It burned for six days before the rains came. The fire had spread across the whole basin, ridge to ridge, a perfect blanket of flame. When the downpour hit, the steep slopes shed their fire first — water cascading down the edges, drowning the outer ring of cells. The flat interior, where water pooled slowly, kept burning through the first night of rain. Only the three-by-three core at the center of the basin still smouldered by morning. The second day of rain finished the job.