Page 28 of Frostforge: Passage Four
"Am I interrupting?"she asked, her voice carrying only the barest hint of venom.
"What do you want, Senna?"Kaine's tone was carefully professional, instructor to academy guard.
Senna approached them, her boots striking the stone floor with decisive steps."I came with information that might interest you, Ember."Her gaze flicked to Thalia."Both of you, actually."
Thalia crossed her arms, skepticism evident in her stance."What information?"
"Northern extremists have been plotting to sabotage Southern fourth-years in the Command Challenge."Senna leaned against a nearby anvil, looking perfectly at ease in the sweltering heat."Several of the war canoes were targeted before today’s combat."
A surge of vindication rose in Thalia's chest."We already knew that," she said, unable to keep the smugness from her voice."We were just discussing the sabotage and how we can identify the culprits."
Senna's lips curved into a faint, amused smile that set Thalia's teeth on edge."Then you're already a step behind," she replied."Because I know where they'll strike next."
Kaine's expression hardened to match the steel he so often worked."Where?"The single word carried the weight of command.
Senna glanced between them, drawing out the moment with obvious pleasure.Thalia fought the urge to grab the woman by her collar and shake the information from her.
"The fjord," she said at last."Calloway told my squad about the next Command Challenge.There's going to be a sailing race — testing your ability to lead an inexperienced team in multiple different roles.If they want to sink you, that's where it'll happen."
A heavy silence followed, broken only by the hiss of a nearby furnace venting steam.Thalia's mind raced with the implications, conjuring images of fast-moving waters, treacherous currents, and skiffs that could easily capsize if tampered with.Saboteurs could disable rudders, loosen critical rigging, or plant weaknesses in hulls that would only reveal themselves when stressed by the fjord's challenging conditions.
“You’re sure?”Thalia asked, unable to rid herself of skepticism.After all, the last time Southerners had been targeted with sabotage, it had been Senna behind it.
"Quite," Senna replied, examining her fingernails."My sources are reliable."
Kaine moved closer to Thalia, his presence solid beside her."How did you come by this information?"
"Let's just say I keep my ear to the ground," Senna said."Some of my former classmates still believe I share their...concerns about Southern influence."
The implication hung in the air like forge smoke.Thalia studied Senna's face, searching for deception.Why would she help them?What angle was she playing?"And you're telling me this out of the goodness of your heart?"
“No,” Senna said, her voice suddenly sharp.“I’m telling you this because I’m a soldier, and it’s my duty to protect this academy.Sabotage threatens the integrity of our defenses against the Isle Wardens.Personal vendettas weaken us all."
Despite the heat of the forge, Thalia shivered.Senna’s words seemed to echo the note Luna had shown her.Undermine confidence in shared command.Sabotage bonds before they are forged.
The writer of that note hadn’t hoped to merely undermine the Southern students; they had been targeting Frostforge as a whole, aware that continental unity was their greatest strength against the Isle Warden threat.If Senna was right — if the Northern saboteurs succeeded in fracturing trust between North and South — they would hand the Isle Wardens a victory without a single battle.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Nightfall descended over Frostforge like a shroud of smoke, turning the fjord's waters from steel to obsidian.The glacial mountains stood sentinel against the starlit sky, their peaks bleached silver by the three-quarter moon.From her vantage point among the frost-crusted rocks, Thalia watched the boathouse – a dark, hunched silhouette against the frozen shoreline.Beyond it, the glacier's sheer face caught the moonlight, a vast wall of ancient ice that sealed the fjord's innermost reach.She pulled her fur-lined cloak tighter, less against the cold than against the gnawing certainty that tonight, someone would try to ensure tomorrow's race ended in disaster.
"See anything?"Kaine's voice came low beside her, his breath a pale ghost that dissipated into the frigid air.
Thalia shook her head, tucking a wayward strand of black hair beneath her hood."Nothing yet."
They'd been crouched among the rocks for nearly two hours, muscles stiffening in the cold despite the layers of fur and wool that wrapped their frames.The outcropping provided both cover and a clear view of the path leading to the docks and boathouse where tomorrow's race vessels waited.Vessels that, if Senna's intelligence proved correct, Northern extremists planned to sabotage.
"It's quiet," Thalia murmured, scanning the silvered landscape once more.The fjord lay still as polished glass, reflecting the scattered stars and crescent moon with perfect fidelity.No wind disturbed the water's surface, no birds called from the sparse pines that dotted the shoreline.Even the usual groans and cracks of the glacier were absent tonight.
"Quiet is dangerous," Kaine responded, his voice barely audible."It's in silence that threats move unseen."
She glanced at him then, taking in his sharp profile against the darkness.Frost had gathered on his close-cropped hair, tiny crystals that winked in the moonlight.His jaw was set in that familiar, determined line, but something else lurked beneath his stoic expression – something tense and unresolved.
"How well do you know Roran Bright?"Kaine asked suddenly, attempting casualness but failing to mask the edge in his voice.
The question caught Thalia off-guard, though perhaps it shouldn't have.She'd felt the tension between Kaine and Roran grow with each passing week.
"Well enough," she answered carefully."We're in the same year."
