10
They have run into almost total darkness as giant timbers tower, a maze of ancient fallen trees, lightning-falls, all angles, stretching away from the snowy ground.
Ianto and the rest of the men run as fast as they can, tree limbs slap and catch and tear as they plough through, emptying their lungs and come around a huge tree.
gargantuan.
They take cover in its hollow gasping, looking back...nothing. No sign of the pack...not even a single Draygorn.
"Are they there? Are they there?!" comes a hiss as Ianto struggles with the little pup clinging to him with glee, her face rubbing into his throat.
"Get as deep in here as you can." Ianto whispers and everybody squirms into the hollow, sardine-tight, winded, everybody battling for air.
"Fuck …fuck, man" Bron is in shock. Hicks, gasping- looking at the endless dark maze around them- silence—breath misting...Ianto feels it out, looks ... smells...doesn't like it.
"Forget it. We gotta keep moving." Ianto finally decides.
They look at Ianto.
Blink.
Hicks snarls with disbelief, pissed "Fuck that! You don't know what the fuck you're talking about! Don't Run/Run, get to cover/LEAVE COVER. FUCK YOU!"
"It's not enough! They can still flank us, if we can move, we have to." Ianto whispers, motioning with his spare hand for the man to stop shouting.
Idiot is alerting.
Rhonda growls softly as she turns her head to glare at the man as well, his anger disturbing her cuddle. She earned it for the love of gods, she won the game didn't she?
"We got in here! We rest! We need the rest!" Bron agrees.
"I'm not moving! Fuck you! I'm not moving!" Hicks says petulantly.
Ianto starts out of the hollow down the snowy slope, under vast fallen trees. The others are terrified and hanging back. Ianto looks back at them, almost kindly whispers "Come on. You stay here they'll overrun you."
They all get to their feet and follow Burke, Bron then, reluctantly- Hicks.
Deeper into the maze, near-black, slashes of moonlight cut the snow vertically, the dead trees loom down- ancient limbs hang covered in snow like Santa's beard.
They walk down into a gully, rocks, trees surround an ice cliff. Ianto stops.
"Here. Let's make a fire. Fast." Ianto barks and everybody looks around.
"They'll see a fire." Hicks points out.
Ianto has his pack off his shoulder, pulling pieces of wood Free "They know where we are."
Ianto looks up to see the fear, sighs, "They're waiting...we spooked 'em, I don't know but they haven't left."
"This is a fucking dead end! We're boxing ourselves in!" Hicks argues.
"They can't get in behind us." Ianto points out "They'll have to hit us out front."
"Yeah and push us off that fucking cliff!"
Ianto places lighter to kindling and watches it as it catches, "Think for a minute. Rhonda is here, you think she is alone? Jack has to find us, he will see the flames too. We need to be seen here in the fucking dark!"
Everyone stares into the dark as the fire builds slowly. For a long time, everybody just breathes.
Ianto is cuddling the baby when he senses a shift near him, placing her down to play with his backpack. She growls and wrestles with the straps as he moves to a crouch, still watching the fire as if disinterested.
Ianto doesn't move, waits as Hicks comes in low, slashing, doesn't see how close to the fire he is. Ianto drives a boot down, kicks up ash and ember hitting Hicks flush in the face, blinding him as Hicks shrieks, flails with the blade. Ianto grabs/grapples, arm-bars Hicks as little teeth and claws seize the man's boot raking his shin, taking his balance as Ianto is ripping his arm up his back—popping his shoulder at the socket.
Hicks screams, knife falling away. Ianto shoves his face towards the fire, grabs the knife, then, sensing something he looks up...and sees the ALPHA MALE, his big muzzle dripping gore, licking blood off his snout, watching the men fight...just standing there, staring. Everybody looks, gape-jawed.
Hicks rolls around, screaming in pain.
"Stop moving. Stop. It's dislocated." Ianto says to Hicks, but not taking his eyes off the Alpha.
"You piece of shit! Pop-it-back in! POP-IT-BACK-IN!" he whines as Rhonda renews her grip on the man's leg, now snarling over his body at the new threat.
Ianto plants a hand on Hicks's shoulder blade and the other around his bicep- shoves-pulls, resetting the arm in the socket. Hicks leaps up, spitting fury, seizure-like- then he sees the Draygorn...anger flashes, fades to fear fast.
The Alpha glares at Hicks, takes a small step in his direction.
Hicks trips back.
Falls.