Gossamer was on her way to the Rio Grande. She wasn't entirely sure what she wanted to do but she had her sights set on some herb gathering. With the river providing much needed water she was sure she'd be able to find some good herbs to use. As she was so close to their ally, Ashen, Gossamer figured that having Ásta along would be enough to still be following her families rules. After all, Ásta was a 30" tall fox. She was basically a fox colored wolf and she had some battle experience. Surely that was enough? Gossy hummed to herself as she went to the water to drink. Her ears flicked back as she heard a strange laugh-like bark somewhere in the brush behind her. Not long after, five ugly canine-looking creatures appeared. She immediately frizzed up. Asta quickly placed herself between Gossamer and the hyenas, growling fiercely.

Úlfr had managed to convince Dagrún to practice gathering wood in the Range rather than following him to the river. While he didn't mind the pup necessarily, he hated the idea of babysittng and being responsible for someone else's safety. Now that he was almost a yearling he could wander more frequently without supervision. He relished his new freedom. It was doing wonders for his confidence and as he strolled along the river he soon picked up the scent of hyenas. His hackles bristled at the smell and he would've gone around them if he hadn't seen them zeroing in on a pup. His mother Ásvor talked of bravery in battle as a way to please Odin. Seeking an act of valor, Úlfr charged for the hyenas without a word or growl. He took the nearest one by surprise, latching onto it's front leg and shaking violently.

Chimera had been a good boy lately. Too good. He'd masked his original self to uphold the appearance that Venom required. He needed to kill. That's what he was made for. That was the kind of god that he was. A harbinger of death and destruction. Blood was his water and flesh was his sustenance. In order to slake his bloodlust, the young dire boy had taken to journeying far from home every now and again. He would kill anything or anyone in his path if he was able. Often he would return with injuries, but his sweet sister would take care of him. The boy was seeking an outlet for his fury when he heard the familiar chuckle. He'd encountered hyenas before and knew what they were capable of. Well... they would soon learn what he was capable of. Chi didn't even know that others were around until they came into his line of sight. A young girl and an older male. Both would most likely make a decent meal for the hyenas. After thinking about it for a moment, Chimera decided to intervene. Since the other male had already bitten into one of the hyenas, Chimera rushed in to scatter the pack. Jaws open wide, he latched down on the face of one hyena, using his great bulk to slam the spotted creature to the ground. The pack chittered and cackled, circling the wolves. This was bound to be fun. "Speech"

Suddenly a yearling came out of nowhere and attacked one of the hyenas. He was followed by another boy who joined the fray, snarling and scattering the hyenas. Gossamer watched fearfully as they circled. She wanted very much to run and hide. One of the hyenas dove for her but Ásta intercepted. A high-pitched, eerie sound erupted from the fox as she bit onto the hyena's face, fangs digging into one of its eyes as she thrashed and twisted. Gossamer took this as her cue to run. She took off for the brush and dove down beneath a thick shrub. However, her movement had not gone unnoticed by another hyena who took off after her. It slammed into shrub fangs snapping. As it neared her Gossamer suddenly lunged forward, her saber fangs bared as she bit through the hyenas nose. It immediately yowled and stumbled back.

Úlfr bit down as hard as he could before the hyena reached around and grabbed his scruff. He kicked off with his hind legs, pushing himself into the hyena until they both hit the ground. He bolted forward, separating himself from the hyena so he could get a better view. Another boy had joined them, close in age to Úlfr. His ferocity was immediately noted and Úlfr was glad for it as the hyenas scattered then started circling the wolves. It was true they were outnumbered but the hyenas didn't know what they were in for. Action exploded around him. One hyena went for the girl and another for the fox. Úlfr charged and grabbed hold of the butt of the hyena the girl just gave a new nose piercing to. No sooner and he grabbed tha hyena then another one slammed into him, knocking him to the ground.

With his first hyena downed, Chi moved on to the next. Teeth bit and claws scrambled as the boy unleashed, throwing his mask to the ground. Searing pain lanced through his hip as one of the hyenas attacked. The monochromatic wolf spun, taking the hyena with him. His jawed widened and he managed to bite into the back leg of the one that was biting him. Suddenly they were Ouroboros. The head eating the tail. Chimera threw his weight to the ground, throwing the hyena off balance as well. He kept his hold on the leg and thrashed his head, snapping the limb.

With two down, Concerta was able to go to the other yearlings aid. As the hyena slammed into the earthen boy, Chi was right behind it.rearing up, he sank his teeth into the back of the skull and pulled the beast away from the other boy. More teeth bit at his haunches, but they were frightened bites. The hyenas had lost their confidence.

Gossamer breathed a sigh of relief as the first yearling dragged her attacker away from her. Ásta was still locked in combat with the other hyena and worry flooded into the girls stomach. She wished she was bigger. She wished there was more that she could do but being surrounded by vicious predators really drove home just how helpless she was in the grand scheme of things. It shook her. But fear swiftly turned to anger. She watched as the hyena flipped Asta onto her back. Gossamer charged, her small jaws latched onto one of the hyena's back legs. She might be small, but her fangs were not. Her saber teeth cut right through the achilles tendon, causing the limp to go limp. As the hyena twisted around to get to her, the giant fox seized the hyena's throat and strangled it.

Úlfr quickly scrambled back to his feet knowing it was dangerous to be down for to long. He saw that the other boy was taking care of his attacker and he focused on the first hyena he'd attacked. He dove forward, slamming his frame squarely into its shoulder with enough force to sprain the limb as ligaments stretched to hold everything together. A fraction of a second later and Úlfr's jaws latched onto the hyena's skull. He bit down hard, his fangs cutting right to the bone and as he scissored them together he not only delt severe lacerations but also ripped one of the hyena's ears right off of its head. It broke away from him squealing and bolted in a bid to flee. Úlfr quickly moved toward the girl and stood over her protectively as he waited to see if there was more battles to come.

The remnants of the pack began to run off and, after a glance towards the boy and the small girl, Chimera ran after them. He wasn't finished. The longer legs of the boy made him faster than the compact, shorter legged hyenas. They yipped and squealed in alarm as Chimera launched himself into them. Teeth snapped, their lengths embedding into flesh. Blood filled his mouth. He bit and tore and the rage that had been built up within him gradually died away. In the end there was only one corpse beside him, but he'd left the rest wounded. They wouldn't forget their lesson about wolves any time soon. With sides heaving, the two-toned boy stared off after the retreating pack. They were but a speck in the distance by now. Once his breath was caught, he started on his way. Chi didn't spare a glance or a second thought to the two young wolves that he'd been battling beside. He was on his way home to have Siren look at his wounds.