Advent Of A Gunslinger

“...Never thought I’d find a place within such a barren desert teeming with life like this,” Axel marveled at the little lake.

Tony invited him to move a bit closer. “There’s a lot that most folks within Klugetown don’t know about. In fact, we’re right beneath it. But most of ‘em aren’t even aware ‘cuzza how little they think of anyone but themselves.” He sat down next to the lake, and opened up his tackle box to find what he needed.

Axel approached, and sat down next to him. “Wow...there’s quite’a bit that we don’t really know ‘bout this place, huh?”

“Try the whole world, son,” the minotaur chuckled as he grabbed a bait bobber and attached it to the rod. “Put yer mind on this for a spell: Just how does the saloon get fresh ingredients for all of its dishes as if they came straight off a farm when we’re in the middle of a desert? You don’t see no farms in Klugetown, do ya?”

“...Well now, that’s actually a fine point to make. How DO they get their fresh fruits, veggies, and fish to make all that good stuff without no farm?”

“Well,” he pointed a claw to the lake, “I got myself a guess as to where the fish is from. But what about the botanical stuff?”

“Patience, sonny,” said Tony. Once he had the fishing rod in place, he was about to hand it to Axel, but paused and gave him an inquisitive look. “...Huh.”

Axel returned this. “Hm? Do I got somethin’ on my face?”

“Oh, sorry,” he offered the fishing rod to him, “I was just stuck fer a second there. Without yer getup, you come off as, erm--how do I say this--more approachable?”

“Well,” Axel accepted the reel in his claw, “That’s the point of a gunslinger’s attire, ain’t it? I don’t wanna be approached or sassed by nobody.”

Tony nodded. “True, true. What I mean to say is that, in spite of the scar on your face, you’re quite the handsome young man. Don’t be afraid to show your real self to others every now and again, Remy. It’ll make things much smoother going forward.”

He mulled over the words of the older minotaur. Could that really assist with how he dealt with others? Or would it serve to make things worse? “...Show my real self, huh? Guess I may as well get a head start on that now.” “Well, I guess I should clarify somethin’. My full name is Axel Remington. And I’m huntin’ those yellow-eyed bastards that took my family from me.”

A pause filled the air as Axel cast his line. The minotaur looked down, and was unable to make eye contact with him for a moment. “...So you’re the one they’re after, huh? Such a shame…”

“Why’s that?” Axel asked as he watched the bait bob up and down in the water.

“‘Cuz,” Tony continued, “Shit ain’t right. You don’t deserve none’a what happened to you and now they’re still after ya.” His voice started to break. “I’m...I know it--it ain’t much, but words are all I have to offer ya. Can’t express just how messed up that is. Can’t imagine Stella’s mental state if she found out I was dead.”

That wasn’t the first time someone had extended sympathy to Axel, and he knew it wouldn’t be the last. However, this case was a bit different. This was a father. A father who could only begin to imagine the pain that Axel felt as a child who lost every last member of his family.

For that, Axel was grateful to be understood, but it was difficult for him to put such sentiment into words. “It’s...it’s alright, Tony. Really. Your words are more than enough.”

The minotaur sat upright with his hands together, fingers interlocked. “...Remington. There’s something you should know about me.”

Since there was absolutely no force being applied to the line, Axel turned his head to give the older gentleman his full attention. “I’m listening.”

He sighed, and went on with his explanation. A delayed, worried tone carried his voice. “...The night my wife passed. It was a regular day that I came home from work. When the doctors found her, they concluded she had died of a drug overdose. Which is something that I always had my suspicions about. She never uses drugs.”

“Ya think she was murdered, yeah?” Axel asked.

“...I wouldn’t rule it out,” Tony replied, “But regardless of what happens from here on, I’m glad that my daughter is in a good position for herself. Travelling the world and cooking for well-to-do customers. Makes a lot of money and frequently visits too. I couldn’t be happier.” He managed to smile at last.

Axel, however, was a bit skeptical. “...Given who he works with, I’d be shocked if they didn’t have anything to do with it. But I can’t throw around baseless accusations or nothin’.” But he kept a brave face for the minotaur. “Well, whatever the case, I’m gonna keep what I’m fightin’ for in mind.”

“Just don’t let it overtake you, alright?” Tony would pat Axel on the head. “Don’t wanna go crazy or anything.”

“Yeah...I got that.” He chose to react to the gesture as little as possible. It’s not that he disliked the minotaur or anything, but his responses to such were always awkward.

“...!”

Axel gasped, and moved away from the minotaur. Something from beneath the oasis’ lake had started to stir! “Hang on now…” He grabbed ahold of the fishing rod, and pulled upon it to start reeling it inwards.

Tony stood up, excited for Axel’s first fish catch. “Woah! Ya got a big one, son! Dig yer hooves into the sand and bring ‘er in slowly!”

“...Slowly?! What?!” The hippogriff questioned the minotaur’s methods. From his perspective, he had no clue how to catch a fish with a rod, but didn’t think a slow approach would work. “How’s that gonna--?!”

“He ain’t gon’ listen if I don’t explain it. But I gotta be quick.” Tony ran through some mental options before he settled on how to coach Axel on the proper technique. “Alright, partner. Imagine a restless dogie that won’t go quietly. Take him down by tiring him out.”

That must have registered perfectly. Axel’s mind instantly snapped into place regarding the fish. He kept his right claw on the line, and reeled it in slowly with his left. It tugged on the hook with the force of a Saddle Arabian! So much so, that it caused Axel to drift within the sand to his right.

“Woah! Hang on ya rogue varmint!” he shouted.

“It’s ‘bout ready to give up, son!” Tony added with an excited yell, “Yank it up!”

He had to give up the grip of his right claw, and dig it into the sand behind him for a better grip. “Yeee….HAW!” With a mighty squawk, he pulled his catch out of the water: a sturgeon the size of his body!

“Whoo!” Tony cheered, “That there’s one’a the biggest fishes in the world! Congrats, Remy-boy!”

“Hm…” Even he had to admit it was fairly fun. There was a rather satisfied grin on his face to boot. “What a catch and a half. Thank ya, pops. Yer coachin’ was useful.”

Tony opened up his tackle box, and pulled out a few freezer bags and a carving knife. “Here we go. I’mma cut it up so the saloon can have some more fish dishes. Since ya caught it, you can be the first to try it.”

“Really now?”

The minotaur had already bundled up some sticks to make a campfire and retrieved a small, cast iron pan from his tackle box. “Let me serve that up for ya.”

Meanwhile, at Vido’s ship…

The griffon and abyssinian both continued to keep a lookout for Axel. About an hour had passed since he left and there were no signs of any activity from Klugetown just yet.

“See anything, Kora?” he asked.

“Nope,” she replied, “But the very second I do, I will be sure to let you know.”

From within a nearby sand dune…

Both the croc and porcupine had a case of TNT that they were prepared to light up.

“...As soon as these two leave,” said the croc, “...it’ll be time for a show.”

“Ooooh! Can’t wait!” chirped the porcupine.

Back at the oasis…

The sun was still high in the sky, but it was nice and cool by the oasis. Tony had carved up the fish and stored its head, tail, and most of the fillets within a few of his freezer bags and placed them on ice within the bottom of his tackle box. He left out two, and fried them within the iron pan for Axel over a quick campfire he had made with a few bush sticks. For himself, he heated a can of baked beans over the flame.

“Mmm…” Axel said as he feasted upon the fish he caught, “Hella tasty, sir. Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome, son,” said Tony, “I never go anywhere without my spice kit.”

Axel couldn’t sense any presence of danger for the moment, so he decided to ask a few more questions. “Alright, so this explains where ya get the fish from. But what about yer veggies and fruit?”

“Ah. That’s a fairly easy one to answer,” he held up a finger, and pointed to a river beyond the oasis. “There’s a place over yonder called the Milk Ranch. It’s run by Minotaurs and it contains a massive farm under a greenhouse that produces the freshest fruits and veggies in the entire desert. And yes, as the name implies, they also produce loads of fresh milk.”

Axel turned his head in the direction of where Tony pointed. He could just barely make out the imagery of some stone buildings in the distance with rows of white ones beyond those. “...Huh. That’s actually really cool.”

“Yup. The madam that runs the place keeps everything in order. Easily the most well-off place in the valley,” Tony said as he finished his beans. “It’s where my daughter Stella gets all’a her fresh ingredients from when she’s nearby.”

“Sounds like an interestin’ place,” Axel thought to himself, “But there ain’t no time fer that.” Then he spoke aloud. “Yer kid sounds like she’s a smart young woman. If I ever meet her one day, I’ll be sure to pay her a nice greetin’.”

Tony chuckled. “It’s funny, I’d think you two would get along just fine. She’s about your age and has a similar sense of overprotectiveness towards others.”

Such a comment caused Axel to stutter. He never saw himself as protective of anyone. “...Me? Ya’ll serious?”

“Yer name is Axel Remington, right? I remember seein’ yer name in the newspaper a while back. When you took down the Colton Gang, you supposedly shot a pair of them brothers before they could hurt an innocent older mare and her children. And word of mouth states that ya hogtied the rest when they tried to rob a bank run by a pair of elderly hippogriffs.”

It was all true, and Axel couldn’t deny it. “I don’t like to toot my own harmonica ‘bout it...but yeh. You got me on that one, old man.”

“Aw, you’re adorable when ya react to praise, kiddo! Lighten up, you’re a hero--er, I mean...you’re a good stallion.”

Axel bit into the last piece of sturgeon fillet, and shrugged off the words. “Good, bad, ugly--does it really matter at the end of the day?”

Tony gathered the empty can into a plastic bag, and put out their little campfire with some water. “Well I certainly think so. We need folks like you who are willing to stick up for others in their own way. This entire landscape is lawless and without any sorta control. Why not change it yerself in some way?”

“Hm…” Axel gave it some thought as he rinsed his claws off in the lake. “...Change it myself, eh?”