Free Ascending by James Alan Gardner Page B

startlement… being a creature of limited brain, and not aware that we wanted the stick-ship to vanish.
    So we jumped straight into the sun.
    3 Personally, I would not use the word “law” for any principle that breaks so easily. However, Science People like to believe in laws, even when such laws can be circumvented by their own Science. They become most displeased if you suggest it would be more accurate to speak of the Generally Good Idea Of Gravity or the Three Useful Guidelines Of Thermodynamics.

6
WHEREIN I DEFEAT THE ENTIRE HUMAN NAVY
    Not Burning Up At All
    It is very very bright inside a sun. There is brightness in all directions. It must also be quite hot, but I did not feel any unusual warmth. I felt nothing except the straps binding me to my chair and the never-changing sense that I was sitting up straight.
    Still, I am certain such a largish fire must be an Inferno Of Hellish Proportions—except that when I looked at Star-biter’s body, she did not display the tiniest ill effect. Indeed, she appeared much as ever: strings mired in goo, with the goo glistening brilliant and wet in the sunshine. It was a shame the sun did not dry her icky surface even a little bit, for it would have improved the Zarett’s complexion; but some skin conditions are beyond all help (as my friend Festina bemoans most frequently).
    So Starbiter herself did not seem touched by the sun’s scorching heat. There was, however, a visible change in the milky envelope surrounding us—it seemed to be thickening, like a fog at dusk. Mist rolled around our ship; the blaze outside was still strong enough to see, but the light had grown hazy and smeared over, gentled and damped down.
    Hah! I thought. We have tamed the sun.
    I could think of only one explanation. The smoky FTL field surrounding Starbiter must possess the same nature as myself: drawing nutrition from light. During the past few minutes, skipping back jump by jump from the stick-ship, the envelope had absorbed great quantities of luminous energy—enough that when we entered the sun itself, the field was sufficiently strong to protect us.
    Now that we were inside, the field was growing even thicker and more insulatory; but perhaps it was not wise to remain too long. Uclod had been so afraid of entering the sun, it might be that a Zarett could gorge itself too fully on light…like a fox eating so much dead rabbit it grew bloated and sick. Perhaps it was even possible for our protective FTL envelope to burst in an explosive Too Much Of A Good Thing. I did not understand FTL fields, but I did not trust them to limit their diet wisely in the presence of overwhelming quantities of tasty tasty sun.
    Therefore I thought, Good excellent Starbiter, you were a fine brave Zarett to enter this frightful place. Now here is our new plan: you must swim through the shallows of the sun, around and out the other side, where perhaps we will not be seen as we exit. Be careful not to go into the very heart of the sun; on sheer density alone, Uclod mentioned some foolish problem I do not understand, but perhaps this is not the time to press our luck.
    We began to advance through the great fire. I did not feel the motion, but I could tell we were moving because enigmatic darknesses drifted past my view. Quite likely those darknesses were the mysterious Spots I saw earlier crossing the sun’s surface; but perhaps they were even more puzzling entities never before glimpsed by outside eyes.
    It occurred to me there might be uncanny beings who dwelt their entire lives within stars, sailing the solar winds and farming the electromagnetic fields. Such beings could possess fabulous cities hidden in the Great Brightness. With all this nourishing light, perhaps the sun-folks’ brains never became Tired; perhaps they were happy all day and never got scared or lonely, nor did they feel guilt that they were not Doing Something With Their Lives. I decided such creatures must look like large butterflies, with