Stjarna's curiosity drove them south into Auster to see what the reversed climate was really like though Star hadn't decided if they really wanted to go too far into the southern continent but the first territory they came to was a lush forest. It was full of several different kinds of trees and as Star ventured farther in they came to a ring of maple trees that surrounded an adorable little meadow. With a grin Star trotted out into the clearing, marveling at the wide variety of shrubs and bushes that grew there. Some had gorgeous red berries growing on them. Some of the were oddly brown and furry…. wait….

Star froze as a massive grizzly bear turned around and looked right at the wolf, berries smeared around its face. It locked eyes on the poor canine and let out a fierce roar before twisting around to chase the intruder away from its food source.

It had been a long time since he'd been in Auster, and longer yet since he'd been here. Not since he was a pup, before they'd moved to the castle. It was a little eerie, to walk here and not hear his siblings' laughter as they played in the idyllic little clearing. Cypher and Kida, sensing the oddness of his mood, remained silent wraiths beside him as he revisited old haunts. He felt somewhat like a ghost himself, wandering here, and thought he heard the phantom echoes of his childhood.

But then the echoes he heard were definitely NOT from his childhood, but rather from a very angry bear, very nearby. He spun reflexively to see that it wasn't him that had angered it, but a star-speckled monochrome male with brightly colored eyes, being faced down by a large angry grizzly. Eligos stood silently a moment, and was inclined to simply withdraw. It wasn't, after all, his problem. But Kida, usually the more pragmatic and calm of the two dogs, was already charging into the fray with a snarl ripping from her throat. Cypher glanced up at Eligos with a startled, uncertain expression before racing after his partner to back her up.

Eligos sighed, but he couldn't let them go after a bear with just a stranger for backup, of course, so he dropped himself into that battle-oriented mindset and bounded after them. They were coming at the bear from the side and slightly behind him, so they weren't immediately noticeable to the big bruin.

At least, until Kida hit him like a tiny mack truck and latched onto the back of his thigh. He roared and started to spin, but then Cypher did a slashing bite on his forepaw as he sprinted past, and the grizzly spun after him. Until Eligos hit him with a shoulder into his unprotected flank with his full weight behind it. The bear was clearly confused, in pain, and furious, and if they could just keep building on the first two they might be able to chase him off. No point in killing the bear if they could avoid it.

Stjarna turned to run. They had no intention of just fighting a giant grizzly bear if there was a chance of escape but the problem of being in unfamiliar terrain slapped the wolf right in the chest, literally. As Star turned to flee they found themselves running through a raspberry bush and getting promptly caught in the thorns. "Shit berries!" Star yelped and twisted, managing to fling their weight off the bush and onto the ground just in time to avoid the bears claws. The thorns ripped not only at the wolf's flesh and fur but the underside of the bear's paws, slicking into paw pads. The bear roared in pain and shuffled back giving Stjarna enough time to get back on their feet.

Before Star could fully register their next move, three canines came flying out of nowhere to attack the bear. Pausing to watch in fascination, Star soon realized it was time to get involved. Sprinting forward, as the bear spun to chase a male dog Star leapt at the nearest shoulder. Fangs dug deep into the bear's armpit, questing for tendons to rip and break. The bear twisted its neck trying to reach Star but the wolf was in a trick spot to reach with fangs and claws. Suddenly the bear rolled onto its left side. Star let go and scrambled out of the way. All of them made it except their tail which was pinned beneath the bear's wait, causing the wolf to yelp.

The stranger reentered the fray, much to Eli's relief. He didn't want to face down a bear with only a pair of overenthusiastic dog-pups with him. Between the four of them they had the bear swinging back and forth like he was watching a tennis match, and, off balanced and in pain, the bear fell heavily to it's side, coming down hard on the stranger's tail. Kida was instantly on it again, savaging it's hindquarters in surprising viciousness. Cypher grabbed at one of the bear's hind paws and shook it. Snarling, Eligos leaped at the bear's head in a feint, pivoting and leaping away again before the bear could swipe him with its claws. Hopefully they would distract it long enough for the stranger to regain his paws. Then they could let it up and harass it until it sought escape rather than continuing to fight.

Stjarna twisted around biting at the bear's back in an effort to get it too move in some way that would free their tail. Thankfully between Star's fangs and the other canines the bear was soon twisting around and trying to attack the others, giving Star enough time to get unstuck and back on all four feet. Pain throbbed in the wolf's tail but Star wasn't ready to back out yet. As the bear turned to swipe at the other wolf Stjarna lunged forward, fangs seizing the back of the bear's right knee. Head thrashed and ripped through fur and skin. As the bear whipped around to bite him Star leapt to the side and took off running, glancing back to see if the bear was still following but it was not. It turned once more so Stjarna started creeping back, looking for an opening. The bear, however, was hassled and growing more and more stressed. It looked like it might be looking for an escape route.

Their tactics, such as they were, appeared to be working as the harassed and demoralized bear was clearly not interested in continuing the fight against those odds. As the stranger pulled free and put some distance between their self and the bear, Eligos too leaped back to take a little of the immediate danger off the big bruin so it didn't feel so trapped. Cypher hesitated from his position at the bear's hindpaw, but Kida was still savaging its leg. Eligos leaped for its nose and snapped to distract it as it went to turn on the canine causing it so much pain. "Let it go!" he snarled to the malinois. "Out!"

Both dogs released immediately, sprinting out of reach. Eligos ducked a swipe from the bear and leaped back again, leaving the bear for the moment untouched. The grizzly hesitated for a moment, but Eligos - with the dogs taking their cue from him to do the same - barked and snarled, and feinted towards the bear, and the grizzly had had quite enough. It turned its stubby tail and limped away as quickly as it could, undoubtedly to go lick its wounds somewhere safer.

Eligos caught his breath, turning a baleful glance on the clearly unrepentant malinois who had dragged him into the fight to begin with, before turning his attention to the stranger. "Are you all right?" he questioned.