Home Again

Wild West

The blimp docked Wild West Island, and the first thing that hit me were the surroundings. We were in the desert in probably the 1800s, hence the wooden buildings, cacti and people dressed like cowboys. The sun beamed down on us, shining on the 'Dusty Gulch' sign. Fierce Fox and I raced across the hot sand, passing various buildings in the dusty (like the name) country town.

"C'mon Elmer, settle, settle!" a cowboy wearing a blue attire exasperated to a horse, in front of a little barn. I glanced at Fierce Fox.

"That's our ride," I explained. "Not really any cars on the island- yet they have trains." Fierce Fox gave me a look. "Anyway, talk to that cowboy, and say you can tame Elmer. Then, just keep steady on the horse, and you'll win." Fierce Fox nodded, and climbed aboard the pale brown horse's broad back. I watched her swing on Elmer, like she was at a rodeo. He has a thick, brown mane and shiny black hooves, which clopped like mad as he swung back and forth. A little while later, Fierce Fox bet him.

"I'll be darned- you did it!" the cowboy cried. "That's some impressive riding, cowpoke. He's all yours." And so that's how we adopted Elmer. Unfortunately there was only one saddle on the horse, and I couldn't walk everywhere.

"Uh..." I faced the cowboy. "Are there... Anymore horses I can borrow?"

"There's one in the ranch, but I ain't givin' away horses." the cowboy answered.

"I'm the prophesied hero," I replied, putting my title to use. "I need a horse for... hero stuff." Sigh.

The cowboy narrowed his eyes. "I can see that," he snorted. "That El Mustachio and his gang are after you. At least that's what the rumors are."

"Honestly I'm not surprised," I grumbled. I was getting tired of all these villains. "Look... can I borrow that extra horse?" An idea formed in my head. "I'll give you something valuable that you'll never find on this island. Trust me."

"Hmm," the cowboy said inquisitively. "What is it?"

"A colour camera. You take a picture, and it's in colour." I replied. That got the cowboy's attention.

"Alright," he said. "You can have the horse, but I'll be wanting that camera. And don't forget to bring my horse back. I'll be callin' the marshal if you don't."

"Got it." I promised, as the cowboy led me to my horse. I decided to name the caramel-coloured horse Bronze. She has shiny black hooves; chocolate-brown mane; a dab of white under her eyes. She's surprisingly tame and easy to ride, though I've never ridden a horse in my entire life. Yet again, it was only after I got used to it. I was a bit... all over the place at first. I think I could've starred on America's Funniest Home Videos.

Anyway, we took a letter from a lady with a tired horse, and trotted across the desert to a town called Diamond Plains. The Diamond Plains is a little town, but definitely larger and more developed than Dusty Gulch: broader buildings and structures. We headed into the saloon, me thanking that Mom wasn't watching or she would've flipped.

I could smell alcohol as soon as I entered, and see a wooden floor and purple wallpaper. Cowboys hang out there; they appeared to be having a good time. On the right side of the room, some cowboys were trying to spit disgusting gum into a vase. I wouldn't exactly call it my idea of fun. Thank goodness I didn't get to play it- Fierce Fox did. Besides, I'd had enough of aiming things, thanks to numerous games of darts from Cryptids.

"Not bad, young'n, not bad," one of the cowboys said to Fierce Fox once she won. "There's your Marshal Taylor, snoring like a steam train." We saw an elder cowboy 'snoring like a steam train' at a table, his golden star badge on his hat shimmering. The two of us headed over to him; I jabbed his shoulder.