Part II — The Girl Who Did Not Burn
Her name was Elira Morn.
She lived in the Ash Quarter, where buildings leaned against each other like exhausted men. Her father had died in the mines. Her mother washed linen for cathedral clergy.
Elira had one unusual trait:
She never felt cold.
Not truly.
Even in winter, when frost silvered the inside of windows and breath turned to smoke in the air, her skin remained warm.
When she was younger, she thought it was a blessing.
Now she knew better.
Blessings in Velmora were reported.
And reports led to fire.
One evening, a factory in the lower district caught flame. Oil stores ignited, beams collapsed, screams split the dark.
Elira had been inside.
She remembered heat.
She remembered smoke.
She remembered fear.
Then she remembered standing outside the ruins — untouched.
Not a burn. Not a blister.
The Inquisitors arrived before dawn.
They always did.