Bearded-man had just reached to pull the lever on the side of the weapon for the second time, confident in his aim with the wolf holding still enough for a couple precious seconds. But then, the wolf moved the second he shifted the lever, the mechanical sound of gears rising from the narrow, rectangular box at the weapon’s hilt.
	His grip on his gun-sword shifted in shock when pillars of ice sprouted from a slick sheet spreading from the wolf. A thin, metal dart with red plumage on one end shot through the air with a whooshing bang a moment before Byrce’s jaws locked on the long portion of the weapon. The weapon shifted in his grip from its new position in Byrce's jaws, making his hold on it that much more awkward.
	Thea shouted in surprise when the dart whizzed by her ear, catching in a few strands that yanked with the dart’s momentum. She ducked down and stepped to the side just in time as Young-guy swung his electrified pole through the air at her shoulders. She tried to take advantage of his miss with a swing of her branch at his legs.
	Young-guy nimbly hopped over the branch as Bearded-man tried to twist his gun-sword so the sharpened side of the blade could do some damage, but his efforts proved unneeded; the metal of the blade still had a good amount of residue of wolfsbane on it from when he filled the darts loaded inside the box-hilt.
	Taking advantage of the wolf’s injured state, Bearded-man swiftly raised the weapon again. Not taking as much care in aiming, he pulled the lever once, then twice, pausing only long enough for the box to make a few more clanking sounds as the weapon loaded itself, then fired another dart toward Byrce. Without hesitation, he pulled the lever a third time, readying another poisoned dart as its predecessor flew through the air.
	Zane hardly stirred from where he had fallen limply on the forest floor, unconsciousness from the electricity and blow to the head winning out against his attempts at standing and fighting for the only other two members of his pack.
	Young-guy tried to bring his weapon down on Thea, but she backed away. As quickly as they had formed, the electric arcs sunk back into the hilt of the metal segmented rod before vanishing with a final buzzing sizzle. He snarled at his weapon, but his guard did not fall.
	With at least the threat of electrocution off the table, Thea dodged, and whacked the weapon off course with her branch. She tried to gain the upper hand in the fight, controlling their footing and where he went, trying to make him back into the log he had tripped on before.