Outcast Trader Daja, along with her fellow mages-in-training, embarks on a journey from Winding Circle to the Gold Ridge Mountains, where a severe drought threatens to cause widespread famine.

In this challenging environment, Daja creates an astonishing object: a living metal vine. Her dealings with her former people, the Traders, reawaken a longing for her familiar ways.

Now, Daja faces a pivotal choice—should she return to the Traders, or remain with the Winding Circle folk who have become her family?