Barry stood near the lake and looked across it at the stretch of glittering water

A GENTLE BREEZE WAS blowing, and scattering the fallen leaves on the ground. barry sighed as he looked at the starry sky above. He noticed that one particular star was twinkling very noticeably.

    Barry was a writer of the science fiction column in one of the local newspapers. it was a feature which was rather popular with the readers and until now he had not been able to think of any plot fro a new stroy. "May editor will be furious when he fails to receive my article," Barry muttered to himself.

    Deep in his thoughts, Barry walked down the path leading to the lake. A frog leapt into the water as he approached but he did not take any notice of it. Nor was the thoughtful Barry aware of two weird figures watching him form the bushes. They had been following Barry for some time now. Each of them looked like a dwarf with a hideous appearance. The head was large and round, the eyes were big, rounded and swollen, the mouth was tiny and antenneae grew from the areas where the ears were supposed to be. The alien had a short body, two arms with three fingers on each and two sturdy legs. His skin was horny and resembled dry mud. Both the aliens wore thick belts on their waists.

    One of them waved his antennae whoes tips were glowing. This was done to transmit a message to his companion by thought-waves.

    "Our chief told us to seek facts about the inhabitants of this planet. Before us is a specimen from the highest class of animal called Man. We will keep him under observation for a few more minutes. Continue to record all that you see."

    "Yes, sir!" replied the other.

    Barry stood near the lake and looked across it at the stretch of glittering water. He then looked up at the sky and noticed the twinkling star he had seen earlier on over the tree tops. The sky was beautiful, dar and mysterious. For a moment, Barry forgot his worries as he took in all the beauty the heavens offered.

    Suddenly, an idea struck him. The star he noticed earlier could be something other than what it seemed to be. What about a spaceship from another planet? Yes, he could compose a story from it. It could be a ship sent to obtain information about Earth and her inhabitants.

    "I've got it!. I've got it!" Barry cried out happily. He turned and ran back the way he came. The hidden aliens were surprised at his sudden outburst of activity and quickly dived behind some more bushes along the path. As Barry drew near, he happended to trip on a stone and fell headlong into the bushes. The sudden impact knocked the two aliens and sent them sprawling backwards. Barry was unaware of this. He picked himself up and ran home to begin writing his story.

    Meanwhile, one of the watchers had fallen into the lake as a result of the sudden impact and the other was just going to lend him a hand in getting out when he stopped in horror. His companion was dissolving gradually in the water. It was unfortunate that his body was clay-like in structure, and water was the one thing which could loosen it into small particles.

    Water, the surviving alien found out now, was a deadly threat to them. He looked sadly at the scum floating on the water and then turned away. He climbed aboard the capsule they had hidden upon their arrival on Earth and prepared for his departure. Then ten minutes later, the small capsule approached the 'twinkling star' in the sky. It was in reality the alien's mother-ship from which the capsule had come from. Before his chief, the surviving alien reported the death of his companion and considered the evironment of the planet Earth unsuitble for their existence.

    Barry, who had completed his story, yawned and stretched himself. "That star I saw has brought me luck. I wonder if I can still see it now," he thought to himself. But looking out of the window, he could not find it anywhere.

    "Oh, well," he said carelessly, "I suppose it was really a spaceship on a mission..... yawn ......" and he prepared himself for sleep.