When disaster strikes his home world of Arra, Ea sets out into the void of space seeking gold-a vital ingredient-in a last-ditch plan to save his planet. Soon he discovers the precious metal on a small, water-rich world that is the third in a modestly-sized solar system. Mining requires labor, so Ea looks to the planet's most advanced species, a bipedal ape. Through science, genetic manipulation, and breeding, he creates a race capable of retrieving...