The disgusting little bastards was fast, no doubt about it. Almost as soon as she hit the ground they started working on her arms, bending them back and securing them with thick, coarse rope behind her back. Judging from Pylea's panicked shrieks she was in a similar predicament. Ember could feel them starting on her legs as well, but she wasn't going to make it easy for them. She wasn't going to take this lying down! Or...well, she was, she had little choice, but she wasn't gonna just roll over! Wait...crap. She wasn't giving up without a fight! Yeah, that's more like it.<br/>She kicked and screamed, flailing around on the cold ground as much as she could. She sent the frog-goblin things flying in every direction. But, while being quite satisfying, it was in the end rather pointless. One on one they were no match for her, but when a dozen or so threw themselves on her legs there weren't much she could do. They started working on her legs again, she could feel the rope bite into her skin. She was powerless, it was so frustrating she could cry.<br/><br/>A great bellow from somewhere out in the storm chilled Ember to the bone. It even gave the goblins pause, their chatter died out as they listened.<br/>It sounded like a huge, angry and wounded beast. As if the frogs hadn't  been enough.<br/>Something huge came barreling through the storm towards them. It seemed to appear out of thin air, it's fur blending in with the snow.<br/>It ran right over Ember, who saw what little she could remember of her life flash before her eyes. But the creature's mighty hooves never touched her. The froglins weren't so lucky, those standing in the way of the fearsome charge were completely annihilated. Those left alive scattered, gibbering madly.<br/>The Beast stalked a wide circle around the two girls, it's heavy breaths sending plumes of smoke from it's flared nostrils. But the Beast wasn't facing the center of the circle, it was facing the froglins, seemingly daring them to take one step closer. For now, none of them accepted the challenge, but they weren't fleeing either. They remained, just outside of the Beast's reach. One particularly brave frog took a hesitant step closer and was immediately smashed into a pulp. The rest of them seemed to get the message.<br/><br/>Ember could feel hands on her, human hands. Orange hands. So Pylea was free. It made sense, as long as she had some juice left she should've been able to burn through the ropes.<br/>Ember was helped up on her feet by her friend, her arms still bound though. And so they probably would remain for now, because Pylea just stood there, mouth open, staring at the Beast that for some reason seemed to be protecting them.<br/>It was huge, Ember didn't even stand as tall as it's shoulders. It's fur was a pristine white, but it was stained by blood. The red, human kind, not the froggy slime. Ember hadn't noticed before in all the confusion, but the Beast had numerous broken arrow shafts sticking out from his body.<br/>The Beast looked like the minotaur from the myths, massive and humanoid but with hooves and the head of a bull, with horns and everything. He walked back and forth like a caged, wounded animal. An animal, yet Ember saw something strangely familiar in it's eyes.<br/>"Hannibal?"