Arthur's Honorby k00lChapters1:1 Arriving at Horseshoe Overlook1:2 Where there is Discord, there is Harmony1:3 Nowhere But Downes1:1 Arriving at Horseshoe OverlookArthur Morgan sat on his cot that sat next to one of the wagons the gang hauled down off the mountains. There the gang sat at a place called Horseshoe Overlook, a small patch of nature on a cliff not too far from the town of Valentine. Arthur had a hold of his journal that he enjoyed writing and drawing in. After spending a few weeks at Horseshoe Overlook, he decided to take this moment to write down the thoughts he had at that moment. We got off the mountain, and rode east into some pretty enough country called the Heartlands. Ain't been this far east in many a year. Dutch seems a little better. His eyes are sparkling once more and, I can see he is thinking a little clearer. I think we all feel a little happier, spite of Blackwater and that whole mess. Arthur lets out a sigh as he puts his journal back into his satchel. He stands up while grabbing his hat off the table that sat close to his cot. He steps out from his living space only to be greeted by a familiar face. "Arthur." Said an older looking gentleman offering Arthur a cup of coffee. "Hosea." Arthur responded, taking the coffee with a nod. Hosea smiles and gently pats Arthur's shoulder. "Quite a day." Said Hosea with his arms outstretched. "Let's hope so." Said Arthur taking a sip of coffee. "There's a bunch of the boys already in Valentine, Bill, Charles and Javier." Said Hosea. "And Swanson found something, down at the train station by the lake apparently. And Strauss came back with that creepy little smile on his face. I'm sure there is a whole list of unfortunates he's forced money upon." Arthur listens to Hosea as he finishes his coffee, letting out a low and deep chuckle at Hosea's comment. "Thank you." Said Arthur. "And you?" "I'm gonna read a book." Said Hosea as he then walked off to presumably his own living space. Arthur looks around camp before trying to find something to make himself useful with. As he walked past one of the wagons, he saw Uncle, leaned against one of the wheels fast asleep. Annoyed by his laziness, Arthur kicks Uncle in the legs to startle him awake. "Try not to work yourself to death there, Uncle." Said Arthur as the old man quickly got up to his feet. "I was thinking." Said Uncle. "Does it pay well?" Asked Arthur skeptically. "Eventually." Said Uncle. Arthur gave him a slight smile and chuckle before patting him on the back. "So, while the rest of us are busy, stealing, killing, lying, fighting to try to survive, you get to think all day." Said Arthur sarcastically. "It's a strange world we live in, Arthur Morgan." Said Uncle. arthur sighs while shaking his head. "Do you wanna head into town, see if we can find anything out?" Offered Arthur. "Sure, I got some errands to run." Said Uncle. "Great. Go check to the horses are ready." Said arthur strenly. Uncle seemed to look annoyed as he let out an irritated sigh as he went to check on the horses. Arthur watches him with an amusing smile on his face as he takes out a cigarette. He lights it with a match as he hears the voice of Karen calling to him. "If you're gonna take the old man into town, could you take us too?" Asked Karen with a smile as Mary-Beth and Tilly stood not too far away from her. "Why, what you got planned?" Asked Arthur as he puffed on his cigarette. "Nothing, we'll find something for y'all to do, we always do." Said Karen as her and the rest of the girls follow her. "We're bored out of our minds. Been cooped up here for two weeks now. Karen's about ready to murder Grimshaw." Chuckled Mary-Beth. "Well, can Miss Grimshaw spare you?" asked Arthur. All three women collectively sighed and rolled their eyes. " 'Can Miss Grimshaw spare you?' ' Mocked Karen. "What's happened to you Arthur? Three young healthy women want you to take 'em robbing, you're worried about house chores? Let's go!" Arthur couldn't help but chuckle at the women. "Fair enough, you got me. Come on then." Said Arthur as the girls get giddy with each other before climbing into the wagon. The group would soon arrive in Valentine and park their wagon near the stables. Valentine was a livestock town, dealing with sheep. Not the biggest town, but certainly not the smallest. The group split up, the women off to try and find some info on some big hits in town while also stealing from men with their "feminine charms." Arthur and Uncle would go to the general store to get some food and liquor. After dealing with some troublemakers the group would soon meet back up about an hour later. right before they were about to leave, Mary-Beth brought something to the group's attention. "Hey, who's that guy over there looking at us?" Asked Mary-Beth. The group turned to see a well dressed man with a well kept hair style. He was wearing a tartan suit as he sat upon his horse. "Weren't you in Blackwater a few weeks back?" Asked the gentleman. "Me? no sir, ain't from there." Said Arthur with a stone face. "Oh, you were. Well, I definitely saw you. With a bunch of fellers." The Gentleman said loudly. "Me? No. Impossible. Listen, buddy. Come here for a minute." Said Arthur as he approached the man. "I saw you!" Yelled the man. "Come here!" "Come on, get!" The man said to his horse as he turned and began to run away. Arthur turned around to the group he came into town with. All of them were still with frightened looks on their faces. "I don't like this." Said Uncle. "Me neither. Go get the girls home. I'm gonna go have a word with our friend." Said Arthur as he mounted a horse next to him that wasn't his. "Be careful Arthur." Said Marry-Beth. "Just a word." Arthur Said as he looked forward in anger. He would soon speed off after the man as a gentleman hollered behind him. "Hey! That's my horse!" Arthur would chase the man out of town with the man yelling back at him to get away. While the man turned to keep yelling at Arthur, he wasn't watching where he was going as he was heading for a cliff. As he got closer, his horse came to a stop suddenly, causing him to fall from his horse and roll off the edge. He clasped the edge and held on for dear life. Arthur came to a stop and hopped off his horse and approached the man. standing over the top of him. "Why you telling lies about me?" Asked Arthur sarcastically. "No, NO! I got it all wrong partner, I got it very wrong! Now please help me up!" Cried the man dangling for his life. Arthur's voice then got very serious as he leant down closer to the man. "I ain't never been in Blackwater." Said Arthur in a deep dark tone. "Then why are you chasing me!?" Yelled the man. "I've got an unfortunate face!" Said Arthur. "Yes! yes, me too!" Said the man as he then began to sob. "Now please, pull me up, please!" Arthur pondered for a moment on whether or not he should save this sorry fool, or squash all chances of him squealing by stomping on his fingers and letting him die. The man continued to beg as Arthur saw something in his peripherals. Arthur looked over at a tree and what he saw made his blood run cold. Behind a tree, peeking out was a long, serpent like creature watching them. Its eyes glowed a hellish red as the corners of its mouth were raised in a crooked smile. God it's face, it was like Arthur was looking into the face of the Devil himself. The figure said nothing nor did it do anything. It just watched and smiled. The more Arthur looked at it, more devilish features began to pop out. It had horns, one of a goat, the other of a stag, It had the arm of a lion, yet he could see it was standing on a hoofed foot. Arthur had never seen anything like it. The longer he stared at it, the colder his blood grew. His concentration on the creature was broken as he heard the man continue to call for his help. "I'm slipping! Help me!" Yelled the man. Arthur quickly looks down at the man for a split second before looking back at the tree. Whatever creature he saw behind the tree was now gone. Arthur quickly blinks and rubs his eyes, thinking he was going mad. He looks back down at the man, and swears under his breath before he bends down and grabs the man's hand. Slowly but surely he helps the man up from his predicament. "Alright, come on." Said Arthur as he helped him up. Arthur dusts off his hands after the man is safely on the edge, laying on his back. "You ok partner?" "No, no I am not." said the man as he soon got up and onto his feet. "I'm a mess." "Well, you ain't dead." Arthur commented. "There is that." Said the man as he started to straighten his back. He then extends out his hand towards Arthur. "Jimmy Brooks." Arthur never even glanced down at Jimmy Brooks' hand as he continued to look him in his eyes. "I think it's best for both of us, if we pretend this never happened." Arthur said coldly. Jimmy Brooks slowly pulled his arm back, the look of fear from almost dying was still plastered on his face. Arthur looked into his fearful eyes, as the vision of the creature's smile re-appeared in his mind. It was almost like Arthur could see that exact same smile, were inside Jimmy Brooks's eyes. He blinked a few times, but he swore he could still see it. "Oh, I agree. You saved my life." Said Jimmy Brooks. "You're a good man and I... uh, here. You want a pen? It's one of them steel ones." Jimmy Brooks offered the pen to Arthur who took it and examined it. "Oh, that's very kind of you." Said Arthur looking at the pen. The pen was fancy with a little engraving on it of a picture with a unicorn with wings on it. While holding it, Arthur had a warm feeling as all angry emotions seemed to dissipate from him a bit as he stared at the pen. Arthur snaps out of it before looking back at Jimmy Brooks. "But I'm not a good man, Jimmy Brooks, not usually. You see... I was in Blackwater. I kill people, and maybe I shoulda killed you." Arthur then steps forward till Arthur's chest was almost pressing into Jimmy Brooks' chest. "Should I have killed you, Jimmy Brooks?" The look of fear quickly came back over Jimmy Brooks' face as he stared into Arthur's face. "Me? I ne-never saw you. Not-not now, not-not never! I think we have an understanding?" Said Jimmy Brooks. "Of course we do." Said Arthur letting out a small smile. He then pat's Jimmy on the shoulder as Jimmy let out a nervous chuckle. "Jimmy Brooks, I will remember that. I've got a good memory." "I haven't! I haven't, not one... uh not one sense in this here old mind!" Said Jimmy Brooks as he soon backed away to his horse, he quickly got on top and rode away. Arthur watched him as he rode away, surprisingly riding past the tree he saw the creature. But to Arthur's surprise, something was back behind the tree, and it wasn't the serpent like creature. This time the thing Arthur saw was on four feet, like a horse. Well, it looked an awful lot like a horse, except the pure white coat it had. No even The Count had a coat that white. Arthur's eyes adjusted to what he was seeing. The horse had a long, flowing mane consisting of at least three different colors. His jaw dropped as he soon could tell that the horse was winged, and had a horn like a unicorn. He looks back down at the pen Jimmy Brooks had given him, and the engraving of a similar horse emblazoned upon it. He looks back up to see it still standing there. It smiles warmly at him before giving him an approving nod. It had turned and walked back behind the tree and seemingly disappeared. Arthur blinked a few times before taking off his hat and rubbing his eyes. He wipes his brow before putting his hat back on and looking back at the tree. The tree was far too skinny to have a horse hiding behind it. "Well, it's finally happened. I'm either going crazy, or going stupid." Said Arthur as he then stuck the pen into his satchel and then turned back to the horse he borrowed. Something told him to just keep it, but no, if he didn't he would be a horse thief. That kind of attention was too risky, and they had just gotten here. He hops on the horse with the intention to return it. He looked back at the tree one more time, both visions flash in his head one more time, the devilish serpent, and the benevolent winged horse. He turned away and made his way back into town to return the horse. Author's Note Gonna be off and on with retelling the story of RDR2, it will become much more origional down the line. 1:2 Where there is Discord, there is HarmonyArthur steps inside of the saloon in Valentine. He sees both Javier and Charles at the bar with two young women, possibly prostitutes. Javier waves Arthur over after taking a shot of whiskey. "Arthur, come here, come here. Come over here, I want you to meet our friends." Said Javier placing a hand on his shoulder. "Pleased to meet you." Arthur said enthusiastically to the two women. "Well ain't you just the tough as teak mountain man?" Said one of the women. "Oh, You be quiet Antastasia, anyone can tell this one is a pussy cat." Said the second woman. "Exactly, he is a pussy... cat." Said Javier with a smile. "Ain't that so Arthur?" "Whatever you say." Said Arthur. "How much you cost anyway?" "Well ain't that a nice way to talk to a lady?" Said the first woman. "Oh, I didn't know I was talking to a lady." Said Arthur with a smug smile. The two women immediately excuse themselves in disgust at Arthur's comment. Javier looked a little disappointed as they left. "Well, I must say, you have a fine way with the women amigo." Said Javier turning back towards the bar. "Yeah, a regular dandy and a charmer." Said Arthur approaching the bar. He picks up a shot of whiskey before downing it. "Where's Bill?" "Oh man, I dread to think about it." Said Javier. As they were talking, Bill entered the Saloon, bumping into a guy who yelled at him. "Hey, hey, hey, there he is." "He about to kiss that guy or punch him?" Asked Charles as Bill grabbed ahold of him and was screaming back at him. Bill then viciously headbutts him causing the whole saloon to look at the pair. One of the men in the saloon stands up and then punches Bill while others begin a bar fight. "Looks like we have our answer!" Said Javier as he grabbed a beer bottle, smashing it over an unsuspecting fellow's head. Charles picks up a chair and violently throws it across the bar as now Arthur joins in the fight by grabbing a man and proceeding to beat the shit out of him. Arthur goes over to help Bill who had three men on him, Arthur quickly beats up one of them while Bill powers his way through the other two. Just then a big burly man comes marching down the stairs. He was much bigger than Arthur, and probably twice as drunk. "What's going on down here!?" The man yelled. "No Tommy, stay out of this!" The bartender yelled. "Come here you little greaser!" Tommy yelled as he went after Javier. Arthur tries to go after him but he was distracted as another one of the patrons jumps on his back. After delivering a hard right hook, knocking the man out, Arthur goes after Tommy who was attacking Javier. "Hey! Tough guy!" Arthur yelled, punching Tommy in the back of the head. It hardly did anything to the man but it did cause him to lose his grip on Javier. He turns and grabs Arthur, and tosses him over a table. Arthur loses his hat as he quickly tries to stand up. It was too late however as Tommy was already on top of him. He grabs Arthur once more and tosses him out through the window. By now it was raining and the ground was very muddy. Tommy walks out of the Saloon still in a drunken rage. "Come on, pretty boy!" Tommy taunted. "Pretty boy? You kidding me? Pretty boy!?" Arthur yelled as he got to his feet. Him and Tommy clashed, exchanging blow after blow, trying to wear each other down. Tommy's blows hit like a freight train across Arthur's cheek, but the mud made him slow. Arthur continues striking him in the face and in the gut till Tommy got tired. However, Tommy was able to pounce on Arthur and pinned him to the ground, shoving his face in the mud. Arthur delivers a hard hit to the gut that knocks the wind out of Tommy, allowing Arthur to pull Tommy off of him and climb on top of him. Arthur then punches Tommy hard on the side of the head, then another punch, then another, then another, then another, then another, then another. Blood covered Arthur's knuckles as he began to bust Tommys head open, who by now had almost stopped fighting back. Arthur was about to deliver another punch till a man stepped in to break them up. "Stop! Stop, please! Please, I beg you! Stop, come sir. You won the fight already, surely that's enough." Said the man. Arthur had blood and mud all over his face. He then quickly drops Tommy who laid unconscious in the mud. "What business is it of yours!?" Said Arthur with rage in his voice. "No business. No business sir, but please, I beg you." Said the man as Arthur forces his way past him. He wipes the mud caked around his eyes as he goes and sits down on a bench near the general store. Arthur was about to lick his wounds until Dutch approached him with a familiar individual next to him, Josiah Trelawny. There, the three of them, plus Bill, Javier, and Charles discuss for a moment on how to free their fellow gang member being held captive by the Pinkertons, Sean. They went their separate ways and by now the sun had set and night was approaching. Dutch told Arthur to clean up and had brought a spare Horse for Arthur to ride home on. After washing up at a nearby rain barrel, Arthur rode his horse back to Horseshoe Overlook. He gets to his cot and quickly gets comfortable inside it. Sleep soon envelopes Arthur's mind as everything turns black. The next thing Arthur knew, he was grabbed forcefully out of his cot and thrown to the ground. His eyes widened as he looked up at the man who dared attack him in his sleep. It was Tommy. "The hell!?" Arthur yelled while on the ground. "I ain't done with you pretty boy!" Tommy yelled, kicking Arthur hard across the face. Arthur quickly tried to crawl but Tommy grabbed a hold of his foot and dragged him back. He picks Arthur up and punches Arthur hard across the face. Arthur stumbled a bit before getting his footing. He grits his teeth and punches Tommy back as he approaches him. "Attack a man while in his bed? You cowardly bastard, I'll kill you!" Arthur yelled as he pulled out his gun. Before Tommy could react, Arthur fires his gun. The bullet enter's Tommy's neck and immediately started gushing blood. Tommy gasps and clenches his neck where the bullet enter and he stumbled back. He tried to say some words, but blood also started to pour out of his mouth, prohibiting him from speaking. Arthur glares at him with hatred in his eyes Tommy soon fell to his knees, then onto his back. Arthur approached him and stood over him. Tommy grabs Arthur's leg as he pleads to put him out of his misery. Arthur only watched as the life in Tommy's eyes faded and he bled to death. Arthur slowly puts his gun back into his holster. He looks around as if to look for his fellow gang members but, he was alone. He was still at Horseshoe Overlook, but the gang, the campsite, everything was gone, just baren nature, and Tommy's body. Soon however, Arthur could hear clapping behind him. He turns around and nearly choked on his own spit when he saw who it was. It was the Serpent he saw earlier that day. It glared at Arthur, slowly clapping with the same devilish smile plastered across his face. It seemed pleased with Arthur's actions. Arthur tried to speak, but found himself too shocked to move, or even speak. "You have it in you. Your rage, your anger, your brutality. You could be a man who is feared by all." Said the Serpent. "...The hell are you?" Asked Arthur. "Me, I am the chaos that resides in your mind. You can call me, Discord." Said the Serpent. "What do you want from me? Is this even real?" Asked Arthur. "All of this, no, of course not. You are sleeping, Arthur Morgan. But within your sleep reveals to me what you really want, reveals you true self to me." Said Discord. "You wanted to kill that poor drunk, if not for that stranger you would have." "It was self defense. Are you even real?" asked Arthur. "I am as real to you as anything else." Said Discord. "You bastard!" Arthur yelled sternly to the monster. "Now what the hell you want from me!?" "I want nothing, but your mind." Said Discord. Arthur, taken back by the Serpent's response, chilled. Discord slowly approached Arthur, his blood red and yellow eyes locked onto Arthur like a predator to its prey. "Consider me your conscience. I'm the little voice in your head that tells you to hurt people, to kill people. Give in to your hatred, and you open the door for me to infect your mind." "I don't want no demon from hell picking at my mind!" Said Arthur. This caused Discord to let out a hardy laugh. "You have no choice Arthur Morgan. You are not a good man, you said that yourself to that Jimmy Brooks fella." Said Discord. Arthur's eyes widened. "The more of a 'Bad Man' you are, the more I sleep in, the more I have your mind in my clutches!" Discord reached out and grabbed Arthur by his head and began to squeeze. Arthur yelled out as the intense pressure around his skull as he felt it would crush any second from now."You're mine Arthur Morgan! Everytime you rob, I will be there. Anytime you kill, I will be there. You will seem me again Arthur Morgan, you can bet on that!" Said Discord. Arthur slowly begins to black out from the intense pain in his head. Arthur jolts himself awake as he lays in his cot. He quickly looks around to see the campsite is still here. Everyone was asleep, but at that moment, Arthur could not. What he felt and saw was very real and he quickly got up from his cot and went to the horses. He grabbed one of the spare horses and quickly rode out. He needed to clear his mind and process what he dreamt. Was it real, or was it his imagination? Arthur thought hard about this. He saw that same Serpent earlier today, then it appeared in his dream. Coincidence, more than likely. Arthur thought he may just have a concussion as he began to ride his horse down along the river. Arthur was about to come to peace with what he dreamt until his entire logic was about to be thrown out the window. In the path in front of his horse, way off in the distance, Arthur could see a horse on the path. It was standing sideways, blocking the path on each sides. It was far too dark to see what kind of horse it was, all Arthur could see was its outline. His makes his own horse come to a complete stop as Arthur examined it from a far. Arthur could see it had an unnatural shape, and no rider. His eyes widen when he sees a large mass extend from its sides. "...Are those... Wings?" Arthur thought. He rubs his eyes thinking the lack of sleep and a possible concussion was making him hallucinate. When he opened his eyes open again, the horse was now only a few feet away, which startled Arthur into jumping. "Gah! Goddammit!" he yelled as the Horse stared at him with a soft smile. "Calm yourself Arthur, I am not here to harm you." Said the horse. Like what Arthur saw before, it had wings and a horn, with a bright white coat. Unlike the serpent Arthur saw in his dream, he felt calm around this one. Arthur blinked a few times before he spoke up. "A talking, winged unicorn. Lord, my mind has forsaken my sanity." Said Arthur. "I apologize for how you feel Arthur, but I am here for your own good." Said the Horse. "Well, what exactly are you?" Asked Arthur. "I am the Harmony locked within your heart, My name is Celestia." Said the Horse. "You have recently spoken with the draconequus haven't you?" "What the hell is a draco-con-qest?" Asked Arthur. "it's the spirit of chaos in your head." Said Celestia. "That monster?" Asked Arthur. "Yes, I am an Alicorn, here to guide you to do right." Said Celestia. "Listen, lady. I don't want you, or whatever the hell that other thing is around me! I've gone through too much to lose my mind now!" Said Arthur. "I understand this is all hard for you to accept. But before your time is up, you need to decide what kind of man you want to be." Said Celestia, her smile now turned into a frown. "Excuse me? The fuck is that supposed to mean?" Said Arthur. But as he blinked, Celestia was gone. "Hello? HELLO!? Goddammit!" Said Arthur as he coaxed his Horse to turn around and head back to Horseshoe Overlook. Arthur hitches the horse before returning to his living space and sitting down on his cot. He pulls out his journal, he hesitates for a moment before sketching a picture of both Discord on one page, and Celestia on the other. He labeled both of them Chaos and Harmony accordingly. He closes the book before sighing and rubbing his face. He looks over to the side to see the sun just barely starting to peek over. Arthur decided to get in a few more hours of sleep before everyone else wakes up for the day. "Keep yourself together Morgan." Arthur said to himself. "Hallucinations, is all they are. You can't lose your mind now, now that everybody needs ya to help get them back on their feet." Arthur lays his head back down and slowly drifts back into sleep. 1:3 Nowhere But DownesIt had been a few days since the bar fight in Valentine. The boys had tormented Kieran enough for him to reveal an O'Driscoll campsite not too far away. After dealing with the nearby competition, and allowing Kieran into the gang, Arthur finally got himself a new horse. She was not that tall of a horse, but she had a shiny black coat. He hadn't decided what to name her yet as he was far too busy. He approaches Leopold Strauss who had a job for him "What did you want? You loaning already?" Asked Arthur. "You know how it is, people is happy to borrow off someone like me. But, More enthusiastically paying back to someone like you." Said the German with a cynical grin. "Of course." Responded Arthur. "Who are they?" "Let me see." Said Strauss. He opens his ledger, with a lick of his thumb he looks through his book to find the names of the people that owed him money. "A Chick Mathews, works at Guthrie farm. He's a hand I believe. Mr. Wróbel, the smallholder at Painted Sky, runs the operations there... badly. Miss Lilly Millet is a ranch maid up at Emerald Ranch." Strauss read off. "And here was me believing Dutch's bluster about us helping folk." Responded Arthur. "It's legal work, Mr. Morgan." Said Strauss. "Debtors belong in prison, we are doing them a favor." "Aye, I'll make sure they see it in them terms." Said Arthur as he was about to turn away. "Ah, there is one more I did briefly forget about." Said Strauss as Arthur turned back towards him. "This farmer, preacher, feller I met in Valentine, Mr. Downes. "The opinionated little do-gooder?" Arthur asked. "Yeah I know the one. I certainly know the type." "Thank you Herr Morgan." Said Strauss. "He's more slippery than he seems. I've tried being polite, don't take any nonsense." "Nonsense, Me?" Joked Arthur. "If he does not have the money, beat him." Strauss said bluntly. "Well, I usually do." Said Arthur finally turning his back. "I know, I know." Said Strauss with a sadistic chuckle. Arthur mounts his horse and decides to visit Mr. Downes first. He rides down a dirt path for around a half hour before pulling up at the small farm house. In a small garden a small sickly man can be seen tending to it. Arthur hops off his horse and clears his throat, loud enough to catch Mr. Downes' attention. He gasps as he looks up at Arthur who had a very angry expression. "You, uh. Whatever do you want?" Said Mr. Downes. "Mr. Thomas Downes, you owe me money!" Said Arthur sternly as he stepped into the garden. "We ain't a charity." As Arthur got closer, Thomas Downes swung the rake he was holding at Arthur, fearful of the man. Arthur blocks it easily and punches Mr. Downes hard in the face, knocking him to the ground. If Arthur wasn't mad before, he was pissed now. "Please, I have a family sir, please!" Begged Mr. Downes as he tried scooting away from Arthur. "I don't care about your family!" Said Arthur as he planted his boot across Mr. Downes' face. The kick busted the lip of Mr. Downes as blood began to run down his chin. Arthur continued to punish the man by giving him an undeserved beating, punching him, kicking him. The man's face swelled up and bruised as Arthur showed him no kind of mercy or compassion. He then picks him up and holds him against the fence surrounding the garden and gets in his face. "You borrowed money from my business partner Herr Strauss! You owe him, you took the money! He wants it back, what's not to understand!?" Arthur yelled in the poor man's face. Thomas Downes coughs violently, spraying blood all over Arthur's face and even getting in his mouth. Arthur takes a second to wipe off his face as looks back at Mr. Downes. He holds his fist up to punch him again, but instead he just grabs ahold of his collar. "Where's our money!?" "I don't have it." Said Thomas Downes, exhausted and weak. "Sell your place." Said Arthur coldly. "We already owe more than it's worth." "Then sell your wife, or your family, or something!" Arthur Yelled back. "We ain't your idea of charity! Is that clear!?" By now, Thomas Downes' wife, Edith, and her son had heard the commotion and had ran out of the house. Horror stretched across their face seeing Arthur holding onto a savagely beaten Thomas. Thomas continued to cough in a sickly manner as Arthur let him go, letting thomas drop to the ground. "Thomas!" Edith yelled as she ran up to the garden. "What you looking at!? Yelled Arthur, stepping out of the garden. "I said what you looking at woman!?" "My husband isn't well!" Cried Edith. "If we could just have more..." "Like I said, we ain't nobody's idea of charity! Get us the money!" Arthur yelled, cutting her off. Arthur hops on his horse as Thomas's wife and son come to his aid. Arhtur begins to ride off from the farm. He spits the taste of blood out of his mouth as he continues down the dirt road to go collect the debt from others. As Arthur rode a creeping cold slowly rose up his back. He tries to shake it off but it soon creeps up to his shoulders, as if the cold wind grew a hand and placed it on his shoulder. He looks down to un fact see something there, a hand, but it wasn't a hand, but the paw of a lion. This causes Arthur to yell and jump, spooking his own horse that bucks him off. Arthur lands on the ground shoulder first, sending a shock wave of pain down his arm. He opens his eyes while on the ground to see two feet standing over him, one hoofed, the other scaly. This spooks Arthur agin to roll over onto his back and scoot back to whatever was standing over him. He looks up to see who it was, only to meet the eyes of Discord, now appearing out of his dream. "Well done Arthur." Discord cackled. "Get the hell away from me you!" Said Arthur slowly getting to his feet. "I told you Arthur, the more bad you do, the closer I get." Said Discord. "Oh you should have seen the look on her face after what you had just done." "On whose face? That fools wife?" Asked Arthur. Discord then chuckles at him. "No, Celestia's." Discord said with a smile. Arthur looked confused at Discord, he hadn't seen Celestia since the night after the bar fight a few days ago. He had almost forgotten the whole encounter if it wasn't for Discord popping back out now. Arthur couldn't tell if his mind was trying to piece together all his hallucinations, or if the two beings Arthur has been seeing are in fact real, and they know each other. "I... I haven't seen her in days." Said Arthur. "Oh I know you haven't. The more bad you do, the less you see of her, and the more you will see of me. You spared Jimmy Brooks' life, gave you an audience with Celestia outside of your dreams, and now that you have done this, beating the poor defenseless sick man, you now see me." Discord grinned. "Oh the look on Celestia's face, it was priceless! As soon as you swung that first punch on that poor farmer, she began to weep." "I don't... I don't care!" Arthur yelled. "You ain't real, I know it." Discord responded with his grin getting wider and more devilish. "Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. It matters not to me what you believe Arthur, in fact, I welcome your carelessness. It benefits me in the long run, now that you have set in motion your own end." Said Discord. "The hell you talking about!? You and that bitch keep talking about my end! I ain't going anywhere, and you and that crazy bitch can go back to hell where you crawled from!" Yelled Arthur. Discord began to chuckle, his chuckle then soon turned into a laugh, then into a demonic cackle. Arthur continues to back away from Discord as his laughter grew out of control. Arthur closes his eyes, just wanting him to go away and leave him alone. He counts to 3 before opening his eyes, when he does, Discord is in fact gone, but his laughter still booms in Arthur's head. Arthur approaches a tree on the side of the road and leans against it. He rubs his eyes and wipes his brow as he that falls to the ground. The experiences with Discord have the opposite feeling then he feels with Celestia. While Arthur feels calm and warm around her, all he feels around Discord is fear, agony, and anger. It was almost like every experience with him is a traumatic event. Arthur takes a minute to calm himself down, bending down and picking up his hat before placing it back on his head. He whistles for his horse which approaches him from the tree line. He hops back on it and goes on to collect the rest of the debt money Strauss had sent him to get. It took Arthur all day to collect the debt money from the others. Wróbel didn't speak English, causing a lot of difficulties there, Lilly Millet turned the whole ordeal into a fight when her friend Cooper attacked Arthur who Arthur quickly knocked unconscious, and Chick Mathews decided to run leading to a chase on horseback. Arthur slowly strolled into camp well past midnight, he put the debt money into the camp funds before turning in for the night. It didn't take long for sleep to envelope Arthur, but his actions of the day played again in his dreams. His chase with Chick, his fight with Cooper, his raiding of Wróbel's house, and finally his savage attack on Thomas Downes. That moment replayed in his mind over and over again, causing Arthur to turn in his sleep uncomfortably. Eventually, after the moment is played in his mind one more time, his mind then focuses on a dirt road leading to a river. Standing at the river, was the Winged Unicorn Celestia. She seemed to look at Arthur with a sad expression on her face, tears flowed from her eyes as she just continued to stare into Arthur's soul. Arthur could feel his chest tightening, as if Celestia was portraying her sadness onto Arthur. After staring at Arthur for what felt like an eternity, Celectia closes her eyes as tears fall from her cheeks. She turned her back on him as she began to walk away. Arthur felt himself go to one knee as the sadness he was feeling was getting unbearable. Eventually he could hear someone saying his name. "Arthur... Arthur... What's wrong?... Arthur... Wake up..." Arthur snaps his eyes open and quickly looks to his side, Hosea was next to him with his hands on his chest trying to wake Arthur up. "Arthur, good god son, wake up." Said Hosea. "The... hell?" Arthur said as he sat up. "You were giving me a fright Arthur. You looked like you were having a nightmare." Said Hosea. "Shaking and whimpering and so forth. "It... was no nightmare." Said Arthur as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Good, good. Just making sure. I ain't never seen a man shake as you, and I have seen many at the end of my gun who were scared shitless for their own life. You take care of yourself Arthur." Said Hosea as he began to leave. "Get yourself a good meal, Charles brought back a good looking stag that Pearson put in his stew. May do you some good to get some grub in your belly." "Will do Hosea." Said Arthur, he pulled his hand away from his face to see his fingers were damp. Tears? Was Arthur really crying? The face of Celestia's weeping face flashed in Arthurs mind again, with it, the same tightening in his chest as sadness returned to him. He shakes his head to get his mind straight. He stands up, and approaches Pearson's wagon, stepping past the pot of stew and walking behind Pearson's wagon. There was a bucket of water which the group used for drinking and cooking. He picks up a ladle and gets himself a big glug of water. He dips it in one more time and splashes his face with it, hoping for it to wake him up a bit. The vision of Celestia soon fades from mind as that was exactly what he needed. He wipes the water away with his hands and goes on to start his day.
1:1 Arriving at Horseshoe OverlookArthur Morgan sat on his cot that sat next to one of the wagons the gang hauled down off the mountains. There the gang sat at a place called Horseshoe Overlook, a small patch of nature on a cliff not too far from the town of Valentine. Arthur had a hold of his journal that he enjoyed writing and drawing in. After spending a few weeks at Horseshoe Overlook, he decided to take this moment to write down the thoughts he had at that moment. We got off the mountain, and rode east into some pretty enough country called the Heartlands. Ain't been this far east in many a year. Dutch seems a little better. His eyes are sparkling once more and, I can see he is thinking a little clearer. I think we all feel a little happier, spite of Blackwater and that whole mess. Arthur lets out a sigh as he puts his journal back into his satchel. He stands up while grabbing his hat off the table that sat close to his cot. He steps out from his living space only to be greeted by a familiar face. "Arthur." Said an older looking gentleman offering Arthur a cup of coffee. "Hosea." Arthur responded, taking the coffee with a nod. Hosea smiles and gently pats Arthur's shoulder. "Quite a day." Said Hosea with his arms outstretched. "Let's hope so." Said Arthur taking a sip of coffee. "There's a bunch of the boys already in Valentine, Bill, Charles and Javier." Said Hosea. "And Swanson found something, down at the train station by the lake apparently. And Strauss came back with that creepy little smile on his face. I'm sure there is a whole list of unfortunates he's forced money upon." Arthur listens to Hosea as he finishes his coffee, letting out a low and deep chuckle at Hosea's comment. "Thank you." Said Arthur. "And you?" "I'm gonna read a book." Said Hosea as he then walked off to presumably his own living space. Arthur looks around camp before trying to find something to make himself useful with. As he walked past one of the wagons, he saw Uncle, leaned against one of the wheels fast asleep. Annoyed by his laziness, Arthur kicks Uncle in the legs to startle him awake. "Try not to work yourself to death there, Uncle." Said Arthur as the old man quickly got up to his feet. "I was thinking." Said Uncle. "Does it pay well?" Asked Arthur skeptically. "Eventually." Said Uncle. Arthur gave him a slight smile and chuckle before patting him on the back. "So, while the rest of us are busy, stealing, killing, lying, fighting to try to survive, you get to think all day." Said Arthur sarcastically. "It's a strange world we live in, Arthur Morgan." Said Uncle. arthur sighs while shaking his head. "Do you wanna head into town, see if we can find anything out?" Offered Arthur. "Sure, I got some errands to run." Said Uncle. "Great. Go check to the horses are ready." Said arthur strenly. Uncle seemed to look annoyed as he let out an irritated sigh as he went to check on the horses. Arthur watches him with an amusing smile on his face as he takes out a cigarette. He lights it with a match as he hears the voice of Karen calling to him. "If you're gonna take the old man into town, could you take us too?" Asked Karen with a smile as Mary-Beth and Tilly stood not too far away from her. "Why, what you got planned?" Asked Arthur as he puffed on his cigarette. "Nothing, we'll find something for y'all to do, we always do." Said Karen as her and the rest of the girls follow her. "We're bored out of our minds. Been cooped up here for two weeks now. Karen's about ready to murder Grimshaw." Chuckled Mary-Beth. "Well, can Miss Grimshaw spare you?" asked Arthur. All three women collectively sighed and rolled their eyes. " 'Can Miss Grimshaw spare you?' ' Mocked Karen. "What's happened to you Arthur? Three young healthy women want you to take 'em robbing, you're worried about house chores? Let's go!" Arthur couldn't help but chuckle at the women. "Fair enough, you got me. Come on then." Said Arthur as the girls get giddy with each other before climbing into the wagon. The group would soon arrive in Valentine and park their wagon near the stables. Valentine was a livestock town, dealing with sheep. Not the biggest town, but certainly not the smallest. The group split up, the women off to try and find some info on some big hits in town while also stealing from men with their "feminine charms." Arthur and Uncle would go to the general store to get some food and liquor. After dealing with some troublemakers the group would soon meet back up about an hour later. right before they were about to leave, Mary-Beth brought something to the group's attention. "Hey, who's that guy over there looking at us?" Asked Mary-Beth. The group turned to see a well dressed man with a well kept hair style. He was wearing a tartan suit as he sat upon his horse. "Weren't you in Blackwater a few weeks back?" Asked the gentleman. "Me? no sir, ain't from there." Said Arthur with a stone face. "Oh, you were. Well, I definitely saw you. With a bunch of fellers." The Gentleman said loudly. "Me? No. Impossible. Listen, buddy. Come here for a minute." Said Arthur as he approached the man. "I saw you!" Yelled the man. "Come here!" "Come on, get!" The man said to his horse as he turned and began to run away. Arthur turned around to the group he came into town with. All of them were still with frightened looks on their faces. "I don't like this." Said Uncle. "Me neither. Go get the girls home. I'm gonna go have a word with our friend." Said Arthur as he mounted a horse next to him that wasn't his. "Be careful Arthur." Said Marry-Beth. "Just a word." Arthur Said as he looked forward in anger. He would soon speed off after the man as a gentleman hollered behind him. "Hey! That's my horse!" Arthur would chase the man out of town with the man yelling back at him to get away. While the man turned to keep yelling at Arthur, he wasn't watching where he was going as he was heading for a cliff. As he got closer, his horse came to a stop suddenly, causing him to fall from his horse and roll off the edge. He clasped the edge and held on for dear life. Arthur came to a stop and hopped off his horse and approached the man. standing over the top of him. "Why you telling lies about me?" Asked Arthur sarcastically. "No, NO! I got it all wrong partner, I got it very wrong! Now please help me up!" Cried the man dangling for his life. Arthur's voice then got very serious as he leant down closer to the man. "I ain't never been in Blackwater." Said Arthur in a deep dark tone. "Then why are you chasing me!?" Yelled the man. "I've got an unfortunate face!" Said Arthur. "Yes! yes, me too!" Said the man as he then began to sob. "Now please, pull me up, please!" Arthur pondered for a moment on whether or not he should save this sorry fool, or squash all chances of him squealing by stomping on his fingers and letting him die. The man continued to beg as Arthur saw something in his peripherals. Arthur looked over at a tree and what he saw made his blood run cold. Behind a tree, peeking out was a long, serpent like creature watching them. Its eyes glowed a hellish red as the corners of its mouth were raised in a crooked smile. God it's face, it was like Arthur was looking into the face of the Devil himself. The figure said nothing nor did it do anything. It just watched and smiled. The more Arthur looked at it, more devilish features began to pop out. It had horns, one of a goat, the other of a stag, It had the arm of a lion, yet he could see it was standing on a hoofed foot. Arthur had never seen anything like it. The longer he stared at it, the colder his blood grew. His concentration on the creature was broken as he heard the man continue to call for his help. "I'm slipping! Help me!" Yelled the man. Arthur quickly looks down at the man for a split second before looking back at the tree. Whatever creature he saw behind the tree was now gone. Arthur quickly blinks and rubs his eyes, thinking he was going mad. He looks back down at the man, and swears under his breath before he bends down and grabs the man's hand. Slowly but surely he helps the man up from his predicament. "Alright, come on." Said Arthur as he helped him up. Arthur dusts off his hands after the man is safely on the edge, laying on his back. "You ok partner?" "No, no I am not." said the man as he soon got up and onto his feet. "I'm a mess." "Well, you ain't dead." Arthur commented. "There is that." Said the man as he started to straighten his back. He then extends out his hand towards Arthur. "Jimmy Brooks." Arthur never even glanced down at Jimmy Brooks' hand as he continued to look him in his eyes. "I think it's best for both of us, if we pretend this never happened." Arthur said coldly. Jimmy Brooks slowly pulled his arm back, the look of fear from almost dying was still plastered on his face. Arthur looked into his fearful eyes, as the vision of the creature's smile re-appeared in his mind. It was almost like Arthur could see that exact same smile, were inside Jimmy Brooks's eyes. He blinked a few times, but he swore he could still see it. "Oh, I agree. You saved my life." Said Jimmy Brooks. "You're a good man and I... uh, here. You want a pen? It's one of them steel ones." Jimmy Brooks offered the pen to Arthur who took it and examined it. "Oh, that's very kind of you." Said Arthur looking at the pen. The pen was fancy with a little engraving on it of a picture with a unicorn with wings on it. While holding it, Arthur had a warm feeling as all angry emotions seemed to dissipate from him a bit as he stared at the pen. Arthur snaps out of it before looking back at Jimmy Brooks. "But I'm not a good man, Jimmy Brooks, not usually. You see... I was in Blackwater. I kill people, and maybe I shoulda killed you." Arthur then steps forward till Arthur's chest was almost pressing into Jimmy Brooks' chest. "Should I have killed you, Jimmy Brooks?" The look of fear quickly came back over Jimmy Brooks' face as he stared into Arthur's face. "Me? I ne-never saw you. Not-not now, not-not never! I think we have an understanding?" Said Jimmy Brooks. "Of course we do." Said Arthur letting out a small smile. He then pat's Jimmy on the shoulder as Jimmy let out a nervous chuckle. "Jimmy Brooks, I will remember that. I've got a good memory." "I haven't! I haven't, not one... uh not one sense in this here old mind!" Said Jimmy Brooks as he soon backed away to his horse, he quickly got on top and rode away. Arthur watched him as he rode away, surprisingly riding past the tree he saw the creature. But to Arthur's surprise, something was back behind the tree, and it wasn't the serpent like creature. This time the thing Arthur saw was on four feet, like a horse. Well, it looked an awful lot like a horse, except the pure white coat it had. No even The Count had a coat that white. Arthur's eyes adjusted to what he was seeing. The horse had a long, flowing mane consisting of at least three different colors. His jaw dropped as he soon could tell that the horse was winged, and had a horn like a unicorn. He looks back down at the pen Jimmy Brooks had given him, and the engraving of a similar horse emblazoned upon it. He looks back up to see it still standing there. It smiles warmly at him before giving him an approving nod. It had turned and walked back behind the tree and seemingly disappeared. Arthur blinked a few times before taking off his hat and rubbing his eyes. He wipes his brow before putting his hat back on and looking back at the tree. The tree was far too skinny to have a horse hiding behind it. "Well, it's finally happened. I'm either going crazy, or going stupid." Said Arthur as he then stuck the pen into his satchel and then turned back to the horse he borrowed. Something told him to just keep it, but no, if he didn't he would be a horse thief. That kind of attention was too risky, and they had just gotten here. He hops on the horse with the intention to return it. He looked back at the tree one more time, both visions flash in his head one more time, the devilish serpent, and the benevolent winged horse. He turned away and made his way back into town to return the horse. Author's Note Gonna be off and on with retelling the story of RDR2, it will become much more origional down the line.
1:2 Where there is Discord, there is HarmonyArthur steps inside of the saloon in Valentine. He sees both Javier and Charles at the bar with two young women, possibly prostitutes. Javier waves Arthur over after taking a shot of whiskey. "Arthur, come here, come here. Come over here, I want you to meet our friends." Said Javier placing a hand on his shoulder. "Pleased to meet you." Arthur said enthusiastically to the two women. "Well ain't you just the tough as teak mountain man?" Said one of the women. "Oh, You be quiet Antastasia, anyone can tell this one is a pussy cat." Said the second woman. "Exactly, he is a pussy... cat." Said Javier with a smile. "Ain't that so Arthur?" "Whatever you say." Said Arthur. "How much you cost anyway?" "Well ain't that a nice way to talk to a lady?" Said the first woman. "Oh, I didn't know I was talking to a lady." Said Arthur with a smug smile. The two women immediately excuse themselves in disgust at Arthur's comment. Javier looked a little disappointed as they left. "Well, I must say, you have a fine way with the women amigo." Said Javier turning back towards the bar. "Yeah, a regular dandy and a charmer." Said Arthur approaching the bar. He picks up a shot of whiskey before downing it. "Where's Bill?" "Oh man, I dread to think about it." Said Javier. As they were talking, Bill entered the Saloon, bumping into a guy who yelled at him. "Hey, hey, hey, there he is." "He about to kiss that guy or punch him?" Asked Charles as Bill grabbed ahold of him and was screaming back at him. Bill then viciously headbutts him causing the whole saloon to look at the pair. One of the men in the saloon stands up and then punches Bill while others begin a bar fight. "Looks like we have our answer!" Said Javier as he grabbed a beer bottle, smashing it over an unsuspecting fellow's head. Charles picks up a chair and violently throws it across the bar as now Arthur joins in the fight by grabbing a man and proceeding to beat the shit out of him. Arthur goes over to help Bill who had three men on him, Arthur quickly beats up one of them while Bill powers his way through the other two. Just then a big burly man comes marching down the stairs. He was much bigger than Arthur, and probably twice as drunk. "What's going on down here!?" The man yelled. "No Tommy, stay out of this!" The bartender yelled. "Come here you little greaser!" Tommy yelled as he went after Javier. Arthur tries to go after him but he was distracted as another one of the patrons jumps on his back. After delivering a hard right hook, knocking the man out, Arthur goes after Tommy who was attacking Javier. "Hey! Tough guy!" Arthur yelled, punching Tommy in the back of the head. It hardly did anything to the man but it did cause him to lose his grip on Javier. He turns and grabs Arthur, and tosses him over a table. Arthur loses his hat as he quickly tries to stand up. It was too late however as Tommy was already on top of him. He grabs Arthur once more and tosses him out through the window. By now it was raining and the ground was very muddy. Tommy walks out of the Saloon still in a drunken rage. "Come on, pretty boy!" Tommy taunted. "Pretty boy? You kidding me? Pretty boy!?" Arthur yelled as he got to his feet. Him and Tommy clashed, exchanging blow after blow, trying to wear each other down. Tommy's blows hit like a freight train across Arthur's cheek, but the mud made him slow. Arthur continues striking him in the face and in the gut till Tommy got tired. However, Tommy was able to pounce on Arthur and pinned him to the ground, shoving his face in the mud. Arthur delivers a hard hit to the gut that knocks the wind out of Tommy, allowing Arthur to pull Tommy off of him and climb on top of him. Arthur then punches Tommy hard on the side of the head, then another punch, then another, then another, then another, then another, then another. Blood covered Arthur's knuckles as he began to bust Tommys head open, who by now had almost stopped fighting back. Arthur was about to deliver another punch till a man stepped in to break them up. "Stop! Stop, please! Please, I beg you! Stop, come sir. You won the fight already, surely that's enough." Said the man. Arthur had blood and mud all over his face. He then quickly drops Tommy who laid unconscious in the mud. "What business is it of yours!?" Said Arthur with rage in his voice. "No business. No business sir, but please, I beg you." Said the man as Arthur forces his way past him. He wipes the mud caked around his eyes as he goes and sits down on a bench near the general store. Arthur was about to lick his wounds until Dutch approached him with a familiar individual next to him, Josiah Trelawny. There, the three of them, plus Bill, Javier, and Charles discuss for a moment on how to free their fellow gang member being held captive by the Pinkertons, Sean. They went their separate ways and by now the sun had set and night was approaching. Dutch told Arthur to clean up and had brought a spare Horse for Arthur to ride home on. After washing up at a nearby rain barrel, Arthur rode his horse back to Horseshoe Overlook. He gets to his cot and quickly gets comfortable inside it. Sleep soon envelopes Arthur's mind as everything turns black. The next thing Arthur knew, he was grabbed forcefully out of his cot and thrown to the ground. His eyes widened as he looked up at the man who dared attack him in his sleep. It was Tommy. "The hell!?" Arthur yelled while on the ground. "I ain't done with you pretty boy!" Tommy yelled, kicking Arthur hard across the face. Arthur quickly tried to crawl but Tommy grabbed a hold of his foot and dragged him back. He picks Arthur up and punches Arthur hard across the face. Arthur stumbled a bit before getting his footing. He grits his teeth and punches Tommy back as he approaches him. "Attack a man while in his bed? You cowardly bastard, I'll kill you!" Arthur yelled as he pulled out his gun. Before Tommy could react, Arthur fires his gun. The bullet enter's Tommy's neck and immediately started gushing blood. Tommy gasps and clenches his neck where the bullet enter and he stumbled back. He tried to say some words, but blood also started to pour out of his mouth, prohibiting him from speaking. Arthur glares at him with hatred in his eyes Tommy soon fell to his knees, then onto his back. Arthur approached him and stood over him. Tommy grabs Arthur's leg as he pleads to put him out of his misery. Arthur only watched as the life in Tommy's eyes faded and he bled to death. Arthur slowly puts his gun back into his holster. He looks around as if to look for his fellow gang members but, he was alone. He was still at Horseshoe Overlook, but the gang, the campsite, everything was gone, just baren nature, and Tommy's body. Soon however, Arthur could hear clapping behind him. He turns around and nearly choked on his own spit when he saw who it was. It was the Serpent he saw earlier that day. It glared at Arthur, slowly clapping with the same devilish smile plastered across his face. It seemed pleased with Arthur's actions. Arthur tried to speak, but found himself too shocked to move, or even speak. "You have it in you. Your rage, your anger, your brutality. You could be a man who is feared by all." Said the Serpent. "...The hell are you?" Asked Arthur. "Me, I am the chaos that resides in your mind. You can call me, Discord." Said the Serpent. "What do you want from me? Is this even real?" Asked Arthur. "All of this, no, of course not. You are sleeping, Arthur Morgan. But within your sleep reveals to me what you really want, reveals you true self to me." Said Discord. "You wanted to kill that poor drunk, if not for that stranger you would have." "It was self defense. Are you even real?" asked Arthur. "I am as real to you as anything else." Said Discord. "You bastard!" Arthur yelled sternly to the monster. "Now what the hell you want from me!?" "I want nothing, but your mind." Said Discord. Arthur, taken back by the Serpent's response, chilled. Discord slowly approached Arthur, his blood red and yellow eyes locked onto Arthur like a predator to its prey. "Consider me your conscience. I'm the little voice in your head that tells you to hurt people, to kill people. Give in to your hatred, and you open the door for me to infect your mind." "I don't want no demon from hell picking at my mind!" Said Arthur. This caused Discord to let out a hardy laugh. "You have no choice Arthur Morgan. You are not a good man, you said that yourself to that Jimmy Brooks fella." Said Discord. Arthur's eyes widened. "The more of a 'Bad Man' you are, the more I sleep in, the more I have your mind in my clutches!" Discord reached out and grabbed Arthur by his head and began to squeeze. Arthur yelled out as the intense pressure around his skull as he felt it would crush any second from now."You're mine Arthur Morgan! Everytime you rob, I will be there. Anytime you kill, I will be there. You will seem me again Arthur Morgan, you can bet on that!" Said Discord. Arthur slowly begins to black out from the intense pain in his head. Arthur jolts himself awake as he lays in his cot. He quickly looks around to see the campsite is still here. Everyone was asleep, but at that moment, Arthur could not. What he felt and saw was very real and he quickly got up from his cot and went to the horses. He grabbed one of the spare horses and quickly rode out. He needed to clear his mind and process what he dreamt. Was it real, or was it his imagination? Arthur thought hard about this. He saw that same Serpent earlier today, then it appeared in his dream. Coincidence, more than likely. Arthur thought he may just have a concussion as he began to ride his horse down along the river. Arthur was about to come to peace with what he dreamt until his entire logic was about to be thrown out the window. In the path in front of his horse, way off in the distance, Arthur could see a horse on the path. It was standing sideways, blocking the path on each sides. It was far too dark to see what kind of horse it was, all Arthur could see was its outline. His makes his own horse come to a complete stop as Arthur examined it from a far. Arthur could see it had an unnatural shape, and no rider. His eyes widen when he sees a large mass extend from its sides. "...Are those... Wings?" Arthur thought. He rubs his eyes thinking the lack of sleep and a possible concussion was making him hallucinate. When he opened his eyes open again, the horse was now only a few feet away, which startled Arthur into jumping. "Gah! Goddammit!" he yelled as the Horse stared at him with a soft smile. "Calm yourself Arthur, I am not here to harm you." Said the horse. Like what Arthur saw before, it had wings and a horn, with a bright white coat. Unlike the serpent Arthur saw in his dream, he felt calm around this one. Arthur blinked a few times before he spoke up. "A talking, winged unicorn. Lord, my mind has forsaken my sanity." Said Arthur. "I apologize for how you feel Arthur, but I am here for your own good." Said the Horse. "Well, what exactly are you?" Asked Arthur. "I am the Harmony locked within your heart, My name is Celestia." Said the Horse. "You have recently spoken with the draconequus haven't you?" "What the hell is a draco-con-qest?" Asked Arthur. "it's the spirit of chaos in your head." Said Celestia. "That monster?" Asked Arthur. "Yes, I am an Alicorn, here to guide you to do right." Said Celestia. "Listen, lady. I don't want you, or whatever the hell that other thing is around me! I've gone through too much to lose my mind now!" Said Arthur. "I understand this is all hard for you to accept. But before your time is up, you need to decide what kind of man you want to be." Said Celestia, her smile now turned into a frown. "Excuse me? The fuck is that supposed to mean?" Said Arthur. But as he blinked, Celestia was gone. "Hello? HELLO!? Goddammit!" Said Arthur as he coaxed his Horse to turn around and head back to Horseshoe Overlook. Arthur hitches the horse before returning to his living space and sitting down on his cot. He pulls out his journal, he hesitates for a moment before sketching a picture of both Discord on one page, and Celestia on the other. He labeled both of them Chaos and Harmony accordingly. He closes the book before sighing and rubbing his face. He looks over to the side to see the sun just barely starting to peek over. Arthur decided to get in a few more hours of sleep before everyone else wakes up for the day. "Keep yourself together Morgan." Arthur said to himself. "Hallucinations, is all they are. You can't lose your mind now, now that everybody needs ya to help get them back on their feet." Arthur lays his head back down and slowly drifts back into sleep.
1:3 Nowhere But DownesIt had been a few days since the bar fight in Valentine. The boys had tormented Kieran enough for him to reveal an O'Driscoll campsite not too far away. After dealing with the nearby competition, and allowing Kieran into the gang, Arthur finally got himself a new horse. She was not that tall of a horse, but she had a shiny black coat. He hadn't decided what to name her yet as he was far too busy. He approaches Leopold Strauss who had a job for him "What did you want? You loaning already?" Asked Arthur. "You know how it is, people is happy to borrow off someone like me. But, More enthusiastically paying back to someone like you." Said the German with a cynical grin. "Of course." Responded Arthur. "Who are they?" "Let me see." Said Strauss. He opens his ledger, with a lick of his thumb he looks through his book to find the names of the people that owed him money. "A Chick Mathews, works at Guthrie farm. He's a hand I believe. Mr. Wróbel, the smallholder at Painted Sky, runs the operations there... badly. Miss Lilly Millet is a ranch maid up at Emerald Ranch." Strauss read off. "And here was me believing Dutch's bluster about us helping folk." Responded Arthur. "It's legal work, Mr. Morgan." Said Strauss. "Debtors belong in prison, we are doing them a favor." "Aye, I'll make sure they see it in them terms." Said Arthur as he was about to turn away. "Ah, there is one more I did briefly forget about." Said Strauss as Arthur turned back towards him. "This farmer, preacher, feller I met in Valentine, Mr. Downes. "The opinionated little do-gooder?" Arthur asked. "Yeah I know the one. I certainly know the type." "Thank you Herr Morgan." Said Strauss. "He's more slippery than he seems. I've tried being polite, don't take any nonsense." "Nonsense, Me?" Joked Arthur. "If he does not have the money, beat him." Strauss said bluntly. "Well, I usually do." Said Arthur finally turning his back. "I know, I know." Said Strauss with a sadistic chuckle. Arthur mounts his horse and decides to visit Mr. Downes first. He rides down a dirt path for around a half hour before pulling up at the small farm house. In a small garden a small sickly man can be seen tending to it. Arthur hops off his horse and clears his throat, loud enough to catch Mr. Downes' attention. He gasps as he looks up at Arthur who had a very angry expression. "You, uh. Whatever do you want?" Said Mr. Downes. "Mr. Thomas Downes, you owe me money!" Said Arthur sternly as he stepped into the garden. "We ain't a charity." As Arthur got closer, Thomas Downes swung the rake he was holding at Arthur, fearful of the man. Arthur blocks it easily and punches Mr. Downes hard in the face, knocking him to the ground. If Arthur wasn't mad before, he was pissed now. "Please, I have a family sir, please!" Begged Mr. Downes as he tried scooting away from Arthur. "I don't care about your family!" Said Arthur as he planted his boot across Mr. Downes' face. The kick busted the lip of Mr. Downes as blood began to run down his chin. Arthur continued to punish the man by giving him an undeserved beating, punching him, kicking him. The man's face swelled up and bruised as Arthur showed him no kind of mercy or compassion. He then picks him up and holds him against the fence surrounding the garden and gets in his face. "You borrowed money from my business partner Herr Strauss! You owe him, you took the money! He wants it back, what's not to understand!?" Arthur yelled in the poor man's face. Thomas Downes coughs violently, spraying blood all over Arthur's face and even getting in his mouth. Arthur takes a second to wipe off his face as looks back at Mr. Downes. He holds his fist up to punch him again, but instead he just grabs ahold of his collar. "Where's our money!?" "I don't have it." Said Thomas Downes, exhausted and weak. "Sell your place." Said Arthur coldly. "We already owe more than it's worth." "Then sell your wife, or your family, or something!" Arthur Yelled back. "We ain't your idea of charity! Is that clear!?" By now, Thomas Downes' wife, Edith, and her son had heard the commotion and had ran out of the house. Horror stretched across their face seeing Arthur holding onto a savagely beaten Thomas. Thomas continued to cough in a sickly manner as Arthur let him go, letting thomas drop to the ground. "Thomas!" Edith yelled as she ran up to the garden. "What you looking at!? Yelled Arthur, stepping out of the garden. "I said what you looking at woman!?" "My husband isn't well!" Cried Edith. "If we could just have more..." "Like I said, we ain't nobody's idea of charity! Get us the money!" Arthur yelled, cutting her off. Arthur hops on his horse as Thomas's wife and son come to his aid. Arhtur begins to ride off from the farm. He spits the taste of blood out of his mouth as he continues down the dirt road to go collect the debt from others. As Arthur rode a creeping cold slowly rose up his back. He tries to shake it off but it soon creeps up to his shoulders, as if the cold wind grew a hand and placed it on his shoulder. He looks down to un fact see something there, a hand, but it wasn't a hand, but the paw of a lion. This causes Arthur to yell and jump, spooking his own horse that bucks him off. Arthur lands on the ground shoulder first, sending a shock wave of pain down his arm. He opens his eyes while on the ground to see two feet standing over him, one hoofed, the other scaly. This spooks Arthur agin to roll over onto his back and scoot back to whatever was standing over him. He looks up to see who it was, only to meet the eyes of Discord, now appearing out of his dream. "Well done Arthur." Discord cackled. "Get the hell away from me you!" Said Arthur slowly getting to his feet. "I told you Arthur, the more bad you do, the closer I get." Said Discord. "Oh you should have seen the look on her face after what you had just done." "On whose face? That fools wife?" Asked Arthur. Discord then chuckles at him. "No, Celestia's." Discord said with a smile. Arthur looked confused at Discord, he hadn't seen Celestia since the night after the bar fight a few days ago. He had almost forgotten the whole encounter if it wasn't for Discord popping back out now. Arthur couldn't tell if his mind was trying to piece together all his hallucinations, or if the two beings Arthur has been seeing are in fact real, and they know each other. "I... I haven't seen her in days." Said Arthur. "Oh I know you haven't. The more bad you do, the less you see of her, and the more you will see of me. You spared Jimmy Brooks' life, gave you an audience with Celestia outside of your dreams, and now that you have done this, beating the poor defenseless sick man, you now see me." Discord grinned. "Oh the look on Celestia's face, it was priceless! As soon as you swung that first punch on that poor farmer, she began to weep." "I don't... I don't care!" Arthur yelled. "You ain't real, I know it." Discord responded with his grin getting wider and more devilish. "Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. It matters not to me what you believe Arthur, in fact, I welcome your carelessness. It benefits me in the long run, now that you have set in motion your own end." Said Discord. "The hell you talking about!? You and that bitch keep talking about my end! I ain't going anywhere, and you and that crazy bitch can go back to hell where you crawled from!" Yelled Arthur. Discord began to chuckle, his chuckle then soon turned into a laugh, then into a demonic cackle. Arthur continues to back away from Discord as his laughter grew out of control. Arthur closes his eyes, just wanting him to go away and leave him alone. He counts to 3 before opening his eyes, when he does, Discord is in fact gone, but his laughter still booms in Arthur's head. Arthur approaches a tree on the side of the road and leans against it. He rubs his eyes and wipes his brow as he that falls to the ground. The experiences with Discord have the opposite feeling then he feels with Celestia. While Arthur feels calm and warm around her, all he feels around Discord is fear, agony, and anger. It was almost like every experience with him is a traumatic event. Arthur takes a minute to calm himself down, bending down and picking up his hat before placing it back on his head. He whistles for his horse which approaches him from the tree line. He hops back on it and goes on to collect the rest of the debt money Strauss had sent him to get. It took Arthur all day to collect the debt money from the others. Wróbel didn't speak English, causing a lot of difficulties there, Lilly Millet turned the whole ordeal into a fight when her friend Cooper attacked Arthur who Arthur quickly knocked unconscious, and Chick Mathews decided to run leading to a chase on horseback. Arthur slowly strolled into camp well past midnight, he put the debt money into the camp funds before turning in for the night. It didn't take long for sleep to envelope Arthur, but his actions of the day played again in his dreams. His chase with Chick, his fight with Cooper, his raiding of Wróbel's house, and finally his savage attack on Thomas Downes. That moment replayed in his mind over and over again, causing Arthur to turn in his sleep uncomfortably. Eventually, after the moment is played in his mind one more time, his mind then focuses on a dirt road leading to a river. Standing at the river, was the Winged Unicorn Celestia. She seemed to look at Arthur with a sad expression on her face, tears flowed from her eyes as she just continued to stare into Arthur's soul. Arthur could feel his chest tightening, as if Celestia was portraying her sadness onto Arthur. After staring at Arthur for what felt like an eternity, Celectia closes her eyes as tears fall from her cheeks. She turned her back on him as she began to walk away. Arthur felt himself go to one knee as the sadness he was feeling was getting unbearable. Eventually he could hear someone saying his name. "Arthur... Arthur... What's wrong?... Arthur... Wake up..." Arthur snaps his eyes open and quickly looks to his side, Hosea was next to him with his hands on his chest trying to wake Arthur up. "Arthur, good god son, wake up." Said Hosea. "The... hell?" Arthur said as he sat up. "You were giving me a fright Arthur. You looked like you were having a nightmare." Said Hosea. "Shaking and whimpering and so forth. "It... was no nightmare." Said Arthur as he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "Good, good. Just making sure. I ain't never seen a man shake as you, and I have seen many at the end of my gun who were scared shitless for their own life. You take care of yourself Arthur." Said Hosea as he began to leave. "Get yourself a good meal, Charles brought back a good looking stag that Pearson put in his stew. May do you some good to get some grub in your belly." "Will do Hosea." Said Arthur, he pulled his hand away from his face to see his fingers were damp. Tears? Was Arthur really crying? The face of Celestia's weeping face flashed in Arthurs mind again, with it, the same tightening in his chest as sadness returned to him. He shakes his head to get his mind straight. He stands up, and approaches Pearson's wagon, stepping past the pot of stew and walking behind Pearson's wagon. There was a bucket of water which the group used for drinking and cooking. He picks up a ladle and gets himself a big glug of water. He dips it in one more time and splashes his face with it, hoping for it to wake him up a bit. The vision of Celestia soon fades from mind as that was exactly what he needed. He wipes the water away with his hands and goes on to start his day.
