The Outpost – One is the Loneliest Number

By: Patience Kapfer

“The Outpost” brings the audience in to a setting full of carnival acts and a group of rowdy men, with one in particular demanding that someone bring him a drink. We meet the main character, Talon (Jessica Green), when she picks up a pitcher to take to the boisterous man. Another man, potentially a friend, asks Talon if she really wants to go down this road, to which she responds, “I’ve waited a long time to find the men who killed my family. I’m not walking away now.” Her hope is that she will finally get some answers and make things right. Despite her friend telling her that nothing can ever make things right, she storms off to bring the man his drink and throws down a piece of paper in front of him asking if he is the tattoo artist who made that mark. Once he tells her that is his fine artistry, she tells him she’s looking for the man who has that mark. He isn’t keen on giving up that information without gaining something out of the deal when a group of knights comes through telling all of the men that gambling is forbidden by command of the Prime Order. When people try to run away the knights shoot arrows at them, so many of the people stay and fight. Talon uses this as her opportunity to offer the tattoo artist something – to help him leave as she fights against the knights, clearly showing her skill set as an excellent fighter.

She manages to fight their way out and demands the name from the tattoo artist , Gunter (David Ury), but he says he did that mark over twenty years ago before the Prime Order overthrew the Royals. He does remember that he put the mark on seven men from The Bones arms. The first name he is able to provide is Toru Magmoor (Richard Ashton) who recently rode out of camp headed for the Gallwood Outpost. Tiberion Shek (Cokey Falkow) was the leader of the group, but Gunter is shot with an arrow before he is able to give up any more names. Talon and her friend are able to run away into the forest, with Talon’s new goal to go to Gallwood Outpost. The trek will be dangerous as it goes across Greyskin territory, but at least the Prime Order won’t follow them. Before making it far into the woods, they come across a group of Greyskins. One is able to sneak up on them from behind, despite their incredible size. Aside from the Greyskin’s monstrous appearance, he is also exceptionally strong but Talon is able to fight him off regardless. Unfortunately, this is not before he attacks her friend, forcefully knocking him to the ground. Sadly, this is where his journey comes to an end, but at least he goes peacefully.

Talon has to travel half way across the realm in order to reach the Outpost. During her trek we see a flashback from thirteen years ago during Talon’s childhood where she is approaching a magical creature in the forest only for a group of boys to kill it. Talon’s response is to tackle the leader of the group and beat him up for killing such a beautiful animal. Later, an adult (possibly her mother) tells Talon that she could have put their entire village at risk and she is never to fight, ever. That night, while Talon is asleep, a group of men enter her village and set fire to their houses to draw the people out and begin killing them mercilessly. Their goal is to kill every Blackblood. Talon is able to escape the village with the help of her dying mother, but her brother becomes too afraid watching all of the people he cares about being murdered. When it looks like Talon’s luck has run out and she is cornered by one of the attackers, a strange blue portal opens and an arm emerges taking the arrow for Talon. After seeing this, the attacker shoots one more arrow, intentionally missing Talon, but announces to the group she is dead. Young Talon travels on her own, until a woman and her daughter find her on the side of the road and bring her back to their farm with the promise of bread and cheese. Poor Talon overhears the husband and wife fighting, as the husband worries for their safety and makes note of how pointy and different Talon’s ears are. So, Talon takes a knife and cuts them so they look just like the rest of the family’s, which has also helped to keep her hidden all of these years.

While traveling through the forest at night, present day Talon encounters another group of beasts, but these look like regular humans until they open their mouths to reveal an alien-like creature. Despite stabbing each of them multiple times they won’t die and instead knock Talon to the ground screaming. When it appears that Talon is doomed, men on horseback emerge and shoot the monsters while telling her that she has to get them in the mouth to kill them. Talon is less than grateful for the men’s help, but reluctantly goes with them to safety behind walls. The man who rescued her tells her his name is Captain Garrett Spears (Jake Stormoen) and informs her that those creatures are Plaguelings and they spread their disease through the needle in their mouths. He also tells her that she’s finally reached the Outpost, but asks her reason for venturing all the way there. She says she’s there for work as a barmaid, but he says people come to the Outpost because they are running from something. Talon needs to convince Marshal Wythers of her reason for coming to the Outpost in order to stay. He allows her to stay as a barmaid, but places her under Garret’s custody.

Talon goes to the Nightshade Inn, the only bar at the Outpost and gets a room, while it is obviously that a man is watching her from the corner of the room. Her meal is brought to her by a man named Janzo (Anand Desai-Barochia) who makes her a drink full of different remedies to help her with her ailments. Talon thanks him for the drink, but tells him she isn’t interested in pursuing whatever it is he wants. At that moment a man enters the room that Talon remembers from the night her village was destroyed. Talon pays Janzo to keep the Covenant agent that she remembers drinking all night, but Janzo asks if it’s for the “creepy old guy who’s been watching” her all night. While Talon goes up to her room, the man who has been watching her gets up and both the audience and Talon assume it’s to follow her. She hides around a corner and lunges at what she assumes to be the old man, only to realize she’s attacked a girl. The girl says that she saw Talon take a key and so that means she has a room and the girl needs to hide. The girl says that there is a man downstairs that will kill her if he sees her so she needs to stay with Talon, despite her protests. The girl says that it’s the same man that Talon wishes to deal with: Toru Magmoor. With that information, Talon leaves her in the room and goes to take care of him. The girl very ungracefully follows Talon out of the window claiming that her room isn’t safe and that she’s going with Talon. Talon returns the girl to Garrett who is also clearly worried about Magmoor.

Talon follows a very intoxicated Magmoor into an ally and draws her sword. He turns around in a flourish brandishing two swords, but stops as he sees her face and asks who it was that meant so much to her that she’s come after him after all these years. She tells him it was her whole villagea nd he remembers that it was the Blackbloods and they wiped them all out. She says, “Not all. You missed one.” He tells her that’s impossible since he saw The Wolf shoot, but Talon says he missed. Magmoor assures her that he will deal with The Wolf after he’s done with Talon since he’s close by. She asks why they did it, why they attacked her village. He says they were well paid and told to “kill every Blackblood” and that’s all they said. He goes on to say, “Now, I need to finish the job.” He lunges at Talon and they engage in a brutal sword fight, but Talon’s anger and youth don’t prove to be enough as Magmoor stabs her in the stomach before taking her sword. At the last moment both Talon and Magmoor plunge their blades into each other’s stomachs and Magmoor removes his and stabs her again before falling to the ground. While Talon stands pressed against the wall in pain, a cloaked figure removes the swords and carries her away. Magmoor writes “one remains” on the ground in his own blood.