The wind at the top of the Eiffel Tower didn’t howl. It whispered.
Like the voices of thousands of Flameborne ancestors, watching the girl with silent judgment.
Cassia stood alone on the glowing sigil drawn across the floor, her hair rippling in the wind like ink across silk. She didn’t flinch when the first challenger stepped forward, a woman with skin the color of frost and eyes like burning stars.
“Name yourself,” Nova called from the edge.
“I am Seraphine the Tempest,” the woman replied. “Sentinel of Ice, Guardian of Silence.”
Cassia’s tiny fingers curled.
“I’m Cassia,” she replied, her voice strong. “I’m six. I like peanut butter. And I’m not afraid of you.”
Laughter echoed around the platform, mostly mocking, mostly male.
Seraphine raised her hands, and the air turned bitterl
