Just as Atlas tried to fall back into his closed-off state, reentering his cycle of memories and regret, it felt like his body was seized.
'What?!' is the only thought he managed before this sudden seizure feels like it spreads from his body, to his mind, to his soul, to finally, all that is possibly him.
It's indescribable, horrifying, and worse than any form of language can possibly convey. There are no words for such a thing, for no living had ever been forced to feel it. It shakes the shit out of him, making him realize there might actually be something worse than death. Something he wasn't ready to deal with any more than death, no, even less. It left him nowhere to run anymore, nowhere to hide.
As if sensing his thoughts, the sudden sensation vanished, instantly, not gradually, as if the entire thing had been a lie. But he knew it wasn't. It horrified Atlas so deeply he couldn't even fathom trying again. Whatever the fuck it was, he felt so absolutely disgusted by it that his eyes saw red, and his mind screamed murder. It was a primal fury like something he'd never once experienced before, and yet it had nowhere to go, but this mind-numbing white land of fuck-all nothingness.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGGGGGGGGGGGGGGH" he roared, his voice not echoing even once, an eerie silence that denied even his shrill cries, because that's what they were, well full of indignation, frustration, and pain.
Immense pain. Pain so great that it breaks people, not hurt them. The kind everyone thinks they know, yet pray they never do.
It was the pain of loss, absolute weakness, and complete hopelessness. When stories write of candles trying to burn through a storm, of gods seeing humans as pitiful ants destined to fade, or lives lost in mass like the harvest of wheat, this is the hopelessness they speak of.
Atlas felt it. He tasted it. He was living it, and yet that was more comforting than his being told to accept it and move on.
But what could he do? It seemed even in death, they'd leave him no choice but to fall-in, follow the dotted lines, and answer when he was told. He had no options, no places to run, and couldn't even give up.
So, he did as asked, as forced.
His eyes were those of a dead man on autopilot, the eyes of a beast in wait, and a creature devoid of light. Such a sudden change was shocking, to say the least, even to an entity like the System before him. It wasn't natural, at least, it shouldn't be.
It was dangerous. The System knew this, even in this state, limited in its capacity as it was, it saw pure and utter darkness.
It saw end.
It felt fear.
Thus, it intervened once again.
. . .
. . .
. . .
Hours later.
Atlas woke from the mind-rattling headache he seemed to develop in his sleep. He didn't even remember passing out, but he knew exactly where he was the moment he woke up. He hadn't even hoped for it being otherwise, something deep inside, something he didn't really understand, had already accepted the situation. And yet he felt like he still hadn't.
It was a weird dichotomy, but dealing with strange "emotional bullshit" was what he was good at, so he stood up, looked around, and cracked a good one: "Well, if this isn't the world's worst screensaver. Where's the 'Click to continue' button?" he asked, waiting for the only other existence in this place able to answer him. An entity he for some reason felt the urge to strangle barehanded.
Watching as the small blue screen popped up once again, Atlas paused, taking a deep breath with his eyes shut, as if in meditation, before releasing.
"Alright... Let's just get to this. Do I at least get a cheat? What's a Souljern, and what kind of place is Sellene?"
[By the authority of [REDACTED - Vastikast], lifeform [Atlas] has been granted the right to the increased focus of and authority over the System. Please wait.] said the monotone voice instantly, as if desperate to escape.
A small blue panel with a classic video-loading screen appeared in front of him. Seemingly, he had no choice, he either waited, or waited. He was suddenly seeing the pattern here.
Atlas sighed inwardly. 'So this isn't really a back-and-forth conversation, huh? I thought El Godpa said I didn't have a 'great mission.' I don't have to do this Souljern thing, right? Well, I guess if it's up to me, it can't be that bad.' he thought, glad for some aspect of control over his fate, even if only minor.
As he looked around while the blue loopy-loading screen continued to spin, he wondered what the hell he was even waiting for. A video? Surely not. A facetime with El Godpa? He was pretty sure he'd just been ghosted by the guy so that was even less likely.
His train of thought was suddenly interrupted a moment later when the tiny system panel disappeared, and in its place stood a blue projection of what looked like the most classic office secretary he'd ever seen.
The blue projection in front of Atlas stood tall and poised, exuding the sort of professionalism found in high-level corporate environments. Her holographic form was sleek, her movements precise, and her presence commanding in the way only a System or oni-secretary possibly could be.
Her voice, however, was markedly different from the previous monotone. It was refined, even pleasant, with a slight undertone of humor that made it feel oddly human. [System authority enhancement complete. Advanced interaction initiated.]
Atlas blinked, unsure of what to make of it all. "Okay... not going to lie, this is kind of terrifying. You're not actually sending me to Halo are you? I was joking earlier."
The projection smiled, a soft glint in her digital eyes. [No, that will not be happening. You have questions, and now I have the capacity to answer them.]
"Oh. Good," he said, rubbing his neck in relief. "Right, so, first things first. This 'Sellene' place… where exactly am I going? How big is it? You mentioned earlier that it's, like, a new world for me, but I'm going to need a bit more info before I go walking into some crazy backyard. I've seen a lotta weird shit in Florida, I don't trust a stranger's backyard."
In response, the projection looked thoughtful, as if pondering the question while she processed the request, [Sellene is, to put it mildly, ridiculously large.]
"Define 'ridiculous,'" Atlas asked, a frown painting his face. He found it hard to believe that a System would actually answer with such vague nonsense.
As if reading his thoughts, the projection seemed faintly amused, [Approximately 1,000 times the size of Earth.]
"... What?"
[Did I stutter?]
"Right, of course. Totally normal planet. Florida just lost... Spectacularly." Atlas said, attempting to process the bullshit he'd just heard.
Moments later, he felt his brain rebooting. "Wait, hold on... I think I misheard you. 1,000 times bigger?... You call that ridiculous? Ridiculous would be like five or ten times the size of Earth. This is someone's fever dream! I'd need a jet, a spaceship, and a therapist just to handle daily travel," he said, "Maybe even two therapists." he added solemnly.
Thoughtful once again, as if processing something after having gotten the reaction she wanted, the projection continued, [Correct. Sellene is a supermassive planet, approximately 1,000 times the size of Earth. Its diameter spans roughly 12.7 million kilometers, with a landmass surpassing 500 billion square kilometers. The scale is difficult for your previous understanding to grasp. To put it another way, just one of Selene's mountain ranges dwarfs the entirety of your previous planet.]
Atlas felt like from start to finish this god and System were out to fuck his brain, if his jaw fell any further, it'd have snapped from his skull. "How... How the hell am I supposed to get anywhere? 3 month taxi?"
[That is a valid concern,] she responded, with just the slightest touch of amusement. [For perspective, if you were to walk, it would take approximately 3.4 million years to travel the full length of Sellene, assuming standard walking speed and necessary breaks. Foot travel is not recommended.]
"Oh, great. So if a normal marathon wouldn't kill me, the one here definitely will."
[Of course, there are many alternative methods of travel.]
"Like?"
[On horseback your journey would be a brisk 857,000 years. Keep your horse well-fed.]
"850,000 years? Ok, seriously, be serious now. I'm serious." Atlas said, sure that the System had to be messing with him.
"Seriously, how the fuck does anyone get anywhere on foot or horseback, that's crazy. How does anyone even function in a world that big?" Atlas asked, genuinely reconsidering whether or not his ex-girlfriend drugged him, it was looking more likely by the minute.
[You will not be walking everywhere. Advanced magical transportation methods, such as teleportation and flight, can reduce the time considerably. For instance, mid-tier magical flight could cut your travel time to a mere 96,000 years.]
Atlas choked on air, "Oh, great. Just 96,000 years? No problem, I'll grab a hotdog on the way."
[For more immediate solutions,] the System continued, [intercontinental starships could reduce your journey to between 5,000 and 10,000 years, but those are rare and not readily available to new inhabitants like yourself. Of course, this is just considering the average speed of currently developed intercontinental starships. The bleeding edge and future advancements are likely to decrease this number by a few tens of years or so.]
"You're fucking with me. Now I know you're fucking with me," Atlas said, wondering whether the System wanted him to somehow die second time, this time of an aneurism.
"How do people get anywhere? Seriously, I refuse to believe you guys are sending me to play Euro Truck Simulator hillbilly-magic edition. Be serious. I'm being serious." he said, looking into the projection's eyes, trying to seem more serious.
[The people of Sellene, especially the more advanced civilizations, have developed methods of dimensional travel and region-specific shortcuts. Additionally, many indigenous species possess natural abilities that bypass conventional travel times through teleportation, warping, or astral projection.] the projection said, her expression growing a little more solemn as if preparing to reveal a major secret. [Seriously, I'm being serious.]
"..."
Getting this response, Atlas was floored. If the absurd size of the planet wasn't enough, he didn't know whether to laugh or cry at the System apparently being "serious" now.
Seeing this wasn't getting anywhere, Atlas shook his head in disbelief, feeling overwhelmed. "Alright, alright, let's back up. What exactly is this Souljern thing I'm supposed to do? And you're telling me there's no cheat?"
[Your Souljern is an open-ended journey where you will be reincarnated into the world of Sellene without any grand mission imposed upon you. Your only task is survival, growth, and strength accumulation. As for cheats, the System does not provide 'cheats,' such concepts directly go against the System's core purpose.]
Hearing this, Atlas had thoughts. Big thoughts. Very big big thoughts, the kind that very soon turned into very very stupid plans.
. . .