Old Reports and Outdated Maps - LP 11/11/19

Ol'random · 2019-11-11 03:11:12 PM

Sgt. Terrence and Cpl. Zolomon, hares.

Zolomon is sat down in the library finally doing his first real tastes of paperwork and not long into it he soon disliked waiting this long and volunteering to do extra as, it won't be that bally bad, well it was bally well bad, but he is doing it as he is one to keep promises and if he waits, well it would just pile up.

In the far back of the room behind several shelves a quick glance is all one needs to tell that a hare's been digging through the old maps and reports very recently. On the floor surrounded by piles and piles of papers and books Terrence sits, adjusting his glasses as he looks over the particular work he had been searching for. Two maps are sprawled out next to him with an until today blank piece of paper nearby, which the sergeant has scribbling down note upon whenever the need arises.

Zolomon looks over at the Sergeant briefly before back to the pile of paperwork. He lays down a paper and goes on to the next as he reads it over and smiles a little. "Well least one is bally well short." He chuckles till he gets to the next one and frowns deeply, turning the paper to the left and right and sighs, and some are clearly hard to read it would seem as he mutters something and tries his best to look it over, he will have to get one one to rewrite that one, so there is now a 3rd pile, and the next one is an extra long report he frowns at, but precedes to read anyhow.

"Perhaps..." Is all the response the corporal gets from Terrence, his attention wholly on the writing in front of him - it seems to be about the swamps, at least going by the two maps. Taking a sip of tea that went cold hours ago, he switches over to yet another piece of ever so passible writing, muttering, "Daresay our cartography skills are rather dreadful, wot..." As if to prove his point, he taps an inconsistency between the two where one shows a small cave and another a lake. "Which one is it, eh?"

Zolomon looks, he never did really like maps much as he hmmms softly. "Maybe...it's a cave at the side of a lake and like it sometimes floods and ya can't see the cave then maybe?" He shrugs, it's an idea after all as there are times in summer water levels go down in places. He looks back to his own paperwork. "Ya know I now have de honor of knowing why others complained of paperwork so much, lot of reading, writing and have one a private needs ta rewrite for me and will have to go over it again. Some reports though are short, but then a long one shows up."

Looking up at Zolomon over his spectacles, Terrence gives a mirthless laugh. "You know why, though. It's not like there is anything to report, much less write pages and pages on, wot. Anyway," Grabbing the edge of one of the maps to peer at it more closely, he continues, "Not since that whole debacle here, at least." He narrows his eyes. "As for your lake theory, maybe - but on this the same lake is half a league away, wot!"

Zolomon says, "Odd...don't know then sur." He looks back to the report as he quietly finishes it and lays it aside in the done pike and gets another one. He starts to read it "As for paperwork, yeah it can be time consuming but one can't like, let it pile up or it would be a nightmare then."

"Yes, yes it can." The sergeant starts to write something down, finishing his cold tea with a grimace. "You'll get used to it, eventually. And keep in mind most hares ranking above you have to do more of it, wot." Terrence lets out a sigh, leans back against the bookshelf as he pinches the bridge of his nose. "I was hoping I'd be able to tell from all of this," he gestures to the mess of paper around him, "Where a place to hide away in could be found- but there's too many bloody inconstancies, both on these maps and in the blasted reports I've found."

Zolomon tilts his head. "Hide in sur?" He is curious and hmmms. "Maybe there is some other maps, or someone who knows their way around the swamp." He frowns. "Though the one hare that comes to mind is dead. He was a hare that was a slave to the toads for like 3 seasons, forgetting the name now sadly."

Terrence shifts the maps over, making room to lay out a report flat on the floor. "Think I might have the report he made right here - though wasn't he Cpl. Felicity's uncle? I didn't ever talk to him, really." He glances at Zolomon with a raised eyebrow. "Anyway, these two maps are the only ones recent enough to be relevant, wot. First one was made a season or so after I was born, the other after this report was made."

Zolomon nods as he thinks and then, "Flint, his name was Flint...a couple hares think got lost, and he got them out but was maybe hurt or something like that and brought back to the mountain, and, well stayed. He died before I joined up but I know his name was mentioned by some Redwall beasts who came to update the Badger Lord about when Abbot Lorimis died." He frowns. "I..don't know how he died though, it wasn't toads though."

Looking rather grim, the sergeant bows his head down. "That happened while I was away stationed as a lookout - Flint's death that is...As for Lorimis, though," A confused expression plays out on Terrence's face, "I'm sorry, but I honestly don't know much what an abbot is, wot. A leader of Redwall, right?"

Zolomon nods. "Suppose ya can look at it like that. Abbot is de main beast at de abbey, then ya have Champion and Badger Mother....thar is brothers and Sisters and novices and then just residents that live there, and beasts visit and at times stay during maybe winter time." He smiles. "My grandfather was Gatekeeper after he .....well after he was here that is."

"I... see." From the tone of his voice, it seems he doesn't quite. So Terrence turns back to his work, pulling another report from the pile. "I suppose there's not much reason for me to look further into Redwall, wot. Have enough on my mind already - though Pvt. Ewan is still there, wot, where does he fall in place among all those..." He pauses, searching a word that would summarize what Zolomon said, "Residents?"

Zolomon says, "Umm....Residential Long Patrol Hare?" He shrugs. "He stayed as, at the time he was unable to go back to full time duty, all the chaos and things that happen during that siege did something to him. I am unsure how he is now though, he does send reports every so often on how things are at the abbey and in Mossflower though."

"Right then." Terrence mutters as he reads over another report. "Not sure what I excepted. Of course a patrol hare living there would be called that, wot." He grabs his mug, going to to take a sip - then stops, realizing it's empty. He looks down at it, wiggling his nose. "Bah."

Zolomon says, "Maybe he will be able to come back here, then I am unsure of the plans for that or where he would be. We do have enough privates and recruits though I suppose." He glances at paperwork again, quietly finishes one report and lays it aside to look at another. "It's good to get these on file sur..." He frowns at the next report. "Oh..."

Setting down a report detailing how certain areas of the marsh freeze over, the sergeant gives Zolomon a long look. "Do we really?" Terrence says flatly. "It seems to me we only ever have a pawful of recruits and privates now days. And I'd say only half of those are fit for being in the Patrol, though when it comes to Ewan I had the impression he's of the other half..." With a sigh he adds, "I daresay it never seemed to me that he liked to be here, anyway, and I've heard he's been at the very least fine in that Redwall place, wot."

Zolomon says, "I am unsure as I said, maybe he will update how he is in a report." He states, "As for privates we have...some could do better your right, same for recruits but unsure how to help them do better." He looks at a report. "We also have two privates missing still. Konner and Dominik are still missing in the swamps, shouldn't we like, look for them sur?"

Face darkening, Terrence sucks in a breath. "Zolomon, unfortunately I'm rather convinced Konner was killed." The sergeant looks the corporal in the eye as he says, "He wasn't captured with you and the others, and he has yet to turn up here - considering that its been nearly a month since the training exercise and the attack, we have to assume the worst soon. His body wasn't retrieved though, so there's some hope I suppose, but there's many places in a marsh for someone to, well, disappear." He looks back down at the maps, shifting through the papers again. "Dom's the reason I'm taking the effort to go through all this, though - thought it might be worth looking for any place a beast could hide in the swamp..."

Zolomon nods. "I always felt a beast isn't dead till ya see a body, even if your told they are dead you need a body for proof in case it's some like...joke." He sighs as he decides to not go further with that train of thought. "Dom does seem like one to survive better than most, I do hope we get him back, and if possible Konner as well. Leave no hare behind is me thinking, wot." He reads over the report and double checks it, lays it in the pile to file off to where ever it goes, he still has other reports and a report to write about, well reports.

"Joke?" There's a flare of irritation to Terrence's voice. "No hare of the Long Patrol would - or should - joke about someone being dead. Ever." He calms, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples. "Don't get your hopes up Zolomon. A hare's more likely to be found dead the longer he's missing, and only half the time are bodies retrievable or recognizable - battle's a messy business. Most times it's proof enough when someone is dead if their comrades report it, wot, but Konner's not officially dead, yet. Dom is certainly alive - saw him run off myself after ripping a toad clean in half... that northerner can take care of himself, least for a little while."

Zolomon frowns. "Sorry sur. Thar was one time a hare did joke on another hare being dead, found out later they were just hanging out in Halyard.course the same hare ended up leaving de patrol later on. That was a rather interesting situation, probably a report on it somewhere in the files." He smiles at the fact Dom is likely alive somewhere. "Yeah..Dom is fairly strong, and...well scary at times too."

Terrence simply nods in response, going back to his work. "Well, if a hare ever jokes like that again, I'll have their bloody hide." The sergeant starts to straightening the reports and maps around him, putting several back on the shelf. "Wherever Dom is right now, we can't do much - to be quite frank, most hares aren't in the best shape to go out for a search party, especially if the toads and whatnot attack again. It does absolutely no good to lose more hares than the one you're looking for, wot. We should be at the very least cautious."

Zolomon nods. "Not to worry I have no plans to go look, when i first joined de patrol I likely would of but I feel I have grown a lot since then. Think before act, better skills on some things as well. Maybe in a couple weeks or longer we can plan something or hope he decides to come back on his own maybe. Colder weather should slow the toads I would think anyways. I am even gonna take less trips to Halyard than I use ta."

"Colder weather didn't exactly stop the toads last time, wot." Terrence, having finished tidying up, stands, mug in paw and notes in the other. "Halyard is out of our control at the moment, so you bally-well shouldn't go there except on leave. Besides, the mountain has a better stock of drinks and food and all that. Anyways, waiting longer than two weeks might be too long - no matter how well Dom does on his own, winter is setting in and will bite soon. I do have the beginning of a plan to retrieve Dom that I'll give to the good Majah, wot."

Zolomon nods. "Major Jinora....yes. I am sure she will know whom to pick for the mission and when would be a good time to act."

The sergeant nods, setting the mug down on a nearby shelf. "Indeed, though we'll see what happens - the longer we wait the more likely Dom'll kick the bucket..." Terrence leans against the bookcase, adjusting his spectacles. "Can't say I'll be thrilled to go, wot. Private Dominik didn't quite seem all there in the head, if you know what I mean..."

Zolomon says, "I wonder whom she would send, most likely not just anyone."

"Doesn't do anything to wonder, wot." Terrence says, pushing himself off. "Might be volunteers only. We don't know - but I'd doubt any recruits would come along." Remembering to grab the mug, the Sergeant starts to head for the door. "Anyways, Zolomon, I'll be off - need to get this to the higher ups, wot."

Zolomon nods as he gives a quick salute. "Course sur...and I would say no recruits at all."

The sergeant only nods in response to Zolomon, not saying another word as he leaves.

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#1 2019-11-11 03:11:12 PM

Old Reports and Outdated Maps - LP 11/11/19

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