Annabelle is sixteen when she is summoned by the Eldest, the oldest living tree in The Land. The Eldest gives her a mission: she must convince the ruler of the humans that the dust of progress is about the envelop The Land, killing every living thing.
 
To save The Land, the humans, particularly The Company, must change their ways.
 
Accompanied by a white owl and an eagle, Annabelle makes her way back to the city. She encounters different people, machines and hybrids - some helpful, some not. Will the ruler even deign to see her? Will anybody important talk with her? Will anybody listen?
 
The Eldest also gave her a side quest: to collect a pumpkin. No one, not even Annabelle, realises that the future of the human race depends on her and something a cook might use to make a pie.
 
And all the time the dust is getting thicker ...