There was something reckless in her smile as she ran, pulled along by the strange touch. Kes’tral stumbled often, running as quickly as she could but blind to the sudden dips in terrain, holes in the earth, stones or logs, everything tangled around her legs and left her unbalanced. Still she ran till until her lungs thought that they would burst. Stars danced in the darkness and she grinned, hearing the hiss of arrows through the air. It wasn’t the stranger who was shooting them, but it had to be Wendell. She recognised the crack of lightning as it split the air behind them. Relieved that her companion was joining the fight, Kes allowed herself to be pulled along.

However, as the arrows faltered and the sound of the bow fell behind them, her steps slowed. The stranger seemed to close a hand more insistently around her arm and pull her forward, and she went, but not without twisting to try and look behind her. A hopeless exercise. She heard the skittering and a large thud. Her steps came to a stop. Overbalanced, she stumbled and her hands landed splayed in the dirt.

The stranger helped her up once more, but she twisted. Wendy? What was happening? Had he fallen? Without her vision, Kes could only stare into the endless darkness and search for her companion with her senses. Was he there? Did the spiders have him? “Wendy?!” It was a shriek, a desperate sound as she finally pulled her hand free of the stranger.

Kes staggered. Run? The stranger told her to run, but where was he? Kes’tral reached out, clawing at the darkness in her search for someone else. She grabbed hold of fabric, unfamiliar, and clung on. “Where is Wendy?” She demanded, her free hand extended towards the heat she could feel from the distant fires. There was something approaching with a heavy thud that shook the ground. She touched the darkness, as though hoping her friend would take her hand.

The thing didn’t hunt by sight or smell, it’s urges far more basic than that. Kill was all it knew. Kill and kill again until there was nothing left, until the world was silent. Sound then, sound was what drove the beast. Grey vision was frosted with shadows of blue and black. The women ran and the thing gave chase. It snorted and halted all of a sudden as the pair stopped, not out of confusion or curiosity, but as if for a split second it had lost them.

Kes’tral screamed and the beast flinched before charging towards her, large patterns of ice fanning out across the ground each time one of its limbs met the earth. A storm appeared to be brewing overhead, the air growing colder still. The wendigo planted balled hands against the ground and twisted its head with the intent of bowling the pair sideways. A powerful thrust of its antlers followed, the points like blunt, icy blades of death.

The first signs of a blizzard began to form around them, clouds gathering overhead like rolling waves to shoot rain so fast and heavy it seemed to crystallise in mid air, pelting the trio with dull, icy shards from the heavens. The wind picked up, the real killer in the cold, whistling through the creatures exposed bones. The wendigo roared, a sound most terrifying and somewhat triumphant, pleased with the wind and rain, the shaping of its element.

The creature had stopped, a moment of respite perhaps given to the fleeing pair. A faint breath escaped the young woman’s lips, her pale lilac orbs fixed on the creature as she waited for the woman to her side to flee. Sadly, the moment was short lived. Kes’tral’s scream was enough to enrage the creature once more. Head bowed and horns thrust forward as it charged at the pair.

A burst of movement saw the young elf leaping to the side, colliding with the fallen Kes’tral as she tried to get the other woman out of harms way. A short tumble later the Elven woman pushed to her feet leaping away from Kes’tral as she snatched an arrow from her quiver while sliding her bow from her shoulders, seconds later her arrow was loosed the twang of the string ringing out as the worsening weather started to roll in, the small pieces of her namesake pelting against the trio.

‘This is more like it… A little piece of home…’ A small smile tugged at her lips as she continued to run, circling the far larger creature a murmured charm under her breath as she once more plucked an arrow, nocked and loosed the projectile at the large creature, hoping its tough looking hide was not as sturdy as it appeared. “We hail the coming snow, and as it falls, we listen.”

Glancing out a moment she watches the growing storm, her smile widening before snapping out a hand and grasping a larger piece of the falling weather, the solidified water. Unsure herself if it was joy at that moment or her nerves getting the better of her as the massive beast roared, drowning out the winds as they picked up, as if to match the creature with its own howl. She brought the piece of ice to her bow, a faint glow flickering through it as it seemed to shrink and lengthen by the time she’d drawn back the string of her bow as if to fire an arrow fully formed sat between her fingers, nocked and ready.

The pattering of her feet as she ran almost silent beneath the sound of hail hitting the ground around them. The distance between herself and the Wendigo growing as she tried to keep the beast’s attention on herself. Her third projectile loosed, the arrow of ice flying true. “Winter’s gentle kiss upon you, beast.” The sing song tone of her native language taking a harsher bite as the elements turned for the worst, well worse for most.

Reaching out she plucked a second piece of falling hail from around her, her glowing lilac orbs seeming to dance in the growing gloom that came with the gathering storm clouds darkening the sky. The winds tugged at her fur lined clothes, her cloak whipping behind her as she ran, another arrow forming between her fingertips with another faint flicking glow of blue. Pressing the arrow head to lips she murmured faintly. “And Hail’s stinging bite.”

Nocking the second arrow of ice she chanced a glance at Kes’tral, the woman momentarily forgotten in her head long rush into combat with the massive beast that was hunting the pair. ‘She may not hold up in the cold as well as I… Especially seeing as how warm it was here not too long ago…’ "Come Snow, let us make a hunt of this!"

There was no answer to her question, only the kiss of ice in the air. She could feel a storm gathering overhead. The atmosphere was thickening, she could almost see the twist of clouds as they gathered to form a squall. The wind hissed against the exposed skin of her hands and face. The hairs raised on the back of her neck and she twisted. Her hands held open to the sudden change in temperature. Was that snow, or hail that fell against her palms? It stung, elements lashing against her features. Where was Wendy? Why couldn’t she sense or hear him anymore? Could the only conclusion be that he had succumbed to the strange scuttling beasts? With every heavy beat of paws on the earth she felt the temperature plummet.

For the first time she felt truly blind as, without warning, she was tackled to the ground. Kes landed with a loud thump, air knocked from her lungs. The stranger was back on her feet and Kes pushed herself up. Kneeling on ground that was freezing beneath her she twisted. She listened, trying to ascertain what was happening. She heard the shot of arrows and fumbled, fingers skidding across the earth in search of her weapon. Her fingertips brushed the charred wood of her staff before curling around it. She balanced against the wood, climbing back to her feet.

Kes rubbed a rough hand across her eyes. If Wendy was lost, then there would be time to mourn him. But only if they survived the beast that now attacked. Kes readied herself, edging slowly backwards from the field of battle. The squall seemed to grow, if it preferred ice, wind and snow then she would meet it with fire. With both palms against her staff Kes forced fire back into the weapon. The scythe returned with a hiss, snow melting around her and rising in sudden steam. Kes moved forward, weapon held steady in her hands as she struck out towards the creature. What manner of beast was this?

Another moment’s pause told the thing it’s prey was once again on the move. It twisted, following the footfalls of the stranger as she ran about the plain in a wide arch, giving the thing plenty of room. The beast bowed its head and was jolted by an icy projectile, pinning the creature’s shoulder. It twisted, trying to clutch at the object set to cause it harm and hissed. A low growl boomed like thunder, even as a storm seemed to brew overhead. A second arrow went through the beast’s gut, seeing to it that the creature was forced to stand for a moment. Long, claw-like fingers closed around the icy barb, pulling it free before it was cast aside and forgotten, as if no more painful than the sting of a bee.

The wendigo rose to its full height, standing at least ten feet tall as it threw its head back and howled at the sky. It’s roar only saw the blizzard intensify, the beast’s icy breath added to the already bitter cold. They had enraged the creature now, like a bull which had been cornered, left with little option but to charge. Of course, even this line of thought was rudely interrupted as molten fire tore through the thing’s back, slicing a burning trail down the length of its spine. Decaying flesh was prised apart, exposed, white bones charred by the mythical weapon.

The beast howled, this time in pain and twisted back on itself, striking at the woman who wielded the fiery weapon, slashing at her with its long, sharpened claws. It hissed and wrestled with the woman, closing its hands about the weapon to try and rip it from her grasp. However, when that failed, it used all of its strength to pin her to the earth under the scythe, lashing at her with blunt but powerful teeth as it attempted to tear chunks from her flesh.

Smoke rose from the severed flesh of its back, black and sizzling after the flame of the scythe had cut through it. Though the woman’s friend had not be forgotten, nothing was quite as appealing to the creature as a live meal.