This was not the first horse Xavier had lost in service to the Order, but it was certainly the most terrifying lose he had experienced.  For a moment he thought the forest was on fire, the smell of burnt flesh and ash was heavy in the air.  The creature was something of a nightmare, Xavier had barely blinked the sleep from his eyes before they watered from the smoke and soot.  He barely had his sword unsheathed before a hot shower of horse blood reined down upon him and the small area of the corral.  The terror of the horse was mercifully cut short as the jaws enclosed and swallowed the poor beast.  Xavier swung his blade with both hands over his head with all his might, intending to cut the throat of the creature open but as it swallowed the horse it once again became ethereal.  The expected contact with the beast didn't occur and Xavier's balance was thrown forward, instead of  fighting his momentum he let himself fall forward, he tucked and swerved, letting his momentum take him towards the ass end of the creature.  He hoped that would be the less dangerous end of the hellish beast but the heat of the body was still palpable in the air.<br/><br/>Xavier braced himself for the creature to return to this world and turn on him, clearly on the defensive at this point. To make things worse he heard the approach of his quarry.  The timing couldn't really be worse though perhaps they would find the creature a bigger threat than himself, though that wasn't really a consolation.  He whispered a small prayer under his breath, there was no magical divine power but it steadied his nerves and helped him focus.  One problem at a time he told himself, if he didn't deal with the beast the witches and their thief mattered little.