Following an outbreak of plague which killed her parents, ten-year-old Lady Sandrilene fa Toren, or Sandry, is rescued by the mage Niklaren Goldeyes, known as Niko.

Niko also finds three other similarly aged children and brings them to the temple: a Trader girl named Daja Kisubo, whose entire family was killed in a shipwreck, causing her to be declared an outcast by her people; Briar Moss, a homeless orphan in a street gang, who was about to be sentenced to hard labour for stealing; and Trisana, or Tris, Chandler, a daughter of a large merchant house, who has been rejected by her family.

Once they arrive at Winding Circle, Daja and Briar are bullied by other children for their backgrounds, Tris refuses to interact with the dedicates and her dormitory-mates, and Sandry is unhappy living with the other wealthy and noble girls.

After an incident in the Summersea market, where the children get into a fight to protect a dog from bullies and Tris accidentally creates a waterspout, Niko tells them that they all have a rare form of magic.

Each puts a small amount of their magic into a thread spun by Sandry, enabling her to spin their abilities together and combine them into a greater whole, which makes them collectively powerful enough to escape the cave-in.