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((Roll to determine the outcome of Jack’s encounter with Bones

1: Bones only sees the shadow of Jack, and doesn’t hit him, should he draw.
2: Bones only sees the shadow, but does hit Jack, should he draw.
3: Bones and Jack gets face to face, misses Jack if he shoots.
4: Bones and Jack gets face to face, hits Jack in case of shots fired))
rolled 1d4 and got a natural 3.
Jack’s eyes squinted as he saw Connor disappear into the darkness, and how his silhouette went from Connor, to man, to wolf and then invisible. How someone could be there one second and then be swallowed by the dark the next had always fascinated Jack, and he’d used it to his advantage as a child. However, over the last many years, he’d begun slacking a bit, which was likely why he was slower and less silent than Connor now.

When he was sure, Connor was too far away to spot him, Jack turned around and slowly crept back towards the camp. He didn’t want to interact with them in any way, but if he just got a little more information about their pursuers, he’d have gotten them an advantage in their quest to not be caught. If he could get close enough, he would have let the horses loose, and slowed the pursuit down.

I’ll check it out,”

Jack dropped back down to the ground, careful to not make a loud thud on impact. His instincts were still as sharp as they’d been, but his skills were dulled, so he wasn’t as silent as he’d wished. Still, he didn’t have to be sound-less, he just had to be quiet enough.

Stay close. Don’t go too far alone,’ Jack heard the Marshall say. He slowly got back up, and slowly stepped closer to the camp.

He’d just walked around a large boulder, when he was suddenly face to face with a man. Even in the sparse light, Jack could see that he was skinny as a skeleton and armed to the teeth.

In sheer panic, Jack bowed down and grabbed a handful of dirt, which he flung into the skinny man’s eyes, before he gave him a push and ran off in the opposite direction of the camp. No need to bring the entire group back with him, now he’d been spotted.
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

Bones didn't answer Sydney. If there WAS someone out here, their intentions weren't friendly and he didn't want to be calling more attention to his exact location. He paused by a large rock, just listening for several seconds before taking a few steps around it, as surprised to find Jack there as Jack was to find him.

"By grabs!" David said in surprise, bringing his revolver up to point it toward Jack. "Hands..." only to get a handful of dirt in his eyes and then stumbled backwards as Jack pushed him.

Nearly blinded, Bones squeezed the trigger of his single action revolver that was still pointed in Jack's general direction. Then flipped the hammer back with his thumb and pulled the trigger again before the echo of the first shot had died away. Both shots missed their mark.

"There's someone," Dave yelled, as if Sydney and Charlie had not already guessed that. He was too busy trying to get the dirt out of his eyes to give chase himself. "Watch it! He's runnin'!"

Charlie did not attempt to go after whoever Bones had shot at. Instead, he turned his pistol on Lance. It felt entirely too likely that he was sent in to distract them. "Drop that gun! Now!"

Lance, finding himself in very disadvantaged position, started slowly lowering his rifle to the ground.
Connor Kenway (played anonymously)

Connor heard struggle and shots behind him.

Fantastic, Jack had been spotted...

The Brave quickly whirled around on his heel still in that squat position of his. The intricacies of such a movement likely lost on everyone on account of being dark and unaware of Connor's presence, but it was clear that the Kiowa could simply turn at any moment, regardless of which position his body was in and be ready to attack or defend himself. Indeed, there was an arrow ready at Connor's bow even before he had register everything that was going on in the darkness.

He held still, listening to sounds ahead. It sounded like there was chaos in the camp and judging by a distinct lack of return fire, Jack had either been killed immediately or he had successfully escaped.

As much as logic and his jealousy for the man made Connor want to leave Jack to his fate, he was too much of a disciplined warrior to abandon a companion.

Instead of returning to camp, he hid behind a tree and waited to see what happened. If he saw Jack running towards him with people hot in his trail, he'd be sure to cover his escape with some arrow fire.
Sydney turned his attention towards where the sound of the gunshot came from. His eyes narrowed in the darkness but it did little to shed clarity on the situation. Others would be drawn to the gunshots if they were not already encroaching on their camp.

"Will you be alright watching him?"

The question was direction at Charlie in regards to Lance. He was still suspicious of the male. However, he was more concerned about Bones. If he was the one who was hit or the gunshot was a shot in the night. Sydney waited only a moment to get confirmation before making his way towards where Bones had disappeared to.

Keeping his rifle slightly lowered he made his way quickly yet carefully towards where he last saw Bone. Off in the distance there was a moving shadow. However, the shadow was too far away to discern anything of value to the lawman. It took only a moment of searching before Sydney located Bones. Making his way carefully he stopped a ways away.

"Its Marshal Sydney Richards, Bones. Are you hurt? What happened?"
Jack ran as if the devil was in his tracks, in a diagonal line leading in the opposite direction of their own camp. He’d have to shake off any potential pursuers before he could head back, so he didn’t give his, Connor’s and Dorothy’s location away after his own blunder. ’Curiosity killed the cat’ PJ had always said, and Jack was aware that his curiosity had lost them their advantage of being unseen.

When he could no longer hear voices or gunshots behind him, Jack began running back to where he’d split with Connor. He ran in a large, soft, arch, again to make sure, he didn’t lead enemies into their camp. However, it appeared that no one was after him yet, which did confuse him slightly.

“Well,” Jack said, slightly out of breath when he saw Connor again. He’d first confused the Brave with a large wolf or another mountain lion, but later realised that that was how effective, Connor’s camouflaging abilities were.

“They got two less bullets and two less sharp eyes now,” he continued with a smirk, still concentrating on regaining his breath. “And they ain’t buddy-buddies with that odd-one-out in the camp no more. If they gon’ question him, we might have just gotten ourselves a lil’ head start.”

Jack took another deep breath, and felt his heart rate steady again. He gave Connor a pat on the shoulder, which immediately felt odd and misplaced on the serious man.

“Thanks for the cover, though, mate.”
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

"Will you be alright watching him?"

"He tries sumthin', I'll fill him with holes..." Charlie confirmed, keeping his revolver trained on Lance.

"Listen, I ain't with whoever's out there," Lance tried, leaving his rifle on the ground and straightening back up with his hands held before him, palms facing Charlie.

"Step over there," Charlie said, directing the skunk-smelling woodsman away from the rifle.




As the shadow that was Jack Brennan made its getaway, Dave Goller was cursing up a storm. "Marshal, over here! Gah! Son of a Betch!" He was kneeling on the ground and rubbing at his eyes. "That dodgasted mudsill threw pepper or some other shet in my eyes!" He claimed, despite the fact that it had only been dirt.

"Shot at him..." he continued. "Dunno if I got him at all. Definitely weren't Flinch or Smitty. Dinnit know him. Hey, Marshal, ya got your canteen?"




Back at the other camp, Dorothy had managed to simply sit quietly and just... wait. But when two distant cracks of gunfire rang out through the night, she nearly lunged to her feet, heart thumping hard against her chest. Who had shot? And who had been shot?

It was difficult not to imagine both Conner and Jack bleeding and in trouble.

"Luddy mussy..." she whispered, pacing for a few moments in indecision born from inadequate information. She checked on Hank, but he was still out cold.

More quiet moments ticked by, each only increasing her sense of unease. To give herself something to do, she hurriedly started saddling the horses again, starting with her own pinto steed.
Connor Kenway (played anonymously)

Agh!! Why is it always with the touching!!?? Connor hated being touched, and Jack had -most certainly- not yet earned the right to approach him so casually. Likely, he never would, not as long as their unspoken rivalry for Dorothy continued.

Fortunately for Jack, it would be far too dark in the night for him to notice the death glare that Connor was giving him, though perhaps he might notice that he got quite tense at the shoulder grab. Then again, it was likely the reaction one would expect for someone who was so somber and serious all the time.

"Let us go then. Quickly." Connor had not time for games. He motioned for Jack to follow as he made his way back to the camp, looking over his shoulder every so often just to make sure they weren't being followed. The Brave would not let go of his bow until they were back with Dorothy and their prisoner.
Sydney made his way towards the voice. He leaned down to look over the man on the ground. It did not appear to be pepper in his eyes. The other was a possibility but there was no lingering smell to indicate that is what it was. Sydney reached down to his waist to find that he had grabbed his canteen in the confusion. Taking the canteen off from his belt he handed it towards Bones making sure to place it in his hands.

"Here."

Sydney would stand up after handing the canteen to Bones. He was looking towards the ground in the surrounding area. There did not seem to be any blood or liquid of any kind. He spent several minutes looking over the area. Hearing that it was not one of the two men they were pursuing was troubling. Just who was Dorothy teamed up with? Questions were swirling around in his mind but for now they lost their quarry. With a sigh he made his way back towards Bones.

"I don't think you hit him. For now, lets head back to camp. We won't be able to track them in the dark."

Sydney would offer a hand to Bones to grab to help stand. Not that he really needed to assistance but it showed his support. Whether or not Bones accepted after he stood Sydney would head back towards the camp. It seemed like Charlie had a good handle on their guest.

"Anything happen here?"
Connor leaving so quickly helped relieve a little of the awkwardness created by Jack’s well-meaning yet misplaced pat on the Brave’s shoulder. Jack just shrugged and began following him, focused on not making too much sound. He’d already alerted the other camp of their presence- no need to give them a sonic trail to follow as well.

In the faint light, Jack saw the silhouette of Dorothy next to one of the horses. She seemed to be alone, which probably meant that Hank had yet to wake up, and she’d decided to get their horses ready for a getaway. As they got closer, the seriousness of the entire situation began wearing off, leaving Jack with just the adrenaline.

“You fixin’ to steal our horses, Darlin’?” Jack said as they got close enough for him to kiss her on the other cheek. “And here I though we was really gettin’ along.”

A slight pain pulled his eyes down to the hand he’d scraped up the dirt with, and found that he’d scraped the tips of his fingers and the foot of his palm bloody while doing it. He cursed internally, and walked to his horse to clean the scrapes with some water from his canteen.

“We better skedaddle,” he added as he looked through his saddle bags. “They gon’ be after us, but even with a steady pace, we’ll get a good enough head start.”

Jack looked at Connor and then nodded towards the still sleeping Hank. “Ya wanna take the sack of potatoes over there, or should I?”
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

As soon as Bones had the canteen, he poured water into his cupped hand and wiped at his eyes, then repeated the process several more times while Sydney was scouring the area. He'd used up the majority of the Marshal's water by the time Sydney returned, but at least he could see again and accepted the help back to his feet.

"Hope he at least pissed his dang pants..." Bones muttered irritably at the news that he apparently hadn't even wounded the man sneaking up on their camp.

As they returned to the campsite, Charlie was still holding Lance at gunpoint. "Ain't seen anyone else. Was it them?"

"Dinnit know him from Adam..." Bones answered, just as perplexed as Sydney about who the stranger sneaking up on their camp had been.

"Listen," Lance tried, this time imploring Sydney since he couldn't get Charlie to listen to reason. "I don't know who was out there. Whoever he was, ain't nuthing to do with me or my business."

Charlie scoffed. "Yeah? An I got some oceanfront property in Ohio I can sell ya..."

Bones grabbed the coil of rope off his saddle. "Ya'll think his buddies would trade for him for the Calico Queen? I mean... he ain't near as pretty. So maybe we'll have to throw in Charlie here too..." he suggested with a smirk, earning a glare from his brother.
Dorothy Parsons (played by Juls) Topic Starter

“You fixin’ to steal our horses, Darlin’?”

Dorothy had been so focused on trying to get Pongo saddled as fast as possible, that she sucked in a quick, surprised breath at the words coming out of the darkness and her hand flew to her pistol before she realized it was Jack and Conner.

"Geezus Crimany," she breathed out as Jack kissed her on the cheek "Sneakin' up on a girl's a dang good way ta get shot..." she said, irritated and relieved at the same time. Neither of them, from what she could tell in the dark, seemed to be significantly injured and she didn't want to admit she'd been over here worrying about them both being shot, so covered it up with some attitude.

The next words out of his mouth didn't help either. "Who's after us? What happened?" she demanded of both of them.
Connor Kenway (played anonymously)

There was a very light, almost silent scoff that came from Connor when he saw Jack once again kiss Dorothy's cheek. Truly, the audacity of this man. It was almost enough for Connor to punch him on the back of the head, and he knew he could possibly get away with it if he played it as wanting Jack to focus on running away instead of wasting precious time hitting on Dorothy.

But Connor wasn't petty enough to do that... actually, scratch that, Connor definitely was petty enough to do that, he just knew he didn't have the charisma to pull that kind of deceit.

Inwardly, he wouldn't have minded if Dorothy had shot Jack out of reflex. He might have even laughed.

The Brave was good about taking his own advice though, he truly had no time to partake in this stupid little love triangle they had going on, there were people they needed to flee from!

"Bounty Hunters." Connor replied curtly to Dorothy as she asked who was it that was at the other camp. He left out the details on what had happened exactly, as he was certain that Jack would be more than willing to embellish his heroic infiltration of the camp and his daring escape, no doubt leaving out the fact that he got caught in the first place. Whatever...

Connor gave a gruff grunt of affirmation as Jack reminded him that the prisoner needed to be taken care of. The Brave silently untied the unconscious man, then tied him again by the wrists and the ankles. Connor appeared to be in a particularly bad mood right now and he seemingly took it out on their prisoner, rather than gently picking him up and lay him on the saddle of his own horse, Connor all but lifted Hank with one arm and just kind of flung him at his horse where he landed roughly across the saddle treating him as if he were indeed a sack of potatoes.

Maybe Connor was imagining that he was doing that to Jack.

Either way, soon after that, Connor jumped on the saddle from the left side and sat there with a huff. He was very pissed off about something. Or maybe he was just being his usual somber self, it was hard to tell.
Jack shook his scratches up hand to rid himself of most of the water. It wasn’t all too bad of an abrasion, and hopefully it would affect his ability to hold his dagger, should the need come to it. He had gotten ambidextrous with the knife over the years, but the once broken little finger on his left hand couldn’t bend like the other fingers, which made it more difficult to hold his gun.

“Saw one of ‘em up close,” Jack added to Connor’s explanation that their tail consisted of bounty hunters. “Skinny enough to take a bath in a shotgun barrel. Sounded like they had a lawman with ‘em as well. A Marshall.”

While Connor turned their backs on them to tie up and move Hank, Jack sent Dorothy a slightly concerned look. He hadn’t recognised either of the men hunting them, and without names, he weren’t sure if Dorothy would recognise his vague description of them either. Were the bounty hunters after them, or Hank? Or could it be Connor?

“They turned on one of the other men in the camp after the shots were fired,” Jack added, leaving out the detail that he’d been the one to provoke the gunfire - just like Connor had predicted, he would. “So we may have even more of a head start to get that bastard to South Fork, before they come lookin’ for him. Sure ain’t very honourable to try and steal a bounty from a someone already transferring the prisoner.”

Ironically enough, Jack had been in Hank’s shoes a number of times before. Every time he’d gotten caught, Esme had arranged for the Sheriff of Little Peak to demand Jack transported there, to be sentenced for another crime he’d committed there. During the transport, he’d then either escape on his own, or be broken free by PJ, The Sicilian, and whatever lowlife they’d hired in to assist.

Jack mounted his horse, and looked to see if Connor was ready, only to see the Brave already in his saddle. Amazing how fast a man could perform a task, when he wasn’t talking. Still, in Dorothy’s presence Jack would take interesting over effective any time.

“Guess slow and steady’ll win the race, huh?”
Sydney tuned out a little of what was happening with the brothers and Lance. He was thinking over what Bones had said. He did not know the man that he saw. Were they chasing some other outlaw? Did Dorothy meet up with some other people? Were they being mislead? He did not have the answers. His eyes went towards Lance when the question was posed for a trade.

"If he has use to them," he said.

Sydney was not sure if Lance had any connection to the two men they were pursuing with Dorothy. A trade seemed a little unlikely but they could try. At least they would know the value of their prisoner. Or if Lance was even telling the truth. They would find out soon enough. Sydney looked between the two brothers. Sydney's next words were in regards to Lance but were spoken to the brothers.

"It will determine the truth of his words. For now, we will see if they accept the offer. Should we send word now or wait until the morning? We don't know the location of their camp."
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

With Charlie holding Lance at gunpoint, David bound the man's hands tightly behind his back. "Bet Lance here can show us the way to their camp."

"I'm tellin' ya I dunno these fellows or this blonde woman a yours!" the woodsman protested again. "Just heard the shots and came ta check that everythin' was alright!"

"Ya sure bout that?" Bones asked as he pulled the hunting knife from Lance's belt and pointed the tip of it at Lance. But if anything, the unspoken threat seemed to anger the man more than intimidate him.

"I ain't lyin' to you... kid. Why don'tcha put that knife away before you hurt yourself?" Lance said with narrowed eyes, his voice gravelly and low.

"Could see if we can cut 'em off in the town," Charlie chimed in. "This close? Good chance they'll show up there. Bet our skunk buddy here could show us the way even in the dark."
Dorothy Parsons (played by Juls) Topic Starter

Hank did not awaken as the Kiowa brave flung him over the saddle.

"Bounty hunters?!" Dorothy repeated, though Conner had been perfectly clear in his statement. When Jack elaborated, maybe she should have recognized the descriptions, but the most obvious answer seemed to be that they were after 'Dagger Jack', known outlaw in the state of Wyoming.

Though it did seem possible, as Jack had suggested, they were after Hank. Or had he only said that for Conner's benefit? The idea that she might have been pursued all the way from Arizona seemed too far-fetched to give any serious consideration.

But the faster they skedaddled along, the better. "Maybe we can find another horse ta borrow?" she suggested as they got moving again, forced to keep a frustratingly slow pace both from covering unfamiliar ground in the dark and the missing front shoe on Hank's steed. Trying to continue on to Laramie without rectifying that was bound to cause them more trouble.






As the trio continued their slow trek, Hank lets out a small noise through his gag... almost a yelp, then a moan. His bound arms are still hanging down limply and he does not appear to have regained consciousness, but he starts to fidget and if any look closer at him, would notice that he's started to sweat.

"mmmph hmmmph..." he mumbles, then suddenly startles awake. He seems nearly in a panic as he fights against the ropes binding his hands and ankles so hard that he accidentally slides right off the saddle and hits the ground hard. At the impact, he lays still, but his breath is coming in short, quick spurts through his nose.
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

((Should I narrate team CJD ahead slightly? <.< ))
Connor Kenway (played anonymously)

((Woops! This time I can't blame it on the unsubscribe button.))

Connor maintained his temper for the remainder of the trail. Though at the very least remaining cool and composed even though he might be fuming within was something that the Kiowa Brave appeared to have a mastered.

And he needed to as well, as Dorothy could attest to, when Connor was angry and he allowed it to show, he sort of went on a rampage.

Thus, he only appeared to be only mildly annoyed at something as they moved through the darkness. Though his annoyance only grew when Hank woke up and foolishly fell from his horse. Connor huffed in annoyance and dismounted, trying to pick up Hank and put him back on the saddle again.
The GM (played by Juls) Topic Starter

Hank struggled briefly against the bindings and against Connor, yelling a muffled cry of "ge-oooo-e!" through the gag, but then settled back down as he seemed to recollect where he was ... like he'd woken up from a bad dream. Not that his actual situation was all that great either and he made a noise of general discomfort as Connor put him back over the saddle, but he stayed put this time.

The group continues on the southward trail toward the town of South Fork that sits near the center of a wooded area, not far from a fork in the river. The woods are almost eerily quiet tonight. No singing of crickets or frogs or cicadas. Only the steady hoofbeats on the hard packed trail.

Finally, the party emerges into a large clearing. A crossroads lies at the center of this glade, where the trail intersects another and several structures come into view. Calling South Fork a 'town' is something of a stretch. It's little more than a collection of twelve small wooden buildings that stand alongside a combination inn and saloon built from stone known as the Hungry Huntsman.

It's quiet and mostly dark; sunrise still another hour away. But a lantern burns in the window of the saloon.

North - Dark Canyon (previous town, 2-3 day ride), South - river,
East - Laramie (1-2 day ride), West - Danby (fictional town, 2 hour walk)

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