*been stuck at work since 0700 and will probably be here well into the day tomorrow. Thanks Winter Storm Stella you salty cunt :x Oh well, at least I'm getting some writing done. Tally ho!

1 hour earlier…

In all honesty, Gladio loved the snow. Not so much when he was in Insomnia, when all it did was cause accidents and slip hazards and school closures before turning to a salty slush that ruined your boots. Out here in nature though, it was gorgeous. More often than not it would be an untouched blanket as far as the eye could see, only broken by the odd rabbit or deer path. Which happen to be what he was looking for at the moment anyway.

Even though the snow was falling in earnest and he had his eyes glued to the ground in front of him, Gladio regularly looked up to get his bearings and double check the compass embedded in the side of his pocket knife. It wasn't long before he came across some fresh tracks of something that might have been a turkey or maybe a royalisk chick. Gladio was hoping for the former of the two. Chicks rarely strayed far from Mama and he didn't feel like dealing with a giant angry bird at the moment.

Fortunately, these tracks walked solo. Probably a lone tom or jake out for a stroll to look for some hens. He followed them for a way, making notes of the path it took. Turkeys were creatures of habit so he could probably post up somewhere nearby once it stopped snowing.

Soon something changed in the prints as he followed them. They became erratic and darted off into a zig-zag of directions before vanishing completely. Turkeys could fly, but not well. Gladio looked up to see if maybe it roosted somewhere…oh.

There was a splash of crimson on the snow and feathers everywhere.

The snow was covered in wonky, mismatched prints. Gladio bent down to get a better look at them as snow caked on the back of his jacket and on his hat. There were a few long, gray, wire like hairs mixed with the feathers as he looked. It wasn't until he saw one clear print with a pad, three regular toes, and one enormous claw did his stomach do a flip.

Havocfangs. At least three of them, and Gladio was fairly certain that one turkey wasn't going to satisfy a small pack.

He stood up slowly and scanned the area as the snow was already covering the sanguine evidence of the kill. The problem with havocfangs were that they were pretty smart as far as their type went. While they didn't normally travel in very big packs, they were exceptionally good at reading their pray. If they were watching him and Gladio froze, then they would know he'd seen them and attack. If he ran, then their instincts would kick in and they would give chase as well. His best bet was to find his way back to the cabin as quickly as possible without actually running before they saw him.

Breathe normally, Gladio, he told himself. Just walk like you're taking a stroll through the woods. That's all. He stood up, dusted the snow off his shoulders as a play to look as casual as he could and he began to walk back toward the cabin.

He had been walking for about ten minutes when he began to relax. Maybe that one turkey was enough to take care of a pack for the time being. He pulled out his compass and checked it again to make sure he was going in the right direction when he heard a twig snap behind him.

Fuuuuuucccccckkkkkkkkk.

It took all the composure he had to not turn around and to continue to move forward as if he wasn't being stalked. He lowered his hands to the side and wiggled his fingers, itching to summon his great sword from the ether. The downside being that he was still surrounded by trees. He would have a hard time maneuvering his sword without getting it wedged into the side of an oak.

Instead he opened the blade to his pocket knife. It was only four inches long but it was sharp and it was better than nothing.

On top of everything, it was getting dark. Ignis was probably getting worried by now and soon he might have to deal with daemons too.

Why did he have to go walking in the woods so close to dark? Why? Fucking idiot.

A bead of sweat dripped down the side of his face despite the cold. He could hear the scrape of enormous claws against the snow maybe thirty feet behind him. He darted his eyes to either side, knowing that if one was that close behind there were almost certainly one or two flanking him. He didn't see anything to his left or right, but when he looked forward again he froze.

Shit. Wasn't supposed to do that.

An alpha havocfang with back spines the length of Gladio's forearm and yellow empty eyes looked at him hungrily. It let out a deep, almost inaudible, yowl and Gladio heard the snow behind him shift.

He barely had enough time to summon his shield before the smaller havocfang attacked him from behind. Its face collided with the shield with a 'thrum', its hooked limbs wrapped around the edge of it as it reared up with an angry yowl. Gladio didn't waste any time as he lifted its upper body up enough to expose its underbelly. He thrust his knife in at its pelvis and quickly pulled up, disemboweling it in an acrid spray of blood before shoving it to the side.

He wasn't so lucky in blocking the second one as it latched down onto the arm holding the knife. It shook its head and bit down harder as Gladio felt teeth dig into his flesh. He could feel his shirt already begin to soak through with blood as he gripped his shield and brought the edge of it down onto the beasts face. It let out a screech and let go, staggering back and shaking its head. Gladio crouched down and held his shield up between them. "Come on," he growled back at it. It snarled and attacked.

In a sparkle of blue light Gladio banished his shield and summoned his sword before thrusting it straight forward into the havocfangs chest. The beast twitched, gurgled, and crumpled to the ground dead. Gladio didn't even have the time to pull the sword out before he was yanked off his feet and dragged back, dropping his pocket knife. The alpha had him by the ankle and gave his leg a violent shake before dodging a swing of his sword. It leaped back and glared at him from beneath its mane.

Thankfully Gladio was still able to stand, but when he did his vision began to blur around the edges and the world seemed to lurch out from under him. He fell to one knee as his sword vanished in a blue blaze. He tried summoning it again but his shield appeared for an instant instead before disappearing again.

The havocfang gave a caterwaul of laughter before circling him in a wide arc. Gladio had killed two of its pack, and now lay stricken with confusion and bleeding out. It's toying with me, Gladio thought as his head swam. He tried summoning anything again to no avail. He had to get back to the cabin or this thing was going to wait until he was too weak to fight it off, and kill him.

On top of all that the snow was only coming down harder.

Gladio stood up, his head already soaked in the confusing toxins from the bites. He had to figure out which way to go and get there fast, or he was going to die. He couldn't remember which way he was walking. There was no sun as a reference and his compass was gone. He looked down at the snow and saw his fading footprints coming from the forest behind him, so he turned and set off in the same direction he was going initially. The havocfang kept its distance, but followed him. It had all the time in the world. He did not.

Staggering through the woods he gripped his arm in an attempt to slow the blood loss. He cringed to think what his arm looked like under his jacket, but at the moment he didn't have the luxury to care. He glanced back, his mind vaulting violently at the motion, to see that the beast was nowhere in sight. But it was there. He was certain it was there.

He trudged through the shin deep snow for entirely too long. He should have reached the cabin by now and he was sure the sun was about to set if it hadn't already. Either way…

Gladio began to think of his father and sister. How disappointed his family would be if the royal body guard died on a stupid hunting trip. Would they even find his body? Would there be anything left of him? Probably not.

"…ladio!"

He perked his ears. Someone was calling his name. Gladio looked around and noticed that there was a bright light coming from the forest off to his left.

The cabin. He must have walked wide of it. Turning toward it he caught the shine of yellow eyes in the trees to his right. "Gladio!" Ignis called again. He took off sprinting toward the voice. The snow laden earth sinking heavy under his feet as he ran.

Finally, he saw Ignis' shadow against the glow of the cabin. His wounded leg burned intensely with every step. When he was only a few feet from the strategist, his strength gave out and he fell onto his knees in front of him. Ignis was saying something, but he couldn't hear it over the heartbeat in his ears. Gladio looked back again to see the alpha havocfang running towards them. Clearly annoyed that its prey had found friends. If it got to him now Gladio didn't think he even had the strength to block it.

Suddenly there was a flash of blue light and Ignis was standing between him and the beast, daggers drawn. Ignis wound one arm back and threw his dagger at the charging beast. The blade lodged itself squarely in between its yellow eyes as it fell forward and slid to a halt inches from where Ignis stood. Gladio watched as Ignis pulled out his blade and gave another stab to the side of the beasts' head for good measure before banishing his blades again.

That was the last thing Gladio remembered before the welcome embrace of unconsciousness took him.