I'm so large now that I find myself using gravity manipulation to make myself lighter just so that I'm not constantly causing quakes. While I'm still not tall enough to see the planets curvature I am almost the tallest thing on land. Mountains are still taller. The fact that they are the only things on land taller than me does help to solidify my decision to ensure the communities forming on my back are self-sustaining. The others have agreed to help by leaving designated sections as wildlands. At least until such time as I become big enough that specially designated areas are no longer necessary.
Over the next month I watch as the plants on my back take root and begin to spread out. Even the elves Great Mother while still technically a sapling has progressed far faster than any tree should be able to. Perhaps there is something special about that tree after all, and it's not just elf superstition or religion or whatever. Fortunately, I'm not too tall for birds and other insects to do their job as pollinators and seed distributors. Even the forest that the humans planted is making progress. The progress is a lot slower than the elves Great Mother, but they have been growing for a few weeks longer. So, while you wouldn't be able to tell it was a future forest unless you knew what you were looking at, you can clearly see around a hundred plants organized in a grid with about two meters between them. Some having grown more than others due to being planted sooner.
I'm currently parked next to a mountain so that I can rest and restore some mental energy from having to keep gravity manipulation going constantly. The few people with mining skills are currently using this time to gather stone and whatever ores they might come across. That works for me because mining inevitably leads to mining accidents which nets me experience when I heal them. Not that I'm hoping they will get hurt. Also, for some reason it never occurred to me that they might need more metals than just the little bit contained in the stuff they brought with them.
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Speaking of stone, they are now adding stone paths where once there were only dirt paths. At least the humans and beast kin are, the elves still plan to live as one with nature. So, while they are temporarily living in artificial structures they have made no other changes to the surrounding area. It will probably be at least a hundred years or more before their beloved forest returns and who knows how long before it reaches the scale it once was.
Eventually the mining team stumbles upon a community of dwarves who have, as they themselves put it, "chosen to embrace our ancient culture and live as dwarves were meant to". This discovery sparked some excitement as dwarves themselves were thought to be extinct. Sure, some people had dwarven ancestors but dwarves as a species were thought long gone. Naturally the miners tried to convince them to come with us. Predictably thought, at least it was predictable to me, they seemed unconcerned. They refused to believe that anything happening on the surface, much less above the surface could affect them.
No matter how much I may want to I'll not force anyone to join us. Though I will mourn the loss of a sapient species. who knows perhaps living underground will afford them some protection. I highly doubt it, but you never know. The good news is that they were at least willing to trade so the miners were able to get several tons of processed ore for an equal weight of lumber. I have no idea if that's a fair trade but both sides seemed pleased and got something they desperately needed so, I guess that does makes it technically fair despite the value of the stuff being traded.
