Nathan had dubbed his new home 'The Fortress'. (The name was actually short for 'The Fortress of Solitude', a name he'd read in a comic series back on Deutscherwelt. Supposedly, the series dated all the way back to 20th Century Earth, but Nathan had long been skeptical about that.)

The Fortress was a steep valley high in the mountains at the equator. Its higher elevation kept the temperatures from getting as hot and muggy as the lowlands. Its equatorial location kept the weather fairly constant.

As a result, the climate was downright nice all year round. Nathan knew if the valley ever got discovered, it would fill up with people in no time.

Olos assured him that the Oreni would not let that happen. According to him, this valley was a very important site to the Oreni, which made him wonder why they had allowed him to settle there. Olos had explained that the Oreni liked him.

One of the most striking things about the valley was its view of Olympus. (Gerd had named the tallest peak on the continent after the mythical Greek mountain.)

The valley was literally at the foot of Olympus. Olos had said that the valley was scooped out to build the mountain. He was not joking. He had insisted that the Oreni had deliberately built up the mountain until it rose well out of the atmosphere.

Looking around the valley, and at the mountain, the story was believable. There was even a continuous smooth slope starting in the valley, and extending as far up the mountainside as a person could see.

Over the next year Nathan built a shelter and planted a garden. Just about the time he realized he was now self sufficient, Olos surprised him.

"Are you ready to climb to the top of the mountain?" Olos asked.

Nathan was sure of the words, but couldn't imagine what Olos meant.

"There's no air at the top. I can't go there," Nathan said.

"I can bring air, like before," Olos said.

Nathan started to point out that they were walking through air before, not vacuum. But then he remembered that the air around him had been warm, not cold like the surrounding air. Maybe it had been a self-contained bubble.

"What about using up my oxygen? he asked.

"Refreshing air is easy. I'm going to be a Force of Nature when I grow up, remember?"

"So why are we standing around? Let's go," said Nathan.

For the first few miles the slope was surprisingly mild. Of course, it didn't last. By the time they were level with the clouds above the alley floor, it had become much steeper. This was clearly going to be more than a day's walk.

The landscape around Nathan's resting spot for the night was snow covered. The howl of the wind suggested how brutal conditions would have been without Olos.

By the end of the second day, it was clear that this was going to take a while.

Olos made sure he had enough melted snow to drink, but had not made any eating arrangements. Nathan had made up his mind not to complain about it though. How often did you get a chance to walk out into space, after all?

On the third day's hike, Nathan noticed that the sky never brightened as much as he expected. It occurred to him that he was by now well above the majority of the atmosphere. It was a little scary at first realization, but clearly Olos knew what he was doing, or Nathan could never have gotten this far.

Before sunset that day, the sky was black. He was pretty sure he could see the summit reflecting the sunlight. There seemed to be a vague nimbus over the very top. When they stopped for the night, the peak was still lit. He watched it go from white, to orange, and on to blood red as the sun's rays slanted [up] through the atmosphere.

"Interesting sunset," he remarked to Olos.

Olos 'surround sound' voice replied from the bubble of air around Nathan "It looks normal to me."

"Just so you know," Nathan replied "from a human perspective, there is nothing at all normal about this setting."

"Setting?" Olos asked.

Setting, situation, circumstance. People don't normally sit naked on frozen mountainsides in bubbles of air surrounded by near-vacuum, looking up at vivid sunset reflections."

"Then you should feel privileged," Olos said.

"I feel exhausted and hungry. And I'm literally talking to thin air."

"The air is not thin. It is the same as it was down in the valley."

"From the everyday human perspective, air is insubstantial. It is thin by its very nature."

"You are not an everyday human. You are a symbiotic organism who has spent enough time with an oren to know some of what we are capable of."

"Wait a minute, whoa. Symbiotic organism?" Nathan asked, at a loss.

"You explained symbiosis to me yourself," Olos said.

"Yes, I did, but what has that got to do with me?"

"What you call your virus receives its nourishment and protection from your body. In return, what you call your poison protects your body from outside attack and prevents the body's internal deterioration."

"You mean it doesn't let me grow up," Nathan said hotly.

"I have looked inside most of the humans' bodies from your village. Once they near full growth, they start deteriorating. Your body does not. You benefit your virus, and it benefits you. You are a symbiotic organism." Olos concluded.

"Alright, fine. I do know some of what you can do, and it has occurred to me that you probably have some rapid means of getting me to that mountaintop. We're wasting time and effort," Nathan said. "And I'm hungry," he added.

"You have to prove yourself," Olos replied. "And the Old Ones are preparing," he added.

"To whom, and for what?" Nathan was becoming irritated.

"The Old Ones, and your arrival," Olos answered reasonably.

"Oh," Nathan said blankly. He laid down. Almost immediately he sat back up, puzzled. "What do they need to prepare for my arrival?"

"A comfortable meeting place."

"Oh." Nathan laid back down. "So I've proved myself then?"

"Not yet."

"Of course not. Nighty night."

By midmorning, Nathan realized he'd almost reached the peak. He actually started noticing the scenery again for the first time since leaving the snowline. The ground was still bare rock as it had been most of the climb, but now he could easily see the planet's curvature, and blanket of atmosphere. He'd seen pictures like this of Deutscherwelt taken from low orbiting satellites, and now he was hiking it.

"The sun was not quite as harsh as he would have expected. He wasn't sure if that was because it was less powerful than Deutscherwelt's sun, or because Olos was filtering some of it. He still couldn't look directly [at] it, of course.

The contrast between light and darkness was extreme. Below, and sun-ward was bright. Everywhere else was dark and starry, except for Grossa hanging directly overhead.

Without ceremony, the slope leveled out and Nathan realized that he'd reached the top.

He was a little disappointed. The peak seemed to be one smooth rock rather than the loose rocks that the slope had been, and it was barren. The top was nearly flat in the center, with a gradual curve downward at the edges. Near the center was a loose cluster of 4 large stones.

He began to look around and was startled to find Olos next to him in glass-man form.

"What do you think? Olos asked.

After an awkward pause, Nathan asked "What were they preparing?" There are a few rocks here -that's all."

"Look closer," Olos said. "Those are seats. And I am not doing the air now."

"That was a smooth change. I didn't feel my ears pop or anything," Nathan said.

"Thank you," said a voice from nowhere. It was [not] Olos' voice.

"Your welcome," Nathan said, looking around.

"Have a seat," the voice said.

Nathan walked to the nearest stone. It had been carved out to form a reclined seat. Nathan sat on the edge.

"Please relax. It will be easier for you and us," the voice said.

When Nathan sat back, he found he was looking up at Grossa. He started to look around.

"Is this better?" asked a disembodied face in the air above him.

If the seat had allowed him to recoil, Nathan would have done so.

After having lived seven years without clothing from mid spring to mid fall, Nathan literally didn't even notice being naked most of the time. Now, reclined in a stone chair with a huge face hovering above him, he felt naked and helpless. It didn't help knowing that if this was one of the Old Ones, he was indeed helpless.

"You are distressed," the face said. "How can we help you?"

"Umm, maybe move back a little?" Nathan said.

The face did so. Then, one by one, other faces began appearing alongside, above, and below the first.

"We have not taken this form in a long time; not since we left the others," the first face said. "It is so you can - relate to us." First Face's German was slow and deliberate. Nathan got the impression that First was not so much unaccustomed to German specifically, but actually unaccustomed to speech itself.

"Danke," Nathan replied. "Olos has told me about you. I am honored to meet you."

"As we are honored to meet you," First said.

"Why?" Nathan asked, genuinely surprised. "We are insignificant beings compared to you."

An expression crossed First's face which looked like anger to Nathan. "No form of life is insignificant, most especially intelligent life. You do yourself disservice to think that way."

That was reassuring. Nathan had feared that his people had probably strained relations with the Oreni already. He had assumed that the Old Ones were barely tolerating his people, and that this meeting would include a scolding about the damage they had done to this world so far. He finally relaxed in his seat.

First floated there silently, as if waiting for something.

"Why am I here?" Nathan asked. "Not that I'm complaining," he added. To his chagrin, his stomach rumbled loudly just then.

"But your body is complaining," First said. "Olos, nourishment please.

Olos walked to the stone seat directly across the circle from Nathan. He picked up a bowl that Nathan was sure had not been there when he sat down. Olos brought the bowl to Nathan and said simply "Drink".

Nathan took the bowl and sipped. The taste was foreign to him, but he found it delightful. He had to make a conscious effort not to gulp it down.

When Nathan had finished, First spoke again. "We have chosen you to represent your people."

"Why?" Nathan asked. He refrained from pointing out how young he was. He was certain the Old Ones knew that.

"As we understand your species, and the other species living in your body, we believe you have the potential to live many human lifetimes. But you are not immune to injury, and your ability to heal is slightly below average."

"Umm, okay," Nathan said during the pause.

"We value long term stability. If you are protected from harm, you can represent us to your people, and your people to us, for many of your generations." Again, First paused. He floated there looking down on Nathan. Nathan started to feel helpless again.

"Does this make sense to you?" First asked.

"It makes sense, but I am no politician," Nathan replied. "You need someone like Gerd." [(Would they know Gerd?)]

"Gerd has good intentions, but we do not fully trust him," a second face spoke. This face had finer features, and the voice sounded female.

"You trust me over Gerd? I'm just a kid!"

Your youth is an advantage," First said.

Not knowing what to say, Nathan quipped "My youth won't last long if I have to climb up here each time I meet you."

First smiled. "You won't be climbing often. As you told Olos, we have other ways to bring you here. The reason we had you walk was for you to appreciate the difficulty. It is easier for you to walk here than it is for us to bring you. You will only come here physically on special occasions. At other times you will use your chair."

Nathan looked at the chair he was in.

"Back in the valley you will find a chair like this. Both this chair and that one have Ghanstones imbedded in them. Your people have discovered some of their properties, but they are capable of far more."

"As long as you don't go cutting them up," a harsh third voice said. His face looked genuinely angry. Nathan would not have liked meeting [that] face alone. "I don't understand why Ghan tolerates it," the voice continued.

"You are alarming Nathan. There are many things we do not understand about Ghan. But we know he gives freely. These people have learned to respect the stones for their usefulness and rarity. It is a start," First said.

"You mentioned a chair in the valley," Nathan prompted.

First nodded - an odd effect for a disembodied face. "We will talk through the chair most of the time. If you see the chair glow or hear sounds from it, please sit and we will talk. One of us will always be here if you need to reach us.

"You will be back here soon with Gerd, but please look around and enjoy yourself while you are here." As First spoke the last word, all the faces disappeared.

Nathan stood up. He noticed had been sitting in the Southern chair - at least he thought so. "Olos," he asked "Are these chairs placed in the four major directions?"

Olos paused as if confused, then said "They are in four [of] the major directions. Your chair is in the South."

"There are other major directions?" Nathan asked.

"Three more that [you] can envision. Up, down, and inside."

"Inside is a direction?"

"Yes." Olos didn't elaborate.

Looking in all directions, Nathan noticed that the mountaintop was just wide enough to block his view of anything below. The effect was like standing on a slab of rock out in space (which of course it essentially was). Nathan had expected to be able to look out on the world below, but instead had an excellent view of Grossa and the stars. It occurred to him that it would be great to have an observatory up here.

He walked toward the edge and was stunned at the breathtaking vista below.

He was looking eastward down at The Bay and The Arm. He could actually see wake patterns on the water, though the boats that must have made them were too small to see.

Through occasional breaks in the clouds, Nathan thought he saw the eastern equatorial settlement.

He walked around the perimeter of the mountain peak, taking in the sights in the other directions.

He suddenly realized how strange it would look if somewhere below, someone had a telescope aimed at the mountain and saw what looked like an unprotected nine-year-old standing miles above the atmosphere where someone should need a spacesuit to survive.

Impishly, he returned to the eastern overlook, figuring that if there was anyone with a telescope that could see the mountain, they would most likely be near that settlement.

He waited for breaks in the clouds twice, each time waving when he thought he saw the settlement.

Finally, he turned to Olos. "Guess we should start down, huh?" he asked.

"The Old Ones want you to use your chair," Olos replied.

"Use it for what?"

"Transportation."

Nathan pictured sledding down the mountain in the great stone recliner. He smiled and said "You're on".

He sat in the chair and got comfortable. "How do I start it?" he asked.

"Ghan will know when you are ready," Olos replied.

Immediately, everything went dark, then the darkness was gradually replaced by featureless white. Suddenly in front of him was a huge white robed, white haired, bearded greek-god figure.

The man looked down at himself and asked, seemingly surprised, "This is how you imagine me?"

"Well, they talk about you like you're some kind of god," Nathan answered sheepishly.

"The man rolled his eyes. "Not that again." He sounded tired.

"So what are you?" Nathan asked.

"Your people call me Grossa," the man shrugged.

"You're the gas giant?" Nathan asked skeptically.

The man seemed uncomfortable. "If you want to envision me in human form, that is acceptable. This particular form is not. I will not stand here arrayed god-like in front of a small boy."

The man shrank to normal size. The glowing nimbus of white flowing hair, the beard, and shimmering robe disappeared. The man in front of him now had thinning hair and a few day's worth of beard stubble. His skin was wrinkled and spotted. If Nathan's grandfather had been brought to Neuerde, this could be him standing there.

The man looked at this new version of himself and nodded. "Much more appropriate," he said. "I am old and you are young, but otherwise we are equals."

"You're a living, intelligent PLANET with apparent telepathic ability, and I'm an undersized teenaged human, and somehow we're equals?"

"The Creator made each of us with different abilities and purposes. Our accountabilities are different, but we are all The Creator's children. I am essentially like your very much older brother. Or at least cousin," he added after a thoughtful pause.

"Alright cousin, I guess. So what's it like being a planet?"

"I can't answer that. You have no common references I can find to express what it's like."

"So you're totally inside my mind now? Do you see everything in there?"

"Not yet. I have only scanned your communication center. If we are to work together, I will need to share your thoughts more fully. You will share mine as well.

"I will never tear your inner thoughts from you. You must express to me what you want me to know."

"Thank you," Nathan said.

"You're welcome. Are you ready to go into my mind?"

The question caught Nathan off guard. "Sure," he said.

Two men were standing in front of Nathan now. They were on a barren mountaintop. The mountain itself looked like it was made of an amber crystalline material. At the base of the mountain, a large crowd had gathered.

Incredibly, the two men started throwing some kind of energy bolts at each other. They seemed to draw the energy from the mountain, then direct it at each other, or use it as a shield to ward off the other's attack.

"This was the last straw," boomed Ghan's voice. No one reacted to the voice, so Nathan assumed he was the only one who heard it.

"These were the two top wizards on the planet. They of all people should have known better," Ghan continued.

"Wizards?" Nathan asked. "Users of magic?"

"That is their understanding. They consider me to be essentially a god. Fortunately, they thought the mountain [was] me.

"Why fortunately?" Nathan asked.

"Over and over I had to tell them not to worship me. I even had to thwart several human sacrifice attempts.

"They would come to the mountain for visions, requests, arbitrations, or just to admire me. Hardly anyone ever just came to chat."

"What was special about the mountain if you are the whole planet?" Nathan asked.

"The closest comparison would be to say it was my head, though the analogy is not perfect. I am essentially all brain. The mountain served as my eyes, ears, and mouth, as well as sensing temperature, pressure, and other things it would be hard to explain to you."

"The Oreni talk like the mountain was you, and that the Ghanstones are all that's left of you."

"They should know better," Ghan said. "Maybe that is what they wanted you to think. Doesn't matter. I'll be telling you everything."

"You sure you want to?" Nathan asked.

"Yes, why?"

"What if I accidentally say something that you wanted kept secret?"

"What could you say that anyone would believe?"

"The Oreni might, and apparently I'm going to be spending a fair amount of time with them."

"I have no secrets from the Oreni. I know things they don't, but they have never been interested enough to ask."

You don't tell them as a matter of principle? Isn't it the obligation of a knowledgeable person to share his knowledge?"

Ghan laughed. "I remember when I was young and believed that. Sometimes extra knowledge gets in the way. And I know you don't believe that."

"What is 'extra knowledge'?" Nathan asked.

"You believe that to be a contradiction of terms, don't you?" Ghan asked.

"Absolutely," Nathan agreed.

"Extra knowledge is knowledge not related to one's experience or circumstances. Knowing something you are never likely to be able to use," Ghan said.

"But since you never know what you [will] be able to use, it's best to acquire as much knowledge as possible," Nathan countered.

"Better to acquire wisdom, understanding. Then you can better understand what you need to know at any given time.

"Here I am, brain the size of a planet, and I cannot possibly know everything. But I think I've gotten reasonably good at gaining knowledge when needed. I have learned a lot from your people's communications through my crystals."

"You eavesdrop on them?" Nathan asked, surprised.

"If someone found a way to communicate with others using your nervous system (without your permission), would you maybe feel entitled to monitor those communications?"

"I guess I would," Nathan conceded.

"Me too," Ghan said. "You will be monitoring at times too, from your chair."

"Are you saying that besides the crystals talking to each other, they are also tied back to you?"

"Actually [you] are saying that. But you are correct."

"One of the Old Ones mentioned the Ghanstones being capable of more than communication," Nathan said.

Ghan smiled. "'Far more', is what he said. And he was right."

It seemed to Nathan that there was an incredibly brief and incredibly bright flash of light. At the same time, his felt [something] change in his body, but he couldn't quite identify what had happened.

"There may be some disorientation when your mind releases from mine," Ghan said. "Best to get it over with."

The dark sky had been replaced with cloud dappled, normal sky. Grossa was partly obscured by a cloud. There was a breeze blowing. He was back in his valley. The stone chair was just outside his shelter.

"Hmm," he said aloud, as he got up and looked around. Despite all the wonder he had just experienced, the one thing now on his mind was how badly he needed to pee.