n the future, Earth's population explodes so all humans get compressed to one-tenth their size for one-third of their lives. Someone is murdering compressed people -- who can't fight back -- by the thousands. One man can stop it... if he's in the mood.

SYNOPSIS:

In the year 2027, the new science of bioelectronics revolutionizes medicine. Injured human limbs are repaired and even regenerated by electronically-induced rapid cell growth. Life expectancy is doubled and Earth's population explodes.

In 2042, starving masses threaten every major government, demanding a new world order. Nations form the "United Planet Earth" whose mandate is to eliminate poverty. The Virtual Council, UPE's governing body, cuts the population through a marriage of bioelectronics and data compression. By compressing human beings thousands at a time, almost overnight the effective number of inhabitants on Earth is safely reduced by one-third.

Compressed humans require little nourishment and can be stored indefinitely. They are, however, still alive and extremely vulnerable.

In compression technology, the algorithm used to decompress a file must be the exact one used to compress it. If someone alters that "CODEC" (for "Compression-Decompression") even slightly, that body would be reassembled in a scrambled state -- with horrifying results.

Pray that such a thing never happens to you.