The Art of Tracking: The Recognition of Signs
Posted: Sat Jul 21, 2007 8:59 am
Acteon Skinner had been busy. Very busy. His tracking and investigation had taken him to every corner of Myrken Wood and back multiple times. But most recently his tracking had taken him from the forests, mountains, farms, and remote villages of the Wood and had deposited him almost completely on to the streets of Myrkentown.
It had been nearly a month since he had seen the young constable entering the cultist cave. It had taken Acteon about a week to track down the lad in Myrkentown and Acteon had been watching him ever since.
Acteon had learned from his querying of the local Myrkentown populace that the young man's name was Lyle Livesay and he had been a part of the Myrkentown Constabulary since the High Constable had taken the position. Livesay was not from Myrkentown originally; rather he came from the small Myrken hamlet of Bogart, in northern Myrken Wood, on the border of Ghreu Fenn. Apparently he had moved to Myrkentown almost five years prior after both of his parents had fallen ill and passed away. For a short while he had been forced to work as a swineherd before being fortunate enough to find his way into the various law enforcement groups that had overseen Myrken of late. Also, apparently he had really found his calling as a constable and was much better at that than he ever was as a farmhand.
Another interesting detail was that Constable Livesay very rarely wore the uniform of the Myrkentown Constabulary, which Acteon had come to learn meant that Livesay wasn’t just an average street constable, but was more likely a detective. To many, that could have been reason enough for Livesay’s presence in the cave those few weeks prior. However, there was something more about the individual that made Acteon want to continue to watch him.
Constable Livesay had proven to be a difficult person to track through the narrow streets of Myrkentown. Acteon had made a conscious effort to stay far behind the constable, because the tracker had no desire to be noticed by his quarry. Unfortunately, the conservative approach often allowed the constable to make multiple turns on the narrow roads and elude Acteon.
At first the constable’s routes through the streets of Myrkentown had appeared to be random, but after nearly three weeks of tracking, Acteon had started to notice a pattern in the routes that the young man took. The constable was clever; varying the times of day and days of the week that he took certain paths, giving it the appearance of randomization, but the lad always seemed to disappear in the same general geographical area, regardless of which direction he had been traveling.
After weeks of losing Livesay's trail, Acteon decided to take another approach. Acteon had left the constable to go about his business, and had decided to explore the area where Livesay always disappeared. It was near the part of town that was heavier in commercial concentration. For a while Acteon thought perhaps there was a business that the constable visited constantly and that's what took him off the road, making him impossible for Acteon to find.
It was three days before Acteon noticed a detail that had struck him as odd.
Walking through an alley near a row of modest storehouses Acteon thought that he heard voices. He stopped. Waiting, he closed his eyes, concentrating on improving his hearing. He turned and looked at a small, rough shed. The dilapidated structure leaned against a large wall. After a moment, Acteon moved on, figuring that the poor individuals who lived in the shack probably wouldn’t appreciate his eavesdropping. But, when he got to the end of the alley, he happened to look back before turning the corner. When he did, he saw two constables exit the shack. Although neither of them were Livesay, something that struck Acteon was the fact that both constables were more heavily armed than the average street constable. Acteon kept walking, hoping that the constables hadn’t spotted him noticing them. When no voice called out after him and he was a fair distance away, he was certain enough that he had gotten away without an issue.
Questions continued to run through Acteon’s mind. Why the constables had been in that small shed? Why were they wearing heavier armor than the average street constable? Could whoever lived in that shed warrant such precaution?
The next day, Acteon wandered the area again. This time he noticed something more--the wall that the shack leaned against served as the perimeter of the grounds for a house. The house appeared to have been left in disrepair; its windows boarded and sealed. It was quite large, two stories in height with a roof of slate. The front gate was sealed shut with a rather impressive, though rusty, lock dangling from its chain.
Something about the house seemed odd to him. It seemed unlikely that such a house would be abandoned in the middle of a rather busy part of Myrkentown, even if the house was tucked away a bit in a rather inconspicuous location, surrounded by storefronts.
As Acteon walked back to the Broken Dagger, he decided that tomorrow, rather than following Livesay, he would try to find an inconspicuous location where he could watch the house and shed and see if Livesay (or any other constables for that matter) come by.
He had a feeling that tomorrow would be an interesting day.
It had been nearly a month since he had seen the young constable entering the cultist cave. It had taken Acteon about a week to track down the lad in Myrkentown and Acteon had been watching him ever since.
Acteon had learned from his querying of the local Myrkentown populace that the young man's name was Lyle Livesay and he had been a part of the Myrkentown Constabulary since the High Constable had taken the position. Livesay was not from Myrkentown originally; rather he came from the small Myrken hamlet of Bogart, in northern Myrken Wood, on the border of Ghreu Fenn. Apparently he had moved to Myrkentown almost five years prior after both of his parents had fallen ill and passed away. For a short while he had been forced to work as a swineherd before being fortunate enough to find his way into the various law enforcement groups that had overseen Myrken of late. Also, apparently he had really found his calling as a constable and was much better at that than he ever was as a farmhand.
Another interesting detail was that Constable Livesay very rarely wore the uniform of the Myrkentown Constabulary, which Acteon had come to learn meant that Livesay wasn’t just an average street constable, but was more likely a detective. To many, that could have been reason enough for Livesay’s presence in the cave those few weeks prior. However, there was something more about the individual that made Acteon want to continue to watch him.
Constable Livesay had proven to be a difficult person to track through the narrow streets of Myrkentown. Acteon had made a conscious effort to stay far behind the constable, because the tracker had no desire to be noticed by his quarry. Unfortunately, the conservative approach often allowed the constable to make multiple turns on the narrow roads and elude Acteon.
At first the constable’s routes through the streets of Myrkentown had appeared to be random, but after nearly three weeks of tracking, Acteon had started to notice a pattern in the routes that the young man took. The constable was clever; varying the times of day and days of the week that he took certain paths, giving it the appearance of randomization, but the lad always seemed to disappear in the same general geographical area, regardless of which direction he had been traveling.
After weeks of losing Livesay's trail, Acteon decided to take another approach. Acteon had left the constable to go about his business, and had decided to explore the area where Livesay always disappeared. It was near the part of town that was heavier in commercial concentration. For a while Acteon thought perhaps there was a business that the constable visited constantly and that's what took him off the road, making him impossible for Acteon to find.
It was three days before Acteon noticed a detail that had struck him as odd.
Walking through an alley near a row of modest storehouses Acteon thought that he heard voices. He stopped. Waiting, he closed his eyes, concentrating on improving his hearing. He turned and looked at a small, rough shed. The dilapidated structure leaned against a large wall. After a moment, Acteon moved on, figuring that the poor individuals who lived in the shack probably wouldn’t appreciate his eavesdropping. But, when he got to the end of the alley, he happened to look back before turning the corner. When he did, he saw two constables exit the shack. Although neither of them were Livesay, something that struck Acteon was the fact that both constables were more heavily armed than the average street constable. Acteon kept walking, hoping that the constables hadn’t spotted him noticing them. When no voice called out after him and he was a fair distance away, he was certain enough that he had gotten away without an issue.
Questions continued to run through Acteon’s mind. Why the constables had been in that small shed? Why were they wearing heavier armor than the average street constable? Could whoever lived in that shed warrant such precaution?
The next day, Acteon wandered the area again. This time he noticed something more--the wall that the shack leaned against served as the perimeter of the grounds for a house. The house appeared to have been left in disrepair; its windows boarded and sealed. It was quite large, two stories in height with a roof of slate. The front gate was sealed shut with a rather impressive, though rusty, lock dangling from its chain.
Something about the house seemed odd to him. It seemed unlikely that such a house would be abandoned in the middle of a rather busy part of Myrkentown, even if the house was tucked away a bit in a rather inconspicuous location, surrounded by storefronts.
As Acteon walked back to the Broken Dagger, he decided that tomorrow, rather than following Livesay, he would try to find an inconspicuous location where he could watch the house and shed and see if Livesay (or any other constables for that matter) come by.
He had a feeling that tomorrow would be an interesting day.