Pan tipped his head back and looked down his nose at Aaron. “Hmm… That’s right. You humans have to hydrate regularly. And relieve yourselves.” He heaved a deep sigh. “How inconvenient. Fine. I’ll untie you. There’s a stream right over that ridge. Don’t think about taking off though. Like I said…”
“I might fall off the edge. Yes. I get it.” Aaron mentally rolled his eyes as the cloven-hooved god stepped behind him and untied the ropes.
“You’re not shaking anymore.”
“It comes and goes.”
“Sure it does,” Pan mocked sarcastically. Then he cautioned him as he walked toward the river, “Don’t forget to come back. The forest flips in one half hour.”
Aaron just smirked and kept walking without turning around.
He found the river where Pan said it would be. He splashed some water on his face and then cupped his hands and drank heartily. It tasted fresh and clean. He hadn’t noticed any forest animals and hoped the stream was as clean as it looked. Large flat rocks lay in a path across the water. It was possible to cross, and even though running from a god seemed like a fruitless effort, he could say he was exploring.
Aaron couldn’t help being curious what was on the other side of the river. He tiptoed across the flat rocks and found a rise that would give him a good view. Striding toward it, he wondered if this god was for real. He was sure the creature was not human, but something seemed really off about him. He didn’t know much about gods. Could they create their own planets? He thought that was Gaia’s department.
If the world was supposedly going to flip in one half hour, why was the sun straight overhead? Perhaps it was simply a large disc, made to look like a planet. This place didn’t make any more sense than the person who’d brought him here.
Hopefully, Gaia could zero in on his energy. He climbed the steep ridge until he reached the top and was able to gaze farther. He was shocked to discover a cardboard cutout using perspective to make it look like mountains far off in the distance.
Aaron gasped. “I’ll be god damned.”
There beyond the artwork was what appeared to be the jagged edge of the world. It was easy to see that Pan was right. There was just dirt and then nothing. If indeed this place was going to flip in half an hour, he had about ten minutes to get back. He turned and rushed toward the forest, jumping from rock to rock as he crossed the river again, then charging up the hill. Just as he neared the trees, he felt his feet leaving the ground and the forest floor tipping. He reached for the nearest tree and managed to grab a branch before he floated off into nothingness.
Suddenly, it was night, and Aaron was hanging upside down from the tree branch.
Pan trotted over to him. “I suppose you’ll be wanting my help now.”
The god was able to clop over to him without falling off the surface. Apparently, he was able to control gravity under his own hooves. “Being tied to a tree might be a real treat, don’t you think?”
Aaron just eyed the little sucker. What could he say? The god would make fun of his puny human status no matter what he said. “Look, Pan, you’re right. I didn’t believe you. But I saw for myself that what you said was true. There was an edge, and it looks like I was lucky to have made it back this far. But I would really prefer not to hang upside down all night. Is there anything you can do about that?”
“Certainly. Would you like to be tied to a tree or transported to the other side?”
“I’d like to be on solid ground with gravity aiding me.”
“A wise decision, my friend.”
Aaron didn’t correct him about the friend part. It was clear the god had the upper hand, and anything he might say to anger the god would be foolhardy. He had to play along. But how could he beg for his freedom? Escape was impossible. Pan seemed to want what he wanted and didn’t care what happened to anyone. Aaron simply had to stay alive and hope for some kind of rescue.
He knew not to lie…he wasn’t very good at it. And who knew if gods had built-in lie detectors? “Listen, I have to ask you something. If you let me go and I leave Gaia alone, will you allow me to live out my life in peace? I have a family.”
Pan’s expression turned to one of surprise. “You’re willing to break up with the goddess just to save your own neck?” Then he snickered. “Ah, but here you are hanging on for dear life. Things look a little different right now, don’t they? You must not really love her if you’re not willing to hang onto her.”
“I didn’t say that.”
Pan crossed his arms. “Oh, I think you did.”
“All right. You got me. I am begging for my own life, but I have other loved ones who need me. I have two daughters, one of whom is a new mother and depending on my help to support her until she gets on her feet.”
“Well, if what you say is true, perhaps you would be missed…”
“I most definitely would be.”
“So they would be looking for you, but they would never find you. That is, if I left you here.”
“Yes, exactly. You would be ruining a lot of lives, not just mine.” Dare he hope? Did the god have a conscience after all?
Pan shrugged. “I have no desire to ruin lives. I just want to enhance my own. Hmm, I’ll have to think about that.” He began to wander off.
