Heat pressed against Kikaru's face, but the fire ring was not thick.
That made it worse. A normal person would run through it. A shard user might use power and prove Silas's point before understanding the trap.
"Those machines are under the flame line," Kikaru said. "Rirana planted more than simple capsules around us."
Paul raised one hand. "Colby can punch a gap with wind, and we move before they reset the ring."
Silas and Rirana walked through the flame before Colby could answer. The fire washed purple around Silas's coat and left no mark on Rirana at all. Silas now wore a rough leather mask over his nose and mouth. Rirana did not bother with one.
That told Kikaru two things at once. Silas expected the gas hidden in the ring to matter, and Rirana either had protection built into her body, her clothes, or something worse. The woman moved like she was inside her own workshop rather than a battlefield. Every step was placed where the dirt had already been prepared.
