"H-Hey, don't you worry about it. Nothing wrong with a work out to start the day," Ethan chuckled, swallowing back his nerves as he grasped the timber in his hands. In the midst of pulling the plank free an arrow whizzed by the back of his head, causing him to jump and look at the arrow in shock. Well that was one way to start the fight. Though fighting wolves was a bit much, especially without his sword at hand. Nymira had her daggers but that was about it for blades, things could escalate quickly if they didn't do this right. Maybe they should use magic? It would be a waste to burn so much energy so early, but being tired was preferential to being a dog's meal. With arrows flying the hounds were now thoroughly perturbed and ready to attack, the one to the far left charging after Geoffrey for firing at them. Spotting the dagger Amuné had thrown his way he tossed the timber aside in favor of the blade, and as he did so Nymira darted past him, going after the offending hound in his place.

The hound was fast to be sure, but she was closer to Geoffrey already and she had ways of stopping it. Throwing her first dagger at the wolf she scowled as it quickly jumped aside to avoid being hit, though it could do little as she threw her body into its side, knocking it off of its feet in the process. Avoid its jaw, don't let it spit on you, and avoid the holes on its sides. Its underside should be its weak point if she remembered right, and at the moment it was perfectly exposed. With one dagger in hand she rushed over to try and filet the beast, yet as she was closing in it began to spew out molten liquid in defense, forcing her to back off as the grass at its feet turned to cinders within seconds. Magic made these things child's play, but like Ethan she wasn't terribly keen on exhausting herself so early. 

Silently relieved Nymira had gone to Geoffrey's aid, Ethan turned back to the two hounds still remaining. By now they had begun to circle him, upper lips pulled back in ferocious snarls as the liquid seeped from their teeth, dripping upon the grass and causing it to smolder. Never had he seen such creatures before, they almost seemed unnatural. Were these workings of a Magi? He couldn't help but think of those strange women the Varuna had created before, maybe this was similar? There was no time to check for an enemy as the wolves were here, the threat much more immediate. Watching both cautiously he gripped the dagger in his right hand, trying to prepare for one of them to lunge at him. Sure enough the one to his back tried first, and after dropping to the ground to avoid being pounced upon he rolled onto his back, putting up his feet to catch the second and kick it away, scrambling back to his feet afterwards.

"Hey uh... Geoffrey, can you uh... Hit one of them?" Ethan shouted, smiling nervously as he darted to the side again to avoid mashing jaws, taking a swipe with his dagger to force one of the hounds to stay back. Four shots and not a single hit, he wasn't one to complain but this really wasn't the time to be firing off blindly. Could Zander help? Or Cecil? He knew the Machina was afraid but then so were they, and they really needed help with these animals. Watching the two hounds begin circling again he bit his lower lip, getting ready to cast magic despite his reluctance in hopes of getting an upper hand. A growl at his back made him stop however, and a glance over his shoulder he saw another two hounds emerging from the forest, with one particularly larger than the others. Eyes widening in shock he turned and threw a gust of wind back at them instead, knocking the smaller one off its feet but watching as the larger of the two remained upright. "Ah man... You've got to be kidding me..." he laughed, looking between the three beasts uneasily.

While the beast she'd been fighting lay on its back Nymira grabbed her other dagger, figuring that Geoffrey and Zander could handle that one. Two more had shown up unsurprisingly, they always were pack animals weren't they? Hurrying over to where Ethan stood she went directly for the nearest hound, baiting it to charge after her and lunge, dropping to her knees and sliding along the grass beneath it. With a quick flick of her wrist she lifted her dagger skyward and caught its soft underbelly, not making a lethal blow but dealing enough to bring it to its knees momentarily, letting out a howl of pain from the wound. Throwing her dagger once more at the second one it jumped back to avoid the weapon, though did little to avoid her kicking it upside the head, sending it tumbling across the dirt. Inadvertently in doing so she'd gotten some of its heated drool on her leg, wincing as it burned through her clothes and burned her skin.