RuneScape Forum Archive | The Roads We Must Travel

Inferi

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-timeskip for Harry, the early arrival-

For the one on horseback and reliant only on their own pace, the trip was much shorter than it would be for everyone else. Finding the outpost wasn’t difficult, as there was nothing else along the way that could be mistaken for the place. As the young woman had described, it was up on the top of a hill, a couple buildings sitting outside a larger stone building with an attached tower. Lights were on in both buildings as well as the stone building, and nothing seemed to be amiss from a first glance. There were no walls, either, giving a clear view of the area around the buildings.

As he approached, though, it became clear that, although something wasn’t exactly wrong, something wasn’t right either. As the distance got smaller and smaller, it was more obvious what wasn’t right: there was no noise. Nothing seemed to be happening despite the lights on. He couldn’t hear any voices in the otherwise silent night, no sounds of anything happening in any of the buildings, and not even any nightlife in the immediate area.

The only reason this was truly odd was because an attack was expected, but because of that it would linger in the mind of someone trying to find something wrong here. Further exploration might give a reason for this, but it was his choice where he might go. Of the two buildings outside the more obvious barracks area that was the stone building, one looked like an inn and tavern while the other looked more like a stable or barn. The stable was the first one he would come to if he came in via the path leading off the road, with the tavern being the next before the barracks. Done in by the dubious doings of destiny.

04-Oct-2018 20:47:24

NotFishing

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Harry Richard

The outpost was well-located, that much could be said. It was on high ground, which not only made it more defensive, but also gave it a vantage point over the few thousand feet of flat land surrounding it. Nobody would be catching this place by surprise - at least not during the day.

There was one rather glaring issue, however - there were no walls, no barriers. Not even a fence. Being able to see an attack coming meant little if you had nothing to hide behind. Of course, this place likely wasn't intended to ward off full-scale attacks, but nonetheless, it seemed like poor planning.

The lights were on, but given the time that actually seemed more suspicious than normal.

He spurred his mount onward at a light trot, slowing down some distance before the outpost itself, as he soon took note of the distinct lack of noise. Had even some of the lights been off, that would not have been an issue - people needed to sleep, after all.

With a feeling of trepidation, Harry veered off the road, and circled around to the other side of the outpost. Then, he slowly began to ascend the hill, into the outpost itself. Out of caution, he placed a hand on the shotgun within his jacket. Beneath the gold, the Bitter Steel.

07-Oct-2018 14:50:08 - Last edited on 07-Oct-2018 14:56:13 by NotFishing

Inferi

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Outpost

Harry’s approach from behind would certainly mean that he wouldn’t be noticed by anyone watching the front, but it also meant that he wouldn’t get too far without having to circle around the building. The stone building, which would be the first one he would come to should he come in from the side opposite where the road entered the building, had no windows or doors on the side that he was approaching from. It did look to have something of a fortress-top roof, which the last couple floors extending tower-like from the center of the roof, but that was not an entrance unless he scaled the twenty feet or so of building to get up there.

It looked empty from this side as well, with nobody watching his approach lane from the roof and nobody outside on that side of the building. The building itself was rectangular in shape, and if he was approaching from the center area of the wall neither side of the building stretching towards the front would be visible. He could circle around if he didn’t want to try and figure something out from here, and if he did moving to the left would bring him closer to the tavern while the right would bring him closer to the stable.

A quick look at either side would reveal the same thing about the back: there was no entrance and no windows. The walls on all sides were rather smooth, making climbing without some kind of aid difficult, and adding to this was the fact that it was dark outside the stone building. The lack of windows meant the only lighting of the walls would be that which came from the other two buildings, and that was very limited as well since there were few outside lights. Only the stable even had any, and they were mostly limited to the opposite side, where the road came into the outpost. Done in by the dubious doings of destiny.

07-Oct-2018 20:23:59

NotFishing

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Harry Richard

Nobody appeared to have noticed him, which provided further evidence that the outpost was devoid of life. Surely, even a small post like this would have at least a sentry or two, and the best place to post such a lookout would be on the roof.

He frowned. That could only mean one of two things. Either the outpost was abandoned (its inhabitants having left in a hurry) or the attack had already happened, and there were no survivors.

He dismounted Diligence. "Stay, boy," he whispered calmly, rubbing it lightly on the side.

Glancing up at the roof, he considered his actions. Although he had a rope stashed away somewhere in one of his horse's saddlebags, climbing the main building would be extremely taxing, not to mention dangerous, and there was no sense wasting energy or risking his life when there might have been a safer way up.

Keeping his hand on his weapon, he crept around the edge of the main building, and peered around the corner. If the coast did happen to be clear, he would then sneak all the way around to the other side and try to open the front door. Beneath the gold, the Bitter Steel.

07-Oct-2018 23:18:39 - Last edited on 08-Oct-2018 01:14:11 by NotFishing

Inferi

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Outpost

The coast was clear, and nobody was watching him. However, in looking around, Harry would notice that there was, at the very least, one other person that was at the outpost. Through one of the windows of the tavern, he would see a young woman, in her late teens, sitting at a table and eating whatever meal was on the table in front of her. She was dressed in fairly average traveling clothes, and her back was to Harry. Apart from her, nobody else was visible in the room.

Since she did not seem to be aware of Harry, he was able to make it to the front door of the stone building undetected. The door, a large double door made of heavy wood and metal, was closed. It was not locked, though, and if Harry wanted to he would be able to open it and get inside. There were still no sentries around, but in the faint light being emitted from the lanterns on the stables and above the double door let him know that there seemed to be a fair number of footprints in the dirt road leading up to the door. Done in by the dubious doings of destiny.

08-Oct-2018 00:11:39 - Last edited on 08-Oct-2018 00:12:06 by Inferi

George Rozas

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Moments later they were off, the man with the horse taking off ahead of them as the rather motley crew gathered and made to follow. Joining them, somewhat unexpectedly, was a young woman who Isaac briefly remembered spotting taking cover beneath a table when the fighting began. She appeared armed, but with her first instinct having been to not take part in the fighting he couldn't say he was confident in her skills.

The tense silence was broken by the one leading them asking what they were capable of. Isaac, who was walking near the head of the pack - a couple steps to one side of the woman - glanced her way and shifted his gear's weight.

" Most of my career has been exterminating monsters and dealing with bandits, so I'm pretty good with my rifle - don't count on me for sharpshooting though, " He said, choosing to be next to speak up to the group. It wasn't that he was bad at long distance shooting, he'd just been neglecting his sharpshooting training in favour of his blade usage. Speaking of which... " I'm better with my sword. Novice rank practitioner of the Cleaving Blade style, I'm more effective when I can swing without risking friendlies getting caught in my arcs. "

It wasn't exactly a full readout of what he was trained for, but as a soldier she would probably know the gist of such things anyway - and knowing fighting capabilities was the most pressing info.

For a moment Isaac thought he was done, but he sharply reminded himself of something and spoke again before anyone else could start up.

" Introductions would be good as well, hard to strategize when nobody knows whose who. " He turned his head to look back and around at everyone. " Corporal Isaac Hallow, Karnv 5th Light Infantry Division. " I am Inferi.

08-Oct-2018 00:22:24

NotFishing

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Harry Richard

Someone else was here... but he had still seen no sign of anyone else. Was she a traveler who just happened among the place and found it empty? Were there other people in the tavern with her? Did she have some connection to the attack that may or may not have already happened? What about the other buildings?

He noted a fair number of footprints, but there was nothing suspicious about that. They could have just been from the outpost's inhabitants, before they... died? Disappeared? Fell asleep? Come to think of it, why weren't there any bodies outside ? If the attackers wanted the outpost to appear as if nothing was amiss, there was a lot more they should have done on top of that. So had the attack not already happened?

His thoughts drifted back to the woman in the tavern - what was she doing here?

In any case, he wasn't going to open the door to the main barracks just yet. He doubted he could open such a thing quietly, and if there were people inside he didn't want to alarm them just yet. Instead, he stealthily made his way over to the stables, and poked his head inside, to see if there was anyone hiding out in there as well. Beneath the gold, the Bitter Steel.

08-Oct-2018 01:08:50 - Last edited on 08-Oct-2018 01:12:27 by NotFishing

Inferi

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Outpost

Unlike the tavern, the stables were empty from the perspective of someone investigating as Harry was. There were marks in the dirt that indicated people and animals had been here not too long ago, but the more recent ones were all leaving. There was only room inside for around ten large animals, and of the spaces that were made to house them there were six that were open. The front doors, the large double barn doors made to accommodate incoming horses and the like, were also open.

There was no second floor area in this particular building. The overhead loft that some of these structures had was absent, and there was nowhere effective to hide if someone was doing that. Overall, the area looked as though people had left somewhat hastily. There were no signs of combat, nor were there signs of active people. Done in by the dubious doings of destiny.

08-Oct-2018 01:20:41 - Last edited on 08-Oct-2018 01:20:51 by Inferi

NotFishing

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Harry Richard

Harry scratched his chin at the findings. Even the animals were gone, and the tracks appeared to indicate that they had all left recently, possibly in a hurry. Why? Had the attack already happened? Had they somehow received word that it was coming, and chose to abandon the place rather than stand and fight?

He glanced back at the tavern, where the lone woman sat. Odds were slim that someone like her was traveling alone, but appearances could be deceiving. If she was part of a group, then they were likely sleeping, and this would be his best chance to talk to her alone. Worst case scenario, he could take her hostage, though the thought left a bad taste in his mouth.

There were three possibilities. One: she had arrived here after everyone had fled. Two: she had refused to leave. Three: she was directly involved in it. The latter two meant she had some idea of what happened, while the first meant that at the very least she had likely scouted the place out before him. Either way, she would have at least some of the answers he sought.

So he walked up to the door, but paused before opening it. Was she armed? He only saw her back. It was entirely possible that there was a pistol on the table in front of her, or somewhere else on her person that he couldn't see.

To hell with it. With neither urgency nor caution, he opened the door and stepped aside, as if he were a normal patron stepping in for a drink. He tipped his hat to the woman. "Evening, miss." Beneath the gold, the Bitter Steel.

08-Oct-2018 01:43:19 - Last edited on 08-Oct-2018 02:05:44 by NotFishing

Inferi

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Outpost

The young woman looked neither startled nor concerned to see Harry walk in, looking over her shoulder and returning the greeting with a, “

Oh, hey there.

” Her voice was a bit muddled by what appeared to be a half-full mouth of food, which she then took a moment to finish chewing and swallow before continuing, “

If you’re looking for service, good luck. They all ran away a while ago.

”

Turning around to look at Harry had given him a look at the table in front of her. There was certainly something on the table, but far from being a weapon, it was an open pack that seemed to be full of books and writing materials. The food in front of her looked like some kind of stew, and it was mostly gone. As far as he could tell, she was not armed at all, and she was wearing nothing that would indicate that she was part of any militant operation.

She did seem rather calm, or maybe carefree was a better term, despite being the only person in a place where she had just said everyone had run away from. That was something Harry would have to draw his own conclusions about, though, since nothing she had or was doing painted her as part of an attack force. Done in by the dubious doings of destiny.

08-Oct-2018 02:16:52

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The Roads We Must Travel