Advent Of A Gunslinger

Meanwhile on the far end of Klugetown…

Believe it or not, despite the rather run-down state of the region, there were a few areas near the outer edge that had well-made houses on hills. Hills that practically overlooked the rest of the town.

On one of these hills was a lovely little two-story home. All white and surrounded by a small fence. The yard was surrounded by a layer of synthetic turf since growing grass was next to impossible here. There were a few succulent plants in pots that surrounded the porch as well as a rocking chair.

A certain gold dragon--Rongu--would land within the yard of this home, and walk up to the door. Before he entered, he would check the watch on his right wrist. “Just on time. Hopefully she won’t be upset at me.”

He unlocked the door, and walked in. The home was finished with beautiful sapphire tiles along the floor and various pieces of art along the walls. Rongu shut the door behind himself and set his business suit on the nearby coat rack. Without it, one could see that he had quite the muscular build with well-defined pectorals. “Honey! I’m home!” he called out.

Moments later, he would get a response. “In here, darlin’! You’re just in time because I made dinner. We can finally have some time to ourselves for a change.”

Rongu walked past the living room, and turned to walk into the kitchen. There, busy cooking food over a stovetop, was a red dragon woman wearing an apron. She had a set of brown eyes, her hips were wide, and there were also some slight aging wrinkles on her face, indicating her maturity.

“There’s my sugar plum,” Rongu said as he approached her from behind and placed a kiss on her neck, “How are ya?”

“I should be asking you that,” she replied, “You work so hard down at that office all day that I get worried you know.”

The dragon man walked away, and took a seat at the dining room table nearby. “Spitha, you know that my job is a very difficult one. I’m constantly dealing with customer complaints and have to keep the gambling tables from getting out of hand. You know how bad it gets.”

The dragon woman chuckled. “Oh you. We’ve been married for ten years and yet you still work tirelessly to keep everyone safe. I love you for it, but you really should take some time for yourself every once in a while…”

The Faithful

Indeed, this was Rongu’s wife. The two had moved into Klugetown away from the dragon lands a long time ago, and have remained together ever since. However, Spitha has remained completely unaware of the true nature of her husband’s profession. From her perspective, all she has been aware of is the fact that he manages the Saloon near the middle of town.

And Rongu kept it that way for a reason.

“I suppose,” he replied with a huff, “But it’s not exactly easy to plan for yourself when everything is so damn busy. If I make one wrong move or leave one thing unchecked, then I could easily get trampled over.”

Spitha approached the dinner table, and placed a plate in front of him. On it was a set of braised pheasant thighs covered in a gemstone cream sauce alongside a hearty salad that contained bits of refined diamond. She then placed a kiss on his cheek and sat down with a plate of her own.

“Well, no matter what happens, you’ll always be able to return home to me and my cooking,” she said with a happy trill. “And once you finish those thighs...I’ll let you rest your head on mine,” she teased while sticking her tongue out.

“Oh you,” Rongu simply chuckled as he got ready to eat, “You’re just a peach you know that?”

“I try my best,” she replied, “And you deserve the best for all that you do for those folks down there. But I’d be lying if I said I didn't miss you throughout the day…”

Because of his long hours, the two often had little time for each other. Despite this, Rongu already had a plan in place. “Don’t you worry, Spitha. I’m already in the process of making my schedule a bit less of a living hell so I can spend more time with you.”

Spitha’s face lit up with her tail wagging sporadically. “Really?! That’s great! There’s so much I’ve been dying to get done with you lately, but I haven’t had the time to ask…” Her face dropped, and she broke eye contact. “You always come home so tired and I can’t help but feel bad for you. As if I...need to do better…”

Rongu placed a claw upon one of hers. “...Hun, don’t worry. You do more than enough to keep me happy. Hence why I’m going to make sure I have a better schedule by next week. I swear.”

Unfortunately, Spitha wasn’t so easily convinced. She huffed a little, and tilted her head. “...Are you sure? You said that last week, sweetie…”

“Something...really bad came up,” he replied hesitantly as he recalled the messy incident that resulted in the death of Mynx. As well as the fact that Tony more than likely witnessed the situation. “But I promise, things are going to be different very soon.”

For a moment, the dragon woman didn’t seem very confident, but one look into Rongu’s determined eyes let her know that he was indeed sincere. “...Alright, hun. I trust you’ll make the right choice.”

Sadly, their quiet little meal together would be interrupted by a knock at the door.

Tap-tap-tap.

“...Hm?” Rongu turned his head to the door, and stood up. “Hang on one sec, I’ll get it.” He made haste before his wife had the chance to protest, and practically flew over to the door. Then he swiftly opened it. “...Hello?” At first, he couldn’t see who had arrived until he looked down.

“Psst! Down here!” a raspy voice called out.

Rongu looked down to find the porcupine that had been roaming around Klugetown and used to follow Gatto. “...You? What the heck do you want?”

“W-we have a problem. You see...I just watched Remington leave Tony’s home. It’s entirely plausible that he plans to help him escape before you find out.”

“What?!” the dragon roared, “Where the hell is Mio??”

“Haven’t seen him anywhere,” the porcupine replied with a shrug.

From inside, Spitha would call out to her husband. “Ronnie? Who’s at the door?”

Rongu turned his head back and replied. “Oh it’s just someone from work, dear.”

“Again?” she asked worriedly.

“Dammit. Now I have to deal with another fool not doing his job right? Just how can this get any worse?” Rongu then turned his head to the porcupine to give him his attention, and started to whisper. “You go on ahead. Make sure that bull man doesn’t leave. I won’t be too far behind.”

The porcupine heeded the warning, and left immediately. Rongu would then close the door, and reach for his coat. He came up with a reason for having to leave on the spot. “Great, just great…” he grumbled.

Spitha got up from the table, and flew over to him. “Ronnie? Is everything okay?”

“Yeah, yeah--just, some complaints down at the Saloon and they need my help to sort out the riffraff.”

The lady dragon sighed with a dejected frown. “...So you’re leaving before we even finish dinner? Again? Honey, this is the fifth time you’ve done this in the last two weeks. Can’t you just have one of your workers deal with it?”

Naturally, Rongu couldn’t grant his wife all of the details about his double life. All he could say was, “No...can’t do that, Spithy. I need to see this for myself.” He turned to her, and caressed her cheek with a smile. “Don’t worry, I won’t be gone for too long.”

Her concerns would melt away from this gesture, and be replaced with a smile in return. Charmed by her husband’s words, Spitha would accept what he meant, and silently prayed that he would return soon.

“...Oh. Okay, dear. If you’re sure. I’ll be waiting for you here.”

Rongu finished putting on his coat. “Good. Thanks Spithy.” With that, he turned to open the door, and left the house.

But as soon as he was gone, the lady dragon’s fears crept back into her mind. “...I wonder if there’s a reason he leaves so often. Is it because of me? Am I the problem?”

Moments later, there would be another knock at the door. Spitha answered it almost immediately.

“Yes?”

Behind the door was a Klugetowner--a green lizard woman to be specific. “Hey, Spitha. I noticed Ron fly off like he was in a hurry. Just wanted to come check on you. Everything okay?”

“Oh, yes…” she answered half-heartedly, “Thanks, Lexi. He just...had to go out and handle some business.”

“Again?” the lizard lady raised a suspicious eyebrow. “That’s why too many times this week. Caesar doesn’t head out that often despite managing a market near the same area. Something’s up and you need to talk to him about it.”

“You think so?” Spitha asked, “Even so, he said he’s going to find a way to make his schedule better, so things should be sorted out soon.”

Lexi was uncertain, but she wasn’t going to try and debate the issue. “Alright…well if you need someone to talk to, you know where I live, Spith.” She turned to walk down the pathway, away from the house. “See ya.”

“Bye…” she waved to her friend with a nervous breath. “...What if she’s right?”