Bola is a young girl from the washer-worker class in the West African kingdom of Jebba. Their ruler, Lord Kami, has just won a war against a foreign people called the feverborn. Everyone gathers at the palace grounds to welcome the victorious army. The procession includes nine glittering, crystal horses that Lord Kami liberated from the clutches of the feverborn. The techwork horses possess an infinite, ancestral power that can only be wielded by high-caste riders. Despite her social status, Bola feels a connection with the ochre-colored steed. She mouths the sacred prayers with Lord Kami and the other royals and hopes that the ochre will hear her. Her relatives tease her for her foolishness when they return to the countryside. At fourteen, Bola’s first boyfriend promises her that he will travel to the bustling city of Maadu, learn the language of the ancestors, and awaken the horse for her. This isn’t enough, though — Bola wants to do it herself. At twenty-two, she marries and has a son. She continues to visit the ochre, which stands silent on the palace lawn, and she brings her son there to venerate their ancestors. Bola’s devotion persists into her old age. Her husband and children feel that she loves the horse’s power more than she loves them. Years later, Lord Kami dies in a battle against the feverborn. With no leader, Jebba is at risk. Bola’s family flees to Maadu to seek safety, but she stays behind to rescue the ochre. She finds it surrounded by three feverborn, who are ready to slash it to shards. She throws herself on the horse to protect it from their blows, and it suddenly awakens. Bola and the ochre ride off toward Maadu to warn the others of the approaching danger. At last, she has fulfilled the destiny that she always felt in her heart.