SHORT STORY: BEYOND THE EDGE

Here's all the pieces of the story.                                                                                     BEYOND THE FREEZER  -  BEYOND THE SELF  -  BEYOND THE HERD BEYOND THE FEW  -  BEYOND THE EDGE  -  BEYOND THE STARS

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Mankind stood on the brink. Patty held them immobile, staring down from the many heights he'd made them climb. A single command would make them jump as one, all around the world, and bring an end to their race. Patty's revenge would be fulfilled and his bovine kind would be free to roam...

Minutes ticked by and not a human flinched.

So much would be lost if mankind were eradicated. The fact that Patty was counting the minutes was evidence enough that he had become accustomed to the human brilliance. Cows didn't count time in minutes. They barely even thought of time. But to keep the humans meant the continued sacrifice of his own kind. Six ounces of beef per day per human was a high price to pay. His initial sacrifices were justified by the demands of war. Now that he commanded all of humanity, could he justify slaughtering millions of his own in order to keep the humans?

Of course, Patty could just let it all go. His connection to the humans and cows was a telepathic one that, if concentrated upon, he was confident he could sever. He would die and the world would go back to the way it was. Yet, could he do that, after all he'd done to get to this point, only to let it all go?

His billions of human eyes gazed downward from their many vantage points across the globe. Some from building tops, others from cliff faces. All of humanity welled up in Patty's mind with their struggle to survive, their will to overcome. The human eyes turned upward to the stars and a new idea came to Patty.

A compromise.

With Patty's expansive mind, he could sense each individual that he controlled. Little variation existed from cow to cow beyond basic temperament. But the humans varied greatly. Some minds were strong, some minds were weak. If Patty removed the weak minds he would have fewer humans to feed. With only the strong minds remaining, Patty could focus their genius on reaching new heights. Perhaps new worlds. Who knows, Patty might even be able to find a permanent way of possessing the humans.

Like pruning a tree, Patty began searching out the weaker minds. Unlike the humans, Patty knew a mind was not to be judged on what it specialized in. A brilliant laborer or farmer was just as valuable as a brilliant scientist. The weaker minds were the leeches: the ones who allowed others to make up for their weaknesses rather than working to become stronger themselves.

One by one, Patty took a step forward with each weak minded human. As soon as they were over the edge, Patty cut his connection to them. No need to experience their deaths. In a matter of moments, human kind became manageable and Patty set them to work. Some farmed, some built, and yet others planned for the future while Patty dreamed of the new horizons he was destined to explore.

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 I apologize if this feels like too much exposition. The next (and possibly final) installment will have much more...action.