monday March?”

Feeling the lump in my chest growing to bursting at the sound of the concern and distress in Buckle’s voice over me, a massive and unexpected tear welled up and rolled down along the side of my nose.

“Me, maybe? I woke up under a tree with a message about a reroll, and my memories being messed up until I get more experience and…”

I didn’t even understand what was happening in my own body. I mean, everything seemed straightforward and understandable since I woke up. Well, aside from my occasional disjointed sensation when I see parts of myself, but that settles quickly enough even when it strikes. Suppressed feelings, lack of control, and unnamed distress washed over me yanking a sob up from deep in my chest, constricted in a painful way as if my throat is too narrow to let all of it out at once. It was wrenching, and my throat hurt, eyes suddenly burning. Trails of snot and tears slimed my arm after I reflexively wiped it across my face. After what felt like forever filled with sobbing, but was likely only a minute or two, I felt a small hand on my un-slimed forearm, dry and warm and comforting at the same time.

Buckle was leaning across the table, reaching out and touching that grey arm in a quiet way simply triggered another round of sobbing, softer and more contained, but the tears continued to come as if all the well water I’d drunk today decided to come out from my eyes.

Once the sobs had died off, and it was more a case of quiet tears and occasional sniffles I noticed that Buckle was offering me a handkerchief that, once taken, seemed comically small.

“Thanks, Buckle”

“Sure Monday March. What kin I do ta help? Mind that mebbe I won’t choose to, but it feels I can at least hear ya out.” A gentle smile was on his face which triggered a few more giant tears to spill.

Releasing a long sigh, I thought about the way feelings had kept sliding out of focus while chopping wood and stacking hides. “I don’t know what to do. I have what feels like a nasty curse set to kick in after a year. If I do certain things like spend Experience it will happen even faster. And every time I start to think about it, or stuff that makes me start to have feelings, the feelings just slip away. Right now…” I paused as the intense feelings and tears seemed to drift away once again. I just sighed at a small sense of loss as those intense tears from a minute ago felt more and more distant. “Anyhow... The curse called me out as a Mortal who was trying to get away from it, or them… So apparently I pissed something off bad and… What am I supposed to do, Buckle?”

Running his hand over his bald head and then flicking one of his pointed ears Buckle responded. “Ain’t about what yer supposed to do, lass. Life is about what ye want ta do 'n what ya choose ta do. Looks like ye have no ones expectations to meet ‘cept yer own, which some would love ta have. Ye could try to break yer curse, er try to make 'em that gave it ta ye pay. Ye could learn ta live with it, Devi had a teacher she said was cursed so’s they couldn’t see, hear, taste, feel er smell… But they were some kinda master mind mage so’s powerful it weren’t much of a pause to em.”

Looking into my formerly teary eyes, Buckle continued. “That’s all just a maybe, Monday March. Maybe ye could run, er fight, er adapt, er somethin else. But ye sound confused ‘n maybe ye need ta start with information first?”

Brushing away the remains of my tears, I nodded. “Haven’t even finished looking through everything in my status. And I’m not sure what to ask, and my System questions are limited per day, and the answers seem pretty basic, and I don’t know what to ask, and I’m repeating myself.” A cross between a sigh and a sniffle escapes me.

“So ask me things, and if ye don’ like the answer, maybe ask the System?”

“What even is the System? I mean, it doesn’t seem strange to me somehow, but I don’t know what it is, and you sound like it isn’t a good thing.”

“Wish I could answer better, but after the Hammering, it was one of the first things the survivors tried ta use to adapt to the new age. Cobbled together from computers and spiritual powers and the raw new Mana pouring into the world. Tried ta make it so as the people could use the new energies, a shortcut like way. But it has lots a old world ideas an don’t match perfect with the way things actually are. It can do a bunch, let ya see yer abilities ‘n such, and let ya improve or buy em without spendin’ time learnin’.” Buckle sighs, “Lots more to it, but ye should ask the Guild.”

“What was the Hammering, Buckle?”

“World afore was goin bad. Rather than fix it, some smart idiots tried ta shortcut and just add energy fer Earth ta fix it somehow. It fixed it like fixin a cracked plate with a hammer. Aint got a crack no more, course it ain’t really a plate, neither. More than a crack opened twixt old Earth and somethin else. Lotta tales about people saying what happened, but I don’t know fer sure. ‘N most folks would say it don’ matter. Better tryin to live good instead a bein sure what happened two centuries afore.”

“Oh, hmm. So how many people do use the system? And what is good and bad about it?”

“Guild in God’s Bath says one in ten er system users, Devi said that mostly be small places. Big towns er cities may ‘ave two er three in a hun’red.” looking up at the ceiling, he continues. “Lets ye focus in ways ye might not be able ta otherwise. Like ye wanna be smart but don’t have time fer studies, smack bam some monsters an’ boost yer mind stats.

“A course flip side bein’ ye aint trained ta use it the same as if ye studied. N’ Devi said somethin’ about the System also payed attention ta the users, caught em up in things n’ trouble that non-Syssies might ne’er have ta deal with.”

“So System users aren’t stronger or more powerful than other folks?”

“Mebbe once, but not now. Tend ta get a fast start once they ‘ave the System, but others kin get there from hard work ‘n study… Tend ta be a bit more rounded folks without the shortcut, as well”

“More well rounded?” I ask, aware of the confused note in my voice.

“Aye, sumthin’ about the System seems ta make folks put all there efferts inta one er two things. But a normal person ain’t like that. I trap, skin, butcher, ‘n fish. I kin barter, craft, ‘n care fer a baby, make a sausage, brew a beer. I kin cook, bake bread, ‘n do woodwork. But if I was System bound, might be hard ta put me effort in ta all them.”

“So a System user can’t learn stuff normally? And what do you mean by ‘Normal Person’?”

“I don’t know fer sure, I mean, they can… but they don’t in the same way? Yea, ask at the guild. Er maybe yer System? Sorry if it sounds bad, but most System users ain’t normal. ‘N they chose ta be that way.”