Luna was thirty when Aurora, the first naturally born bridge child she'd mentored, turned seven and demonstrated abilities that surpassed anything Luna had achieved at that age. The child could phase between realms without conscious effort, maintained bridge connections while sleeping, and showed intuitive understanding of cosmic balance that usually took decades to develop.
"She's extraordinary," River said after observing Aurora during a training session. "Her bridge nature is more integrated than ours ever was. No friction between her identity and her function. She's just seamlessly both."
"That's what proper support from birth creates," Luna said with satisfaction. "Aurora never had to fight her nature or hide her abilities. She developed them naturally from the beginning."
But Auro
