The Man With No Name

     Keeper squinted and rubbed his tired eyes as he walked into the main room of his inn, he sat himself down at one of his tables and rubbed his temples. Looking to the clock he confirmed it was five o'clock in the morning, he always did wake up early and so did his most recent guest if the hoofsteps or whatever he called them steps on the stairs were anything to go by.

     Blondie stepped on to the bottom floor and made his way to the table Keeper was sitting at, except he didn't sit down just stood next to him," Anyone with a price on their head around here?" He asked pulling a cigar from his pocket.

     " Uh you mean like people with bounties?" Keeper asked lowering his hands too a resting position on the table and raising his head so he could look Blondie in his squinty eyes.

     Blondie nodded yes to Keeper's question," Yeah People with bounties." he took out a match and lit his cigar.

     Keeper watched him chomp down on the cigar before anwsering," Yeah the marshal's got information on that type of thing in his office."

     " Thanks." He nodded to the yellow stallion before walking towards the door.

     Keeper quickly stood up," We're are you going? Aren't you hungry?" He questioned his brow arched.

     " I'll eat later." And with that he was out the door.

     Keeper stood there for a second his face scrunched as he debated whether to follow Blondie or stay at the inn in case a customer came," Ah to hell with it, I've gotta see what this guy does." He hurried out the door and quickly caught up with Blondie his pace slowing so he could walk side by side with him.

     Still walking he turned his head to keeper and raised an eyebrow," What are you doing?"

     " Seeing what kind of trouble your getting into." Keeper shrugged a small smile tugging at his lips, Blondie let out a little snort the smallest of smirks appearing on his face for a second.

     " Alright then just keep up with me then."

     Keeper had asked a couple questions on they're journey most of which Blondie ignored but he did answer what he was and even then it was kind of vague. He had asked what he was and Blondie told him quote," I'm a man with a loaded gun." And from that keeper deducted that Blondie was a man and his gun was the weapon he kept on his hip. He wasn't sure if that was right but he guessed that was as much as he was going to get out of him.

      The marshal's office was on the east edge of town by a patch of land many people reckon would be good for farming cerries but no one had tried it yet. The office itself was made of brick and a paint job had been done once but now it was chipped away and only small patches of light brown paint remained, no doubt that was the work of the sun and sand.

     The door of the office was rickety and old, it creaked rather loudly as Blondie's pushed it open. Walking in they could see the marshal from yesterday, the one that had told Blondie he was going to report him to the crown Keeper remembered name was Lawmaker. He was scribbling down on some papers before looking up and doing a double take at the man in front of him.

     The marshal had blue fur akin to that of Luna's batponies and an orangish mane, you could have told he was getting on in years by the way he stood up from his chair. He put a hand on the desk in front of him and scowled," What are you doing here?" His voice was rough.

     " Looking for work." Blondie answered puffing on his cigar which was once again almost a stump.

    " What kind of work?"

    " You have anybody with a price on their head?"

    " Yeah." The marshal smirked and slowly sat down," But why should I let you, a soldier killer, make money?" Well that let Keeper know whose side he was on.

    Blondie's eyes narrowed a menacing look overcoming his face much like yesterday," Because I'm the only man that wants to do it."

    Keeper watched the older stallion sigh and look down," Yeah you are the only one that's asked about it, with all the younger stallions gone off to war I haven't had any deputies or stall-er men like yourself that are available to help keep the peace." Shaking his head the marshal opened the top drawer on the left hand side of his desk.

    Pulling out two papers he held them out Blondie reached out and took them, bringing them to his face he studied them. Keeper had to look up and he could just barely make out what the top bounty paper had. A young looking earth pony with a scar on his cheek and messy medium length hair, he was wanted to robbing a general store and attacking an old lady within said store. The paper describes him with a grey mane and a dark green fur coat.

    The second had a pegasus mare which Keeper had to admit looked pretty, her mane went down to the bottom of her neck and was velvet, her fur was off white and she always wore make up. She was the leader of a gang of bandits held up two miles south of town in an abandoned farmstead.

     " The first one, who is he?" Blondie asked looking back to the marshal.

     He nodded," Yeah the young colt wasn't old enough to go to war if I remember correctly." The marshal looked up in thought," Now let's see his name was Bale, he lived with his parents on a farm out of town but when the war came his father joined up and his mom," the marshal grew a disgusted look on his face," she left him for some rich stallion not a month after he left and just left poor Bale all by himself. From what I can tell," The marshal blew out a breath and leaned forward in his chair," from what I can tell Bale didn't know what to do and ended up robbing a store."

      " Hmm," Blondie looked back down at the paper," How much is he worth?"

     The marshal sighed," Twenty bits dead and forty alive." He leaned back into his chair, Keeper hoped they'd take him alive.

     " Sounds good now what's the story with the mare?"

     " Oh you mean Bloody Cherry? She's one of the more violent ones, likes to kill for fun." The marshal narrowed his eyes," She's more clever than most other bandits, she robs banks and lonely farms in the middle of nowhere. Some say she came from the badlands one of the failed settlements but personally I think she's just a crazy bitch from some town round here, a hundred bits dead a hundred and fifty alive." The marshal nodded.

     " I'll take them." Blondie folded the bounties and put them in his pocket," Now where should I start looking for Bale?"

     The marshal grimaced he obviously felt bad for the colt," On the west side of town is a warehouse owned by Golden Feathers Whiskey, they bring in whiskey from the settlement of Baltimare the griffons do trading there and obviously we get whiskey from them." He looked Blondie in the eye," You can find him in there."

     The man nodded and turned around keeper following him, just as they were about to leave the marshal called out," Hey uh I used to watch over him when he was younger and his parents came into town for business... he's a good colt, if you bring him back alive I'll pay you twenty extra bits... okay?"

     Blondie looked him in the eyes one last time before turning around and walking out the door, Keeper smiled the marshal as assuringly as he could," I'll make sure we bring him back." Then yet again he rushed back out to meet up with Blondie

     The warehouse itself, unlike other warehouses around, wasn't worn and the golden painted on letters which read Golden Feathers Whiskey was still legible. Keeper snorted his nostrils flaring as he studied the front of the building, no windows only two big doors with a lock. Maybe they could sneak in through a back entrance if there was one, Keeper was about to suggest such an action on when Blondie began moving to the doors.

     Without so much as a word he pulled his gun, keeper knew what followed and did his best to cover his ears but it didn't do much. The gun went off with a bang and the lock broke, when Keeper's ears stopped ringing he chuckled a little," That gun is a nifty little tool."

     " Yeah." Blondie replied, then took the cigar from his mouth and flicked it to the ground before using both arms to push the doors open. They swung grandly and without a creak inwards to reveal three rows of neatly stacked boxes each with the name Golden Feathers Whiskey on them. The rows traveled towards the back of the warehouse and towered to the roof, between them all was a gap just wide enough to walk through.

     Keeper gulped realizing the colt was somewhere in here hiding obviously alerted of their presence, yet Blondie holstered his gun and strode on in. Keeper hesitantly followed behind, Blondie paused a moment and studied the pathways they had available. His eyes narrowed and he took the left path moving slowly, cautiously. Keeper imitated his slow movements and kept close to him as they made their way down the warehouse.

     That's when Keeper heard a breath being drawn, Blondie must of heard it too because he stopped and looked to Keeper. He put a finger over his lip signaling him to stay quiet, as they drew near the end of the warehouse Keeper saw that where the crates ended was about seven hooves of uncluttered space.

     As they neared the end of the path Keeper thought he heard a breath and apparently so did Blondie who stopped in his tracks and just as he did so they heard a yell. At the end of the path Bale rushed them with a knife raised above his head, Keeper yelped and fell on his ass in surprise but Blondie acted quickly.

     His left arm shot up and intercepted the knife while his right shot out and hit Bale in the chest knocking the wind out of him, Bale went limp gasping for breath and would have fallen if not for Blondie's hold on him.

     Keeper grasped the edge of a crate, pulled himself up and dusted his clothes off. Looking to the colt he felt pity, he was young and obviously didn't know what he was doing but that didn't excuse the fact that he'd rushed them with a knife. Looking to Blondie Keeper asked," What are you going to do with him?"

     Blondie ignored him and focused on Bale who'd regained his footing but was still working on his breath," Listen here kid your gonna follow me to the marshal and your going to be quiet about it."

     " Screw you." He wheezed out but Blondie was having none of it.

     " Alright kid there three ways this plays out you either come willingly, I knock you unconscious or I carry your dead body back which will it be?" The colt looked the man in his narrowed menacing eyes and gulped.

     " Ah'll follow willingly."

     " Good choice, trust me good choice." Keeper smiled to himself, the colt was coming back alive.

     The marshal jolted awake as the door bursted open, looking up he saw Bale and behind him the tall man and finally next to them both was House Keeper. Then he smiled Bale was still alive maybe the man had some good in him after all," You brought him back alive!"

     Blondie nodded his face void of expression, the marshal stood up and smiled at Bale," You remember me right?"

     " Yessum I remember you Mr. Lawmaker." Bale nodded and looked down ashamed," Ah done some bad things sir."

     The Marshal nodded," Yes you did Bale an-" before he could finish Bale interrupted.

     "But ah till got the bits I stole and I want to say sorry to Mrs Way, ah-ah didn't know what to do I was scared and hungry but I want to make it better." The colt was almost in tears. The marshal reached and placed his hands on Bale's shoulders.

     "Shh don't worry I'm not going to lock you up but you will give the bits back as well as give an apology to Mrs Way then you can stay with me okay," Bale looked him in the eyes with surprise," I know your mom left you all alone and your dads off in the war, if you want you can stay with me I have a guest bedroom and bathroom, is that okay?"

     Bale nodded as the marshal backed away and turned to Blondie," Well you did your part of the deal here's your bits." Reaching into his pocket he produced sixty bits.

     Reaching out Blondie grabbed the bits," Nice doing business with you." as the marshal went back to his desk Blondie turned to Bale.

     Bale was looking at him eyes wide," Sir ah'm sorry fer attacking you with a knife." He smiled sheepishly.

     " Next time you attack someone with a knife remember no yelling it gives away the surprise and attack from below not over head it's easier to block someone slashing downwards okay?" Keeper was confused at why he was giving this advice and so was Bale.

     " O-okay sir." and with that Blondie turned to leave, Keeper followed as the stepped out to see th sun was still high in the sky.

     " Must be around noon huh Blondie."

     " Yeah." Turning to Keeper he held out twenty bits.

     " Uh what's this?" Keeper questioned confused.

     " I'm going after Bloody Cherry and the best plan I can come up with involves you being put in danger so if you decide to join me consider this a down payment including once we catch her half of the bounty, so what'll it be you going to help me or not." He jangled the bits in his hand.

     Keeper ran it through his mind, he could stay at the inn probably have no customers or risk his life and make more bits in a day than he makes in month," Alright I'm in."