The Outlaw's Path

by CastorRage

Fallen Sky and his best friend and father figure Clive LeClerk are two members of the notorious outlaw gang "The Untamed." After getting a lead on some well-known bounty targets, their hunt leads them across the U.S. and uncover some deep, well-hidden secrets. Follow their story from November 1898 to May 1899, as they travel across the States and form a deeper bond than ever before

1. The Untamed

November 27, 1898

Grizzlies, Ambarino

11:44 AM

The camp was basked in the early morning winter sun, the cool light applying a grey hue to everything in its range. It lit up the coats of the horses hitched nearby and fell unevenly on the well-worn black tents at the edge of the treeline. Elk and squirrels were roaming nearby, undisturbed in their grazing. A sudden rustle from one of the tents alerted the nearby wildlife, which fled. Out of the tent stepped an athletic indigenous man, his long, dark hair loose and messy, and his light brown skin shining in the sunlight. He rubbed his quick, sharp eyes with his knuckles and walked over to the table beside his tent. His long, lean fingers reached for a tin of hair pomade, which he proceeded to rub into his hair, smoothing it into a long braid at the back of his head. He ducked back inside the tent and picked up his creased grey hat and fringed coat. He smoothed out his hat and placed it carefully on the top of his head, then stretched and threw the coat over his shoulder. Raising an arm towards his forehead, he glanced around the camp's borders then walked towards the nearby hitching post. His dappled buckskin Norfolk Roadster, Fortis, looked in his direction and shook its tail. He smiled and patted it on the neck, then reached over and fed it some oatcakes out of a packet.

"How you doing, boy?" he asked with a chuckle, "Get ready, because we've got quite a day ahead of us." He pulled his coat over his arm and shrugged it on, then pulled up the collar and shook his arms to loosen any fringes that might have gotten tangled. He gave Fortis another quick pat, then walked to the other tent and leaned against it. He cleared his throat and yelled, "CLIVE! GET OUT HERE!" then chuckled and walked over to the water bucket to wash his face. The walls of the other tent rustled and out stepped a middle-aged Mexican-British man. He looked around quickly, then saw his fellow posse member sitting by the campfire. One arm reached up and scratched his frizzy, greying beard and the other placed a worn grey hat on his head, then he laughed. He walked over and sat next to him, then said, "Oh, it's jus' you, Fallen. I thought we were gettin' attacked" to which Fallen Sky replied, "Yeah, it's just me. We ain't got nobody to worry about up here." He pulled out a knife and stuck a piece of raw wolf meat to it, then leaned over the fire and began to cook it. Clive stretched his arms and pulled out a small cup, then threw some herbs and poured some water into it. He crouched down next to the fire and let the water inside the cup boil, then poured the tea-like liquid into a small vial, which he stored in holders on the side of his satchel.

Fallen Sky wrapped the cooked meat up in some string and put it inside his satchel, then stood up from the campfire. He slid his knife into the holster at the side of his gunbelt and turned to Clive, saying, "Well, Clive. I reckon we got on the road. We gotta make it to Valentine and get to work, then make it back before nightfall. Should be able to manage it if we head out now. Whaddya think?" Clive stood up and nodded in Fallen Sky's direction, then the two men walked to the hitching posts and approached their horses. Clive mounted his horse, a steel grey Breton by the name of Dux, and Fallen Sky climbed into Fortis' saddle, and the two men spurred their horses and rode away from the camp.