We should expect this young woman to be more powerful than our average novice, possibly even more powerful than the average magician." This year, like every other, the magicians of Imardin gather to purge the city of undesirables. Cloaked in theprotection of their sorcery, they move with no fear of the vagrants and miscreants who despise them and their work--until one enraged girl, barely more than a child, hurls a stone at the hated invaders . . . and effortlessly penetrates their magical shield.