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Chapter 1

Jay was outraged with Buddy. 

Buddy was his closest friend in the fourth grade, but Soltrey had become an obstacle between them. Jay felt anger, enough to hurt Buddy. These were strong emotions for him. Jay didn't know where they came from. Perhaps he was getting too involved in the project. Perhaps he was becoming like one of the humans.

Soltrey was Jay's project. At least, he'd come to see it that way. But if the truth be told, Soltrey, third planet from Sol, had been created by Ellie last semester as part of her science fair experiment. Her dream was to help animals living in three dimensions develop a body that would allow them to advance, the next level.

The other students were certain Ellie would win first prize for Soltrey.  Yet, when she got to regionals she found out that her experiment was a spontaneous rediscovery.  She won third prize at regionals and didn't bother to take Soltrey any further, as other investigations gathered her attention in the fifth grade.  That was when Soltrey, left on the back burner, grew without cultivation.

Both Jay and Buddy agreed that this lack of cultivation caused problems.  Their disagreement lay in what to do about it.  Humans, subjects of the experiment, could think; well sort of.  And the results of their "thinking" had begun to ruin Soltrey, their home.  Jay just knew that the only solution was to be very direct.  He wanted to force them step by step into the proper way of living.  Buddy didn't agree.  "Change the way they think and they will fly."  Buddy would repeat like a mantra.  But Buddy wasn't risking his own project, or so Jay thought.  Jay just didn't trust these humans at all.  If they destroyed their planet, he would have to start all over.

Before two and a half days ago, this was a theoretical argument.  It was then that Buddy created a human of his own, and sent him down to Soltrey to change how people think.  When Jay found out, he practically exploded.  He felt that Buddy had broken the prime directive against trespassers.  Sure, Jay had sent visions to many different humans, sometimes successfully getting them to obey him.  Jay thought Buddy's action went much further, but didn't dare complain to the teachers.  He worried that they would officially involve Buddy in the project.

Instead, Jay put a human of his own creation on Soltrey, two days ago.  At first, this worked perfectly.  Then Jay began giving powerful new technology to the followers of his human.  With this they could spread his ideas far and wide across the face of Soltrey.  As the words passed from one to another, Jay's message became more and more distorted.  Humans started using their new powers for purposes which Jay didn't anticipate.  Soon they were tearing and burning up Soltrey.  They were exterminating other species.  They thought they were Gods.  They unlocked the riddle of the atomic solar system, and immediately used it for explosive devices.  Then they began deciphering the spiral code of life, and were re-writing the script of humans themselves.

Jay knew that if he didn't do something fast these humans would ruin his project. And as far as he was concerned, it was all Buddy's fault.

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Soltrey@humanmind.net is copyrighted July 2000.  All rights reserved B.T. Brian Brown.