Peace was never an option

Artorias had spent many months and seasons dwelling on the prospect of expanding the Hallows' territories as the pack's population continued to grow with wolves seeking asylum or a chance to start a new life and make a difference in the world. The young Aegis was bold and ambitious; he didn't want to turn away anyone looking for a fresh start, and so the need to grow the pack had arisen amongst his focuses. He'd scouted the neighboring lands to the Hallows and after much deliberating and pensive discussions with Briar and Ezra, had settled on claiming the Wildberry Grove for the Hallows. Not only was the land a lush forest that provided ample amounts of fresh fruit for the wolves to enjoy and use in their wine manufacturing, but it was also the mouth of Auster, and having the Hallows be the pseudo gatekeepers to the continent would provide protection to the rest of the wolves in the southern lands by extension.

There was just one small problem. Bears. The massive omnivores enjoyed collecting and eating the fallen fruit from the trees and seeking out honey from the hives bees had build amongst the trees. The land was a veritable buffet for them, so of course driving them off was going to be a necessary step to staking their claim. Artorias led his party across the northern border of the Hallows and into the wild lands of the grove intent to do just that today. Under the scorching summer sun, the shade of the trees was a welcome reprieve. Already he could smell at least one of the massive balls of fur and fat, his nose crinkling up at the stench it left behind. He had opted not to bring his sword with him for this endeavor; they didn't need to kill the bear, just drive it off. "Remember, we don't need to kill any predators we find. We just need to stake our claim," he reminded the others before picking up the pace into a steady lope through the trees, fanning out and moving with tactical precision through the woods.

The Aegis followed the musky scent through the grove until he spotted the bear—a sizable grizzly—sitting amongst a bunch of elderberry bushes, happily munching away without a care in the world. It was almost enough to make the Carpathian feel bad, but sorry, Mister Bear, the Hallows needed this land more than you needed a snack. "All right, let's do this!" Fangs bared, Artorias charged forward to draw the bear's attention, kicking off the fight and allowing his team to move into position. If the bear didn't back down, then it would be a brutally unfair 4v1.

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