My body aches, every muscle feeling stretched and strained. Like I’ve been reforged from the inside out.
I stretch, trying to shake off the exhaustion that clings to me.
And then, my back itches. A deep, insistent sensation, like something beneath my skin is shifting. Did something bite me in the middle of the night?
I reach over my shoulder, sliding the fabric of my sleeping gown off my shoulder, fingers brushing against my spine.
And I freeze.
Something is there. Not just skin. Not just scars. I feel the raised skin, the heat. Something etched into my skin and what seems like . . . a pattern.
My breath stutters.
No. No, that’s not possible.
I throw the blankets off and push myself upright, my legs weak from yesterday’s training. Lyra stirs in the bunk beneath me, muttering something incoherent, but I don’t stop.
The barracks are quiet. The other women are still asleep. I move through the dim light, my bare feet slapping against the cold stone floor as I push into the bathing chambers.
The air is cool, the room dimly lit. I grip the edges of the basin beneath the mirror, breath shallow, heartbeat loud in my ears. I pull the gown over my head.
And turn, exposing my back to the glass.
And there—etched into my skin like heat-woven ink—I see them set along my spine.
Four Elemental tattoos.
Four.
No one has ever had four.
I blink, my mind struggling to catch up, struggling to process what’s been permanently etched into my skin.
Fire—The First.
High on my back, just between my shoulder blades. It curls like living flame—deep red and black, flickering like embers caught mid-motion.
Air—The Second.
Below the fire, silver swirls spiral across my spine, shifting as I watch. Soft as wind, sharp as breath.
Water—The Third.
Lower still. Deep blue, rippling like ocean waves, flowing against my skin as if the tide lives beneath it.
Earth—The Fourth.
At the base of my spine, just above my hips, dark green and earthen brown, twisting like roots anchoring me to the world.
I reach back, fingers trembling, brushing the markings.
They burn.
They cool.
They move.
They settle.
