The Sparse Pines

Moving along from the wreckage of the S.S. Antiox and heading south, Artorias and Briar continued their northern exploration trip by crossing the ice fields and into the tundra that led them down to the thinly wooded sparse pine forest. Artorias vaguely remembered this place from his diplomacy trip with Ulric. This was where the two Hallows wolves had come to try to make contact with the pack's alpha, and where they had ultimately been ignored and left empty-handed. This time, however, Artorias would be freely wandering the lands, becoming familiar with the thinly distributed forest that looked more like a dotting of trees than an actual wooded thicket. The air was scented heavily of pine, with towering spruce trees looming high overhead. Artorias gazed up at them in wonder. They were much different than the deciduous forests of Auster, that was for sure!

"This is where Ulric and I came when we tried to meet with Incendium almost two years back," the Aegis explained to his Queen, large blue paws carrying him leisurely between the wide trunks of the pine trees. Although it was spring and there was no snow on the ground, the air was still cool, and it was even colder within the woods, where sunlight was filtered out and the wind was free to ripple and blow between the tree trunks. "I haven't been back up this way since then, but it looks pretty much the same from what little I remember."

"Artorias Carpathius"