“Do you truly mean it?” Farris asked, eyes wide.

“No,” Sam replied in a manner that sought to make sure that Farris knew that he had just lost, if indeed he ever had any, all respect he had for the Ruler for asking such a stupid question.

“Well you could’ve lied.”

“Hey chin up! That’s just what happens when I start to consider someone as a close friend, as a person that I like. I stop pretending around them and go back to acting like my true self, not caring in the slightest whether the things I say make them like me more or less. You should be proud. There aren’t that many people who can confidently say that I treated them without caring what they think of me.”

“Really? Because it seems to me that you treat everyone this way.”

“Mhmm… I wouldn’t know about that. But you might be right. I haven’t been analyzing my recent social interactions as much as I usually do. Although, to be fair, I already sort of dropped the habit after the first couple of days in the hospital. And with the further changes that happened six days ago… It would make sense if I didn’t act like I usually do.”

“What does that mean for me? Do you like me or not?”

“You have heard of boundaries in the workspace, right? That’s not a question you should ever be asking someone who you have power over.”

“That’s going to make dating even harder for me! You know how many single Rulers there are that I’m not obviously stronger than them? And then you have to reduce the number even further, counting out all the guys and incompatible races.”

“The second one is definitely more of a choice. Having children isn’t everything you know?”

“No, but sex is! Lucky for me there aren’t any applicable dwarven Rulers, so you can’t point to the fact that I’m not attracted to dwarves as me being selective.”

“I thought that dwarves are incompatible with us?”

“For procreating, yes. But they still have the same bits and dangles. We just can’t create any viable offspring.”

“Interesting… very interesting…” Sam cupped his chin.

“Why are you saying it like that?”

“Oh, sorry. Am I making you uncomfortable? Maybe now you’ll begin to appreciate how it feels to have a grown man who proclaimed himself your mentor, is fifty years older than you, will be your boss’s boss squared in a couple of years, and worse of all can easily kill you, ask you if you like him.”

“I’m only forty-seven. I’ll have you know. Besides, you can’t keep switching between making jokes on how you’re older than everyone else to making jokes about how old I am. That’s just not fair.”

“Well, life isn’t fair. Maybe when you’ll get to my age, you’ll understand that.” They both had to stop and laugh at that point, the last remains of the tense energy generated by their previous discussion evaporating like the Epiraks might have to if it turns out that Farris was right. “So, did you get everything that you wanted to talk to me about out of the way? Or is there another topic that you wanted to open up and that would get us dragged into a dozen different tangents?”

“I don’t think that you’re taking your responsibility in redirecting conversations as seriously as you should. From what limited exposure to you I’ve been privy to, it’s you that’s usually behind the conversation getting sidetracked.”

“Nah, that’s not on me. I’m like a horse. If you don’t blind me sideways, then I’m going to get distracted. It’s other people’s job to make sure that I won’t stray off the path.”

“A very mature attitude. I am sure that it will serve you well in the years to come.”

“I’m sure it will. Especially with you as my mentor!”

“OK, enough of that. I do really need to go. While there are plenty of things that I would still be happy to sit down and talk with you about. Some of them even have something to do with my mentor’s duties towards you and not just satisfying my own desires. I’m afraid that a more pressing duty does indeed call, and have been calling for the last couple of minutes.” He took out his phone from his pocket and typed a quick massage. “Lucky I was on silence, eh?”

“How’d you know that someone was calling you then?”

“Magic,” Farris said with a smile while tapping his eye.

“If it turns out to be bullshit and your phone was just on vibrate, I’m dropping you as my mentor.”

“Who can say? You’ll have to remember to ask your private tutor that question once they get here. But for now, we’ll have to bid our farewell. It’s been a pleasure making your acquaintance, Sam Anders, and an even bigger pleasure being your mentor, despite the short time we had available. Remember, if you need my help, don’t hesitate to send me a word, even if you consider the matter too minor for my attention. That’s what mentors are for.”

“Sure thing,” Sam replied and was prepared to bid Farris farewell before the Ruler stepped forth and engulfed him in a hug.

“Ah, yes. That’s the real deal. Put some effort into it, will you?” Sam relented. “Good. That’s how real men are supposed to say goodbye. None of that toxic masculinity bullshit that you might be carrying from your time.”

Finally, Farris released him from the hug. “Oh, like you guys don’t have that shit as well?” Sam asked.

“Maybe we do, maybe we don’t. We’ll have to discuss it next time we meet. Goodbye for now Sam.” The Ruler tipped his head and began rising up in the air.

“Or maybe I’ll just google it! Or better yet, ask Yvessa!” Sam called out after him before he managed to fly away. “Shit, people can fly. I totally forgot about that,” Sam muttered to himself. “Although that’s probably just Rulers, right? Will have to ask someone. Luckily, I’m due to a meeting with not one but two different knowledgeable persons. Sarah counts as a knowledgeable, doesn’t she? Yeah, of course she does. Compared to me. It’s just that I’ve just finished spending the day with someone at the top of the food/knowledge chain as well as have been doted on by two other people who rank much higher than Sarah on the ladder. No reason to stop seeing Sarah as my go to knowledge font,” said someone who was definitely beginning to stop seeing Sarah as the go to knowledge font.

He took out his phone and wrote to Sarah that he was finished with Farris on his way to meet her. He also wrote to Dan that he would be at his office in a couple of minutes. A great way to force Sarah to keep their meeting short. Sam had no trouble with putting his and Sarah’s issues and considerations up on the table for discussion. Strike that. Sam had some trouble with the notion, but not enough to shirk from the confrontation.

As he picked up his steps and breathed in, he was once again faced with the fact that he forgot to bring his headphones with him. Although that was more of forgetting to bring his backpack along than just his headphones. Thing is, he was starting to find that going places without music ringing in his ears to distract him from any errant thoughts was a little easier than it used to be.

Must be all that magic flowing through my brain. Come to think of it, I haven’t really felt bored ever since coming here. Although that’s not that surprising, is it? I was, am, in shock. And when you’re in shock, the whole world just passes you by and you don’t really care how it happens. And I should know a thing or two about being in shock. I’ve had a power outage ruin a full day’s work by corrupting the only save I had going on that day. Nah, that doesn’t really land if I don’t name a specific game. And obviously there’s no subversion of expectations if they don’t know that I lost my legs. That’s one for the dustbin then.

But he was feeling quite fine, he was reluctant to admit. Despite the hectic morning, his struggles with magic, and meeting one of the most powerful people alive, his anxiety wasn’t bugging him as much as he expected it to. And that wasn’t an expectation brought from his old magic-less asthmatic self, but from the last couple of days. He expected, after yesterday’s conversation with Web-Web, to feel frantic the entire day, hoping to master his usage of magic and begin catching up with his peers. Instead, he felt… fine. Not completely calm, he was still Sam Anders after all, but relatively calm for sure.

He was further reluctant to admit that the main reason for his current state of mind was probably Farris. Sure, the general’s speech about being an anxious wreck as well and knowing what Sam was going through, as well as claiming that if he was in Sam’s shoes, then he would’ve been handling it all much worse, was all a familiar verbiage that Sam had heard plenty of times before. But it still helped. Never had he heard it from someone as important as Farris was.

But it wasn’t just the part where Farris assured him that it was natural for him to be anxious that provided a calming balm for Sam’s psyche. It was the Ruler’s behavior towards him the entire day, or morning rather. Farris didn’t know what Sam knew. As far as he was concerned, if Sam didn’t match up to his expectations, that wouldn’t mean the end of the world for anyone. But he still, even if because of the stupidest of reasons, believed in Sam. Thought that he was going to be able to make a change in the gigantic maelstrom that was the war against the Epiraks.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

And Farris, just like Web-Web, thought that Sam was doing fine. Which, of course, he was doing fine. He was only here for six fucking days, for Christ’s sake. How much can you expect a person to do in that short a period if they didn’t start the first day with “let there be light?” But expectations and anxiety weren’t known for being reasonable and accommodating, so of course Sam was going to get worried about how he was doing, even if he hadn’t yet done anything capable of being measured. So it did make him feel better, that someone who actually had expectations of him, that didn’t end every second sentence by saying that it was fine if he was struggling and to take his time because the war wasn’t going anywhere. That a person like that saw something in Sam that Sam was hoping to see in himself.

And goddammit! He’ll never admit it to anyone, not even to himself, but giving Farris that stupid spiel about how he helped him see that winning the war was a possibility had actually made him feel better. Up to now he had never actually said that he was going to make it and save the Web, not to himself and much less out loud. So saying that aloud, and even better, having someone there to hear it was like opening a dam for Sam’s hope to begin flowing through. The path before him was going to be incredibly long and difficult, and who knows if he’ll even be the same person at the end of it, let alone make it all the way through. But it was now a possibility. It rang out through the world as a possible vision of the future. Victory, not defeat nor failure, was now officially in the cards for Sam Anders. So fuck it! Hadn’t Web-Web chosen him for a reason? Didn’t that mean that Sam was, in someway, the best person for the job of saving the world?

Sure it did, you only had to trust that the antisocial AI was guided by benevolence and that they were more competent than they kept coming off to Sam. You also had to believe that the AI took into account Sam’s personality and not only his Thread-Weaver’s talents, so that they were not blindsided by having to babysit Sam’s fragile psyche. If all those prerequisites, and any other that Sam’s self-doubt would later be able to come up with, were true. Then Sam was indeed the best person for the job of saving the world, the Web. All you had to do was put your trust in a cognizant being that didn’t reject receiving the name Web-Web.

But now, Sam could also put his trust in a weird elf dude that decided to drop everything he was doing, plunge an actively deployed military’s bureaucracy into chaos, and endure countless insults and unnecessary jabs, all in order to make friends with a person who was having a way easier time making friends than he was used to.

My god, but how good I am at bringing myself down whenever I deem myself happier or calmer than I ought to be? Let’s not mention that the ‘weird elf dude’ in question is one of the strongest people in the Web. And that despite his lackadaisical attitude towards his position, he does seem to take his job rather seriously. Or that all the faults that I listed with Web-Web are to be expected because they’re an AI and are probably behaving like most AIs would be in their position.

“Nah, let’s not mention that. More funny that way.” He chuckled to himself.

“Not mention what?” Sarah asked.

“Gah! Where did you come from?”

“That bench over there. Maybe you would have seen me if you weren’t starting straight down at the ground.”

“I was thinking. I was deep in thought. And you could at least congratulate me on being comfortable enough to not notice my surrounding so early into my inhabiting this new environment of ours. And… and, of so easily finding my way here after only making the journey twice before.”

“You’re right,” Sarah said with a genuine smile, which Sam knew to be genuine because her only other smile was sarcastic and really fucking obvious in its artificiality. “It’s great that you’re getting used to this place so quickly, and that you feel safe and confident enough to walk around without looking every which way. God knows that it took me much longer to get used to this world. I am happy for you.”

“There it is again. You guys, Farris, Dan, even Maurice. You’re always going on about how good I’m doing compared to every other Taken or just compared to your worst fears of how I would take things. You’re giving me way too much credit. I’m just a normal twenty-years old. The only reason I’m doing so good is because I’m high with magic and able to walk on two legs once again. Did I mention that already? How much better my personal situation is now compared to what it was a week and a hundred years ago? I assure you, if I hadn’t lost my legs, then I wouldn’t be dealing with all this bullshit as well as you’re saying I am. I bet that the moment my brain gets used to its new digs that I’m going to break down completely.”

Sarah crossed her hands with a frown. “I’ll take that bet. Gladly. If I managed not to break down completely, then you’re going to manage that just fine. And I’m willing to bet whatever you want on it—I’m not finished! I don’t get why you always have to try and bring yourself down and to try and downplay how amazing you’ve been handling things. OK, maybe that’s just who you are. I get it. But you’re wrong if you think that I’m just gonna stand here and let you badmouth yourself like everything you’re saying is truth given form.

“People don’t give you ‘too much credit.’ Because in their eyes they’re giving you your just dues. They see what you’re going to, and they try to empathize, or they’re reminded of what they went through and they reach a conclusion that you’re doing amazing. That’s because you are! And it’s not the magic that you keep falling back on, as you’re going to realize in a couple of months.”

Sam held his hands up, admitting defeat. He wasn’t even sure if he meant what he said to get Sarah’s fuse going, or if he was just joking around. Probably a little of both. But one thing he was sure of was that he didn’t want Sarah mad at him because that’ll only end up with her being mad at herself. And he wasn’t going to repay all the kindness that she has shown him by making her feel like shit. That fuck up was up to future, lacking any self-control, Sam to commit. Oh boy, he almost laughed at that one and Sarah clocked it, but if he told her what it was that he just smiled about, that was just going to make the situation worse. He had to lie with the truth. “Sorry about that, was just thinking about how nice it was that I have yours and everyone else’s support despite having just met. Definitely a better treatment than I got from the hospital staff back when.”

“Well of course we’re helping you.” Sarah smiled and gave herself away. “A future Ruler is more than worth their weight in gold.”

“Don’t force yourself, buddy.”

“I’m not,” Sarah lied. “Never mind that. You still haven’t told me what you’re not going to mention. And that makes two for stuff that you owe me an answer to!”

“Gah! Isn’t a man free to pursue his ever-evolving thoughts in peace? Have you considered that the things I was thinking about don’t have anything to do with you?”

“I have not, in fact, considered that possibility. But either way, I am certain of the fact that it had something to do with you and how you’re handling everything, and that makes it my business. Why? Did whatever you were thinking about not have anything to do with me?”

“Yes,” Sam croaked. “OK, no. But just the first one. Look, I’m going to be completely and one-hundred percent honest and transparent with you, I’ll tell you what I was thinking about back in breakfast because it did have something to do with you and I do want to talk with you about it. But you have to promise me that we’re not going to have this discussion now, or even today, for that matter. Let’s schedule tomorrow evening or something and air out all of our grievances then, alright? Only then will I tell you the truth.”

Sarah huffed and narrowed her eyes at Sam. “Alright, but just because I was planning to spend tomorrow evening with you anyway, celebrating the end of your first week here. Works great cause like that you won’t have to skip a workout. And what about the ‘not mention’ bit?”

“That was just a joke. I was thinking of stuff that made me happy and said ‘let’s not mention them’ cause it will stop me from being depressed.”

“Why am I not surprised... So the other thing? I promise that I won’t get mad.”

“Fine. The truth is that I was feeling bad about making you worried about the whole ‘this world is a story’ bullshit—”

“So you really believe it!?”

“Didn’t you say that you won’t interrupt?”

“I said that I won’t get mad, not that I won’t jump in!”

“Well you don’t sound very calm right about now.”

“Sorry… go ahead.”

“So, like I said, I was feeling bad about making you feel bad because you are worried about my sanity or whatever. But I was also annoyed, with me not with you, well… a little with you, but only because I didn’t want you to feel bad. But mostly with myself, because I wouldn’t have made that stupid joke, no matter how stimulating the following discussion proved to be, if I knew that it would make you worried about me as you were.”

“I wasn’t that worried.”

“Maybe not. But in my mind, you were blaming yourself for something that didn’t have anything to do with you; that wasn’t even really true, all because you feel this great sense of responsibility for me.” He drew a breath, formulating his next words before slowly exhaling it. “So what I was thinking about was our relationship in short, or rather, the negative aspects of it. How I feel that you’re over burdening and worrying yourself for my sake and how loathsome I am for doing or saying something that makes you feel concerned for me. Now, I don’t know exactly what went through my head, but I was mostly thinking about how to let you know about my worrying about your worrying and how to try and get you to stop feeling so worried and responsible for me.” He scratched his head, not sure if there was anything else that should be said.

“Are you finished?” Sarah asked curtly.

“Yeah.”

“Alright. I get what you’re saying. And while I don’t agree with it, I did promise you that I wouldn’t get mad. But I’ll just say this, no matter how you feel, no matter what sort of ‘consensus’ we’ll come to tomorrow, if any. There is no way that I am going to stop feeling responsible for you, because the Sam Anders as I’ve grown to know him in the last couple of days isn’t going to do anything that will stop me caring about him. And yes, I care about you, as unbelievable or cliche as that might sound to you. Because I like you as a person, Sam, no matter what faults you may find with yourself. And because you are one of only a select group of people with whom I can really talk about my previous life. And even if you turn out to be an asshole in the long run, or if I end up as one, that’s never going to change. It’s a fact. Just like it’s the fact that I’m not actually ‘overburdening’ myself for you. But fine, I’ll save it for tomorrow.”

“OK, so since we’re saving stuff for tomorrow but still allowing ourself to get one last word in, I’ll simply counter by asking you, ‘Where are you supposed to be now?’”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “Aren’t you the one that suggested that I drop some of my course load?”

“I was there, yes. But I’m not going to believe that you actually followed through until I see it in black ink. Or in pixels, since I assume the academy manages the schedules electronically.”

“Fine then. I’ll be on my way. But don’t even think about trying to worm your way out of our conversation tomorrow, got it?” Sam nodded and before he could respond, he was once again, no more than a couple of minutes removed from the last one, embraced by another person in a hug without him giving the verbal consent for it. Still, he hugged Sarah back since he figured that even if she wasn’t strong enough to wipe him off the face of the earth in a second, she more than deserved it. “I’m really happy that Farris is your new mentor. Just goes to show that I’m right about your potential.” She broke off the hug with a laugh and began running in the direction of, presumably, her class. But not before shouting at him that they’re meeting again for dinner and that she’ll text him when and where.