Snow blew hard across the open stretch of land. It gusted and rose up like great, white monsters. It made Eska's quarry difficult to see. The only telltale sign of the great white bear as it pushed across the land was the swath of vibrant red blood along one wide hip. Eska and her dogs had been tracking the beast for some time. They had come upon the bear, the biggest she'd ever seen, feasting on the corpse of a rogue wolf. There had been no pack scent over the smell of blood, but she couldn't let a wolf eater live. Not when the next target could be one of her packmates, her family members... No. Justice was necessary.

Eska, Baz and Avaset trailed the bear North after she had backtracked to collect her companions. By the time they reached the place where the bear had been, it was long gone. The trio of canines did their best to follow the bears scent. It too them ever northward, out of the warm weather of Auster and into the cooler, snowy climes of Boreas. None of the canines wanted to trek through the snow, but again... a wolf eater couldn't be allowed to live.

Up above, the sun was all but wiped out by the blowing snow. The trio and their quarry was in the center of a rogue squall. Cones of snow swirled up into the skies, limiting visibility. During one lapse in the storm, the bear had risen up right in front of them. The three canines had latched into its haunch and Eska had gotten a good bite in that brought blood welling into her maw. The bear had spun and swiped at her and just like that, the storm, as though it had just been taking a breath, resumed its blowing. The bear was lost in the white curtain of snow and the trio was left tracking it once more. Ah, but at least they could smell the rich tang of blood on the wind now. It would be much easier to track this way.

"Eska"

The northern regions of Boreas had been blanketed in rolling drifts of snow. Too thick, too deep, and too frozen for anyone to survive in. Pushed by the constant blowing of wintry storms, Gilgamesh took to finding solace elsewhere. While his dense fur could withstand most conditions, the weather had pressured him into moving south just for the time being. What little relief he could find from the digging fingers of hypothermia, he would take. Not having seen a single soul in quite a while, his paws trekked through the snowy plateau as the storm raged. Wind and snowflakes buffetted his medium-sized frame as his chin tucked closer to his chest. Making his way inward, he paused suddenly. Both ears flew forward as a loud bellow rang out amid the howling winds. Lifting his head, he peered into the swirls of white. Twitching his nose, taking in any scent that flew to him, four different ones finally made their way to him. Three canines, only one that he could recognize as a wolf, and one that smelled awfully like a bear. Interested, he saw three darker dots ahead of him and through the whipping winds, a trail of blood. His sight was minimal, but he headed in the direction of the group. As he made his way closer, the blood became more evident. Little wisps of scent tickled his muzzle as he searched with his yellow eyes. It was then, in that brief moment, the storm hesitated. Whistling winds died down and before him, raising up on its back paws, was a giant polar bear. Standing as tall as a tree, thicker than any redwood he'd seen before, the bear swiped at him. Bellowing loudly toward him, Gilgamesh snarled in response. Seeing the blood that trailed from its haunches, it had to be in some sort of pain. This had to be the creature the other three were tracking. Standing his ground in front of the great bear with its paws swiping angrily at him, Gilgamesh howled to get their attention. As the storm began to wind back up, the bear landed back on all fours, pressing closer to him. It wanted to move on, away from the group, but he wasn't about to let that happen. Darting between paw swipes, Gilgamesh snapped toward the bear's face. Speech

Eska's nose worked to ferret out the giant bear, but the biting snow was making it difficult. It was only thanks to a howl that she finally found the beast. The trio moved in unison towards the howl and the blowing powder parted to reveal the bear approaching a mottled colored man. Baz and Ava parted ways from their mistress and circled the bear. As the ursine neared the man, two sets of teeth bit into either hip, the dogs heads lashing back and forth to rend and tear.

As the bear turned to meet its attackers, the silver brindled fae pushed off, her teeth finding one thick heel. Curved killing teeth sank in and Eska did much the same as the dogs, thrashing her head to and fro in an attempt to damage the tendon and hobble it. Obviously, the bear didn't like this, because who would? An ear shattering roar sounded and Eska was jerked off of her paws for a moment before she let go and rolled across the snowy ground. In proper form, the dogs ran interference, the Groenendael and Malinois doing their part to keep the attention off of Eska until she rose. The woman spared a glance at the grey and russet brute before she shook off her fall and prepared to jump back into the fight. This bear needed to die.
"Eska"

As Gilgamesh danced out of harm's way, the bear's claws barely swiping around his muzzle, the snow continued to whirl and twirl around him. The bear was growing more agitated as it wanted to leave. He could see the fury in its eyes as the trio drew closer behind. Relief washed over Gil as a giant paw met his shoulder, knocking him off balance. Landing deftly into a snowbank, Gil took a moment to catch his breath, already aching from the massive bruise now acquired on his shoulder. Before the beast could reach over and attempt to end his life, the two canines Gil had never seen before lunged. Attaching their jaws to the bear's hips, he was amazed at their ferocity in how they thrashed their grips back and forth. Distracted now, Gil rose back onto his paws. How could he resist helping to take down this white-cloaked monster? His insides twisted with excitement as his yellowed eyes watched the girl go for its heel. Catching the she-wolf's glance in his direction, he took this as his hint to jump in and help. Flattening his ears, Gil shoved through the snow and toward the still distracted beast. The bear had dropped to all fours, switching left and right in an attempt to knock the other dogs off of its haunches. Taking this as his chance for a deadly blow, Gil slunk up as it was turning back and lunged up toward the bear's throat. It was a risky move, utmost the most dangerous, but also the quickest at taking it out. Thankfully, his hold latched onto the side of its neck. His teeth sank in, jaw clamping tight as his eyes closed for a moment. The bear roared in fury once more, shaking its head wildly. Gil was lifted into the air, his body snapping back and forth. Impossible to hold his paws on the ground in so much snow, he was in for one wild ride. Speech

With the dogs pulling the bear from either side, it allowed the brute enough time to dive in face first. Eska visibly winced as he went straight for the bears throat. This wasn't a grizzle and so there wasn't that wide layer of fat around the bears jaw, but still... it was a bear. Baz and Ava changed tactics, taking up where their mistress left off and attacking the tendons in the ursine's heels. If the stranger was going to risk his life like that, they needed to up their game and help as much as possible.

With the bear whipping back and forth, trying to rid itself of its attackers, it was difficult for Eska to gauge its motion so that she could make a strategic attack. Thankfully, Baz managed to pull the bears right hind leg out from under it and the pallid beast crashed down to one knee. Its thrashing stilled and Eska took this chance to make her attack.

Like lightning, the silver streaked woman ducked below the bears head, following suit and sinking her own teeth into the opposite side of the bears throat. Avaset had switched from the bears heels and was now rending flesh in one from paw. The beast fought against them, but in the end it would be to no avail. It seemed that the mottled brute had severed an artery. Where there had once been white snow was now a pool of red beneath them. They'd all be a mess after this, but it would be worth it.

Gradually, the bears strength waned and it dropped to the ground. Eska's hind paws had touched earth first, so she was ready for it and thus didn't get crushed beneath the beasts girth. She had to adjust her bite just the slightest bit, but held on until the bears heart beat its last. Only then did she release and step back, her bloodied maw parting as she panted, sides heaving, trying to catch her breath.

"Eska"

Gilgamesh could swear he could feel his brain start rattling around in his skull. Sure, he wasn't the smartest wolf when it came to tactics, but he was ballsy. It appeared to work because the thrashing from the bear slowed. Having been able to give the other three enough time to change attack points and press forward into taking down the bear, his insides felt solace from not having to be tossed around like a ragdoll anymore. In the midst of the chaos, Gil's attention was quickly brought to the female who sprang up to the bear's other side. Now that they were close to each other, he noticed the brindling of her coat. A moment later, blood was pouring down his chin and into his mouth. Surprisingly and thankfully, he had been able to pierce an artery. The bear's strength and roaring sounds were dying off as the life left its eyes. No longer dizzy from being tossed back and forth, Gil repositioned his hold so he could stay attached and also not be squished by the beast as it crashed into the snow. The heartbeat he felt seconds before was gone now as his paws touched down. His mouth was full of blood and hardly able to breathe, Gil finally let go and stepped back. Coughing up what blood he could from his body, he sucked in cold harsh air. Panting deeply as he eyed their kill, Gil felt proud. Smiling, Gil looked over at the girl and her two companions. What was this feeling he felt? It was more than awe at their determination and skill. Confused and slightly shocked from the beating he'd received, he realized how cold and tired he felt. A shiver ran down his spine as his breathing leveled out. Losing the smile, he waited for her to speak. Speech

Great heaving breaths of the frigid air were pulled into the fae's lungs as she fought to pump some much needed oxygen back into her body. Eska's head hung lower than her shoulders and she gave them a roll, testing her muscles. Not too long ago she'd suffered a pretty severe injury to those very muscles, so she was worried that she might have tweaked them again, but that was not the case. Aside from the usual soreness that a body felt after such a battle, she felt fine.

Sulfur colored orbs shifted to look at Avaset and Baz first, checking their well being. Once she was sure that the dogs were okay, she looked to the stranger. He'd been rather helpful. Without him, the hunt and kill would have taken significantly longer. After a visual inspection to assess him for injuries, Eska nodded. Surprisingly, the storm was slowly petering out as though it had been waiting for their battle to end.

The obsidian and silver fae stepped forward and gave a nod to the brute. Her smooth, low tones crossed the distance between them. "Thank you for your assistance. That one liked to eat wolves." With a push of her skull, she motioned towards the dead bear as it lay in an ever growing pool of blood. "I'm Eska. And you?" Black ears pricked forward as she waited to see if the man would give his name in turn. As she conversed with the wolf, the dogs had set to skinning the massive ursine. A polar bear fur was huge and would definitely come in handy.

"Eska"

Around them, the howling wind died to a quiet whistle. Snow flurries danced around their bodies as a shiver coursed its way; reminding him of the adrenaline that will soon leave his body. The surge of excitement he felt earlier was replaced with pride that overcame him after every kill. This polar bear had been his biggest yet and he couldn't help but smile again. Being alive and having prey be multiple times your own size was something to brag about. Pulling himself out of his reverie, both eyes wandered back over to the she-wolf with slight curiosity. Surprisingly, both of them had made it out hardly scathed. Watching the female closely, his gaze met hers. She was bold, stepping toward him with a nod of her head. It was not often that the splotchy coated wolf was in close quarters with others. He preferred to keep his distance from anyone. Alone was better than any drama he could ever want. Yet, when she thanked him and explained the reasoning for their onslaught, he merely shrugged in response. There was no reason to thank him. He enjoyed killing and hunting, it was in his blood. As for the reason? For Gil, just looking at him the wrong way was reason enough. "Gilgamesh," was all he offered as his tail waved lazily behind him. Why waste his breath with unimportant words? "We did well," the words slipped out in a quiet rumble of a tone. One ear flicked back, masking the fact that he was surprised with himself. Clearing his throat, he glanced over to the pair of dogs to distract himself from the formidable female standing so close to him. "They know how to skin?" Gil asked, openly curious.

Trails of steam ghosted from Eska's dusty blue nares as she breathed the frigid air. She finally caught her breath and in catching her breath, the cold began to sink in. They would have to be on the move soon unless they aimed to freeze out here. Eska wasn't sure about the dogs and the mottled man, but she wasn't ready to turn into a meat popsicle just yet.

The man offered his name as Gilgamesh and Eska accepted it with a nod. The silvered fae turned her attention to the dogs as he pointed them out. One bro on the masked dame's face rose in questioning amusement. Avaset the Malinois gave a growl of annoyance as the words caught her ears and mumbled under her breath. Both Baz and Eska chuckled. She supposed that not everyone was familiar with companions and assumed that he was much less familiar with companions of the canine persuasion. "Dogs are basically the same as us, so of course they can skin. Anything that we can do, they can do."

Eska continued to watch as her companions cut away the last of the sinew holding the skin to the bear. Together, the black dog and brown dog folded and rolled the wet skin. They would haul it back to The Hallows to be processed. It was much warmer there. If Eska had tried to scrape the skin here, she would be working against the freezing snow and thus, working against herself. It was difficult to scrape away flesh when it was freezing while you worked.

Eska never had been one for pleasantries or idle chat. She said what needed to be said. Did what needed to be done. When it was over, she left. With a nod to the brute in a second silent gesture of thanks, Eska, Avaset and Baz began their trek back home.


"Eska"