On the lush green planet men had named Ver-draak, a green-haired, crystal-eyed race once lived. But the Ni-lach were no more, killed off by humans who feared their strange powers. Yet legends of a great Ni-lach treasure lived on. Eventually, men's search for Ni-lach gold led them to a great forest called the Deep - and to an orphan named Dhalvad, a carefree young man who played with alien fur children and..cured the sick without medicine. Soon Dhalvad and his friends - human, alien and otherwise - are running for their lives before relentless pursuers who do not know the true value of the wealth they seek.