The amphitheater clung to the cliffside like a shard of stone torn from the sky, the waves below roaring in furious applause. The salty air whipped against my skin, carrying the sharp tang of sea spray and the low, hungry hum of magic vibrating through the stones beneath my boots.
I stepped forward, bow in hand, and froze. The arena was empty, yet the air throbbed with expectation, as though the city itself waited to see me fail—or rise. Then it moved.
Water rose. Not gently, not politely. It leapt from the arena floor, curling into a monstrous form, limbs coiling like tidal currents, jagged ice forming along its elbows and knees. Its eyes glowed pale turquoise, bright and merciless, like sunlight on shallow surf. Droplets spun in arcs around it, fragments of frozen spray cutting through
