Outcast Trader Daja, along with her fellow mages-in-training, journeys from Winding Circle to the Gold Ridge Mountains, where drought threatens widespread famine. There, Daja creates an astonishing object - a living metal vine - and Daja's dealings with her former people reawaken a longing for familiar ways. Daja must choose - should she return to the Traders or remain with the Winding Circle folk who have become her family?