Even with a boost granted by a girl who was much stronger than she looked, Matteo’s ascent up the tree was still dodgy, only one of his arms being of any use for pulling himself up. He swooned occasionally, almost falling off the branches he used as footholds, and other times, he had to hug the tree with his legs and slowly inch himself up. More often, the youth was forced to simply stay where he was, his limbs shaking, his clothes soaked with sweat, trying to summon up more strength from a body so thoroughly exhausted. It was just one wolf, but they were all hungry and tired, and it was fear that gave him the extra boost he needed to reach eight feet off the ground, braced against a large branch with his feet dangling off.

All of Ash’s own comments were overruled by her party members, and when safety in numbers came hand in hand with climbing a tree, the adrongynous Ranger had no choice but to ascend as well, her one injured leg shaking as she was hoisted up by Muu. After reaching the first noticeable branch, however, her own muscle training, biceps developed from days of pulling bowstrings, proved sufficient. It was a shame that she didn’t have the grace or speed of Muu, but Ash ascended without much trouble once she put her mind to it.

For all her whispered rambling, Muu was able to climb the tree with ease alone, her acrobatic training as a Blade Dancer coming to play here. Though the darkness of the new moon made it hard to accurately bound from branch to branch, her arm strength was tremendous and her body weight was negligible. Within a minute, she passed Matteo, and slotted herself higher up on the tree than him, breathing easy, waiting, resting.

The howling had long gone, but as they waited in suffocating darkness, they could hear the rustling of leaves, the soft growls of a beast. From the brush, golden eyes emerged, transposed upon a gleaming silver pelt that seemed to give off its own light, irrespective of the new moon and the faint stars. This was no starved loner, no deranged beast. Its plentiful muscles rippled beneath the glossy fur, and it stepped with a gravitas, restrained violence and savage dignity. For a moment, it sniffed, turning its head up towards the three shadows nestled amongst the branches.

Then, it stepped over to the base of the tree, laid down, and closed its eyes.

Soon after, the sounds of the nightly forest began once more, insects and chirps and cries. But all three soldiers could smell it. The thick rustiness of fresh blood, coming from the creature that laid beneath.