Reap the Wild Wind — Julie E. Czerneda

A Thousand Words for Stranger, the first novel in The Trade Pact Universe trilogy, introduced the Clan, refugees from the world of Cersi who built an empire few people even knew existed.

REAP THE WILD WIND turns to an earlier period in the Clan's history, before they left Cersi. At this time they are known as the Om'ray, and are divided into widely scattered tribal Clans, each of which must remain in its own allotted portion of Cersi, constrained from advancing beyond a certain point by two powerful races -- the Oud and the Tikitik -- that have technological and scientific advantages over them. The three races coexist based on three inviolate principles: 1) the world has always been divided this way and must remain so; 2) Passage -- a once in a lifetime event when individual Om'ray are permitted to cross all territorial boundaries in search of a mate -- must be honored by all; 3) nothing on Cersi can be allowed to change.

REAP THE WILD WIND opens at a pivotal moment when beings from the Trade Pact have begun to explore Cersi, upsetting the balance between the three races. It is a time, too, when young Aryl Sarc of the Yena Clan is on the verge of mastering the forbidden secret of the M'hir -- a secret that could prove the salvation or ruin of her entire species....