"It is not for either of us to ask," he says. He sounds almost--almost--sympathetic, though the sound of his own footsteps is beginning to slow. "That choice is hers alone. So long as she continues to make it, this place will continue to exist."

And then he stops entirely.

"And here is where you must also make that choice. Do you continue on? Or do you give up, and return to safety, to wait out the rest of your time here?"