Sam's job is to make a record of cultures before the drones come and destroy them. He's supposed to take artefacts, not people. Kias doesn't know what's going on, but there are metal monsters flying around killing people and he doesn't want to be next, even if to live he has to give up the freedom he's only just reclaimed.

Danya, a mage with a secret, is nineteen when he's finally sold as a gift. But the man he's been given to has no need or want for a slave.