Page 17 of Frostforge: Passage Two

"It could be a student," Thalia suggested, rocking back in her chair."Someone building their own private arsenal."

Luna's finger tapped against her chin."Possibly.But why such an assortment?And how would they hide so many weapons in their quarters without being discovered during inspections?"

"An instructor, then?They have private chambers, fewer inspections."

"But instructors already have access to better weapons.Why steal what's essentially beneath them?"

Thalia stared at the map, frustration mounting."An outsider?"

"Perhaps.But Frostforge is sealed against intrusion.The wards alone would detect any unauthorized entry."Luna drew her knees up to her chest, balancing precariously on her chair."Unless..."

"Unless what?"

"Unless someone's helping them from the inside."Luna's eyes met Thalia's, serious and unblinking.

The thought hung between them, uncomfortable but impossible to dismiss.

"Could a golem have taken them?"Luna asked suddenly."You've been working with them in your advanced class, right?Could someone have commanded a golem to gather weapons?"

Thalia shook her head, thinking back to her recent success animating the golem heart."No, I don't think so.The magic required to animate a golem is specific and limited.They can follow simple commands, yes, but something as complex as identifying valuable weapons, avoiding detection, and transporting them without being seen?"She traced the edge of the table with her finger."Golems aren't stealthy.They're practically walking boulders.Someone would have noticed."

Luna sighed, pushing one of the parchments away."There has to be a connection we're not seeing."

Silence fell between them, broken only by the distant sound of voices in the corridor outside.Light from the setting sun painted long shadows across the dormitory floor, turning the whitewashed walls a burnt orange.

Thalia tapped her fingers against the table, thinking.Then, almost as an afterthought, she said, "I saw Senna today."

Luna's gaze flicked up, instantly alert."And?"

"And nothing.That's what was strange."Thalia explained the encounter — how Senna had barely acknowledged her existence, a stark contrast to her usual hostility."It was like she didn't even see me.Like she had more important things on her mind."

Luna's expression darkened, the beads in her hair clicking as she leaned forward."I've been tracking her," she admitted, her voice low."Since the start of term."

Thalia wasn't entirely surprised."Tracking her how?"

"Following her.At night."Luna's lips curved into a humorless smile."She sneaks out after curfew.Moves through the academy like she's looking for something — or someone.And yes," she added, anticipating Thalia's next question, "the forge is one of the places she visits."

Thalia felt her pulse quicken."Did you see her take anything?"

Luna shook her head, the tiny rings in her dreadlocks catching the light."That's the problem.She enters, stays for a while, and leaves.I've never seen her carrying anything suspicious, either before or after."

"So if she's not stealing the weapons herself..."Thalia began.

"Then what's she doing there?"Luna finished for her."Scouting?Checking inventory for someone else?Or is she searching for something specific?"

Thalia frowned, remembering Senna's demeanor earlier that day — distracted, preoccupied.Not the behavior of someone who had just successfully pulled off a major theft."If Senna is involved, but not the actual thief..."

"Then she's working with someone," Luna concluded, her eyes sharp and serious."The question is: who?And why?"

Thalia stood, pacing the small space between their beds.The pieces didn't fit together neatly — Senna's nighttime wanderings, the missing weapons with no discernible pattern, the academy's apparent reluctance to address the situation openly.Something larger was at play, something neither of them fully understood yet.

CHAPTER TEN

Rumors of the weapon thefts spread through Frostforge like frost creeping across glass, intricate patterns of suspicion branching in all directions.Thalia noticed how conversations would halt when she entered rooms, how eyes tracked certain students — particularly those from the South — with newfound wariness.Three days had passed since Kaine had stormed through the academy halls, fury etched into his face, and in that time the whispers had only grown louder.Isle Warden spies.Traitors in their midst.As if the constant drills and brutal training weren't enough, now students eyed each other with suspicion over breakfast porridge and during combat exercises.

Thalia kept her head down, focusing on her classes.The suspicious glances bothered her less than they might have — growing up in Verdant Port's poorest district had taught her to ignore the judgment of others.But she couldn't ignore how the atmosphere at Frostforge had shifted, becoming as brittle as poorly tempered steel.

The theft had been substantial: fifteen daggers, three sets of gauntlets designed to amplify cryomancy, two recently-forged broadswords.Weapons meant for the war effort, now in unknown hands.Thalia had heard at least six different theories of how the items had been stolen, each more elaborate than the last.One involved tunnels beneath the academy; another suggested levitation magic that allowed the thief to float above the detection wards.

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