It quite obviously had not been her day, Aeryn thought as she gazed down at her feet. A blister on the side of her ankle from walking. She prodded at it with her forefinger, the sharpness of her nail popped the skin and it began to leak down over her skin to pool upon the fabric of her sock. She shrugged at it nonchalantly, putting her boots back on again - the sting was only minor, and the rumble in her stomach louder. She was at the last of her rations, and she pulled out from her bag the last strips of meat she had. They were worse for wear now, covered in the dirt from the inside lining of the bag, and dryer still. Luckily, she had her secret weapon tucked away. As she pulled it out, she licked her lips and almost smiled. The corners of her mouth curling mischievously as she turned the lid off the jar. It popped, and a small amount of steam flowed over the rim as she gazed down into the bubbling liquid. Chilli jam. Happily, she dunked the strips of meat into the sauce. It would have been considered far too hot for a regular palette. She had witnessed men cry at a very sniff of the stuff, here she was being incredibly liberal in the application of it on her jerky. Shrouded under her cloak, she remained hidden up in the branches of her chosen tree. Rations finished, she was still hungry. Her ears picked up the quiet little click-clack footsteps of a tree-beetle to her left. She raised a brow, and looked left and right as if by instinct, hoping nobody else was around even if she knew there was not. Swiftly, she grabbed the crunchy bug and shoved it into her mouth as it still wriggled in her grip. It wriggled more in her mouth, one of it's squirming legs escaped her lips until she bit down into the centre. It was... [i]Runny[/i. She frowned. "Blech," she mumbled out as it dribbled over her lip. There was only one thing that would wash down the taste. And then she took a swig from the jam as if it were a drink. A sneaky, hot belch followed. She was no longer hungry, and somewhere in the trunk of the tree, there would be a newly orphaned nest of tree beetles. [hr] Some moments later, all hell had broken loose in the distance -- and that distance was coming toward her at full speed. Her reflexes kicked in, and she armed herself first with the crossbow. Wolf was a bigger threat than the Gundarog, but the wolf was also a majestic beast, and the Gundarog was an ugly creature. The wolf would provide her with a nice warm pelt and enough meat to last her for days. But the Gundarog was an ugly creature. If she left the Gundarog for the wolf, the beast would soon be full and come after her. She had to think fast. Finally, she fired off a bolt from the crossbow -- directly above the Gundarog. She sent it splintering into a weakened branch on a nearby tree. It came tumbling down with a crash, right between the Gundarog and her. "Give all rations and I kill wolf," she said.