In the Weeds

It had been just over a season since Artorias had made his way up to Boreas. The Long Night had made it difficult to leave his pack's lands, especially when his wolves started to get sick—himself included. The last time he'd been up this way had been for the unproductive meeting of the alphas at the onset of the cataclysm, but since the ending of the would-be apocalypse, he'd heard precious little. Sirius and Briar had come to visit to share news of the Armada's survival, but that was all. He thought of the other packs up north and wondered how everyone on the other continent had fared. And so, with Ulric tending to the Hallows, Artorias began to explore.

It had been a while since the young alpha had gone off exploring and roaming on his own just to the hell of it. It reminded him of the simpler times in his short life, back before all the responsibilities of the world had crashed down on his shoulders, when all he had to worry about was getting his chores done and then deciding what he wanted to do with his day. Traveling and exploring made him feel alive, and he made a mental note to carve out time to do it more often. His path north had led him along the coast to the Rio Grande, and then up to an old apple orchard. He still smelled the Fireside pack's scents lingering in the nearby terrains, so he knew they had survived the apocalypse. So far, so good...

Turning eastward, Artorias started to make his way towards Ashen lands, trying to take a shortcut through some overgrowth along the edges of the orchard. What Artorias hadn't expected, however, was for most of the overgrowth to be more bramble bushes than weeds. Slinking his way past the harmful plants, the dark-furred brute began to navigate the area like a maze, eventually emerging at a small clearing amongst the thickets with only a few minor nicks to speak of along his legs and sides. Dense strawberry and raspberry bushes grew here, an odd softness amongst the sharp thorns, and rays of warm sunlight streamed in from the thick canopy overhead that obscured the sky and shaded the bramble. Deciding to take a short break, Artorias sat on his haunches beside one of the strawberry plants, idly picking the fresh red berries and popping them in his mouth, enjoying the sweetness on his palate while he studied the area and tried to plot his course out.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Argent"