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...
Sadie opened fire from above, her revolver cracking like thunder. One Raider dropped with a bullet in his shoulder, spinning before crashing into a barrel. Another took a shot to the leg and tumbled into the mud, crying out.
Caleb peeked out, found two coming down from the walkway to flank him. He rolled out from behind the crate, firing both revolvers, his Schofield slammed a slug into the lead Lemoyne Raider's head, while the Navy barked, catching the second in the chest, killing both instantly.
Their bodies went down hard to the ground.
Sadie kept up the pressure, picking off any who tried to reach cover or return fire. She called down, "You owe me for this one, Caleb!"
Caleb shouted back, "Put it on my tab, Mrs. Adler!"
Wofford, seeing the tide turn against him, began retreating toward the back of the barracks, ducking behind a supply cart. He fired his rifle toward Caleb, the shot sparking off stone just inches from his head before abandoning the rifle.
Caleb snarled and broke into a sprint, weaving between cover as he pursued Wofford. A Lemoyne Raider stepped into his path, shotgun raised. Caleb didn't break stride, he fired his Schofield, the bullet striking the man square between the eyes.
Wofford at this time entered the barracks and the door was slammed shut behind him. Caleb hit it shoulder first, bursting through to find Wofford frantically loading a double barreled shotgun at a weapons rack.
The double barrelled shotgun boomed, pellets tearing through the wooden wall beside Caleb's head as he dove behind a table he had turned. Wofford cursed and reached for another shell.
Caleb drew his Navy and fired through the table. The bullet grazed Wofford's loading hand, sending shells scattering across the floor.
"You son of a—" Wofford abandoned the shotgun and drew a knife instead from his belt. "Come on then! Let's see what you're made of!"
Caleb holstered his revolver and pulled his own knife. The two men circled each other in the dim lantern light.
Wofford struck first, a vicious downward slash aimed at Caleb's face. Caleb sidestepped and countered with a thrust to the ribs, but Wofford twisted away, slashing Caleb's forearm in the process.
Blood welled from the cut, but Caleb barely felt it. He feinted left before driving forward with a knee to Wofford's gut. The Raider leader gasped as the air left his lungs, but managed to bring his knife up, grazing Caleb's cheek.
Outside, the sounds of gunfire continued, showing that Sadie was clearing out the remaining Lemoyne Raiders.
Wofford spat blood and grinned thinking that the situation was on his side. "Your woman's gonna die up there, you know. Then it'll just be you and—"
Caleb didn't let him finish. He charged, taking a shallow cut across his side to get inside Wofford's guard. His left hand clamped around Wofford's knife wrist while his right drove his own blade deep into Wofford's thigh.
The Leader of the Lemoyne Raider screamed as Caleb twisted the knife before yanking it free. Wofford collapsed to one knee, his pant leg darkening with blood.
"Yield," Caleb growled, pressing his knife to Wofford's throat.
Wofford's response was to spit in Caleb's face. Caleb headbutted him, sending the man sprawling unconscious to the floor.
"You're done," he spat back at him.
At this time, the gunfire outside had stopped and then Sadie entered through the door, panting, her revolver still in hand. "Well, well. Look at you, cowboy. Didn't even need my help."
Caleb looked up from the half conscious Wofford. "Not true. Those shots from above kept me alive."
Sadie shrugged, watching Caleb start to bind Wofford's hands with a rope. "Teamwork makes the dream work."
Caleb chuckled. "God, don't ever say that again."
They moved quickly, tying Wofford's legs and double checking that none of the Lemoyne Raiders were still breathing. One tried to crawl away, but Sadie put a bullet in the back of his head to keep him down and out.
"He'll live," she said coolly.
Once Wofford was securely tied, Caleb searched him and found a wad of cash, 47 dollars in crisp bills, alongside a platinum pocket watch, two gold rings, and also a gold buckle.
"Looks like he git some sizable loot on him," Caleb said.
Sadie grinned. "Then more money for us."
Caleb chuckled at Sadie's remark, shaking his head as he stuffed the wad of bills and valuable trinkets into his satchel. "You're relentless," he muttered with a grin.
Then, without hesitation, he bent down, hauled the unconscious Wofford over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, and brought him out of the barracks. He placed the bloodied gang leader on a flat patch of ground just outside the fort's ruined barracks walls.
"Keep an eye on him," Caleb said to Sadie as he adjusted his gloves. "I'll see if there's anything stashed inside. These bastards always hide something."
Sadie nodded, glancing down at Wofford who groaned softly. Without missing a beat, she raised her boot and delivered a swift kick to the side of his head, knocking him out cold again. "Ain't nobody got time for your dramatics," she muttered.
She looked up at Caleb. "You got blood on your cheek," she said with a tone more casual than concerned. "And your side, too."
Caleb wiped his cheek with his sleeve and peered down at the dark stain on his side. "Just a scratch," he assured, the corner of his mouth twitching into a smile. "I'll walk it off."
Sadie scoffed as she knelt and began rifling through the pockets of the downed Lemoyne Raiders. She worked fast but thorough, stripping them of coin purses, silver rings, and anything remotely valuable. Every so often, her eyes flicked to Wofford to make sure he wasn't stirring.
Meanwhile, Caleb stepped back into the dim interior of the barracks. The place was a mess of makeshift cots, discarded uniforms, and ransacked crates. The scent of blood mingled with mildew and old leather. He moved methodically, rifling through crates and kicking open chests.
In a heavy wooden trunk pushed beneath a bench, Caleb found a stash: rolls of dollar bills totaling around 121 dollars and 42 cents, several boxes of ammunition for revolvers and repeaters, and a velvet pouch filled with assorted jewelry, cheap and expensive mixed together.
With a flick of his thought, he moved the ammo and bag of jewelry into his inventory without touching them. The cash he folded and added to the wad already in his satchel.
He cast one more look around, ensuring nothing valuable was missed, before he spotted the ladder leading down into the basement, exactly where he knew the Civil War Knife was kept from his memory of the game.
Climbing down the old wooden ladder, the dimness gave way to flickering lantern light. At least one oil lantern was still burning down there, probably from a Lemoyne Raider's earlier patrol. Caleb's senses sharpened immediately. Something felt off. His high perception perk kicked in. He wasn't alone.
His hand went to his Navy revolver, drawing it silently from the holster.
The basement had old crates, war era flags hanging in tatters, and a broken cannon rusting in the far corner. Caleb moved slowly, his boots crunching against scattered dirt and bits of straw.
As he made his way toward the wooden crate where the legendary Civil War Knife was on top of it, he heard it, a faint scuffle. A footstep. Just beyond a stack of crates and barrels.
He turned sharply, aiming his revolver at the sound. "Whoever's back there, show yourself. You got three seconds before I turn your hiding spot into sawdust."
Silence.
"One... two..."
Still no response.
"Three."
Caleb fired. The Navy barked, rounds slamming into the crates. Wood splintered, and dust exploded into the air. Upstairs, Sadie jumped at the sound.
"What the hell, Caleb? You alright?"
Caleb didn't take his eyes off the crates. "Got a rat down here, doesn't want to show himself. Bring some rope. Might need it."
Sadie laughed, her voice echoing from above. "Alright, alright. Wait a second."
As Caleb took a cautious step forward, the crates shifted. A man slowly emerged, hands raised. Late twenties or early thirties. Wiry frame, big nose, short black hair. Dirt smeared across his jaw and a nervous glint in his eyes.
"Hey now, calm down, friend," the man said quickly. "I'm unarmed. Just hiding. Not a threat."
Caleb didn't lower his revolver. "You don't get to decide if you're a threat. I do. Keep both of those hands up. What's your name?"
"Cecil. Cecil C. Tucker. Just call me Cecil or Tucker. Whatever suits you. I was just trying to stay alive."
Caleb stared at him, unreadable. Then Sadie appeared behind him, climbing down the ladder with ease. She saw Cecil with his hands up and let out a low whistle.
"Well look at this. Another one. You're just collectin' 'em today, huh Caleb?"
Caleb smirked slightly but didn't take his eyes off Cecil. Sadie stepped closer, revolver casually hanging at her side.
Cecil glanced between the two, and suddenly his expression twitched. He made a split second decision.
As Caleb turned slightly toward Sadie, Cecil dropped his hands and dove toward a revolver tucked beneath the crates. But Caleb's reflexes were honed by experience and enhanced by the world he now inhabited.
Time slowed.
The world turned golden-yellow.
His Dead Eye is activated.
Caleb marked Cecil's hand with an X, right on the wrist reaching for the gun.
BANG.
Time snapped back. The Navy roared once. Cecil's hand jerked back violently, a hole blown clean through his wrist. He howled in agony, collapsing beside the crates, clutching his mangled hand.
"Goddamn! My hand! You bastard!"
Caleb calmly stepped forward and kicked the revolver away. Sadie walked up beside him, shaking her head.
"That was real dumb, Tucker."
"I didn't want to die," he moaned.
Caleb pulled some rope from Sadie's belt and knelt to bind Cecil's hands or, what was left of them, tightly. "And yet, you nearly guaranteed it."
Once Cecil was secured and sobbing against a crate, Caleb moved toward the pedestal and finally retrieved the Civil War Knife. It looked exactly like he remembered it, long, heavy, and stained with time. He turned it in his hand, then with a thought, added it to his inventory.
"You get what you came for?" Sadie asked, glancing around.
Caleb shook his head saying no, and he went toward a corner where there was a chest in there and opened it, where there was a letter which he knew wasn't important. There was also not just one, but two golden nuggets unlike in the game which surprised Caleb as he hovered his hand and willed them to enter his inventory.
After that, he returned back beside Sadie. "Now I have," Caleb said. "The most valuable was this knife. Looks fancy, too. Probably worth some price as it belongs to an officer in the past maybe."
She chuckled. "Great. Just what we need."
They dragged Cecil upstairs and dumped him next to the unconscious Wofford, who was still out cold. Between the two of them, Caleb and Sadie had secured a fortune in loot, taken down the Lemoyne Raiders holdup in Fort Brennand, and captured their leader.
"You want to hogtie them both on your horse or split the weight?" Sadie asked.
Caleb looked out toward the horizon. The sun was starting to dip below the tree line.
"Let's split the weight. You take Cecil. I'll take Wofford. We can ride straight back to Rhodes and deliver 'em to the Sheriff."
"Fair enough," she said. "But you're buying the first round after this."
Caleb nodded, ensuring the ropes on Wofford up were tied tightly and securely, then began the haul toward their horses tethered outside the fort. "Yeah," he muttered, glancing back at the fort one last time. "Reckon I owe you that much."
...
Name: Caleb Thorne
Age: 23
Body Attributes:
- Strength: 7/10
- Agility: 6/10
- Perception: 8/10
- Stamina: 7/10
- Charm: 5/10
- Luck: 6/10
Skills:
- Handgun (Lvl 2)
- Rifle (Lvl 2)
- Firearms Knowledge (Lvl 2)
- Past Life Memory (Lvl MAX)
- Knife (Lvl 2)
- Blunt Weapon (Lvl 1)
- Sneaking (Lvl 2)
- Horse Mastery (Lvl 3)
- Poker (Lvl 4)
- Hand to Hand Combat (Lvl 2)
- Eagle Eye (Lvl 1)
- Dead Eye (Lvl 2)
- Bow (Lvl 2)
- Pain Nullifier (Lvl 1)
- Physical Regeneration (Lvl 0)
- Crafting (Lv 2)
- Persuasion (Lvl 2)
- Mental Fortitude (Lvl MAX)
- Cooking (Lvl 2)
- Teaching (Lvl 1)
- Germanic Language Proficiency (Lvl MAX)
- Inventory System (Permanent - 5x5x5)
- Acting (Lvl 1)
Money: 522 dollars and 0 cents
Inventory: 3,245 dollars, 2 gold nuggets, 5 gold bars, 4 silver rings, 1 Double Action, 1 Schofield, a large bag of jewelry, and 3 gold nuggets
Bank: -