" what are you doing behind a boulder? " She asked Puck.

"Getting ready to run. Obviously."

Grim sauntered up to the giant, looking like a fuzzy mouse compared to Tom's bulk. Gazing up at the body, he twitched his tail, crouched, and leaped onto the giant's chest. The giant didn't move. Perhaps Grimalkin was too light for him to even notice. The cat turned and sat down, curling his tail around his feet and watching us bemusedly. "Dead," he called to them. "Quite dead, in fact. You can stop cringing in abject terror if you like. I swear, how you survive with noses like that, I will never know. I could smell his stink a mile away."

"Hes dead?" Ash immediately walked forward, brow furrowing. "Strange. Cold Tom was one of the strongest in his clan. How did he die?"

Isiea follows him, leading Ares.

" well at least thats one less problem for us. And another added on. "

Ares follows.

"You know nothing," Ash replied. His gaze swept over the corpse, eyes narrowed. "This giant was strong, one of the strongest. Something killed him, within our territory. I want to know what could've taken Cold Tom down like this."

Blue veins stood out around his eye sockets and in his neck. Whatever killed him, it wasnt quick.

Then a metal spider crawled out of his mouth.

" oh look. It's a metal spider. Thats not normal right? "

"Iron fey." Isiea guesses flatly.

The huge arachnid skittered away, over Tom's face and up a wall. Ash drew his sword, but Puck gave a shout and hurled a rock at it. The stone hit the spider dead on; with a flash of sparks the bug plummeted to the ground, landing with a metallic clink on the flagstones.

The fey approached cautiously, Ash with his sword drawn, Puck with a good-size rock. But the insect thing lay broken and motionless on the ground, almost smashed in two. Up close, it looked less spidery and more like those face-hugger things from Aliens, except it was made of metal. "Another of Machinas iron fey?" Ash muttered. For once, the unflappable fey sounded almost...terrified.

Isiea walks right over and picks it up, inspecting it.

" I think ive seen one of those before. " She said, staring at it.