The fire in Thornveil was finally under control.
With almost no fuel left to consume, the flames could no longer spread and would eventually burn themselves out.
Torin and Elara weren't far from the forest's edge when several horses suddenly burst from the trees.
Elara immediately looked at her brother.
"Torin."
Torin gave a short nod.
"I know, sis."
Both twins quickly dismounted.
They grabbed the staffs mounted alongside their saddles and stepped forward.
"You ready, sis?" Torin asked without taking his eyes off the approaching horses.
Elara nodded.
"Try not to hurt them."
The twins tapped their staffs against the ground.
The crystals embedded within them began to glow.
The earth trembled.
Smooth walls of stone rose from the ground directly in the horses' path.
Startled, the animals immediately veered left.
"Torin," Elara called.
"Already on it."
More stone walls erupted from the earth.
They curved around the fleeing horses, preventing them from scattering.
Within moments, the walls connected and formed a large enclosure.
The horses were trapped.
Torin and Elara quickly mounted their own horses and rode toward the enclosure.
A small opening appeared in the stone wall, allowing them inside.
The moment Torin got close enough to recognize the animals, his fists clenched.
These horses belonged to Sergeant Grace and her squad.
Before he could say anything, Elara turned toward him.
"I'll take the Sergeant's horse."
Her voice was firm.
"You follow behind."
"We don't have time to waste."
Torin nodded.
Elara guided her own horse inside the enclosure before leading Sergeant Grace's horse out through the opening. Once she was outside, the gap sealed shut behind her.
She climbed onto Grace's horse and gently patted its neck.
"Take me to Sergeant Grace."
The horse offered no resistance.
Instead, it immediately began moving.
Elara glanced back at her brother.
"Stay close, okay?"
Torin mounted his horse.
"Got it."
Riding Sergeant Grace's horse, Elara led the way into Thornveil. Torin followed close behind.
They rode for nearly ten minutes through the dense forest.
The sun hung low on the horizon.
Orange firelight flickered through the trees, illuminating their faces.
As they traveled deeper into Thornveil, they began noticing signs that someone had been fighting the wildfire.
A massive trench cut through the forest floor.
Wide.
Deliberate.
Designed to stop the flames from advancing.
By the time they reached their destination, the sun had finally disappeared beyond the horizon.
Grace's horse slowed to a stop.
Then lowered its head.
The unconscious guards lay scattered nearby.
Elara immediately jumped down.
"Sergeant Grace!"
She rushed forward.
Torin followed more slowly.
His expression remained unreadable.
While Elara checked each guard for signs of life, Torin studied the surrounding area.
A thick stone wall stood between the guards and the remaining flames.
Nearby, an ice-covered trench stretched through the forest.
Not far away sat a stone watering trough that still contained water.
Torin crouched beside the wall and ran a hand across its surface.
"Did Sergeant Grace's squad do all of this to contain the fire?"
Behind him, Elara's voice called out.
"They're alive."
Relief filled her voice.
"Just unconscious."
Torin stood and walked toward the group.
His thoughts continued turning.
If they did all this...
Then why are they lying here unconscious?
Elara noticed his expression.
"What are you thinking?"
Torin scratched the back of his head.
"I'm trying to figure out what happened here."
A pause.
"But something doesn't add up."
Elara raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
Torin pointed toward the trench.
"See the ice covering it?"
Elara followed his finger.
"Yeah?"
Torin frowned.
"Who made that?"
"I don't remember anyone in Sergeant Grace's unit being capable of ice magic."
His eyes swept across the frozen trench.
"Especially not on this scale."
Realization slowly spread across Elara's face.
"You think someone else was here?"
Torin didn't answer.
He didn't need to.
His expression already had.
Silence settled between them for several moments.
Finally, Torin broke it.
"We should wake Sergeant Grace and the others."
He looked down at the unconscious guards.
"Let's hear what they have to say."
The twins immediately got to work waking the unconscious guards.
They shook shoulders.
Called names.
Splashed water across faces.
One by one, the guards slowly began regaining consciousness.
Dazed.
Confused.
And still soaked from the melted ice dome.
Grace groaned and grabbed the side of her head.
"What happened...?"
As her vision adjusted to the firelight, she finally recognized the two figures standing nearby.
"Elara? Torin?"
She blinked.
"What are you two doing here?"
Elara answered while Torin helped the others sit up.
"We were dispatched after your emergency signal was seen."
She glanced toward the forest.
"But when we entered Thornveil, we found your horses running riderless through the woods."
A brief pause.
"Your horse led us here."
"When we arrived, all six of you were unconscious."
Grace frowned.
Then Elara asked quietly,
"What happened here, Sergeant?"
Grace rubbed her temple and tried to remember.
"We sent the signal and started trying to contain the fire."
Her brow furrowed.
"Then a powerful gust pushed the flames toward us."
"We tried to hold them back with wind magic."
Suddenly she winced.
A sharp pain shot through her head.
Her eyes widened.
"We were attacked."
Elara stiffened.
"Attacked?"
Grace immediately looked around despite the pain.
The moment she saw her squad nearby, relief washed across her face.
"Everyone's here..."
Garrick held his stomach and managed a weak smile.
"You're alright, Sergeant."
"Thank god."
Grace exhaled.
Then quickly asked,
"Is everyone okay?"
Vane carefully turned his body toward her.
"My neck hurts like hell."
A grimace.
"Can't move it without pain."
"Other than that, I'm fine."
Kael remained flat on his back and lazily raised one hand.
"Head's killing me."
"But I'm alive."
Rurik nodded.
"A little shaken."
"Nothing serious."
Nearby, Drev groaned.
"Everything's fine."
A pause.
"Except my face."
Elara stepped forward again.
"Sergeant."
"You said you were attacked."
"By who?"
The entire squad fell silent.
Trying to remember.
Grace eventually shook her head.
"I never saw their face."
"It happened too fast," Garrick added.
Drev nodded.
"One hit."
"That's all it took."
Kael rubbed the back of his head.
"They came out of the flames."
His expression remained baffled.
"Next thing I knew, I was waking up here."
Torin finally spoke.
"So nobody saw the attacker?"
Everyone shook their heads.
Torin frowned.
Then pointed toward the trench and stone wall.
"I have a question."
"Did your squad create all of this?"
The guards followed his finger.
Only now fully noticing the massive firebreak carved through the forest.
Grace stared at it.
Then slowly shook her head.
"No."
Her expression grew increasingly puzzled.
"That wasn't us."
"We never even thought about making a trench."
She walked closer and crouched beside it.
Her fingers brushed the frozen surface.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Is this ice?"
She looked back at her squad.
"Nobody in my unit can use ice magic."
Torin and Elara exchanged a glance.
Their suspicions had just become much harder to dismiss.
Then Rurik spoke.
"Could it be..."
Everyone turned toward him.
"The person who attacked us made all of this?"
Silence settled over the group.
No one immediately answered.
But the possibility now hung heavily in the air.