After collecting a bunch of sticks and inedible grasses, Cruz took a break and climbed on top of a large stone near the crystal, possibly for a better vantage point. Brielle settled onto the grass near me and began weaving grass and sticks into rather fancy miniature baskets that looked like animals.

There was a chubby cat, a rabbit, and she was already working on a rather realistic wing.

"You might want to be careful with those," I commented. When she glanced at me, I elaborated, "The Saursunes tend to be really interested in anything braided or woven from grass or leaves. They seem to think they mean something."

"True. I didn't even think about that since none of these are circles." She tucked the cat and rabbit into the basket, placing a handful of weaving grasses on top.

Right on cue, the bushes rustled as the pale brown Saursune ambled out.

Above, Cruz muttered, "His scales blend into the thickets far too well. I didn't even see him."

The Saursune's body language was relaxed as he wandered over. He sniffed my hair and nuzzled my shoulder before sitting beside me and looking around. Thankfully, Brielle had hid the woven bird wing in the grass beside her the moment our guest appeared. Both of her hands were clasped in her lap as she warily watched the large predator a mere ten paces away.

With a yawn that gave us an unfortunately excellent view of all his teeth, he laid down beside me and rested his head in my lap. I froze, unsure how to react. His scales were only vaguely warm, and a quick check of my energy confirmed he wasn't taking any. It kind of reminded me of the rabbit hounds, but his head was almost as big as they were.

With a confused glance at my companions, I hesitantly lifted my hand and stroked his neck. His eyes fluttered shut as a hum rose and fell, almost akin to a cat's purr, but so deep it was more felt than heard.

The faintest shift of my energy—it was no longer completely dormant—alerted me to his ulterior motive. It took me a while to feel the drain. It was so gradual it was barely detectable.

"I kind of doubt the guards are going to believe this story," I murmured.

"Is he taking your energy?" Brielle quietly asked.

"Yeah, but I can barely feel it. He's absorbing it so slowly it'll take him fifteen minutes to take the amount needed for a solo port."

She was silent for a while. "If you need our help, let us know, although I don't have any clue what we can do to assist."

"He'd probably let me stand up and move away if I tried, but since he let us into his pasture and he's not hunting our companions, I'd rather let him drain the bit he's taking." Dryly, I added, "By the way, when I said I was hoping to build goodwill with the local farmer, this was not what I had visualized."

She chuckled, which had the Saursune opening his eyes at the strange sound, then closing them again as I continued petting his neck.

Cruz commented from his perch, "Don't get too complacent. Saursunes are just as intelligent as we are. I think he's acting like one of our pets since it's the easiest way to approach us without you bouncing."

It was a sobering reminder that the giant purring lizard I was petting was a member of an alien race capable of traveling between the stars and using technology so advanced it might as well have been magic.

I nodded. "Well, he succeeded, but that's a good reminder."

I rested my hand on a part of my leg not covered by the Saursune's neck. It really wasn't proper to "pet" someone.

The purr stopped, and the Saursune opened his eyes long enough to push his head under my hand. Apparently he had a different perspective... I resumed petting him, and his hum vibrated the air once more. Cruz shrugged and rested an elbow on his knee as he observed from above.

Why did he want me to pet him? Cruz was right about them being intelligent. There had to be a reason. Since the Saursunes were so interested in porter energy—which they seemed to know more about than any porter—I turned my attention inward, trying to sense the elusive stuff that I sometimes compared to mist.

Could contact with my hand make it easier to siphon my energy? Kind of like how armor made it harder to share? Closing my eyes to focus better, I tracked my energy and my hand. He was taking it so slowly it was hard to tell. The deep hum made it difficult to focus.

It took some time for me to confirm there was a trend. The drain was slightly faster while my hand brushed against his scales and slowed when I broke the contact.

"You look like you're about to fall asleep," Brielle observed.

I shook my head, realizing just how close I'd been to that. As if realizing how close I'd been to falling asleep, the Saursune shifted his body closer without opening his eyes. His side pressed against my back, greatly amplifying the effects of his hum as his tail curled in front of me. He partially curled around me, his head still on my lap.

Quietly, I told Brielle, "That might be his intention. His hum almost put me to sleep."

Her gaze sharpened. "Your energy generates faster when you sleep, right?"

"Yeah." The hum deepened slightly, and my muscles relaxed further on their own accord. How could a sound affect me like this? I was leaning against a rather dangerous reptilian alien—I should be fighting to slow my racing heart, not struggling to stay awake!

She shrugged. "They've watched porters nap before. If he's really after your energy, why not lull you to sleep and keep skimming off the top? If your energy is like a plant's growth, you get far more if you take a few leaves regularly instead of a heavy pruning once a month. Or that's my guess at any rate."

"That makes far too much sense." In theory, I knew I should probably get up, but my muscles had zero ambition. The sound seemed to vibrate right through me and set everything into sleep mode. Moving was about as appealing as getting out of my nice, warm bed in the middle of a cold night.

Cruz said, "If the sheep were the trade for the earlier draining, could this be in exchange for him letting us into the pasture?"

I shrugged, now leaning back against the Saursune. Sitting up was too much effort.

Brielle watched me. "Is there any harm in you sleeping while he siphons your energy?"

"I don't know. I doubt it when it's this slow. They've never taken so much that I couldn't port."

Brielle considered it, then said, "Quite a few wouldn't agree with me, but why not take a nap? He gave us enough food to feed most of the village. If it's what he's after, he might let us in the pasture in the future."

Part of my mind protested. Sleep against a Saursune? But the other part of my mind—the relaxed sleepy one—figured this was a great napping spot. With a sigh, I gave in and mumbled, "A nap is a really strange trade."

Now that I wasn't resisting, the rise and fall of the hum quickly lulled me to sleep.

~

The deep humming made it oddly difficult to wake up. A peek at the bright sky confirmed I had slept past lunch and into the afternoon. Still trying to clear my mind, I checked my energy. It was...there.

I still couldn't tell how much was left, but it wasn't dormant, so the Saursune must still be siphoning bits off even if I couldn't feel it. A faint trace of restlessness made me suspect my energy had regenerated faster than he was skimming it away.

There were only a couple of ways to get rid of excess porting energy, and after spending so many hours with us, I figured the farmer deserved it. Since the hunters were likely watching, I didn't move, still feigning sleep.

Thankfully, my hand still rested on the Saursune's neck, so I used that contact to reach out with my mind, trying to trace where my energy was disappearing.

There was no resistance, and I reached past the "border" without realizing it until it was too late. Energy rushed out of me as I jerked my senses back.

"Careful. He just did a power-up," Brielle quietly said.

Cruz replied, "I saw that, although I don't see anything around us."

Judging by their words, the sudden energy transfer must have created ripples of light. His hum lightened. The Saursune didn't shift a single muscle even though he was undoubtedly aware I was awake.

My energy started going dormant, so he must have stopped siphoning it. I reached my senses out far more carefully and this time was able to identify the border. I carefully channeled some energy into the Saursune, testing this new skill. The lightest touch let it pour out. It was just as slippery as the last few times, and I figured I'd better conserve my strength.

Taking a deep breath, I sat up and yawned, still trying to dispel the lethargy left by a deep sleep. The warm weight on my lap disappeared as the Saursune lifted his head. His arms reached forward out in a half stretch before flexing his claws into the grass and dirt. He shook his head and neck and glanced around. Turning his attention back to me, he tilted his head.

At a loss of what that might mean or if he was just checking on me, I said, "Good morning?"

He looked around again and rose to his feet. After shaking himself off briskly, he trotted a circle around us and disappeared into the thicket.

Cruz slid off the rock. "Oh, good. My rear end was going numb from being up there so long. I really need a bathroom break."

Ignoring him, Brielle asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Like I slept hard. I woke up just in time to hear your comment about the power-up, which was right about when I felt a bunch of energy flow away." I stood up and stretched as a subtle way to test my legs, which were tired but not shaky. Perfect. "If nothing else, I have plenty to take everyone home."

"I don't think you even twitched the last three hours. I had to keep checking if you were breathing."

I continued stretching, which was more to limber up my relaxed muscles instead of convincing stiff ones that it was time to move. "I still think that was a rather strange trade." I straightened. "Oh shoot. I forgot about Clyde and Rachelle! I better go let them know I'm okay."

"Are you going to tell them the truth?" Cruz asked, pausing his trip behind a rather leafy shrub.

I hesitated. "What are your thoughts? As much as I don't want to say I turned a Saursune into a pillow, the chances of it happening to someone else are unfortunately high with the way their communication system works."

Fiddling with a piece of grass, Brielle said, "It's likely, but you don't have to tell them you fell asleep. You can say that it curled around you and solicited pets while doing a very gradual drain."

I grinned at her. "That works for me. Thanks!" I touched a spire. "Guard Station."

Like usual, light shimmered through my veins as the air hazed over.