Since the incident with the overgrown house cat, Kove had taken to sticking nearer to the borders than usual. Any time that he could be, he was there, keeping an eye out to ensure no one else was lost to the claws of those beasts. With him being so close to the open fields that surrounded the woods, he'd noticed the shift in brightness, but hadn't thought much of it until the first wave of insects had started towards him. He had known not of what they were or the threat they presented, for locusts were far from a common find in his place of birth. The land up north had been free of the insects, leaving him unprepared for their persistence. It wasn't long, though, before he'd understood the trouble that came with them—rather, he'd started to grow annoyed with them, and was eager to relieve himself of their seemingly endless assault. And so, it was with the tunnels in mind that he'd departed from the borders, heading deeper into the woods while constantly nipping at the bugs that tried to cling to him. It wasn't long after that before he'd heard Nemesis' call, the tone of urgency forcing him to move quicker and locate her.

It'd taken him a bit to reach her, having been a ways off when she'd called, but he'd arrived in time to hear her voice. Still, he was a short distance away, perhaps undetectable in the oncoming chaos, but it wasn't long before he'd drawn up next to her right side. "Nem," he'd called gently, feeling it unnecessary to speak any louder when he was next to her. "What are these bugs? Do you know?" Oblivious was he to the danger that infested their home.

Quickly, others had arrived, one of them being Burke. He seemed just as confused as the man was, having had not previous encounters with the locusts. For now, Kove did not question him, deciding to drop it and focus on Nemesis—who had answered his questions. Apparently, the bugs posed a great danger to them, having the capability of eating every plant that surrounded them. He was glad they did not exist from where he'd come, and had hoped for a moment that Teekon was just as frozen as his birthplace. But no amount of wishing could alter the climate, and it sure as hell couldn't drive the bugs away. Thus, he needed to adapt, and hope that everyone came out of it alive. He was focused more on them than he was his son, for often was the boy away and on his own. He simply nodded, responding to everything said at once, before moving towards the tunnel. Yet, despite knowing that he should, the Inuit did not descend down into the earth's protection.

"Nemesis, come on," he'd urged, prodding her side slightly with his nose. "Xan will come when he is ready, but he will be fine until then." After all, they were only bugs, right? Their target was the plants, not the flesh of wolves. "Trust me, he will be okay, but you and I must find a place to settle and wait for him until he arrives." Until she decided to follow, he would not move from his place at her side. He, too, was familiar with the tunnels, even if it'd been quite some time since he'd last traversed them. The way in which one traveled through them was a lesson he could never forget, though, and so he was fine with waiting even if Kendra were to leave their sight in the meantime.