Nala pulled the sloth to a halt near the wreckage. Charred metal scattered for miles. Cleaning it up would take time, but that was the least of her worries. The explosion took place right beside her herd of goats. Earth goats weren't only costly, but rare. Mangled bits littered the field, but it was her profits that Nala truly lamented.

This had been a big herd—the second biggest around. The Earthers had given it to her because they knew she would care for them properly. For the first time since she'd become aware of life, she was unsure of what to do.

She wouldn't be entrusted with another herd, and the freezing season would be harsh without something to trade. This could ruin her. Since the Earth-man's invasion of her world generations ago, her kind's survival had become dependent on maintaining a good relationship with the Earthers.

A large portion of what she assumed was a Leveler carriage smoldered some distance away. The sloth flicked its head. Nala patted its matted fur, soothing it. The beast's temperamental nature meant it wouldn't fare well close to that much smoke.

This far out in the valley, no one would come and disturb her. Parts were hard to come by, and an explosion that big was sure to yield something interesting. Rather than lament the goats, she decided to make the best of it. Perhaps she could find something of value to trade and make up for the loss somehow.

She brought a crystal to her eye and grumbled. "Nothing could survive that...not for long."

All the same, she decided to wait until the smoke cleared before approaching. With resources so low, she couldn't afford to take on any injured.

"I'm bored. Bring me my nectar!" a voice called from the brush.

The sloth roused. Nala patted its long throat to soothe it. "Hush, it's naught but a...a...."

She wasn't quite sure what she was looking at. The fancy red clothing put her in the mind of trouble; few beings this handsome were ever good fortune. The slim body shape was unfamiliar.

"Enough of this blasted sun. I shall banish it. Be gone, sun! You horrible thing."

Caution fueling her movements, Nala slung her leg over and slid from the animal. "Easy now," she said to it. The beast's red fur was nearly identical in color to the stranger's clothing.

Nala wondered for a moment how she'd missed it against the gray of the wilderness. She approached as far as she dared but still maintained her position on the hilltop.

"I'll have the whip at your hide, sun. All five of you!"

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Eyes cast to the sky, Nala spied the setting twin orbs. Whatever was wrong with this stranger, he was more trouble than he was worth.

Nala looked the youth over and wondered about the best way to kill him. His body was smaller than Nala's own; the reddish, pink skin smooth and supple. Although Nala was certain she was staring down at a male, the body size nearly fooled her. By morning, the spitting ants would begin a nest right in that poor creature's skull—not before eating out all the soft gooey bits of course.

Cutting the injured youth's throat would be the fastest way rather than leaving him to suffer.

She left the sloth and slid down the hill, her hand on the hilt of the dagger in her belt.

As she neared, her drive faded.

It wasn't a youth, and it wasn't a dress either; it was a Leveler wearing a robe. And not just a weak-looking Leveler, but one tucked below...other parts of Levelers. There was an explosion, that was true, and yet this creature survived, surrounded by its comrades remains.

"I'll punish you," the stranger muttered. "Punish all of you. None will ever make such a fool of me again. How dare you shine down on Indel?"

"Indel?" Nala gasped. The king took on three names, one with each form. Warrior Stage: Idrus, Peacemaker Stage: Idsel, and Mater Stage: Indel. He was vulnerable and injured. Nala herself, having reached only a second stage this year, felt fortunate they'd met now. Indel was short, his well-toned frame peeking out from under the layers of red fabric. Beneath the robe, he was naked.

Face dampening from discomfort, Nala fell to her knees. Something was wrong with the lord, though she hesitated to touch the Leveler for fear of insulting him.

Now it became clearer. Other warrior Levelers must have used their very own body to shield the king in the explosion. "Be gone. Be gone with you. Be gone, sun. I spit in your direction."

"The suns?" Nala stared out at the horizon and cringed. "The suns are our protectors. Without them, my lord, the night creatures shall feast upon your flesh."

A native to the Summoner race, Nala reveled in the suns. Now she understood why she'd happened on the king this helpless in the middle of nowhere. The mating season had arrived; weak to the elements in this form, he was making the journey to the sacred caves in secret. The king also feared the Earthers' wrath and power.

Wrapping Indel up meant taking off the three layers of the robe. It covered the top of him, but the thinnest part guarded the Leveler's back and rear, not very well. His tail brushed back and forth against Nala's arms. That profane gesture made Nala's body burn with shame.

She carried Indel up the slope. "Lovely," she grumbled. "You're ill, defenseless, and in heat. Very lovely, indeed."

"Now where have you gone, suns, you insufferable things? You've abandoned your lord to darkness!"

The muffled mutters died away by the time Nala arrived back at the sloth.

Letting out a sigh, she decided to ignore the long-haired tail, and focus on finding cover. Night would come soon, and the Earthers would start looking for specimens, safe from the harsh suns. It'd be best to return home early.

Nala felt uneasy with Indel's state; naked, his black hair unbound, and that damn tail brushing against her. Each step back to the sloth wasn't fast enough. Relief rushed through her once the young lord was securely on the beast. She checked to make sure all of the king's body disappeared under the robe. Summoner or Leveler alike, dry or burnt skin was an agony like no other.

Indel slept soundly.

"Good," Nala said, checking the binds. "The farm is not far off. Come. Let us hope the mating spell stops and he can return to the Peacemaker stage. Once he does, perhaps he can go back to the city on his own. Just so long as it's not the Warrior stage—as I could do without that."