Post by Gabriel Baal on Feb 3, 2018 19:39:15 GMT -5
The Doctor had always preferred the feeling of a knife in his hand rather than a gun. It was unorthodox, of course but he’d grown accustomed to those he was hunting assuming that he would be easy pickings. They’d stand against him, with their revolver drawn and pointing at his cold heart and they’d grin with the apparent ease they would walk away from this fight.
They rarely did.
He’d come to learn quickly that the one thing that those stupid, bumbling cowboys couldn’t resist was an eloquently spoken word. They were drawn to it like moths to a flame. It was for this reason, that The Doctor used the knife that he’d come to know as “Scalpel”. He’d talk himself as close to his quarry as he should need before he slipped the blade between their ribs, or into their neck. On the odd occasion, he’d slide the sharp steel across the femoral artery in the leg and step back as the colour would drain more quickly than the crimson. He was more than a doctor by name – he had been a doctor by trade.
His knowledge of the human body gave him an advantage over most men. His knowledge of the human mind gave him an advantage over the rest.
It had been a short career thus far, but his reputation proceeded him. He knew others had more terrifying tropes to be known by but he didn’t care. He woudn’t kill if he didn’t have to, but when he did it was quick and as painless as it could possibly be. He was still a healer at heart, and if he could help it he would end things with as little suffering as possible, It wasn’t always. And some people didn’t deserve it. And so, when those in the West heard that The Doctor was coming to town, they were always right to wonder who it was who he was looking for. And when his horse would slowly start to canter into town, they’d whisper to one another. “He’s here.” They would say.
”The man in blue has arrived!”
He sharpened Scalpel against a whetstone, his eyes fixed upon the campfire over which the hind quarters of a mule deer roasted slowly on a spit. He’d taken his turn rotating the crackling meat before sitting back and watching as the two with whom he travelled argued over who would take the next shift. He let out a slight chuckle across the fire.
"Something funny, Gabriel?" Asked the woman, her eyes burning a hole in him more fierce than the flames that over which their evening’s feast was currently hanging.
"Yes." Said Gabriel, matter of fact. "I’ve spent the last half hour turning the dear that I killed by hand also skinned, and it’s going to go to waste."
"And why is that, exactly?" Asked the man, standing by the side of the woman with whom he’d been quarrelling not moments before.
"Because while you two argue over who is going to turn the meat next, it’s starting to char." Said Gabriel, pointing Scalpal at the blackening flash.
"Oh fuck!" Said the man, stepping forward and starting to turn the handle. The woman looked over at Gabriel and the corner of her mouth twitched. Gabriel flashed her a small wink and carried on sharpening his knife.
A few feet away, outside the warmth of the fire, there was the sound of scuffling and a muffled cry.
"Shup up!" Called Eden, as the spit started to turn again.
The man, known as The Wildcard to most, but as Jet to his riding companions, had a hatred for overcooked meat. He liked everyone to believe that he was rough and tough, but the truth was much deeper than that. He had a complexity to him that most would never see – either they wouldn’t get close enough or they didn’t care to. He like food – nothing fancy, but cooked well and cooked properly. He liked to exercise. He liked competition and the thrill of victory – but most of all, he craved home. His wife. His brothers. Yes – The Wildcard was as dangerous as he was tough – but he would never stand by and allow deer that he’d never allow burnt deer to pass his lips.
There would be no black meat for the Wildcard.
But this man had over a thousand bounties to his name over a long career – much longer than Gabriel’s had been. Yes, Gabriel had managed to capture some real headline bounties in the last two years, but he would be surprised if he ever reached the kind of numbers that Jet had managed. He was the gunman of the group – revolver or rifle, it didn’t matter. If their target stayed to fight, then he was quick off the draw and could cut a man down before they’d had time to think. If they ran, then his rifle would stop them in their tracks. Sometimes, they’d hold up their hands and come quietly – especially if they knew who he was.
"Fucking assholes." He muttered under his breath, knowing he’d been played. She’d waited long enough for the potential to be true, and Gabriel had tipped the balance with his observation. Gabriel went back to sharpening his knife, having cleaned the remenents of the deer from it’s blade.
"So…" She said across the fire as she took her seat "Plan for tomorrow?"
"The way I see it, we have two choices." Said Jet, not looking at those who accompanied him on this trip. "Either we take in the two we have, or we collect on all five at once."
"Forgive me, Jet, but I see no choice in this." Said Gabriel shaking his head a touch. "We keep the five together and take them in at the same time. It makes no sense to split them – otherwise, we risk some corrupt lawman telling the world that we didn’t make the full bounty."
"He has a point, Jet." She said. He rolled his eyes as he turned the deer.
"Of course he has a point, you always think he has a point." He replied, playfully.
"Because I normally do." Said Gabriel with a smile. He looked across the fire into the eyes of The Black Widow again. She grinned mischievously.
Eden Morgan had a reputation for being dangerous and cunning. Whilst killing men had been her game for years, it was only the last six months that she’d decided to form this particular crew. She had originally plied her trade as an assassin, specialising in getting close to her victims and breaking their hearts as she killed them. It wasn’t difficult, nor surprising – Eden Morgan was as beautiful as she was deadly. It never took much to have her prey eating out of her hands.
And then the web would take them.
It was her skill to be something like a jill of all trades – she could poison, she could shoot, she could stab. Despite her reputation, she had no fear of being direct – and since this particular venture came to being, her instinct had been to kill on sight. Yes, she was a black widow, but she also had a Scorpion’s sting – and that was what they feared in her.
And she also had the most skin in this particular game.
The scuffling became a scraping and a strangled cry as whatever moved tried to free itself.
"Shut up!" Shouted Jet over his shoulder as he continued to turn the meat.
"The GC gang…" mused Jet as he reached up and scratched beneath his beard. "You realise this is the closest that anyone’s got to pulling in all five?"
The GC gang – “Vain” Wallace, “Dirty” Dave Rydell, “Lush” Wylde, “Rogue” MaClean and Zane “The Brain” Scott – stood accused and tried in their absence for the robbery of a train in Utah. The robbery, in which fifteen people were killed, saw fifty thousand dollars in cash stolen from a lockbox on board. The crew had managed to arrange for a single ticket – taken by Wylde – and she staged an execution on board which forced the train to stop. The man killed? Her ex husband, CJ. She’d smiled as she’d pulled the trigger and sprayed blood across the other men and women in that cab.
She’d laughed as US Marshall’s pointed guns at her. She’d laughed as the rest of the gang had rolled in and fired mercilessly onto the train. She hadn’t flinched, nor moved as their bullets pierced flesh. As the other travellers ran from the scene screaming bloody murder, the crew had managed to break open the lock box and steal the fortune. Unfortunately for them, CJ hadn’t been travelling alone, and it was quickly assumed that The Lush had been working with her normal crew.
"We go after Wylde tomorrow." Said Gabriel as he flipped Scalpel over in his hand and slid it back into it’s sheath. He scratched his stubbled jaw and considered that he’d need to shave before they left in the morning. He listened for the bubbling of the creek nearby – he’d wake at sunrise, as he always did. The movement started again, and what sounded like angry shouts.
"Shut up!" Called Gabriel, before looking back at Eden and Jet.
"You sure?" Asked Eden as Jet looked from one to the other. "I mean, we all know how you have a soft spot for The Lush."
"Very drole." Said Gabriel forcing a smile at Eden whose tongue pressed against her teeth.
"You know she won’t be alone, right?" Said Jet.
"That’s what you two are here for." Said Gabriel with a grin. Eden shot him a cursed look.
"Well, alright." Said Jet, "Lets’ finish cooking, eat and sleep – we’ve got a long ride tomorrow."
"Actually." Said Eden, standing up and looking over the meat. "I think it’s just about done."
"You’ve got to be kidding me, you get out of cooking again?" He said as she sliced off a large chunk of flesh which dripped juicily.
"I’m here in more of a head cook capacity – I make sure that those who work for me do the job that’s expected of them." She said as she retook her seat around the fire.
"I suppose that makes sense." Said Jet, as he turns to Gabriel and lowers his voice. "If anyone knows meat, it’s her."
"What was that?" She asked mid chew.
"Nothing, Eden – I said enjoy the meat." Jet said smiling as he looked down at Gabriel.
The horses began to shift nervously as the shuffling of boots in sand cut through the air again. Their prisoner was struggling.
"Shut the fuck up!" They all shouted as one.
On the outskirts of a small town called Liberation, they brought their steeds to a halt. Gabriel rode the small coach that served as temporary jail. In the back, their prisoner was kicking against the door.
"Shut… The fuck… Up!" Shouted Jet as he reached the butt of his rifle through the bars of the window and gave their bounty a stiff shot to the ribs. He groaned. Eden pulled back her hat so she could get a better look of what they were riding into.
"Fucking shithole." She said, her nose crinkling. Gabriel smiled – he knew she preferred larger towns but the bounties there were small and many. Too much work. Too much time. Too many compettors.
"I’ve stayed in worse." Said Jet, spitting on the ground at his horse’s feet. Jet was a simpler prospect – he liked small town living. He had no inclination for busy, built up places. He liked the quiet life when he was home – he preferred to spend his days working hard and providing for his family. Eden enjoyed the life of high society that she was provided by these more lucrative bounties. Gabriel mused how the two could be so different, yet so similar. They’d known one another long before he came along – in fact, Eden had once been a bounty of his own.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
But still, she was right – this was a shithole. A single saloon and a number of small wooden huts parading as houses. A saloon also moonlighting as a brothel, a post office, a general store, a black smith, a gun smith, a jail and the rest were just somewhere people lay down at night to sleep off the booze. It was a depressing place.
"Well…" Said Gabriel with a deep breath. "Shall we?"
His fellows nodded their agreement as they began the slow trek into town. Eden and Jet backed off behind the coach the closer they got to the border of the town. Gabriel smiled and nodded as the wagon jolted him this way and that over the odd stone that would hit his wooden wheels. In what felt like seconds, the entire town were outside their doors watching as this band of newcomers breezed into their home.
The man in blue has arrived.
Gabriel pulled up his coach in the middle of the street outside the saloon. The owner stood at his doors, his arms folded looking furious that Gabriel would even consider stopping near his establishment. Gabriel stepped down and made his way towards the saloon doors.
"Good morning, sir – do I have the pleasure of addressing the owner of this fine institution?" Asked Gabriel.
"What?" Came the reply.
"Apologies – where are my manners. My name is - " Said Gabriel extending his hand for a shake.
"I don’t give a fuck what your name is, boy. I suggest that you get back on your horse and you and your friends get on your way." Said the bartender. Gabriel retracted his handshake.
"Oh we intend on making our way quite soon, but first we have some business to take care of. Could you please let your madame know that that she has a visitor?" Said Gabriel stepping back a little.
"This ain’t no whorehouse, son, this is a saloon. Now fuck off…" Came the reply as the bartender put his hand on the door of the saloon to head back inside.
"I can assure you that I know it is – I met a lovely young women not a day and a half’s ride rom here who told me a wonderful story of a saloon in Liberation who had the most wonderful girls – and there was a madame there by the name of Lucy." Said Gabriel with a smile "Now, I have some business with her – and I would appreciate it if you could let her know I’m here."
"Son, I’m about five seconds away from putting a god damn bullet in your god damn head. I told you this ain’t no brothel and if you don’t get on your fuckin’ way I’m fixin’ on…" The bartender started, but Gabriel stopped him with a raised hand.
"Sir, I mean no disrespect, but that would be a terrible idea. Because should you choose to use your weapon to expunge me from the world of the living, your dear friend Lucy will kill you and every single person in this… fucking town." Said Gabriel with a smile.
"And why the fuck would she do that?" Asked the bartender, his patience almost ran completely thing.
"Because, my friend." Said Gabriel with a wide grin. "She wants to kill me herself."
As the bartender turned away, Gabriel knew he’d hit the mark. The bartender had seen something in her… Gabriel turned back to face Eden and Jet and moved to step towards them when the doors of the saloon swung open violently.
"GABRIEL FUCKING BAAL!" Came the furious cry.
"Good luck…" Said Eden with a look of pure joy upon her face. Jet couldn’t speak, he was laughing so much.
"Ms. Wylde. What a pleasure to see…" Gabriel started. He soon stopped as she aimed her gun at his chest. "… You."
"What the fuck are you doing here?" She said, her voice cracking with anger. "I told you to stay the fuck away from me?"
"Uhhhh, did you?" Said Gabriel remembering things differently. "I mean, I remember waking up handcuffed to a bed with you hovering over me – you suggested I could have sex with you and keep you around, or let you go… And here you are a free as a bird."
Lucy cocked the gun and pointed the gun at him again.
"But that was the point!" Said Gabriel quickly. Eden and Jet exchanged a look behind his back. But Gabriel saw the revolver drop a touch.
"What?" She said, no anger in her voice now. "What the fuck are you talking about, Gabriel?"
"I let you go so you could be free… Can’t you see that?" As he spoke he slowly and surely stepped towards her. He was hardly making any distance.
"I let you go because I couldn’t bare to use you and then take you in – I couldn’t bear to see you in chains. I couldn’t bear to stand by and watch as the hangman let you swing." Said Gabriel as he stared at her in the eyes.
"Lucy, don’t listen to him…" Came the pleading cry of the silver haired youngling that had stepped out of the saloon behind Lucy.
"Stay out of this Maggie." Said Lucy.
"Yeah, stay out of this Maggie." Called Eden from her horse.
"Fuck you!" Maggie shouted back.
"Uh, you wish." Mocked Eden.
"Enough!" Shouted Lucy, physically shaking her head. "What is it that you’re trying to say, Gabriel?"
He stepped towards her again, inch by inch not wanting to make any sudden movements.
"Isn’t it obvious?" He said as he closed in on her. "My god, isn’t it clear as the nose upon your face?"
"Gabriel, don’t fuck around here…" Said The Lush as he stepped closer and closer by the second. "I’m being serious, if you’re lying to me I swear I’ll kill you and everyone you know."
"I know that, I do." He said as he finally reached her. Tears filled the corners of her eyes as she reached up and cupped his face in her hands. "Which is why I could never lie to you about this."
As he spoke, The Lush slowly brought her face towards his. He could smell the whiskey on her breath as she seemingly slowed down everything to bask in the moment that was finally happening.
"I couldn’t let the hangman make you swing." He said as he looked her in the eyes and hi mouth curled into a smile. "When I could kill you myself."
He heard the gasp first, that little gasp that escaped from her waiting lips as the tip of Scalpal slipped between her ribs and pierced her heart. The tears from the corner of her eyes began to fall as he twisted the blade and shredded her heart.
"No!" Came the strangled cry of Maggie as the bartender held her back.
"The fuck did you do? Someone get the sheriff!" He shouted angrily. "Before I kill this cock sucker myself."
"Everybody relax, everybody calm down." Said Gabriel pulling back his blade and letting Wylde slump to the ground. He wiped clean his blade against the small red handkerchief he kept for such occasions and replaced the knife into it’s sheath. "The woman you see dead before you, having masqueraded as Lucy, is one Lush Wylde – a member of the GC gang. She is wanted, alongside four of her fellows in conjunction with the murder of fifteen people and the theft of fifty thousand dollars in cash from a train in Utah."
Gabriel reached into his pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper.
"This right here is a warrant made out by Circuit Judge Warren P Matthison out of Salt Lake City, Utah for the arrest and capture – dead or alive mind – of the woman who I’ve just killed. I am terribly sorry that you all had to witness this – but whatever she was to you, she is the woman who helped to ensure that fifteen families lost loved ones." Said Gabriel as he poked at her with the toe of his boot.
"Ms. Wylde was a dangerous and volatile creature that was good at what she did. She had a streak of self-destructive streak that would rip a hole in everything that she would touch and it wouldn’t care she’d take down with it. She destroyed her husband. She would have destroyed me if I’d let her – but I was smart enough to see what was coming and I fought against it with delight. She didn’t hate me because I broke her heart, she hated me because I forced her to see exactly what she was." Gabriel added to the town at large.
"She’d have destroyed you all – one by one – pulling you into her world and then laughing into the bottom of a bottle while she turned her back on your fall. It’s what she does." He smiled as he turned and looked up at Eden.
"And they call you the Black Widow."
"Wait a second…" Said the bartender, his eyes opening wider. "The Doctor… The Black Widow… The Wild Card… You’re The Court."
"One and the same… Do you want to face us nect?" Said Gabriel with a smile.
And just like that… The street cleared. Gabriel chuckled as he picked up Wylde’s body and walked it to the coach. He unlocked the door and tossed her inside unceremoniously. The prisoner began to shout.
"Oh will you give it a rest?" Said Gabriel punching the prisoner in the face sending him back into lying position. "Alright. Where’s next?"
"You’re telling me he’s the Sheriff?" Asked Eden as she pulled her hat down over her eyes against the sun. They’d rode for two days to make it to the town of Cthulhu. It was larger than Liberation and had a greater density of traffic that would just pass through, but in essence it was still a tiny dump in comparison to the larger cities in the West.
"Apparently so. Took up here and gave himself a new name – Rogan Griffith. Something tod o with his mentor apparently." Gabriel said checking the warrant. "But he has some power here. Wylde was his deputy for a while but… Well…"
"Say no more." Said Jet with a grin. "You want to handle this one? You have history with this one too."
"Good lord no." Gabriel said with the wave of his hand. "No, this one is yours. You need to avenge his escape last year."
"Hey… Escaped from you too." Said Jet a little curtly.
"Now boys… Let’s not start fighting between ourselves." Said Eden with the kind of voice normally reserved for small children and the infirm.
"I got Wylde, you get MacLean… That’s what we agreed." Said Gabriel looking at Jet with a smile. "If you can handle it."
"Hey, fuck you. Least I took back what he stole." Said Jet with barbs. And they stung. Gabriel had let Rogue slip away with the prize when he’d gotten away. It still irked Gabriel to this day.
When MacLean was still Rogan and hadn’t earned the name Rogue yet, they’d ridden together for quite a while with a third. There had been a forth for a while but as it happens, things come and go. They’d gone their separate ways – Gabriel had chosen bounty hunting and Rogan had become the bounty.
And then Gabriel slew their mutual friend over a quarrel. MacLean had just watched from a distance – unwilling and unable to do anything about it. Gabriel let him go that time – he hadn’t told either of his fellow Court members.
He couldn’t bring himself to kill Rogan, nor did he feel confident enough in being able to bring him in alive. This was down to Jet – Jet who had come so close to ending MacLean before.
"Fuck it." Said Jet as he climbed down off his horse in the middle of Cthulhu. He stood in the middle of the town square and began to turn in circles.
"Good people of Cthulhu – where is your Sheriff?" He shouted. People had stopped and started to watch. "A town such as this should be protected, where is the man who is charged with doing just that?"
From the crowd stepped a figure.
"Who are you to call out our Sheriff?" The man asked. Jet didn’t hesitate. He pulled out his revolver and blew the toes of the mans left foot.
"Jet what the hell?" Said Eden.
"What? He’ll live." Jet said with a smile. He turned back to the town at large and smiled. "Hey Sheriff, wherever you are, I’d come quickly. Some psychopath is shooting parts off your townsfolk."
"Has he lost it?" Eden asked as she looked at many an itchy trigger finger.
"I think he’s just getting everyone’s attention."
"Alright, whose next?" Jet shouted as around a hundred guns were pulled at once. Each and everyone was aimed at The Wildcard.
"I think he’s got it…" Said Gabriel. "Jet… If you have a plan, I’d suggest…"
"Alright fellas, lower your guns." Came an Irish accent from through the crowd. They began to part as, from the direction of the town jail, strolled MacLean. Slightly behind him was his deputy, a feisty looking individual who seemed a little twitchy.
"Well I’ll be damned…" Said Rogan. "Good to see a couple’a old friends out here in the middle of no-where."
"We’re no friends, amigo." Said Jet.
"Does he not know that amigo literally means friend?" Asked Gabriel. Eden bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.
"Well… What could possibly bring The Court to my town?" Asked Rogue. "I do I need not ask."
"Dead… Or alive…" Said Jet with a smile. "Your choice."
MacLean looked past The Wildcard and looked Gabriel in the eye.
"You really alright wit’ him doin’ that?" He asked, his accent thicker than Gabriel could remember. "We’re old friends you and me – and now you’re here wit’ him in my town tryin’a make trouble?"
"Old friends is the operative word, old boy. You and I haven’t been friends in a long, long time." Said Gabriel with a half-smile. "And I’m more than happy for my new friend to do whatever he likes, in your town or any other."
"Deputy Ingalls." Said MacLean, his friendly façade dropping completely as he pointed at Gabriel. "Arrest that cunt for the murder of Ichabod."
Jet scratched beneath his long and luxorious locks with the barrel of his gun before putting it back in it’s holster.
"Deputy, I’d suggest you stay where you are. It’s a criminal offence to impede an officer of the court whilst in the line of his duty." Said Jet. "Now… Dead… Or… Alive?"
Jet smiles again as Rogue shakes his head.
"You know, in my town, when there’s a fight in the square, then we like to make it interesting. Gentlemen… Release the Rattlers." Said MacLean with a grin. From around the circle men step forward with bags, and toss them into the air. They hold on to the end of the bags and from inside fly a dozen or so Rattlesnakes.
"Eden, my dear, would you care to join me on the coach?" Said Gabriel trying to hide the sound of glee from his voice – he always loved snakes. But this was Jet’s fight and playing with Serpents wasn’t going to help.
"Fuck yes!" Eden was less happy with the snakes than Gabriel was.
"Snakes. What the fuck is this? A county fair? I take it you’ve chosen death MacLean." Said Jet as the angry snakes hissed all around him.
"You’re the Wildcard… That’s’ what they call you. Well, Mr. Wildcard, tell me – what is it that you think is going to happen to you when you try to kill these people’s sheriff? You think they’re just going to let you walk away? I don’t think so."
"Actually…" Called Gabriel with a smile. "I think that’s exactly what is going to happen."
"And why is that?" Asked Rogue looking a little bored with the events.
"Ladies and gentlemen – the man who stands before you today is Rogue MacLean – not Rogan Griffiths as he so pleasantly told you all. And here, we have a warrant for his capture – dead or alive. As such, it’s within our rights to shoot that man and take him with us."
"Like hell he is – that’s our Sheriff and here he’ll stay." Shouted a man from the crowd, and he was quickly joined in a chorus of cheers.
"Your sheriff lied to you. He’s a murderer. He helped cause the deaths of around fifteen people and he stole Fifty Thousand dollars. Does that number seem relevant to you?" Gabriel asked.
There was a stirring mutter between the crowd.
"Yes, I believe that money had been donated to you and some of the surrounding towns in order to help expand and modernise, am I right?" Said Gabriel with a smile. "Government funding to help create a happier and healthier environment."
Rogue MacLean’s eyes were bulging now – his anger was riding.
"I’d wager that he walked into your town and used that very train robbery in his campaign to become Sheriff…" Gabriel added with a smile. He winked at MacLean who looked furious. "You see, ladies and gentlemen – that is what your Sheriff is – he’s a liar, a thief and a let-down. He stands buy and watches those he purports to care about suffer while he remains intact and whole. He drags those down around him he’s sworn to protect."
Gabriel lets out a derisive burst of laughter.
"Sheriff? You’d have been better electing his deputy there. The man may be useless, but at least he could be relied on to be consistent."
"Enough!" Shouted MacLean. "Kill them!"
But no-one moved – not a single inhabitant of the town moved to do anything. Instead, they just stared at him – stony-faced and mutinous. MacLean looked around the circle, not stopping to look at Gabriel’s gloating face.
"You fucking inbred cun…" He began. But the sound of a loud crack was masked by the bullet that struck him in the throat. MacLean fell backwards to the ground, gurgling and bubbling blood.
There was no celebration for MacLean’s death, no lamenting for his loss. Instead, the townsfolk simply went about their day, the Snake handlers collecting those snakes left in the dirt.
And as Jet lay MacLean down on top of the two dead bodies in the back of the coach, the prisoner began to call out again.
"Jesus Christ, you’re persistant." Said Jet as he closed the door to the Coach. "Alright, Eden – you’re up."
"Looking forward to it." She said with a grin.
Somewhere between the towns of Pain and Paradox, there was a small camp of bandits who were known for pillaging in the nearby settlements. Chief among them was a man who had been part of another crew a while back - several in fact. But this was the first time he’d been truly a leader.
Until now, Zane “The Brain” Scott had spent most of his career following others. Once upon a time, he’d followed Eden in a group called The Syndicate. Of course, the interesting thing about Zane was that he never believed that he was a follower. Yet there he was, constantly doing the bidding of others.
Recently, however, he had managed to break out on his own and finally start to do some leading of his own. His right hand man, an excitable yet brain-dead unicorn-fancier by the name of Larry had been given the role of making sure that Zane always looked intelligent. He accomplished this by… Not being.
It was, therefore, fortuitous on this night that Larry had found himself in the same lonely tavern in Pain that The Court had been staying. It was even more fortuitous that he accepted drinks all night, before agreeing to show our conquering trio exactly what a bandit’s hideout looked like.
As they arrived at the camp. Larry was on the verge of unconsciousness – Eden helped the cause by catching him on the base of his skull with the butt of her revolver. As he fell to the side and off the horse he was sharing with her, they were sure they heard a bone or two snap. They didn’t care. They had a job to do.
As they reached the edge of the camp, Eden climbed down off her horse. It was late, way after the sun had set, and the camp was virtually unguarded. Afterall, who would be stupid enough to want to get INTO a camp of villainous murderers that no-one could find unless they knew where it was.
Gabriel and Jet evacuated their own horses and followed her. They exchanged a look as she moved with ease through the camp, and it dawned at the same time that his camp was not new.
"This was the Syndicate’s camp?" Gabriel asked in a hushed whisper.
"Yes. Now shush." Eden said as she picked her way through unseen.
"Like, where you and, Zane and Alan and…" Jet continued.
"Yes. Now shush!" She said a little bit forcefully.
"Well… This is fun." Said Jet to Gabriel.
"Hey, do you think this is where it happened? The first time? You know… Her and…" Gabriel asked a starting-to-become-repulsed Jet.
"Hey! Dick heads! Shut the fuck up!" She said in a whispered shout. Gabriel and Jet followed her instruction as they reached what looked like a large wooden cabin. From inside, the three of them could hear the sounds of laughter and drinking from inside the cabin.
Eden made some hand gestures that told Gabriel to move around to the left and Jet to the right. They nodded as she pulled open what looked like a hidden door. As they stepped inside, into the shadows at the edge of the room, they took their marks. And when the trap sprug, Gabriel held his knife to the throat of one of the men at the table, and Jet held his revolver to the head of the other. Only then did Eden step into the light and face Eden face to face.
"Ms. Morgan – I’d like to say this is a pleasant surprise." Said Zane with a smile. "I assumed you’d never manage to find the location given that you only ever entered by horse and carriage."
"We had a little help." She smiled.
"Larry…" Said Zane, his mouth twitching away from the forced smile for a second. "What did you do to him?"
"He’s sleeping off a headache out in the dessert somewhere… Well… Unless the Coyotes have him?" She says, pressing her hand to her mouth in faux concern.
"What is it that you want, Eden?" Asked Zane, trying to pull back control of the situation. "Because even you three aren’t so stupid that you think you’re going to collect on my bounty in the middle of this fortress."
"We’ve just walked into “this fortress” without raising so much as a gaze." Eden said even going so far as to use airquotes. Zane started to laugh.
"Of course you did – we have no concerns about people getting in. We just don’t want people getting out." Said Zane laughing. "They get in, we get to do whatever we want with them. They get out then they take something valuable."
Zane cocks his head to the side.
"You seriously walked into my home and thought you were going to get away with it?" Said Zane, leaning forward. "I thought you three were so much smarter than the likes of me."
Eden’s smile falters as she looks to Jet and they both look at Gabriel who shrugs.
"The Court… Super-skilled, super-smart Bounty Hunters – you think word didn’t get to me of the others? I was waiting for you – and you walked in here bold as brass. You walked in here and thought you were going to outsmart me. I have the power here – I have "
"We can still kill you." Said Eden, defiantly.
"Don’t make me laugh, Eden – I’m the fastest draw in a hundred miles." Said Zane.
"No you’re not, he is." She replied nodding in Jet’s direction.
"Is that so? Then why isn’t it him facing me? Because he knows I’d beat him and his reputation falls apart. Did I read that right, doc? I think I did." Said Zane slowly turning his head to face Gabriel.
Gabriel looked at Jet and then at Eden. He looked down at Zane before he… Rolled his eyes.
"Could you stop toying with your food, Eden and get this over with?" Said Gabriel. Zane’s eyes focused back on Eden who was snickering now.
"I don’t get the joke." Said Zane.
"What’s new?" Said Jet. Eden’s laugh becomes a chuckle, matched by Gabriel who quickly reigned it back in and held up his hand in a faux apology to Zane who was looking around.
"You’re not going to kill me, Eden. You’re not that stupid." Zane said, a hint of desperation.
"Oh, I know that Zane. I’m not going to kill you. Jet isn’t going to kill you. Gabriel isn’t going to kill you." She looked down at the two men on either of Zane’s sides. "One of these handsome men are going to kill you."
"Like hell we are!" Said the one on the left.
"You must be god damned crazy!" Said the one on the right.
"They’re loyal to their leader." Said Zane "So your plan is flawed."
"Well, yes… Unless they don’t learn your little secret." Said Gabriel. Zane’s head snapped in his direction, and the two stooges look up into Gabriel’s face. "Because they don’t know do they?"
Zane looks to his colleagues and then back to Gabriel.
"See, gentlemen, there’s a man in the town of Pain who calls himself The Lord. He’s a buffoon, but he also has your leader here in his pocket. Have you ever noticed how most of your pillaging is done in Paradox these days? That’s because the Lord of Pain is giving your boss here orders. Your illustrious leader has an illustrious leader." Gabriel smirked. Zane looked at the men to either side of him and looked to tell them without words that it was a lie.
"So it’s up to you, I suppose. Either you can carry on blindly following a man who has no true power – who follows blindly without question. Who plays second fiddle to a buffoon who looks to control what your band of men are able to do… Or, you can kill The Brain. We can take him back to Salt Lake City and you can elect a new leader. Then, when the Lord of Pain comes knocking, you can put a bullet in his head and bury him six feet under." Gabriel added.
"Now maybe you’ll have a bounty put on your head. But maybe we’ll never be able to find this place again. Maybe you’ll be able to do what you want, when you want… Without having to follow a weak so-called leader." Gabriel added with scorn.
Zane moved – he was as quick as he said. His revolver was drawn, but Eden didn’t move. It was lucky that she didn’t as the man to Zane’s right deflected the barrel of the revolver and the bullet whistled to Eden’s left. He was removed of his gun quickly, and left hold his hands up in the air.
"Dead or alive, right?" Said Zane. "You can take me dead or alive."
"Well… You tried to shoot me so…" Eden said. She looked to each of the men at the table in turn. "Gentlemen… Would you mind?"
Moments later, there were two gunshots. The bullets collided inside Zane’s skull which caused a hell of a mess of the wall behind him.
Around twenty minutes later, Gabriel and Jet tossed the dead body of Zane Scott into the back of the coach. The prisoner made a move again…
"Don’t… Even… Think about it." She said as she shut the door and locked it tight.
"Five out of five." Said Jet with a grin.
"Let’s go make some money." Said Eden rubbing her hands together.
Gabriel let out a deep breath as he took his place at the head of the coach. “Almost there,” he thought. “Almost there.”.
The Court were about two hours outside of Salt Lake City when they stopped to make camp for the night. Gabriel had argued that they should continue on, but Jet and Eden had agreed that arriving in town before sunrise would mean trouble.
As they sat down to eat a meal of mountain goat, they heard the mumbling of the prisoner who lay just a few feet away.
"What?" Said Jet as he turned to face the bound and gagged prisoner.
He mumbled again.
"I cant hear a fucking word he’s saying." Said Jet. Eden and Gabriel exchanged a look before Eden nodded.
"Fine." She added. Jet placed his plate on the ground and got to his feet. He stepped around and pulled the prisoner to his feet, he pulled off the hood and the gag down out of his mouth.
"What the fuck are you saying?" Asked Jet.
"I said no, thank you… I don’t need to eat." Came the voice of Vain Wallace. Jet grinned as he pushed him down onto the log that had been dragged around their fire.
"Here." Said Jet dropping the plate onto Wallace’s lap. He moves to fix himself a new plate. Wallace begins to eat hungrily.
"Seven days… Seven days in a confined space with four dead bodies." Said Wallace. "I don’t think I’ll ever forget the smell."
No-one answered, but Gabriel and Jet exchanged a look. Wallace was called Vain for a reason – he was likely the only person more used to a charmed life than Eden herself. He spent more time getting ready than a Showgirl – and rumour had it that he couldn’t cum unless he was making eye contact with himself.
"I count five – you’ve got us all." Said Vain through a mouthful of goat. "Congratulations."
"Thank you, Alan." Said Eden, uncharacteristically quietly. "Especially for Rydell."
Wallace shook his head.
"How’d you find us?" He asked.
"I have a proclivity for finding that which may be lost to others. I heard rumour of a dual between you and Dirty Dave over a certain debt that he owed you." Gabriel said.
"You’ve got ears everywhere, don’t you Doc?" Said Wallace with a smile. "Yeah, he stole from me – took me years to find him. And I lost the fight…"
"So we heard – defeat at the town of Outlast." Said Jet shaking his head. "But he left you alive. We were disappointed to hear that."
"That right?" Asked Wallace. "Well… That was his big mistake. He should have finished me… That way I wouldn’t have dragged his drunk ass out of bed and thrown him out of the window."
"At our feet, no less." Said Eden with a grin. "We always intended to pick up the both of you – and we figured you’d kill Rydell. He’s never quite had what it takes to go all the way."
"Why do you think I didn’t care about losing?" Said Vain. "I knew he’d want to gloat. Then he’d get drunk. And then I’d kill him and take what I wanted."
He shook his head.
"And thus you gave us the first of the five – so once again. Thank you, Alan," Said Eden.
"The posters say dead OR alive, though? Am I right?" Asked Wallace pointedly.
"They do – emphasis on the dead. They’re less hassle and they don’t eat your limited supplies of food." Said Gabriel more pointedly still.
"Point taken." Said Wallace as he gnawed on the bone trying to get as much meat as he can. "But I figure, if that’s the case you’d have put a bullet in my head."
"We wanted to." Said Gabriel. Eden snapped a look up into his face. She dropped her plate on the ground. "Fine – Jet and I wanted to."
"And why didn’t you?" Asked Wallace as he dropped the bone onto the tin plate.
"Did you know, we didn’t decide to take up this bounty until you and Killian crossed paths?" Asked Gabriel.
"Ah… Here we go." Said Wallace, rolling his eyes. "Of course this is about him."
"Yes!" Said Eden angrily. "It’s about him! You may as well have fucking killed him. You took everything he had."
"Not everything, Ms. Morgan." Said Wallace with that flashing smile. "He’d lost some things way before he turned his back on me."
"I protected you for so long, Alan. I kept these three off your back because you were my friend."
"Oh yes, friends – that sounds exactly like what we were." Said Alan rolling his eyes. "You knew Killian wanted me dead, yet you did nothing to warn me."
"You knew Killian wanted to kill you too, Alan. You knew he was coming. You knew he was there for an hour before he found you yet you did nothing to get away."
"Of course not – I wasn’t running from King." Said Alan. "What do you take me for, him?"
Wallace pointed at Gabriel who smiled at the barb.
"These too I get, Doctor. He was Jet’s friend and Eden’s… Well… We never quite found out what he was to Eden. But you? You and him only ever shared enmity except for the last… What? Two months of his time as part of your pathetic band of bounty hunters. Why do you even care what I did to him? You’re the token foreigner now…" Alan added with delight.
"Maybe it’s the fact that he was a countryman. Maybe it was because I hoped he’d share his style-tips. Or maybe it’s because Killian King was a gentleman doing his job. And I respected the way that he did it."
"Of course – although you could well just be feigning upset in order to fit in. I mean, with Killian out of the way… Your path is clear now – you know she has a thing for Englishmen." Said Wallace. Eden jumped to her feet and unleashed a mighty slap across Vain’s face.
"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Mr. Wallace, but I can assure you what exists between Eden and I is nothing like what existed between she and Killian."
Wallace surveys the scene, Jet having stayed relatively quiet. He looked from Baal to Morgan and back again, choosing perhaps not to push things any further.
"Suffice to say, I’m still intrigued as to why I’m not dead – given that you’re all so displeased with me." Said Wallace.
"Because we know you didn't kill anyone on that train. Because we know you refused and did little more than open the lockbox. Because you didn't plan this nor did you cause it. And because Killian asked us not to unless you forced our hand." Said Jet quietly. "Wallace looked to Jet and then up to Eden whose eyes told Vain this was the truth."
"Well…" Said Vain blinking. "That was quite unexpected."
"As I said…" Gabriel said. "A gentleman."
"Yes…" Wallace answered taking a deep rattling breath. "A better man I’ve never met and a better friend I’ve never had. Suffice to say… I’ll never know that again. So… Better soon, than late." He said.
And then several things happened at once. Wallace lurched at Jet and wrapped his fingers around the grip of his gun. Eden let out a yell of “No!”.He pulled it out and pressed the barrel into the underside of his chin. as she realized what Wallace was doing – but it was too late. There was the crack of a gunshot, but it wasn’t from Jet’s gun. Eden had pulled her revolver and fired – the bullet had pierced Vain’s heart. He fell backwards off the log with a thump.
Eden dropped her gun to the ground.
"I killed him…" She said. "I fucking killed him."
"He pulled a gun, Edie." Said Jet.
"I killed him! Killian asked me no to but I killed him!" She repeated.
"Eden… Listen to me." Said Gabriel, pressing his hands against the side her neck and forcing her to look at him. "He pulled a gun. He could have killed any of us – Killian will understand. Do you hear me?"
She didn’t answer… She just blinked at him.
"Eden. Do you hear me?"
"Y… Yes." She said. "I hear you…"
Jet pulled Wallace back away from where they were sat and lifted him up – he pulled open the door of the coach and dropped Wallace inside. He locked the door and turned back to the fire. Not long after, they turned in for the night – not a one of them saying another word.
It was a loud yell and a gunshot that acted as the alarm for Gabriel and Eden when they woke up a few hours later. Gabriel pulled the hat off his face and jumped to his feet, Eden following a few seconds later.
"Jet, are you alright?" Eden asked.
"Fucking rattlesnake… In the back." He said.
Gabriel looked at the snake, writing on the floor, headless and dying. The door of the coach was open.
"From Cthulhu… " He said. "Must have gotten into the coach when we were watching MacLean. You were lucky you didn’t get…"
Gabriel’s voice trailed off as he looked at Jet’s wrist, where there were two puncture marks. Gabriel sprung into action pulling Scalpel from it’s sheath… He held the wound up to the light and stopped.
"Fucking hell Gabriel, if you’re too fucking squeamish I’ll do it…" Eden said reaching for the knife.
"No!" Gabriel said "The bite is too close to the arteries in the wrist. If I cut the wound to suck out the poison he’ll bleed out. We need to get him to the town."
"It’s two hours away." Said Jet, his brow already covered in sweat. "I’m not going to make it."
"Jet, shut up, you’ll be fine." Eden said as her voice cracked. "You’ll be fine."
Jet looked up at Gabriel and smiled, he nodded to tell Gabriel he knew the truth. Gabriel choked back the emotion he was feeling and cleared his throat.
"Quick? Or let it happen?" Gabriel asked.
"Quick, man – I don’t want to feel this burn." Jet replied as he sunk back against a nearby rock. Eden’s eyes widened in horror as she realized what the conversation was aluding to.
"No! Fucking no! This is not happening." She shouted, trying to get between them.
"Edie…" Said Jet. "I’m dying. And… I don’t want to suffer."
"You can’t go… We need you." She said, her eyes filling with tears. "I need you."
Gabriel stepped back, giving them a moment. He took deep breaths as she wrapped her arms around Jet’s neck. His strength was already fading and his arm was starting to swell rapidly. His breathing was becoming a pant. Eden pulled away and turned back to Gabriel, she fixed her eyes on his.
"Make it painless. Or I’ll make sure you feel it too." She said. Gabriel knew she was already grieving. He knew she never meant it. He knew that she would expect him to do a professional job.
Gabriel stepped forward and knelt at Jet’s side.
"Thank you – for accepting me." Said Gabriel through a haze of emotion. "I know given everything we’ve been through that would have been hard to do."
"I didn’t do it for you... I did it for her." Said Jet. Even in these final moments, he was still holding on to everything that had happened between them. And then Jet reached up and pulled Gabriel’s ear towards his mouth. "I couldn’t be happier that I did."
Gabriel pulled away and looked down at The Wildcard whose face was wracked with agony. Gabriel nodded.
"I’ll look after them all… I swear." Gabriel said. Jet smiled.
"Especially her… Make good choices." Jet added with a hint of finality.
Gabriel lifted Scalpel and pressed it into the muscles between the ribs in Jet’s chest. As the blade pierced Jet’s heart, Gabriel felt a single tear drip down his cheek.
"Good night my friend." He said, as he twisted the knife, and the light faded from Jet’s eyes.
The burial was hasty but respectful. Gabriel and Eden had dug the hole together and left him inside. Gabriel had collected his things and kept them to one side to return to Sherry back home. Eden had placed a picture of Jet’s wife in the grave before the covered him up. It had taken hours despite their attempts at speed, and when Gabriel hitched Jet’s horse beside his own to the front of the carriage, it was for speed and nothing else.
The arrived in Salt Lake City after an hour and thirty minutes – Jet would have been dead for a half hour if they’d tried to get him there. They hadn’t spoken, their journey having been more about speed than comfort. As they pulled their horses to a canter just outside Salt Lake, Gabriel pulled the coach to Eden’s side.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"Do I look alright?" She snapped. Gabriel scratched underneath his eye with a dirty finger nail. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap."
"I understand." He said, his eyes focused on the road into the city. "He was your best friend."
"He was family." She said, before putting her heels into her lathering horse and riding off into the distance.
They didn’t speak again until the reached the Courthouse – it had been a long and tiring few days. Gabriel had his mind set on a hot meal, a cold drink and a comfortable bed. He had dreamed of those three things above and beyond the fifty-thousand-dollar reward that he was about to collect a share of. He’d already set his mind on his plans to give Jet’s share to Sherry, and he knew Eden would agree.
As they stopped outside the courthouse, something felt wrong. A man stood in a white suit outside of the Courthouse and between them stood a line of law makers.
"This is a lot of lawmen to collect five dead men…" Said Eden, her eyes moving down the line until she turned her face to Gabriel.
"Let me handle this, probably a misunderstanding." Gabriel said climbing off his horse.
"Gentlemen, you can relax – the GC Gang have been brought to justice – dead, not alive." Said Gabriel with a smile and his hands in the air.
"Do I have the pleasure of addressing “The Court”?" Asked the man in the white suit.
"Correct." Said Gabriel flashing a look at Eden before speaking again. "Alas, one of our number was gravely bitten by a Rattlesnake about two hours outside your fine city. But myself and my partner are here to collect the bounty for the five individuals in the back of our coach. Please allow me to introduce myself…"
The man in white stepped forward between the line of men that stood between them and stepped into the square.
"You, sir, may collect any bounty due." Said the man in white. "But she, shall not."
Gabriel looked at Eden whose brow furrowed.
"I’m not sure I understand what you mean – I assume you’re the Marshall." Said Gabriel.
"You would be right, sir." He said with a smile. "But it’s quite clear – you know as well as I do, that the woman that stands by your side is The Black Widow Eden Morgan – she is wanted for dozens of murders. You know this, because you hunted her yourself."
"That’s correct – and then I paid off the debt and bought her freedom. In exchange I performed ten thousand dollars worth of bounties without payment. It was agreed with Judge Warren…"
" Warren P Matthison, yes, yes, yes… But unfortunately, the eminent Judge Matthison was found dead in his home this past winter. As such, it was the duty of the courts go over his decisions to ensure that they were made for the right reason – and it was decided that Ms. Morgan’s bounty would be reset – a thousand dollars alive, one hundred dollars dead. There are a lot of people that want to see her rot in a cell." Said the Marshall with a laugh
"This can’t be…. No, I need to speak to a judge." Said Gabriel.
"Speak to who you like come Monday morning, but this is a Saturday – no court’s in session today – only jail."
"You think you’re taking me to jail, you’ve got another thing coming." Said Eden, pulling the revolver out of her holster.
"Woah!" Said Gabriel, stepping in front of her. "Eden, please… Let me handle this,"
"There’s nothing to handle sir. Except that, given you were cheated out of ten thousand dollars by the former judge, we’ll up the bounty. Seeing as though she’s alive, we’ll add ten thousand dollars to that bounty you’re here to collect. You just need to make sure she makes it to jail alive and no-one else is dead."
Gabriel turned his head slowly to face Eden, the tears building in her eyes again.
"What is your name, sir?" Gabriel asked. "Who is it who asks me to turn my back on my best friend?"
"My name is Glendale Belfort – me and my friends own this town." He said with a smirk.
Gabriel paused, his head turning slowly to face Marshall Belfort and his face spread into a wide grin.
"I’ll take your bounty, Marshall." He said as he turned his head to face Eden. He stepped towards her and wrapped his hands around her and pulled her into a hug.
"I’ll get you out." He whispered.
"You know there’s no way I’m getting out of this town, right?" She said, as she returned his hug.
"I won’t let this happen." He said with determination.
"Gabriel. Take the money, go and share it with Sherry and get as far away from this fucking City as you can." Eden said.
"I can’t leave you behind." He said.
"Man up, Doctor… Make good choices." She added. He looked into her eyes as he heard that little gasp for the second time this week. Yet the look on Eden Morgan’s face was that of a happy acceptance. Gabriel pulled the knife away from her body and saw her clothing begin to spread crimson.
"Good night, my friend." He whispered as he lowered her to the ground.
"Was that worth ten thousand dollars, Doctor?" Asked Belfort with a hint of anger in his voice.
"Every fucking penny." Said Gabriel. Looking down at Eden as the life faded from her eyes.
The following morning, after a hot meal, a cold drink and a comfortable bed, Gabriel Baal rode his horse and coach away from Salt Lake City with his fifty thousand dollars . He didn’t travel far, just to a nearby hill. He stopped, and climbed atop the coach upon which he’d travelled so far.
And then… Many things happened all at once. Glendale Belfort met his friends, Harry Omerod, Rylan Mercy and Icarus in his office at the Courthouse. They talked about the death of The Black Widow and the end of the GC Gang. They talked candidly about the requirement to remove The Doctor and what remained of The Court from existence.
At the same time an older man, in his fifties, whispered in the ear of five local ruffians and handed twenty dollars to each. Each of them ran to take their place – four of them took their place at each of the corners of the Courthouse. The fifth slipped inside. He moved like a shadow, finding himself outside the office of the US Marshall. He slid a small envelope underneath the door before turning and making his way back to the outside world.
Outside, the four remaining men waiting for the signal as their fellow reached the outer doors – each of them began to strike their flints until a spark ignited.
Inside his office, Belfort laughed and mocked as he slipped his letter opener beneath the flap. He broke the seal and pulled out the decoratively written piece of writing paper, folded in half. He opened up the letter to reveal three words.
Face The Court
And the picture of an owl. Belfort took a moment for the realisation to hit, bit it was too late.
Atop the hill, Gabriel watched as the dynamite ripped through the courthouse. He took a deep breath and looked down at his prize and let himself smile. And then he lifted his flask to his lips and drank to his fallen friends.
"Good night my friends -" Gabriel said with a sad smile. "It has been an honour..."
They rarely did.
He’d come to learn quickly that the one thing that those stupid, bumbling cowboys couldn’t resist was an eloquently spoken word. They were drawn to it like moths to a flame. It was for this reason, that The Doctor used the knife that he’d come to know as “Scalpel”. He’d talk himself as close to his quarry as he should need before he slipped the blade between their ribs, or into their neck. On the odd occasion, he’d slide the sharp steel across the femoral artery in the leg and step back as the colour would drain more quickly than the crimson. He was more than a doctor by name – he had been a doctor by trade.
His knowledge of the human body gave him an advantage over most men. His knowledge of the human mind gave him an advantage over the rest.
It had been a short career thus far, but his reputation proceeded him. He knew others had more terrifying tropes to be known by but he didn’t care. He woudn’t kill if he didn’t have to, but when he did it was quick and as painless as it could possibly be. He was still a healer at heart, and if he could help it he would end things with as little suffering as possible, It wasn’t always. And some people didn’t deserve it. And so, when those in the West heard that The Doctor was coming to town, they were always right to wonder who it was who he was looking for. And when his horse would slowly start to canter into town, they’d whisper to one another. “He’s here.” They would say.
”The man in blue has arrived!”
He sharpened Scalpel against a whetstone, his eyes fixed upon the campfire over which the hind quarters of a mule deer roasted slowly on a spit. He’d taken his turn rotating the crackling meat before sitting back and watching as the two with whom he travelled argued over who would take the next shift. He let out a slight chuckle across the fire.
"Something funny, Gabriel?" Asked the woman, her eyes burning a hole in him more fierce than the flames that over which their evening’s feast was currently hanging.
"Yes." Said Gabriel, matter of fact. "I’ve spent the last half hour turning the dear that I killed by hand also skinned, and it’s going to go to waste."
"And why is that, exactly?" Asked the man, standing by the side of the woman with whom he’d been quarrelling not moments before.
"Because while you two argue over who is going to turn the meat next, it’s starting to char." Said Gabriel, pointing Scalpal at the blackening flash.
"Oh fuck!" Said the man, stepping forward and starting to turn the handle. The woman looked over at Gabriel and the corner of her mouth twitched. Gabriel flashed her a small wink and carried on sharpening his knife.
A few feet away, outside the warmth of the fire, there was the sound of scuffling and a muffled cry.
"Shup up!" Called Eden, as the spit started to turn again.
The man, known as The Wildcard to most, but as Jet to his riding companions, had a hatred for overcooked meat. He liked everyone to believe that he was rough and tough, but the truth was much deeper than that. He had a complexity to him that most would never see – either they wouldn’t get close enough or they didn’t care to. He like food – nothing fancy, but cooked well and cooked properly. He liked to exercise. He liked competition and the thrill of victory – but most of all, he craved home. His wife. His brothers. Yes – The Wildcard was as dangerous as he was tough – but he would never stand by and allow deer that he’d never allow burnt deer to pass his lips.
There would be no black meat for the Wildcard.
But this man had over a thousand bounties to his name over a long career – much longer than Gabriel’s had been. Yes, Gabriel had managed to capture some real headline bounties in the last two years, but he would be surprised if he ever reached the kind of numbers that Jet had managed. He was the gunman of the group – revolver or rifle, it didn’t matter. If their target stayed to fight, then he was quick off the draw and could cut a man down before they’d had time to think. If they ran, then his rifle would stop them in their tracks. Sometimes, they’d hold up their hands and come quietly – especially if they knew who he was.
"Fucking assholes." He muttered under his breath, knowing he’d been played. She’d waited long enough for the potential to be true, and Gabriel had tipped the balance with his observation. Gabriel went back to sharpening his knife, having cleaned the remenents of the deer from it’s blade.
"So…" She said across the fire as she took her seat "Plan for tomorrow?"
"The way I see it, we have two choices." Said Jet, not looking at those who accompanied him on this trip. "Either we take in the two we have, or we collect on all five at once."
"Forgive me, Jet, but I see no choice in this." Said Gabriel shaking his head a touch. "We keep the five together and take them in at the same time. It makes no sense to split them – otherwise, we risk some corrupt lawman telling the world that we didn’t make the full bounty."
"He has a point, Jet." She said. He rolled his eyes as he turned the deer.
"Of course he has a point, you always think he has a point." He replied, playfully.
"Because I normally do." Said Gabriel with a smile. He looked across the fire into the eyes of The Black Widow again. She grinned mischievously.
Eden Morgan had a reputation for being dangerous and cunning. Whilst killing men had been her game for years, it was only the last six months that she’d decided to form this particular crew. She had originally plied her trade as an assassin, specialising in getting close to her victims and breaking their hearts as she killed them. It wasn’t difficult, nor surprising – Eden Morgan was as beautiful as she was deadly. It never took much to have her prey eating out of her hands.
And then the web would take them.
It was her skill to be something like a jill of all trades – she could poison, she could shoot, she could stab. Despite her reputation, she had no fear of being direct – and since this particular venture came to being, her instinct had been to kill on sight. Yes, she was a black widow, but she also had a Scorpion’s sting – and that was what they feared in her.
And she also had the most skin in this particular game.
The scuffling became a scraping and a strangled cry as whatever moved tried to free itself.
"Shut up!" Shouted Jet over his shoulder as he continued to turn the meat.
"The GC gang…" mused Jet as he reached up and scratched beneath his beard. "You realise this is the closest that anyone’s got to pulling in all five?"
The GC gang – “Vain” Wallace, “Dirty” Dave Rydell, “Lush” Wylde, “Rogue” MaClean and Zane “The Brain” Scott – stood accused and tried in their absence for the robbery of a train in Utah. The robbery, in which fifteen people were killed, saw fifty thousand dollars in cash stolen from a lockbox on board. The crew had managed to arrange for a single ticket – taken by Wylde – and she staged an execution on board which forced the train to stop. The man killed? Her ex husband, CJ. She’d smiled as she’d pulled the trigger and sprayed blood across the other men and women in that cab.
She’d laughed as US Marshall’s pointed guns at her. She’d laughed as the rest of the gang had rolled in and fired mercilessly onto the train. She hadn’t flinched, nor moved as their bullets pierced flesh. As the other travellers ran from the scene screaming bloody murder, the crew had managed to break open the lock box and steal the fortune. Unfortunately for them, CJ hadn’t been travelling alone, and it was quickly assumed that The Lush had been working with her normal crew.
"We go after Wylde tomorrow." Said Gabriel as he flipped Scalpel over in his hand and slid it back into it’s sheath. He scratched his stubbled jaw and considered that he’d need to shave before they left in the morning. He listened for the bubbling of the creek nearby – he’d wake at sunrise, as he always did. The movement started again, and what sounded like angry shouts.
"Shut up!" Called Gabriel, before looking back at Eden and Jet.
"You sure?" Asked Eden as Jet looked from one to the other. "I mean, we all know how you have a soft spot for The Lush."
"Very drole." Said Gabriel forcing a smile at Eden whose tongue pressed against her teeth.
"You know she won’t be alone, right?" Said Jet.
"That’s what you two are here for." Said Gabriel with a grin. Eden shot him a cursed look.
"Well, alright." Said Jet, "Lets’ finish cooking, eat and sleep – we’ve got a long ride tomorrow."
"Actually." Said Eden, standing up and looking over the meat. "I think it’s just about done."
"You’ve got to be kidding me, you get out of cooking again?" He said as she sliced off a large chunk of flesh which dripped juicily.
"I’m here in more of a head cook capacity – I make sure that those who work for me do the job that’s expected of them." She said as she retook her seat around the fire.
"I suppose that makes sense." Said Jet, as he turns to Gabriel and lowers his voice. "If anyone knows meat, it’s her."
"What was that?" She asked mid chew.
"Nothing, Eden – I said enjoy the meat." Jet said smiling as he looked down at Gabriel.
The horses began to shift nervously as the shuffling of boots in sand cut through the air again. Their prisoner was struggling.
"Shut the fuck up!" They all shouted as one.
Wait now, there's too much at stake now
There he goes...
He looked to the distance and cried
"The man in blue has arrived!"
There he goes...
He looked to the distance and cried
"The man in blue has arrived!"
On the outskirts of a small town called Liberation, they brought their steeds to a halt. Gabriel rode the small coach that served as temporary jail. In the back, their prisoner was kicking against the door.
"Shut… The fuck… Up!" Shouted Jet as he reached the butt of his rifle through the bars of the window and gave their bounty a stiff shot to the ribs. He groaned. Eden pulled back her hat so she could get a better look of what they were riding into.
"Fucking shithole." She said, her nose crinkling. Gabriel smiled – he knew she preferred larger towns but the bounties there were small and many. Too much work. Too much time. Too many compettors.
"I’ve stayed in worse." Said Jet, spitting on the ground at his horse’s feet. Jet was a simpler prospect – he liked small town living. He had no inclination for busy, built up places. He liked the quiet life when he was home – he preferred to spend his days working hard and providing for his family. Eden enjoyed the life of high society that she was provided by these more lucrative bounties. Gabriel mused how the two could be so different, yet so similar. They’d known one another long before he came along – in fact, Eden had once been a bounty of his own.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
But still, she was right – this was a shithole. A single saloon and a number of small wooden huts parading as houses. A saloon also moonlighting as a brothel, a post office, a general store, a black smith, a gun smith, a jail and the rest were just somewhere people lay down at night to sleep off the booze. It was a depressing place.
"Well…" Said Gabriel with a deep breath. "Shall we?"
His fellows nodded their agreement as they began the slow trek into town. Eden and Jet backed off behind the coach the closer they got to the border of the town. Gabriel smiled and nodded as the wagon jolted him this way and that over the odd stone that would hit his wooden wheels. In what felt like seconds, the entire town were outside their doors watching as this band of newcomers breezed into their home.
The man in blue has arrived.
Gabriel pulled up his coach in the middle of the street outside the saloon. The owner stood at his doors, his arms folded looking furious that Gabriel would even consider stopping near his establishment. Gabriel stepped down and made his way towards the saloon doors.
"Good morning, sir – do I have the pleasure of addressing the owner of this fine institution?" Asked Gabriel.
"What?" Came the reply.
"Apologies – where are my manners. My name is - " Said Gabriel extending his hand for a shake.
"I don’t give a fuck what your name is, boy. I suggest that you get back on your horse and you and your friends get on your way." Said the bartender. Gabriel retracted his handshake.
"Oh we intend on making our way quite soon, but first we have some business to take care of. Could you please let your madame know that that she has a visitor?" Said Gabriel stepping back a little.
"This ain’t no whorehouse, son, this is a saloon. Now fuck off…" Came the reply as the bartender put his hand on the door of the saloon to head back inside.
"I can assure you that I know it is – I met a lovely young women not a day and a half’s ride rom here who told me a wonderful story of a saloon in Liberation who had the most wonderful girls – and there was a madame there by the name of Lucy." Said Gabriel with a smile "Now, I have some business with her – and I would appreciate it if you could let her know I’m here."
"Son, I’m about five seconds away from putting a god damn bullet in your god damn head. I told you this ain’t no brothel and if you don’t get on your fuckin’ way I’m fixin’ on…" The bartender started, but Gabriel stopped him with a raised hand.
"Sir, I mean no disrespect, but that would be a terrible idea. Because should you choose to use your weapon to expunge me from the world of the living, your dear friend Lucy will kill you and every single person in this… fucking town." Said Gabriel with a smile.
"And why the fuck would she do that?" Asked the bartender, his patience almost ran completely thing.
"Because, my friend." Said Gabriel with a wide grin. "She wants to kill me herself."
As the bartender turned away, Gabriel knew he’d hit the mark. The bartender had seen something in her… Gabriel turned back to face Eden and Jet and moved to step towards them when the doors of the saloon swung open violently.
"GABRIEL FUCKING BAAL!" Came the furious cry.
"Good luck…" Said Eden with a look of pure joy upon her face. Jet couldn’t speak, he was laughing so much.
"Ms. Wylde. What a pleasure to see…" Gabriel started. He soon stopped as she aimed her gun at his chest. "… You."
"What the fuck are you doing here?" She said, her voice cracking with anger. "I told you to stay the fuck away from me?"
"Uhhhh, did you?" Said Gabriel remembering things differently. "I mean, I remember waking up handcuffed to a bed with you hovering over me – you suggested I could have sex with you and keep you around, or let you go… And here you are a free as a bird."
Lucy cocked the gun and pointed the gun at him again.
"But that was the point!" Said Gabriel quickly. Eden and Jet exchanged a look behind his back. But Gabriel saw the revolver drop a touch.
"What?" She said, no anger in her voice now. "What the fuck are you talking about, Gabriel?"
"I let you go so you could be free… Can’t you see that?" As he spoke he slowly and surely stepped towards her. He was hardly making any distance.
"I let you go because I couldn’t bare to use you and then take you in – I couldn’t bear to see you in chains. I couldn’t bear to stand by and watch as the hangman let you swing." Said Gabriel as he stared at her in the eyes.
"Lucy, don’t listen to him…" Came the pleading cry of the silver haired youngling that had stepped out of the saloon behind Lucy.
"Stay out of this Maggie." Said Lucy.
"Yeah, stay out of this Maggie." Called Eden from her horse.
"Fuck you!" Maggie shouted back.
"Uh, you wish." Mocked Eden.
"Enough!" Shouted Lucy, physically shaking her head. "What is it that you’re trying to say, Gabriel?"
He stepped towards her again, inch by inch not wanting to make any sudden movements.
"Isn’t it obvious?" He said as he closed in on her. "My god, isn’t it clear as the nose upon your face?"
"Gabriel, don’t fuck around here…" Said The Lush as he stepped closer and closer by the second. "I’m being serious, if you’re lying to me I swear I’ll kill you and everyone you know."
"I know that, I do." He said as he finally reached her. Tears filled the corners of her eyes as she reached up and cupped his face in her hands. "Which is why I could never lie to you about this."
As he spoke, The Lush slowly brought her face towards his. He could smell the whiskey on her breath as she seemingly slowed down everything to bask in the moment that was finally happening.
"I couldn’t let the hangman make you swing." He said as he looked her in the eyes and hi mouth curled into a smile. "When I could kill you myself."
He heard the gasp first, that little gasp that escaped from her waiting lips as the tip of Scalpal slipped between her ribs and pierced her heart. The tears from the corner of her eyes began to fall as he twisted the blade and shredded her heart.
My circuits slow
I'm not scared anymore
Reach for my weapon and in turn you're reaching for yours.
I'm not scared anymore
Reach for my weapon and in turn you're reaching for yours.
"No!" Came the strangled cry of Maggie as the bartender held her back.
"The fuck did you do? Someone get the sheriff!" He shouted angrily. "Before I kill this cock sucker myself."
"Everybody relax, everybody calm down." Said Gabriel pulling back his blade and letting Wylde slump to the ground. He wiped clean his blade against the small red handkerchief he kept for such occasions and replaced the knife into it’s sheath. "The woman you see dead before you, having masqueraded as Lucy, is one Lush Wylde – a member of the GC gang. She is wanted, alongside four of her fellows in conjunction with the murder of fifteen people and the theft of fifty thousand dollars in cash from a train in Utah."
Gabriel reached into his pocket and pulled out a sheet of paper.
"This right here is a warrant made out by Circuit Judge Warren P Matthison out of Salt Lake City, Utah for the arrest and capture – dead or alive mind – of the woman who I’ve just killed. I am terribly sorry that you all had to witness this – but whatever she was to you, she is the woman who helped to ensure that fifteen families lost loved ones." Said Gabriel as he poked at her with the toe of his boot.
"Ms. Wylde was a dangerous and volatile creature that was good at what she did. She had a streak of self-destructive streak that would rip a hole in everything that she would touch and it wouldn’t care she’d take down with it. She destroyed her husband. She would have destroyed me if I’d let her – but I was smart enough to see what was coming and I fought against it with delight. She didn’t hate me because I broke her heart, she hated me because I forced her to see exactly what she was." Gabriel added to the town at large.
"She’d have destroyed you all – one by one – pulling you into her world and then laughing into the bottom of a bottle while she turned her back on your fall. It’s what she does." He smiled as he turned and looked up at Eden.
"And they call you the Black Widow."
"Wait a second…" Said the bartender, his eyes opening wider. "The Doctor… The Black Widow… The Wild Card… You’re The Court."
"One and the same… Do you want to face us nect?" Said Gabriel with a smile.
And just like that… The street cleared. Gabriel chuckled as he picked up Wylde’s body and walked it to the coach. He unlocked the door and tossed her inside unceremoniously. The prisoner began to shout.
"Oh will you give it a rest?" Said Gabriel punching the prisoner in the face sending him back into lying position. "Alright. Where’s next?"
Quick on the draw
In this town, I am the law
Is what they say true?
Does death wear blue?
Can he fall?
In this town, I am the law
Is what they say true?
Does death wear blue?
Can he fall?
"You’re telling me he’s the Sheriff?" Asked Eden as she pulled her hat down over her eyes against the sun. They’d rode for two days to make it to the town of Cthulhu. It was larger than Liberation and had a greater density of traffic that would just pass through, but in essence it was still a tiny dump in comparison to the larger cities in the West.
"Apparently so. Took up here and gave himself a new name – Rogan Griffith. Something tod o with his mentor apparently." Gabriel said checking the warrant. "But he has some power here. Wylde was his deputy for a while but… Well…"
"Say no more." Said Jet with a grin. "You want to handle this one? You have history with this one too."
"Good lord no." Gabriel said with the wave of his hand. "No, this one is yours. You need to avenge his escape last year."
"Hey… Escaped from you too." Said Jet a little curtly.
"Now boys… Let’s not start fighting between ourselves." Said Eden with the kind of voice normally reserved for small children and the infirm.
"I got Wylde, you get MacLean… That’s what we agreed." Said Gabriel looking at Jet with a smile. "If you can handle it."
"Hey, fuck you. Least I took back what he stole." Said Jet with barbs. And they stung. Gabriel had let Rogue slip away with the prize when he’d gotten away. It still irked Gabriel to this day.
When MacLean was still Rogan and hadn’t earned the name Rogue yet, they’d ridden together for quite a while with a third. There had been a forth for a while but as it happens, things come and go. They’d gone their separate ways – Gabriel had chosen bounty hunting and Rogan had become the bounty.
And then Gabriel slew their mutual friend over a quarrel. MacLean had just watched from a distance – unwilling and unable to do anything about it. Gabriel let him go that time – he hadn’t told either of his fellow Court members.
He couldn’t bring himself to kill Rogan, nor did he feel confident enough in being able to bring him in alive. This was down to Jet – Jet who had come so close to ending MacLean before.
"Fuck it." Said Jet as he climbed down off his horse in the middle of Cthulhu. He stood in the middle of the town square and began to turn in circles.
"Good people of Cthulhu – where is your Sheriff?" He shouted. People had stopped and started to watch. "A town such as this should be protected, where is the man who is charged with doing just that?"
From the crowd stepped a figure.
"Who are you to call out our Sheriff?" The man asked. Jet didn’t hesitate. He pulled out his revolver and blew the toes of the mans left foot.
"Jet what the hell?" Said Eden.
"What? He’ll live." Jet said with a smile. He turned back to the town at large and smiled. "Hey Sheriff, wherever you are, I’d come quickly. Some psychopath is shooting parts off your townsfolk."
"Has he lost it?" Eden asked as she looked at many an itchy trigger finger.
"I think he’s just getting everyone’s attention."
"Alright, whose next?" Jet shouted as around a hundred guns were pulled at once. Each and everyone was aimed at The Wildcard.
"I think he’s got it…" Said Gabriel. "Jet… If you have a plan, I’d suggest…"
"Alright fellas, lower your guns." Came an Irish accent from through the crowd. They began to part as, from the direction of the town jail, strolled MacLean. Slightly behind him was his deputy, a feisty looking individual who seemed a little twitchy.
"Well I’ll be damned…" Said Rogan. "Good to see a couple’a old friends out here in the middle of no-where."
"We’re no friends, amigo." Said Jet.
"Does he not know that amigo literally means friend?" Asked Gabriel. Eden bit her lip to stop herself from laughing.
"Well… What could possibly bring The Court to my town?" Asked Rogue. "I do I need not ask."
"Dead… Or alive…" Said Jet with a smile. "Your choice."
MacLean looked past The Wildcard and looked Gabriel in the eye.
"You really alright wit’ him doin’ that?" He asked, his accent thicker than Gabriel could remember. "We’re old friends you and me – and now you’re here wit’ him in my town tryin’a make trouble?"
"Old friends is the operative word, old boy. You and I haven’t been friends in a long, long time." Said Gabriel with a half-smile. "And I’m more than happy for my new friend to do whatever he likes, in your town or any other."
"Deputy Ingalls." Said MacLean, his friendly façade dropping completely as he pointed at Gabriel. "Arrest that cunt for the murder of Ichabod."
Jet scratched beneath his long and luxorious locks with the barrel of his gun before putting it back in it’s holster.
"Deputy, I’d suggest you stay where you are. It’s a criminal offence to impede an officer of the court whilst in the line of his duty." Said Jet. "Now… Dead… Or… Alive?"
Jet smiles again as Rogue shakes his head.
"You know, in my town, when there’s a fight in the square, then we like to make it interesting. Gentlemen… Release the Rattlers." Said MacLean with a grin. From around the circle men step forward with bags, and toss them into the air. They hold on to the end of the bags and from inside fly a dozen or so Rattlesnakes.
"Eden, my dear, would you care to join me on the coach?" Said Gabriel trying to hide the sound of glee from his voice – he always loved snakes. But this was Jet’s fight and playing with Serpents wasn’t going to help.
"Fuck yes!" Eden was less happy with the snakes than Gabriel was.
"Snakes. What the fuck is this? A county fair? I take it you’ve chosen death MacLean." Said Jet as the angry snakes hissed all around him.
"You’re the Wildcard… That’s’ what they call you. Well, Mr. Wildcard, tell me – what is it that you think is going to happen to you when you try to kill these people’s sheriff? You think they’re just going to let you walk away? I don’t think so."
"Actually…" Called Gabriel with a smile. "I think that’s exactly what is going to happen."
"And why is that?" Asked Rogue looking a little bored with the events.
"Ladies and gentlemen – the man who stands before you today is Rogue MacLean – not Rogan Griffiths as he so pleasantly told you all. And here, we have a warrant for his capture – dead or alive. As such, it’s within our rights to shoot that man and take him with us."
"Like hell he is – that’s our Sheriff and here he’ll stay." Shouted a man from the crowd, and he was quickly joined in a chorus of cheers.
"Your sheriff lied to you. He’s a murderer. He helped cause the deaths of around fifteen people and he stole Fifty Thousand dollars. Does that number seem relevant to you?" Gabriel asked.
There was a stirring mutter between the crowd.
"Yes, I believe that money had been donated to you and some of the surrounding towns in order to help expand and modernise, am I right?" Said Gabriel with a smile. "Government funding to help create a happier and healthier environment."
Rogue MacLean’s eyes were bulging now – his anger was riding.
"I’d wager that he walked into your town and used that very train robbery in his campaign to become Sheriff…" Gabriel added with a smile. He winked at MacLean who looked furious. "You see, ladies and gentlemen – that is what your Sheriff is – he’s a liar, a thief and a let-down. He stands buy and watches those he purports to care about suffer while he remains intact and whole. He drags those down around him he’s sworn to protect."
Gabriel lets out a derisive burst of laughter.
"Sheriff? You’d have been better electing his deputy there. The man may be useless, but at least he could be relied on to be consistent."
"Enough!" Shouted MacLean. "Kill them!"
But no-one moved – not a single inhabitant of the town moved to do anything. Instead, they just stared at him – stony-faced and mutinous. MacLean looked around the circle, not stopping to look at Gabriel’s gloating face.
"You fucking inbred cun…" He began. But the sound of a loud crack was masked by the bullet that struck him in the throat. MacLean fell backwards to the ground, gurgling and bubbling blood.
My circuits slow
I'm not scared anymore
This is the moment that we have been created for
I'm not scared anymore
This is the moment that we have been created for
There was no celebration for MacLean’s death, no lamenting for his loss. Instead, the townsfolk simply went about their day, the Snake handlers collecting those snakes left in the dirt.
And as Jet lay MacLean down on top of the two dead bodies in the back of the coach, the prisoner began to call out again.
"Jesus Christ, you’re persistant." Said Jet as he closed the door to the Coach. "Alright, Eden – you’re up."
"Looking forward to it." She said with a grin.
It was then
That the crowd saw the quick man
He knew that he couldn't tell them
He was the quickest of all...
Would this be the day that he falls?
That the crowd saw the quick man
He knew that he couldn't tell them
He was the quickest of all...
Would this be the day that he falls?
Somewhere between the towns of Pain and Paradox, there was a small camp of bandits who were known for pillaging in the nearby settlements. Chief among them was a man who had been part of another crew a while back - several in fact. But this was the first time he’d been truly a leader.
Until now, Zane “The Brain” Scott had spent most of his career following others. Once upon a time, he’d followed Eden in a group called The Syndicate. Of course, the interesting thing about Zane was that he never believed that he was a follower. Yet there he was, constantly doing the bidding of others.
Recently, however, he had managed to break out on his own and finally start to do some leading of his own. His right hand man, an excitable yet brain-dead unicorn-fancier by the name of Larry had been given the role of making sure that Zane always looked intelligent. He accomplished this by… Not being.
It was, therefore, fortuitous on this night that Larry had found himself in the same lonely tavern in Pain that The Court had been staying. It was even more fortuitous that he accepted drinks all night, before agreeing to show our conquering trio exactly what a bandit’s hideout looked like.
As they arrived at the camp. Larry was on the verge of unconsciousness – Eden helped the cause by catching him on the base of his skull with the butt of her revolver. As he fell to the side and off the horse he was sharing with her, they were sure they heard a bone or two snap. They didn’t care. They had a job to do.
As they reached the edge of the camp, Eden climbed down off her horse. It was late, way after the sun had set, and the camp was virtually unguarded. Afterall, who would be stupid enough to want to get INTO a camp of villainous murderers that no-one could find unless they knew where it was.
Gabriel and Jet evacuated their own horses and followed her. They exchanged a look as she moved with ease through the camp, and it dawned at the same time that his camp was not new.
"This was the Syndicate’s camp?" Gabriel asked in a hushed whisper.
"Yes. Now shush." Eden said as she picked her way through unseen.
"Like, where you and, Zane and Alan and…" Jet continued.
"Yes. Now shush!" She said a little bit forcefully.
"Well… This is fun." Said Jet to Gabriel.
"Hey, do you think this is where it happened? The first time? You know… Her and…" Gabriel asked a starting-to-become-repulsed Jet.
"Hey! Dick heads! Shut the fuck up!" She said in a whispered shout. Gabriel and Jet followed her instruction as they reached what looked like a large wooden cabin. From inside, the three of them could hear the sounds of laughter and drinking from inside the cabin.
Eden made some hand gestures that told Gabriel to move around to the left and Jet to the right. They nodded as she pulled open what looked like a hidden door. As they stepped inside, into the shadows at the edge of the room, they took their marks. And when the trap sprug, Gabriel held his knife to the throat of one of the men at the table, and Jet held his revolver to the head of the other. Only then did Eden step into the light and face Eden face to face.
"Ms. Morgan – I’d like to say this is a pleasant surprise." Said Zane with a smile. "I assumed you’d never manage to find the location given that you only ever entered by horse and carriage."
"We had a little help." She smiled.
"Larry…" Said Zane, his mouth twitching away from the forced smile for a second. "What did you do to him?"
"He’s sleeping off a headache out in the dessert somewhere… Well… Unless the Coyotes have him?" She says, pressing her hand to her mouth in faux concern.
"What is it that you want, Eden?" Asked Zane, trying to pull back control of the situation. "Because even you three aren’t so stupid that you think you’re going to collect on my bounty in the middle of this fortress."
"We’ve just walked into “this fortress” without raising so much as a gaze." Eden said even going so far as to use airquotes. Zane started to laugh.
"Of course you did – we have no concerns about people getting in. We just don’t want people getting out." Said Zane laughing. "They get in, we get to do whatever we want with them. They get out then they take something valuable."
Zane cocks his head to the side.
"You seriously walked into my home and thought you were going to get away with it?" Said Zane, leaning forward. "I thought you three were so much smarter than the likes of me."
Eden’s smile falters as she looks to Jet and they both look at Gabriel who shrugs.
"The Court… Super-skilled, super-smart Bounty Hunters – you think word didn’t get to me of the others? I was waiting for you – and you walked in here bold as brass. You walked in here and thought you were going to outsmart me. I have the power here – I have "
"We can still kill you." Said Eden, defiantly.
"Don’t make me laugh, Eden – I’m the fastest draw in a hundred miles." Said Zane.
"No you’re not, he is." She replied nodding in Jet’s direction.
"Is that so? Then why isn’t it him facing me? Because he knows I’d beat him and his reputation falls apart. Did I read that right, doc? I think I did." Said Zane slowly turning his head to face Gabriel.
Gabriel looked at Jet and then at Eden. He looked down at Zane before he… Rolled his eyes.
"Could you stop toying with your food, Eden and get this over with?" Said Gabriel. Zane’s eyes focused back on Eden who was snickering now.
"I don’t get the joke." Said Zane.
"What’s new?" Said Jet. Eden’s laugh becomes a chuckle, matched by Gabriel who quickly reigned it back in and held up his hand in a faux apology to Zane who was looking around.
"You’re not going to kill me, Eden. You’re not that stupid." Zane said, a hint of desperation.
"Oh, I know that Zane. I’m not going to kill you. Jet isn’t going to kill you. Gabriel isn’t going to kill you." She looked down at the two men on either of Zane’s sides. "One of these handsome men are going to kill you."
"Like hell we are!" Said the one on the left.
"You must be god damned crazy!" Said the one on the right.
"They’re loyal to their leader." Said Zane "So your plan is flawed."
"Well, yes… Unless they don’t learn your little secret." Said Gabriel. Zane’s head snapped in his direction, and the two stooges look up into Gabriel’s face. "Because they don’t know do they?"
Zane looks to his colleagues and then back to Gabriel.
"See, gentlemen, there’s a man in the town of Pain who calls himself The Lord. He’s a buffoon, but he also has your leader here in his pocket. Have you ever noticed how most of your pillaging is done in Paradox these days? That’s because the Lord of Pain is giving your boss here orders. Your illustrious leader has an illustrious leader." Gabriel smirked. Zane looked at the men to either side of him and looked to tell them without words that it was a lie.
"So it’s up to you, I suppose. Either you can carry on blindly following a man who has no true power – who follows blindly without question. Who plays second fiddle to a buffoon who looks to control what your band of men are able to do… Or, you can kill The Brain. We can take him back to Salt Lake City and you can elect a new leader. Then, when the Lord of Pain comes knocking, you can put a bullet in his head and bury him six feet under." Gabriel added.
"Now maybe you’ll have a bounty put on your head. But maybe we’ll never be able to find this place again. Maybe you’ll be able to do what you want, when you want… Without having to follow a weak so-called leader." Gabriel added with scorn.
Zane moved – he was as quick as he said. His revolver was drawn, but Eden didn’t move. It was lucky that she didn’t as the man to Zane’s right deflected the barrel of the revolver and the bullet whistled to Eden’s left. He was removed of his gun quickly, and left hold his hands up in the air.
"Dead or alive, right?" Said Zane. "You can take me dead or alive."
"Well… You tried to shoot me so…" Eden said. She looked to each of the men at the table in turn. "Gentlemen… Would you mind?"
Moments later, there were two gunshots. The bullets collided inside Zane’s skull which caused a hell of a mess of the wall behind him.
My circuits slow
My moment has come
Your speed means nothing if it's death that you're running from
My moment has come
Your speed means nothing if it's death that you're running from
Around twenty minutes later, Gabriel and Jet tossed the dead body of Zane Scott into the back of the coach. The prisoner made a move again…
"Don’t… Even… Think about it." She said as she shut the door and locked it tight.
"Five out of five." Said Jet with a grin.
"Let’s go make some money." Said Eden rubbing her hands together.
Gabriel let out a deep breath as he took his place at the head of the coach. “Almost there,” he thought. “Almost there.”.
Wait now, there's too much at stake now
A cold wind blows...
He looked at the crowd and he cried
"The moment of truth has arrived!"
A cold wind blows...
He looked at the crowd and he cried
"The moment of truth has arrived!"
The Court were about two hours outside of Salt Lake City when they stopped to make camp for the night. Gabriel had argued that they should continue on, but Jet and Eden had agreed that arriving in town before sunrise would mean trouble.
As they sat down to eat a meal of mountain goat, they heard the mumbling of the prisoner who lay just a few feet away.
"What?" Said Jet as he turned to face the bound and gagged prisoner.
He mumbled again.
"I cant hear a fucking word he’s saying." Said Jet. Eden and Gabriel exchanged a look before Eden nodded.
"Fine." She added. Jet placed his plate on the ground and got to his feet. He stepped around and pulled the prisoner to his feet, he pulled off the hood and the gag down out of his mouth.
"What the fuck are you saying?" Asked Jet.
"I said no, thank you… I don’t need to eat." Came the voice of Vain Wallace. Jet grinned as he pushed him down onto the log that had been dragged around their fire.
"Here." Said Jet dropping the plate onto Wallace’s lap. He moves to fix himself a new plate. Wallace begins to eat hungrily.
"Seven days… Seven days in a confined space with four dead bodies." Said Wallace. "I don’t think I’ll ever forget the smell."
No-one answered, but Gabriel and Jet exchanged a look. Wallace was called Vain for a reason – he was likely the only person more used to a charmed life than Eden herself. He spent more time getting ready than a Showgirl – and rumour had it that he couldn’t cum unless he was making eye contact with himself.
"I count five – you’ve got us all." Said Vain through a mouthful of goat. "Congratulations."
"Thank you, Alan." Said Eden, uncharacteristically quietly. "Especially for Rydell."
Wallace shook his head.
"How’d you find us?" He asked.
"I have a proclivity for finding that which may be lost to others. I heard rumour of a dual between you and Dirty Dave over a certain debt that he owed you." Gabriel said.
"You’ve got ears everywhere, don’t you Doc?" Said Wallace with a smile. "Yeah, he stole from me – took me years to find him. And I lost the fight…"
"So we heard – defeat at the town of Outlast." Said Jet shaking his head. "But he left you alive. We were disappointed to hear that."
"That right?" Asked Wallace. "Well… That was his big mistake. He should have finished me… That way I wouldn’t have dragged his drunk ass out of bed and thrown him out of the window."
"At our feet, no less." Said Eden with a grin. "We always intended to pick up the both of you – and we figured you’d kill Rydell. He’s never quite had what it takes to go all the way."
"Why do you think I didn’t care about losing?" Said Vain. "I knew he’d want to gloat. Then he’d get drunk. And then I’d kill him and take what I wanted."
He shook his head.
"And thus you gave us the first of the five – so once again. Thank you, Alan," Said Eden.
"The posters say dead OR alive, though? Am I right?" Asked Wallace pointedly.
"They do – emphasis on the dead. They’re less hassle and they don’t eat your limited supplies of food." Said Gabriel more pointedly still.
"Point taken." Said Wallace as he gnawed on the bone trying to get as much meat as he can. "But I figure, if that’s the case you’d have put a bullet in my head."
"We wanted to." Said Gabriel. Eden snapped a look up into his face. She dropped her plate on the ground. "Fine – Jet and I wanted to."
"And why didn’t you?" Asked Wallace as he dropped the bone onto the tin plate.
"Did you know, we didn’t decide to take up this bounty until you and Killian crossed paths?" Asked Gabriel.
"Ah… Here we go." Said Wallace, rolling his eyes. "Of course this is about him."
"Yes!" Said Eden angrily. "It’s about him! You may as well have fucking killed him. You took everything he had."
"Not everything, Ms. Morgan." Said Wallace with that flashing smile. "He’d lost some things way before he turned his back on me."
"I protected you for so long, Alan. I kept these three off your back because you were my friend."
"Oh yes, friends – that sounds exactly like what we were." Said Alan rolling his eyes. "You knew Killian wanted me dead, yet you did nothing to warn me."
"You knew Killian wanted to kill you too, Alan. You knew he was coming. You knew he was there for an hour before he found you yet you did nothing to get away."
"Of course not – I wasn’t running from King." Said Alan. "What do you take me for, him?"
Wallace pointed at Gabriel who smiled at the barb.
"These too I get, Doctor. He was Jet’s friend and Eden’s… Well… We never quite found out what he was to Eden. But you? You and him only ever shared enmity except for the last… What? Two months of his time as part of your pathetic band of bounty hunters. Why do you even care what I did to him? You’re the token foreigner now…" Alan added with delight.
"Maybe it’s the fact that he was a countryman. Maybe it was because I hoped he’d share his style-tips. Or maybe it’s because Killian King was a gentleman doing his job. And I respected the way that he did it."
"Of course – although you could well just be feigning upset in order to fit in. I mean, with Killian out of the way… Your path is clear now – you know she has a thing for Englishmen." Said Wallace. Eden jumped to her feet and unleashed a mighty slap across Vain’s face.
"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Mr. Wallace, but I can assure you what exists between Eden and I is nothing like what existed between she and Killian."
Wallace surveys the scene, Jet having stayed relatively quiet. He looked from Baal to Morgan and back again, choosing perhaps not to push things any further.
"Suffice to say, I’m still intrigued as to why I’m not dead – given that you’re all so displeased with me." Said Wallace.
"Because we know you didn't kill anyone on that train. Because we know you refused and did little more than open the lockbox. Because you didn't plan this nor did you cause it. And because Killian asked us not to unless you forced our hand." Said Jet quietly. "Wallace looked to Jet and then up to Eden whose eyes told Vain this was the truth."
"Well…" Said Vain blinking. "That was quite unexpected."
"As I said…" Gabriel said. "A gentleman."
"Yes…" Wallace answered taking a deep rattling breath. "A better man I’ve never met and a better friend I’ve never had. Suffice to say… I’ll never know that again. So… Better soon, than late." He said.
And then several things happened at once. Wallace lurched at Jet and wrapped his fingers around the grip of his gun. Eden let out a yell of “No!”.He pulled it out and pressed the barrel into the underside of his chin. as she realized what Wallace was doing – but it was too late. There was the crack of a gunshot, but it wasn’t from Jet’s gun. Eden had pulled her revolver and fired – the bullet had pierced Vain’s heart. He fell backwards off the log with a thump.
My circuits slow
What they said is a lie
The shots are heard and the bullets scream death as they fly
What they said is a lie
The shots are heard and the bullets scream death as they fly
Eden dropped her gun to the ground.
"I killed him…" She said. "I fucking killed him."
"He pulled a gun, Edie." Said Jet.
"I killed him! Killian asked me no to but I killed him!" She repeated.
"Eden… Listen to me." Said Gabriel, pressing his hands against the side her neck and forcing her to look at him. "He pulled a gun. He could have killed any of us – Killian will understand. Do you hear me?"
She didn’t answer… She just blinked at him.
"Eden. Do you hear me?"
"Y… Yes." She said. "I hear you…"
Jet pulled Wallace back away from where they were sat and lifted him up – he pulled open the door of the coach and dropped Wallace inside. He locked the door and turned back to the fire. Not long after, they turned in for the night – not a one of them saying another word.
It was a loud yell and a gunshot that acted as the alarm for Gabriel and Eden when they woke up a few hours later. Gabriel pulled the hat off his face and jumped to his feet, Eden following a few seconds later.
"Jet, are you alright?" Eden asked.
"Fucking rattlesnake… In the back." He said.
Gabriel looked at the snake, writing on the floor, headless and dying. The door of the coach was open.
"From Cthulhu… " He said. "Must have gotten into the coach when we were watching MacLean. You were lucky you didn’t get…"
Gabriel’s voice trailed off as he looked at Jet’s wrist, where there were two puncture marks. Gabriel sprung into action pulling Scalpel from it’s sheath… He held the wound up to the light and stopped.
"Fucking hell Gabriel, if you’re too fucking squeamish I’ll do it…" Eden said reaching for the knife.
"No!" Gabriel said "The bite is too close to the arteries in the wrist. If I cut the wound to suck out the poison he’ll bleed out. We need to get him to the town."
"It’s two hours away." Said Jet, his brow already covered in sweat. "I’m not going to make it."
"Jet, shut up, you’ll be fine." Eden said as her voice cracked. "You’ll be fine."
Jet looked up at Gabriel and smiled, he nodded to tell Gabriel he knew the truth. Gabriel choked back the emotion he was feeling and cleared his throat.
"Quick? Or let it happen?" Gabriel asked.
"Quick, man – I don’t want to feel this burn." Jet replied as he sunk back against a nearby rock. Eden’s eyes widened in horror as she realized what the conversation was aluding to.
"No! Fucking no! This is not happening." She shouted, trying to get between them.
"Edie…" Said Jet. "I’m dying. And… I don’t want to suffer."
"You can’t go… We need you." She said, her eyes filling with tears. "I need you."
Gabriel stepped back, giving them a moment. He took deep breaths as she wrapped her arms around Jet’s neck. His strength was already fading and his arm was starting to swell rapidly. His breathing was becoming a pant. Eden pulled away and turned back to Gabriel, she fixed her eyes on his.
"Make it painless. Or I’ll make sure you feel it too." She said. Gabriel knew she was already grieving. He knew she never meant it. He knew that she would expect him to do a professional job.
Gabriel stepped forward and knelt at Jet’s side.
"Thank you – for accepting me." Said Gabriel through a haze of emotion. "I know given everything we’ve been through that would have been hard to do."
"I didn’t do it for you... I did it for her." Said Jet. Even in these final moments, he was still holding on to everything that had happened between them. And then Jet reached up and pulled Gabriel’s ear towards his mouth. "I couldn’t be happier that I did."
Gabriel pulled away and looked down at The Wildcard whose face was wracked with agony. Gabriel nodded.
"I’ll look after them all… I swear." Gabriel said. Jet smiled.
"Especially her… Make good choices." Jet added with a hint of finality.
Gabriel lifted Scalpel and pressed it into the muscles between the ribs in Jet’s chest. As the blade pierced Jet’s heart, Gabriel felt a single tear drip down his cheek.
"Good night my friend." He said, as he twisted the knife, and the light faded from Jet’s eyes.
My circuits slow
I'm not scared anymore
I see the faces of my brothers that have fallen before
I'm not scared anymore
I see the faces of my brothers that have fallen before
The burial was hasty but respectful. Gabriel and Eden had dug the hole together and left him inside. Gabriel had collected his things and kept them to one side to return to Sherry back home. Eden had placed a picture of Jet’s wife in the grave before the covered him up. It had taken hours despite their attempts at speed, and when Gabriel hitched Jet’s horse beside his own to the front of the carriage, it was for speed and nothing else.
The arrived in Salt Lake City after an hour and thirty minutes – Jet would have been dead for a half hour if they’d tried to get him there. They hadn’t spoken, their journey having been more about speed than comfort. As they pulled their horses to a canter just outside Salt Lake, Gabriel pulled the coach to Eden’s side.
"Are you alright?" He asked.
"Do I look alright?" She snapped. Gabriel scratched underneath his eye with a dirty finger nail. "I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap."
"I understand." He said, his eyes focused on the road into the city. "He was your best friend."
"He was family." She said, before putting her heels into her lathering horse and riding off into the distance.
They didn’t speak again until the reached the Courthouse – it had been a long and tiring few days. Gabriel had his mind set on a hot meal, a cold drink and a comfortable bed. He had dreamed of those three things above and beyond the fifty-thousand-dollar reward that he was about to collect a share of. He’d already set his mind on his plans to give Jet’s share to Sherry, and he knew Eden would agree.
As they stopped outside the courthouse, something felt wrong. A man stood in a white suit outside of the Courthouse and between them stood a line of law makers.
"This is a lot of lawmen to collect five dead men…" Said Eden, her eyes moving down the line until she turned her face to Gabriel.
"Let me handle this, probably a misunderstanding." Gabriel said climbing off his horse.
"Gentlemen, you can relax – the GC Gang have been brought to justice – dead, not alive." Said Gabriel with a smile and his hands in the air.
"Do I have the pleasure of addressing “The Court”?" Asked the man in the white suit.
"Correct." Said Gabriel flashing a look at Eden before speaking again. "Alas, one of our number was gravely bitten by a Rattlesnake about two hours outside your fine city. But myself and my partner are here to collect the bounty for the five individuals in the back of our coach. Please allow me to introduce myself…"
The man in white stepped forward between the line of men that stood between them and stepped into the square.
"You, sir, may collect any bounty due." Said the man in white. "But she, shall not."
Gabriel looked at Eden whose brow furrowed.
"I’m not sure I understand what you mean – I assume you’re the Marshall." Said Gabriel.
"You would be right, sir." He said with a smile. "But it’s quite clear – you know as well as I do, that the woman that stands by your side is The Black Widow Eden Morgan – she is wanted for dozens of murders. You know this, because you hunted her yourself."
"That’s correct – and then I paid off the debt and bought her freedom. In exchange I performed ten thousand dollars worth of bounties without payment. It was agreed with Judge Warren…"
" Warren P Matthison, yes, yes, yes… But unfortunately, the eminent Judge Matthison was found dead in his home this past winter. As such, it was the duty of the courts go over his decisions to ensure that they were made for the right reason – and it was decided that Ms. Morgan’s bounty would be reset – a thousand dollars alive, one hundred dollars dead. There are a lot of people that want to see her rot in a cell." Said the Marshall with a laugh
"This can’t be…. No, I need to speak to a judge." Said Gabriel.
"Speak to who you like come Monday morning, but this is a Saturday – no court’s in session today – only jail."
"You think you’re taking me to jail, you’ve got another thing coming." Said Eden, pulling the revolver out of her holster.
"Woah!" Said Gabriel, stepping in front of her. "Eden, please… Let me handle this,"
"There’s nothing to handle sir. Except that, given you were cheated out of ten thousand dollars by the former judge, we’ll up the bounty. Seeing as though she’s alive, we’ll add ten thousand dollars to that bounty you’re here to collect. You just need to make sure she makes it to jail alive and no-one else is dead."
Gabriel turned his head slowly to face Eden, the tears building in her eyes again.
"What is your name, sir?" Gabriel asked. "Who is it who asks me to turn my back on my best friend?"
"My name is Glendale Belfort – me and my friends own this town." He said with a smirk.
Gabriel paused, his head turning slowly to face Marshall Belfort and his face spread into a wide grin.
"I’ll take your bounty, Marshall." He said as he turned his head to face Eden. He stepped towards her and wrapped his hands around her and pulled her into a hug.
"I’ll get you out." He whispered.
"You know there’s no way I’m getting out of this town, right?" She said, as she returned his hug.
"I won’t let this happen." He said with determination.
"Gabriel. Take the money, go and share it with Sherry and get as far away from this fucking City as you can." Eden said.
"I can’t leave you behind." He said.
"Man up, Doctor… Make good choices." She added. He looked into her eyes as he heard that little gasp for the second time this week. Yet the look on Eden Morgan’s face was that of a happy acceptance. Gabriel pulled the knife away from her body and saw her clothing begin to spread crimson.
"Good night, my friend." He whispered as he lowered her to the ground.
"Was that worth ten thousand dollars, Doctor?" Asked Belfort with a hint of anger in his voice.
"Every fucking penny." Said Gabriel. Looking down at Eden as the life faded from her eyes.
My circuits slow
I'm not scared anymore
I join the ranks of my brothers that have fallen before
I'm not scared anymore
I join the ranks of my brothers that have fallen before
The following morning, after a hot meal, a cold drink and a comfortable bed, Gabriel Baal rode his horse and coach away from Salt Lake City with his fifty thousand dollars . He didn’t travel far, just to a nearby hill. He stopped, and climbed atop the coach upon which he’d travelled so far.
And then… Many things happened all at once. Glendale Belfort met his friends, Harry Omerod, Rylan Mercy and Icarus in his office at the Courthouse. They talked about the death of The Black Widow and the end of the GC Gang. They talked candidly about the requirement to remove The Doctor and what remained of The Court from existence.
At the same time an older man, in his fifties, whispered in the ear of five local ruffians and handed twenty dollars to each. Each of them ran to take their place – four of them took their place at each of the corners of the Courthouse. The fifth slipped inside. He moved like a shadow, finding himself outside the office of the US Marshall. He slid a small envelope underneath the door before turning and making his way back to the outside world.
Outside, the four remaining men waiting for the signal as their fellow reached the outer doors – each of them began to strike their flints until a spark ignited.
Inside his office, Belfort laughed and mocked as he slipped his letter opener beneath the flap. He broke the seal and pulled out the decoratively written piece of writing paper, folded in half. He opened up the letter to reveal three words.
Face The Court
And the picture of an owl. Belfort took a moment for the realisation to hit, bit it was too late.
Atop the hill, Gabriel watched as the dynamite ripped through the courthouse. He took a deep breath and looked down at his prize and let himself smile. And then he lifted his flask to his lips and drank to his fallen friends.
"Good night my friends -" Gabriel said with a sad smile. "It has been an honour..."
You're too quick on the draw...
Burn this town - there is no law
What they say's true -
Death does wear blue
He can't fall...
Burn this town - there is no law
What they say's true -
Death does wear blue
He can't fall...
2013, '18, '23 
2013 
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