Plork was very pleased with himself. He was VERY pleased with his newest food acquisition project. Looking out the large window in his spacious office, the stark black and white scenery of the lunar landscape always reminded him of the irony it implied. Reality not only had grays as well but infinite colors. So did food procurement, he thought, chuckling to himself. From his office in the base built on the far side of the moon of Earth, he had orchestrated what may become one of the most productive food sources created in millennia. As he had manipulated the North American continent, what was called the United States in particular, into the “obesity epidemic”, as the food source called it, there would soon be a dramatic increase in the fat content of this food source. And, as the saying goes, as the United States goes, the world soon goes. The “epidemic” was already spreading to other countries. He was particularly proud of the huge success of the “childhood obesity epidemic”. Just as the food source had learned hundreds of years ago of the value of veal for it’s exquisite taste, Plork was going to introduce the concept to his entire civilization. Just as veal is made from young calves who are not allowed to move and are overfed to increase the fat content in the young, tender meat “childhood obesity” would produce essentially the same product in this food source. But back to work. The first major sample of this food source was to be taken in about 30 Earth days on December 21st, 2012.

Zlat was in his cabin in the cloaked mother ship above Plork’s home world. This food source was about to increase dramatically as Plork’s program came to fruition. He chuckled as he remembered how easy it had been to plant subliminal messages and ideas into Plork’s communications, helping him to conceive and then improve his program. He was proudest of the segment which became the “childhood obesity epidemic”. Soon this planet’s yield would increase 10 fold.

Tmhkr didn’t need a ship, cloaked or otherwise, to monitor Zlat. An entity of pure energy, he could travel and/or be anywhere and there would be no physical presence to detect. And being pure energy, their food source was likewise pure energy drained from beings such as Zlat. And the amount of the energy was soon to increase, much to his superiors’ delight.

Ieoaaoi existed in a higher plane. Since he was not in the same plane of existence as Tmhkr he was completely unknown and unknowable to him. And his efforts were also very productive.