President Wagner was fidgeting.

The existence of the Oreni could no longer be doubted. They had called this meeting.

There had been stories of the Oreni since at least his grandfather's time, but there was never conclusive evidence - just questionable eyewitness accounts.

That was before the Olympus expedition. Far up the mountainside, the pressure suited and oxygen carrying explorers riding on their extreme terrain crawlers had been met and turned back by glassy-looking humanoids who were somehow able to not only function in the near-vacuum, but also make their voices heard over the suit radios, and shut down the crawler electronics. They seemingly did this without any sort of devices or tools.

Shortly after that, 'cordial' invitations to this meeting had been issued. Apprently, the Oreni's formal writer didn't quite grasp the subtle difference between an invitation and an ultimatum.

What disturbed Wagner more than the meeting itself were the travel arrangements. Though it had been well established that Mt Olympus extended well beyond Neuerde's atmosphere, they had been instructed to travel in standard VTOL's and trust the Oreni, despite the fact that the aircraft couldn't function in a vacuum. Wagner wouldn't miss that trick for all the rustrock in The Tail.

But now that he sat in the VTOL, nearing its maximum operational altitude, he was having third thoughts.

Without any warning, the roar of the turbine engines ceased, replaced by a soft whining as they coasted down toward zero RPM.

"What's going on?" President Wagner shouted toward the cockpit.

The empty seat next to the president was suddenly no longer empty. Olos, in his glass-man form, turned to Wagner. "The Old Ones have taken over the flight. Your pilots may relax now," said Olos' little-boy voice. (He had never bothered to learn another voice besides Nathan's.)

Wagner jumped out of his seat as if Olos were a poison snake.

"I don't think so," Wagner said, raising his voice. "I want full flight data recordings throughout."

After a pause, Olos said "The Old Ones have restored power to your instruments and your circulating fans. They will not restart your engines, so don't bother asking. They are handling the flight. Oh, and everone strap in or hold onto something."

"Why,?" Wagner asked as the weightlessness kicked in.

Several anxious seconds passed before the primary pilot said "Umm, Mr President, we're not falling, despite what it feels like. We're showing zero rate of descent, zero rate of climb, and zero airspeed. But the radar altimeter shows us climbing like a rocket."

Wagner looked at Olos. "Want to explain that?"

Just then, one of the pilots came back to the president, a perplexed look on his face. "Sir, without the engines, we should be losing cabin pressure."

"But we're not?" Wagner prompted.

"Sir, we've gained pressure."

Wagner turned back to Olos.

"The Old Ones formed a bubble of air around us. And it is easier for them to block the gravity than to drag this much matter around against its pull."

"You shield gravity," Wagner said, stunned.

"I don't," Olos said. "I'm not old enough."

Wagner looked at him oddly. "How old are you?" he asked.

"As you measure time, only 312 orbits."

"Only?"

"We mature slower than you do," Olos shrugged.

Remembering Olos' sudden appearance, Wagner asked "How did you get aboard, anyway?"

Olos faded to invisibility. "I followed you," he answered.

"You were aboard the whole time?" Wagner asked incredulously.

Olos reappeared. "I was right here," he answered.

Wagner looked distinctly uncomfortable, but reached out a finger. "May I?" he asked.

"What is it you are expecting? Should I be solid, gaseous, electric, or what?" Olos asked.

"Whatever your natural form is," Wagner said.

"My natural form would be deadly to your finger tissue. My natural form absorbs energy. It's what I eat."

"You're saying you would feel cold?" Wagner asked.

"In my natural form, extremely. Your fingertip would freeze instantly. I constantly have to hold back when I am around humans. Otherwise I would chill the very air in this room."

"Sorry we inconvenience you," Wagner said.

"Self control is a hallmark of the Oreni. The Old Ones are the most powerful among us, yet in general they do the least."

"And yet they shield gravity and propel us through empty space in a bubble of air?"

"Now, but not generally," Olos answered. "You might want to find a good window," he added. "We're almost there."

Below, the island of Mt Olympus rose from the sea of atmosphere below. The peak was enveloped in haze of its own.

Bright glints of reflected Sunlight revealed the five other VTOLs converging on the mountain.

The six vehicles quickly met and lined up alongside each other it tight formation, their air bubbles merging into one.

The rotor of each craft pointed fore and aft to allow for the tight formation.

The formation then made an alarmingly rapid vertical descent. Wagner watched as the mountaintop seemed to expand outward in all directions like an inflated balon.

Just when impact seemed imminent, they stopped. Just like that. There were no gee forces. No sense of abrupt deceleration other than the visual.

The six vehicles were suspended about two meters above the ground.

"Anyone not seated, please sit," Olos ordered. "Gravity will be restored gradually so your bodies can adjust."

Everyone sat, and some fastened seatbelts. Over a period of about one minute, gravity gradually built up to a full .75 gee. With a barely perceptible bump, they were on thr ground.

As they all exited from the VTOLs, Wagner noticed the chairs. Distrubuted among the four stone chairs were a number of more conventional looking reclined chairs. As president, Wagner suspected he would have the 'honor' of sitting on cold hard stone.

He was right. Olos led him to a stone chair at the East of the circle. Directly across the circle in the West, a little boy hopped out of that chair and stood until Wagner sat.

"The boy appeared to be eight or nine. He nodded to Wagner and sat again. His feet did not reach the ground.

"The meeting will begin when everyone is seated," Olos announced to the milling group. The other attendees found their seats. Each seat's reclined angle tended to make its occupant naturally look up. The view of Grossa and the stars was breathtaking.

The Old Ones wasted no time. Four faces appeared against the astronomical backdrop. "Thank you for coming," the first face said. "I hope your trip was comfortable." the face seemed to be waiting for a response.

"No need to thank us," Wagner said. "It seemed we had no choice, but the trip was comfortable enough."

"You are partly right," First Face said. "This meeting had to happen. But you chose to come here and now. We did not have to bring you forcibly."

"And why did this meeting have to happen?" Wagner asked.

"In your grandfather's time, we made an agreement with your people. You are breaking that agreement in many ways."

"Apparently you made that agreement with my grandfather only. Gerd never told anyone about it though. He just started telling us how to conduct our affairs. He made unreasonable mandates without explanation. With his record, it's amazing I was ever elected president."

"There was nothing unreasonable about Gerd's 'mandates'. It was all about environmental responsibility!" said Second Face hotly. Wagner was almost sure he heard thunder in the distance.

"That is correct," First said. "You have little to offer us. Our decision to share our world with you was motivated by compassion, but rested on you not polluting it to the point of unsuitability for us. That point is now approaching."

"So why have you waited two generations to appear and make this complaint?" Wagner asked. "You should have said something when you first saw things you didn't like. By sitting idle, you tacitly permitted our actions. You can't expect us to suddenly change now."

"We can, and do. You all represent the governments of your people. You have the authority and responsibility to bring about necessary change," First pointed out.

"Necessary for our people," Wagner countered.

"He doesn't understand," said Third Face, looking at Fourth.

Fourth let out an audible sigh, then she abruptly shrank to a small bright column of light in the center of the circle. Stone began to flow up from the ground into the column. After several bright flashes, a woman stood where the light had been. She stepped up out of the depression she had created in the rock, and approached Wagner.

"Mr President, imagine you found a fish on the beach," she said.

Caught off guard, Wagner just said "Okay".

"You were intrigued by this fish, and you knew it would die if left on the beach, so you took it home and put it in a tank."

"Allright," Wagner said, totally lost.

"You had to keep the water clean and within certain temperatures, but you did so."

Wagner nodded and raised his eyebrows.

"But this fish began fouling its water and splashing the foul water out of the tank. It began to stink up your home. It made strange noises night and day, which you found very disruptive. The fish even tried to attack you when it saw you through the tank wall. What would you do?"

"It's just a fish. I'd throw it back in the ocean?"

"You would? Even if the ocean was very far away? Be honest."

I guess I'd just toss it out, to tell the truth. But we're talking about a fish."

"Yes we are," Fourth agreed. "But the comparison is appropriate."

"Hardly," Wagner disagreed.

"The natural climate of this planet is much more harsh than you realize," First said. "We have been your tank. Without us, your people would not have survived your first year.

"I said that you have little to offer us. We have all the resources and knowlege we need. But we value friendship. We have learned a lot about you from Nathan Klein. We would like to have friendship between our peoples."

"Who is Nathan Klein?" Wagner asked.

"I am," the young boy said. "I am the ambassador to the Oreni."

"Who would appoint a child as an ambassador?" Wagner asked, in disdain.

"I did," First answered. "During your grandfather's time in office."

"I'm a little older than I look," Nathan added. "Gerd was old enough to be my father, but that didn't stop him from being a friend of mine."

Wagner shook his head. "This is all a bit much," he said.

"It was designed to be," Second replied. "You need to understand who it is you are dealing with."

"Look, we didn't set things up to deal with anybody. We're just trying to get by and rebuild a standard of life that was taken away from us. Can't you just leave us alone?"

"That's precisely the outcome we are trying to avoid. Left alone, your people would suffer greatly, and many would die. You are the fish and we are providing the tank."

"We're not fish. We are reasoning beings!"

"Which is exactly why we are having this meeting," First said. "You've seen a little of what we are capable of just in coming here. The air you are breathing is held here by us. Nathan has called us 'Living Forces of Nature', and he is not far wrong.

"But you are fouling up our home. We can't let it continue, and it's not even necessary on your part. You just have to be more careful and conscientious than you have been.

First continued. "We agreed with Gerd to allow three air corridors over the mountains to link your cities. We agreed to let you occupy all the coastal ares and interior lowlands, while we reserved all the highlands for ourselves. The lowlands are better suited for your farming, and the highlands meet our needs.

"You have gone outside of each of these boundaries. You fly over the whole continent at will, you have used explosives to level building sites in the hills and to attempt mining there.

On top of these offenses, your factories make no attempt to clean up waste products any more. In Gerd's day that would have been grounds to shut them down."

"We found those practices to be too time and resource consuming. To get back to where our people were before coming here, we need to speed things along. You may have made arrangements with my Grandfather, but he chose to keep us in the dark about your existence. We are not bound by his agreements.

"Look at us," Wagner continued. "Here we are, myself and the six elected governers of our people, naked because our climate is too hot for clothing to be practical. (Except of course in the North and South where they freeze half the year.) We need to be building up to large scale climate controlled habitats so we can be comfortable wearing clothing year round."

President Wagner got a lot of odd looks from the rest of the attendees at that last comment.

He continued. "You want to keep us huddling in our mostly preindustrial villages, following rediculously circuituous flight paths when we travel, and running our few factories at a snail's pace so there won't be a little smoke in the air and a little sediment in the water. We will rebuild our culture, and your threats will not deterr us."

There was a long pause. The three remaining faces exchanged glances with all the other attendees.

"Not everyone here shares your views Mr President," First said. "There is still hope in that. We do not threaten. You, as newcomers, have caused us great distress. And we have not retaliated, nor do we plan to. But we will withdraw our protection if necessary."

"You do what you think you need to," Wagner said. "By letting us settle here, you opened the door. You have not complained in three generations. You have no basis to start complaining after that long."

"As a young being, you perceive time differently than we do," First said. "Your people have only just arrived from our perspective."

"Well that's convenient for you. I'll have to remember that excuse next time I miss a deadline."

There was a long silence.

"We seem to be done here," Wagner said.

Nathan stood and walked to the center of the circle. He said "Since no one else is willing to say anything Mr President, I will state categorically that you are an idiot and you're not helping or even particularly representing the people who elected you."

Wagner nearly made a youth-related retort, but remembered in time. Instead he said "I guess history will be the judge, won't it?"

He had no idea why Nathan smiled before he started returning to his chair. Nathan stopped, then turned again. "Did no one tell you this meeting was being broadcast?" he asked. When he got no answer, he returned to his seat.

Wagner looked back at First. "Can we go now?"

"You may leave at any time," Fourth said. "I'll be seeing you."

As his VTOL rose without power into the vacuum of space, Wagner turned to his assistant. "Who was that little twerp?" he asked.

"The historian," the assistant answered.

"What historian?"

"Nathan Klein. Author of the history texts used in the schools."

"Maybe we'll have to get a new historian," Wagner said. "What was that about the meeting being broadcast?"

"I'll check on it."

"He'll have a rough time back home," Nathan told the faces. "Too many people will have heard the meeting.

"You may yet have to withdraw your protection totally for at least a season, but let's wait a few days for people's reactions before you do."

"Yes," First said. The three faces disappeared.

Nathan asked Fourth "Would you like to use the chair?"

She shook her head. "I will walk."

Nathan settled into his chair. With a bright flash and roaring sound, the chair was empty.

Fourth started walking. The mountaintop's air bubble moved with her as she descended on the trail.

"I don't remember inviting you on board," Wagner answered irately.

"You didn't. I was sent."

"Then I am sending you away."

Olos disappeared.

"Umm, sir?" came the pilot's voice. "You might want to come up here."

Annoyed, Wagner made his way to the cockpit. "What?" he asked on arriving.

"We're not returning the way we came. We're climbing rapidly and heading due East."

"They're showboating. Run the cameras, and wake me up if you see anything interesting." He floated back to his seat.

The pilots exchanged glances. "Yawohl," the chief pilot said loudly. In a lower voice he said "He should know about showboating. Ever seen anyone try so hard to pretend to be bored?"

"Why are you trying so hard to be a jerk?" the president's assistant asked.

"The drawback of being a do-gooder is that you are bound by your own principles. If they're not do-gooders, we need to know now. If they are, then I want them to know they can't boss us around."

"Sounds to me like they're trying hard not to."

"They may just be waiting for us to show weakness first."

"Whatever you say, I guess." The assistant returned to his seat to watch out the window.

Wagner woke from his nap. He looked out his window. The VTOL was clearly back in the atmosphere. There was a dull roaring sound outside, but otherwise the vehicle was silent. No circulating fans, no voices, nothing. The passenger cabin was empty and dark. The only light was coming in through the windows.

"Hey!" he shouted. No answer.

He got up and went to the cockpit. No one was there. He went back and checked the restroom. No one inside. He went over to the parachute locker and found the door ajar. Oddly, there were still several parachutes there.

He donned one of them and went to the exit door. It too was ajar. He pushed it open.

Below was a small cluster of islands, surrounded by a vast expanse of unbroken sea. No other land was in sight.

He went back to the parachute and removed the survival kits from two of them. He clipped them above and below his own kit on the chest strap of the parachute harness, and returned to the exit door.

The islands were noticeably larger. Though his altimeter was holding a steady three kilometers, the vehicle was clearly descending rapidly. Apparently the Oreni were at least maintaining their protective air bubble around the VTOL.

He stood in the open door considering that. Why would they maintain the air bubble if they were crashing the VTOL?

It was a moot point, since the bubble apparently disappeared just then. A viscious wind from below pummeled the craft, dumping Wagner out the open door.

As he tumbled away, he watched one of the rotor blades snap off. He regained stability, and opened the parachute.

He watched the VTOL tumble into the ocean below as he steered his gliding parachute toward the smallest island. It appeared to be nothing mor than an exposed sandbar. The other islands were forested. He would rather swim than extract himself from a tree.

The landing was one of his best. He didn't even have to walk off any extra forward speed. Of course, no one was there to see it.

The circulation fans and lights went out. Wagner's personal assistant hurried to the cockpit.

"We didn't do it," both pilots said as he entered the cockpit.

He went back to the passenger compartment and looked around. Wagner was not there.

"Sir?" he called out. "Mr President?" No answer.

He went back to the cockpit. The chief pilot asked "Everything okay?"

"I seem to have lost the president."

"He has to be in the restroom. There's nowhere else to go."

Nodding, the assistant went back to the restroom. The door was ajar. "Sir?" he said. When no one answered, he opened the door. It was empty.

He looked around the cabin again. The parachute locker was ajar. He looked inside.

After checking and rechecking, he went back to the cockpit. "There's a parachute and two survival kits missing. Three, if you count the one on the missing parachute."

Both pilots got up and started back. "But," the assistant started to say.

"Don't worry! We aren't flying this thing anyway," the chief pilot said, walking to the exit door.

"Well, this has been open," he said, easily pushing it open with his hand. "It was latched when we took off." He lookedat the unbroken ocean below. "If we had any control, we could fly a search pattern. Somehow I don't expect that to happen."