Helen A is the ruler of Terra Alpha, an Earth colony in the far future. The planet appears to have a pink sky, and the main city is bordered by flats where sugar is grown. Helen A takes pride in the fact that she established over one thousand sugar factories in the flats, staffed by drones.
She was determined that her planet was going to be a happy one and instructed her subjects as to what she expected, but to her astonishment, they refused to comply. People continued to be sad and weep, a practice which Helen A found unnecessary. Eventually she decided that she would have to punish these killjoys. She wanted the best for her people, and the ones who wanted to be happy deserved to have the chance.
Having decided this, Helen A began a program of "population control", otherwise known as random disappearances. Her Happiness Patrol militia maintained gaiety in the streets by gunning down killjoys, and her servant the Kandyman created extra-special executions for her enjoyment. Helen A believed she was putting the killjoys out of their misery for their own good. To reinforce the others' happiness, she piped muzak into the public areas, instated regular "happiness bulletins" and coined several uplifting phrases such as "Happiness will prevail!" and the eternally popular "I'm glad you're happy." "And I'm happy you're glad."
Helen A finds support in her companion Joseph C, a mild-mannered man who is happy to do whatever she asks - up to a point. But her dearest friend is her pet Fifi, domesticated animal and vicious killer. Fifi is a Stigorax, a creature resembling a large rat with tufts of fur, a row of spines on the head and a mouth full of sharp teeth. Stigorax are intelligent predators, very fast, resilient and quick-healing. They are also apparently fond of chocolate, although they probably prefer meals of raw meat.
