Dokis, whiskey, and gun powder Part 3

	Anon was standing in the middle of the street. All the towns people gathered, as Anon and the young man squared up.

"If you turn yourself in, it would be easier, young man. Hell, if you do I'll even talk to them about reducing your sentence. I might get them to keep you from the gallows. We don't ha-"

"Shut UP! I'm not going to no cage, and I won't see the end of no rope. This ends with either me or you walking away."

This bounty was merely a boy. He couldn't have been older than fifteen. The boy was wanted for a string of robberies across the state. The boy had just gotten caught up with the wrong crowd and was impressionable. And here he was, ready to throw his youth away for it all.

The clock was one minute away from noon.

"Last chance, turn yourself in."

The boy's hand still hovered over his gun.

Two shots rang out through the chime of the church bell.

Anon felt a sharp pain in his arm. He flinched and refocused on where the boy had once stood. Anon had managed to hit him right in the teeth. The boys mother ran out to him, wailing over her now lost son. Anon simply walked over and collected his bounty from the sobbing woman's arms. He threw the body behind his saddle and hopped on. He rode out of town, still hearing the screams of the boys mother well into the mountains.

***

Anon awoke on the banks of the river. His head was pounding and his muscles screamed with strain. He pulled himself to a tree and propped himself up to sit. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the remains of what was his last cigarette.

"Just my luck." He said, wiping his hand on the grass, "I hope they got Sayori pulled in."

He looked around the forest. The sky was red and orange, indicating the setting of the sun.

"Well, I'm not gonna find them sitting here. Better get moving." He grumbled, grabbing a stick and pulling himself up. He began limping up river towards where he last saw the girls. He took inventory of his supplies, or lack there of. He still had his knife, His revolver had managed to stay in the holster, and three bullets were left in the spots on his belt.

"The rest must have worked themselves out. So, nine shots."

It was then Anon realized that he had his 1886 in the wagon.

"Well, at least it ain't lost. Maybe the girls can get some use out of it."

Anon was concerned about his condition. If the natives had found him he would be vulnerable, that is, if they were wanting to do him harm. Nine shots wouldn't exactly be enough to defend him and gather food if the situation got dire enough. But, what if the natives weren't concerned with him, but the girls instead? They were tough, but were they tough enough to defend themselves against a war party? Anon picked up the pace the best he could.

"I better hurry. If the injuns are after them then the girls might not make it. Or, I might diffuse the situation if they're chief Dakotah's men. Either way, I can't keep them waiting."

heard the wolves begin their nightly calls, and the hooting of the owls. Luckily he had a full moon to give him light. He wondered how far the falls had carried him. He wondered if the girls kept going or if they were waiting for him. It didn't matter, he just knew he had to make it back to them.

***

Monika had manage to get Sayori pulled in. When Sayori landed on the shore, she lay on her back and gasped for the air she was starved for. Yuri rushed over to her to make sure was okay.

"Slow breaths, Sayori. You're okay now, we have you." She said as she knelt down and grabbed Sayori's hand.

"What....about.....Anon...." She croaked out in between breaths. Yuri looked up at Monika. They shared a look of despair.

"He....let go of the rope so we could pull you in. He said he would regroup with us when he grabbed the shore further down. He hasn't made it back yet."

Natsuki hadn't left the seat of the Wagon. She sat there covering her eyes with her hand, trying poorly to mask her tears.

Sayori turned to vomit up some of the river water she had ingested. Yuri began to rub her back as Sayori burped and heaved.

Monika knelt beside the two girls, "Sayori, I don't think he made it to the shore.... Anon went over-"

Sayori jumped up and screamed, "NO! You're wrong! He made it to shore, I know it! We have to go find him!" She began to stumble in the direction of the rivers flow. Yuri grabbed her, and held her close, "Sayori...Anon is....gone. There's nothing we can do now."

Sayuri turned and began lightly beating Yuri in the chest, "No! Not Yet! He can't be gone! We had other stuff to see. He needed to help us with this."

Monika turned to hide the tears flowing from her eyes. Was Anon really gone?

"Maybe... we can walk the shore and see. He may have passed out on the shore."

Yuri began to sob as well, "Anon said it himself, 'This land is unfortunately cruel to everyone. Those who deserve it, and those who don't.' He's....gone."

Sayori's wail was heard across the mountain.

****

	Anon had walked for about a half hour before he met with the very falls he had been thrown over.

"Well, Luckily it didn't drag me terribly far. Although, I'm sure the girls aren't waiting for me, so I have quite the distance to close."

Anon began to climb up the rocky wall. His muscles still burned with every movement, though considerably less than when he woke up.

Once he made it to the top, he looked around for any signs. He saw a lone set of footprints in the mud near the edge of the cliff. It made his heart sink.

"Poor girl," He thought, "She must have came looking for me. Now I feel like a right bastard for lyin' to her. Well, it'll all be worth it when I see them again."

He began to follow the trail of boot prints back to where they led. There, he should find the girls, or at least wagon tracks.

He caught a glimpse of someone out of the corner of his eye. It was a native. Anon had enough of it. he broke into a run despite the scream from his muscles not to.

"Alright you son of a bitch! Come here!"

The native was clearly startled, as it took him several seconds to react. He reached for a tomahawk and raised it.

Anon snapped his revolver up and fanned the hammer for two shots. The first one missed, the second one hit the handle of the hawk, breaking it in two. The native began to run.

Anon managed to catch him and tackled him to the ground. The native tried to fight as Anon rolled the savage on his back and sat on his chest.

"Alright, you're going to tell me exactly what I want to know."

"To hell with you, pale face."

Anon cocked his single action and stuck the barrel to the native's eye. It must have still been hot from the two shots since the man squirmed when it touched him.

"You will tell me or you'll see what it really means to be one with nature. Because if you don't, your brains will be food for the scavengers. Understand?"

The man nodded his head.

"Good. Are you part of the group that watched me and those girls near the river at the foot of the mountain?"

He nodded, "Yes."

"Why?"

"We were told to watch for pale faces."

"By who? Your chief?"

The man nodded again.

"Who is your chief?"

"He is Dakotah."

Anon pulled the gun away and slowly lowered the hammer.

"Do you know a man by Anon?"

"Yes, he a friend of the village and our people. He helped us in our time of need."

"Okay, well, I'm Anon."

He got off of the man and helped him to his feet.

"Sorry about that,uh..."

"Laughing Coyote."

"Right, sorry about that. So, why is he watching for white men?"

"We got word of the commotion in town not too far away from here. If any lawbreakers come through here, we do our best to keep them at bay and away from the village."

"Yeah, it was a bunch of drunks who decided to escalate things. I believe the sheriff took care of it."

"Well, now we know that it's you, we can stop and go back to the village."

"Hey, could you do me a favor, Laughing Coyote?"

"Of course, friend."

"You haven't seen the girls I was travelin' with, have you?"

"Actually, I can take you to them. It's a bit of a travel, but they set up camp a little after sundown. I had to split from my party. We saw you go over the falls. I had to confirm you had died."

Anon couldn't help but laugh, "Yeah, it's amazing I weren't killed."

"It'll mean the world to the girls, friend. Especially the one that fell in the river."

"So they did get her out? good...good."

"They all think they have lost you. The girl from the river wailed in such pain, friend. I would be surprised if the next village didn't hear it."

Anon's heart sank at the thought.

"Can you take me to them?"

"Of course, follow me, we have quite the travel ahead of us."

****

The had managed to calm Sayori down. The followed her to the edge of the falls, where she yelled for hours on end for Anon.

Monika walked up behind her and wrapped her arms around her chest, "I'm sorry, but we have to go. He's gone."

Sayori wordlessly turned around and began walking to the wagon. Yuri had dismounted her horse and began walking towards them. She wrapped her arms around Sayori, "Anon told me that when we feel sad in this world, it makes those waiting for us in the next feel sorrow. I know you don't want to make Anon sad, right?"

Sayori began to sob, "But if it weren't for me, he would still be here."

Yuri began to stroke her hair, "That's not true. And I know that he would have jumped in ten times to save you if he had to. But, it's not your fault, any one of us could have fallen in that river."

They made their way back to the wagon. Natsuki had been sitting their awaiting there return. She began to wipe her nose when she noticed the other girls approaching.

"I'll drive, Sayori. You just sit next to me and keep me company."

She looked down at the ground, "Actually, I would like to ride with Sally, if that's okay with everyone."

The other three girls looked at each other and nodded in unison, "If that's what you want, Sayori."

She walked over to Sally, "I'm sorry, Sally. Anon is gone. Would you be so kind as to ride with me?"

She pet her muzzle, and Sally began to nuzzle Sayori. She hopped up and pet the back of her head, "You really are a beautiful horse."

They set off on the trail. Yuri took the rear, Monika took the front, and Sayori rode along side the cart.

"Well, we won't make it to the cabin Anon talked about, so we'll be sleeping outside again tonight."

Despite no one wanting that, no one objected. The worse that could have happened on this trip did. Everything else seemed trivial at that point.

Yuri noticed they were being tailed. She spurred her horse to catch Monika.

"We're being followed by the natives again."

Monika looked concerned, "How many?"

"I see three, one less than we've been seeing."

"They may have sent one to find Anon. Just stay alert and whistle if you need anything. Be sure to let Natsuki know and to be on her guard."

"And Sayori?"

"Only if you think she can handle it."

Yuri nodded, dropping back to the wagon.

As they traveled Yuri noticed the fourth one show up after a while. Yuri made sure to mention it to the others.

Soon, the sun had set, and they set up camp. Natsuki grabbed the cooking supplies from the wagon, as well as some of the deer meat from yesterday. She began to tear up as she seared the meat over the fire. Monika began preparing the bed rolls for everyone.

"I'm gonna pull watch tonight, Monika" Yuri said, putting her hands near the fire. The cold had begun to set in from the coming storm.

"Yuri, you pulled watch last night. This isn't healthy, you need your sleep."

"I'll be fine, Monika. I slept enough last night."

Monika nodded, "Okay Yuri. If it's what you want."

Natsuki wordlessly passed around the deer meat to the other girls. They ate in silence.

The silence was broken by to very faint gun shots.

"What was that?" Yuri snapped to attention, leveling her rifle in the direction of the noise.

"It could be a hunter. Yuri, make sure you keep your eyes peeled. We'll wait and see if there are any more shots." Monika said, putting her hand on her gun.

Yuri finally relaxed after twenty minutes of silence.

Soon after, the girls began to turn in one by one. Natsuki was the first to fall asleep. Sayori cuddled next to Monika.

"I'm sorry, Monika. I lost our new friend."

"Shh, it's okay. You didn't lose anything. Just relax and go to sleep. Things will be better in the morning, I promise."

She brushed Sayori's hair, hoping to soothe her to sleep.

Eventually, Monika and Sayori had fallen asleep as well.

Yuri had tried to keep her mind clear for the night watch. It was hard to not look towards the sky.

She looked up at the sky, lit up by the stars. She couldn't help but tear up.

"I know you said not to weep for those we lose, Anon. But, I can't help it. It hurts us all to lose you, even in this short time we spent together."

She covered her eyes with her hand.

***

Anon and Laughing Coyote had been traveling for about two hours. They had discussed the tribe since Anon had last seen them. He always meant to come see them, but never made the time. Anon couldn't help but feel a little bad for that.

"We began to think the one called Anon had left this world. Chief Dakotah will be thrilled to hear you are still here."

"Give him my apologies. I never meant to take this long to visit him."

"No worries, friend. Dakotah will understand."

Laughing Coyote stopped, and gave a noise like a bird cooing. Three natives rose from the brush, one had his bow drawn and pointed at Anon.

"What's with this joker, Laughing Coyote?"

Laughing Coyote began frantically explaining that Anon was a friend, and was no threat. The bow was lowered.

"Good, I really didn't want to shoot him. Hey, can you explain that the girls are with me as well. They mean no threat, they're just trying to make a delivery. We're just passing through."

Laughing Coyote gave his spiel. He turned to Anon, "I've dismissed them back to the village. They won't be bothering you anymore. Come, let me take you to the girls."

It was about another ten minutes before Anon saw a fire in the distance.

"I take it that's them?"

Laughing Coyote nodded, "Yes, it looks like all but one of them is asleep. I think they may be keeping watch."

"Well, Laughing Coyote, this is where we part for now. I appreciate all you've done for me. And sorry about the business at the falls."

He shrugged, "No apologies needed, friend. I can see why you would react that way. Please, if you are anywhere near the village, please visit us. I'm sure Chief Dakotah would love to see you agaim."

Anon nodded, "Tell him I plan on seeing him soon. Take care of yourself."

"You too, please stay safe from the storm coming."

Laughing Coyote ran off towards his village, as Anon began walking towards the fire. As he approached, he heard Yuri talking, "I know you said not to weep for those we lose, Anon. But, I can't help it. It hurts us all to lose you, even in this short time we spent together."

Anon snuck up behind her. She was so engrossed in her thought she didn't even notice him. He sat next to her on the log.

Yuri whipped her Bowie knife out and grabbed Anon's shoulder to turn him towards her. She stopped mere inches from his chest.

"Hey Yuri, would you happen to have a cigarette?"

She stood there, speechless at the ghost in her sight. After a couple of seconds, she snapped out of it, "Anon!"

She wrapped her arms around him so tight it was hard for him to breath. Her yelled startled the other girls. Monika hopped up, drawing her gun. Natsuki sat straight up, trying to figure out what was going on. Sayori had woke up but hadn't moved much.

"Yuri!? Whats wrong?" Monika shouted, as her eyes tried to adjust from springing out of a sound sleep.

She focused on the two people in front of her. She couldn't believe her eyes. She immediately knelt down and began to shake Sayori, "Wake up! It's Anon! He's okay, Sayori!"

Sayori rubbed the sleep from her eyes. she looked over at Yuri and Anon embracing. Sayori immediately began to cry as she ran to him, "Anon! Is it really you? Am I dreaming?"

Monika and Natsuki joined in on the group hug.

"How did you make it, Anon?" Monika began to sob, trying her best to control herself.

Natsuki began to cry as well, "Y-You big dummy! We thought we lost you at the falls. What the hell is the matter with you?"

"I'll tell you all about it. But first, I'm really hungry and could use a smoke."

***

They all slept in late, after being regaled by Anon's story. They stayed up late feeding Anon the remainder of the deer and hangnign on to every word he spoke.

They were awoken by the falling snow. It was the beginning of the storm. Slowly, the all woke up and began getting the winter clothing from their trunk. Anon grabbed his from pack.

"Okay, now that the snow is falling we need to watch our footing, our horses, and the wagon. It's only gonna get worse from here on out!" Monika said, handing the girls their clothing.

Anon began to pet Sally, "Hey Sayori, I heard you took care of Sally while I was away."

Sayori gave him a wide grin, "Yeah, she really is a sweetheart."

"Well, I know Sally appreciates it, and i definitely appreciate it. I wanted to ask, would you wanna ride her again? I'm still a little sore from the falls and-"

"Of course, Anon! I actually hardly get to ride, I'm always stuck on wagon duty. I'd love to take Sally for the day."

"Well, I think we should check with Monika before we get too excited."

"It's no problem, Anon. I was actually going to suggest it. I figured you were in no condition to ride anyways."

Sayori began to jump with joy. Monika gave them a smile, "Besides, it clearly means a lot to Sayori to ride."

They started off on the trail towards the cabin.

Monika began, "Despite the incident at the falls, we're still a day ahead of schedule. When we get to the cabin, we'll use that day to wait the worst of the storm. Once the front passes, we should be good to travel."

As they ascended the mountain, the snow flakes began to get bigger and bigger. Natsuki began to shiver, even with her winter coat on.

Anon reached behind him and grabbed his blanket, "Here, hon. This should help keep you warm."

Natsuki began to blush, "Thank you, Anon."

She was quiet for a few minutes before continuing her though, "You know Anon, we were all worried that we lost you at those falls. Even though you jumped in to save Sayori, we didn't want to lose either of you. I'm glad you did though, and I'm glad you're okay. We really didn't want to go on without you."

Anon was taken back by this. This was not the normal Natsuki. She was usually so reserved and had a hard outer shell. These girls were really hit hard by the thought of losing him. It was a strange feeling to Anon. He had never really had anywhere to call his own. That house back in town was the closest thing he had, and even then it was so big and empty. He definitely hadn't had the feeling of a family. Not since the incident years back.

"I'm sorry to worry y'all. It was never my intention to do so. I just didn't want her to go over those falls."

Natsuki nodded, "I know, I just wish it could have ended with no one going over."

Anon began to rub her back, "Well, we both made it out of that river, and that's what's important."

Natsuki began to sob, "Just don't scare me like that again, okay?"

Anon rolled himself a cigarette and lit it, "Okay, Natsuki. I'm sorry for scaring you."

Monika had puled back to speak with Anon.

"So, travelers are allowed to just use this cabin?"

"Well, you're supposed to leave something for the next group that comes through. I got us covered on that. I have two bottles of whiskey. One's for us and one's for the cabin"

Monika gave him a smirk, "Well, I look forward to the night of drinking. Hell, maybe we can get Yuri to let loose for once."

Anon chuckled, "Well, I wouldn't get yer hopes up."

Monika giggled, "So, how much longer until we hit the cabin?"

"Well, if we skip lunch, 2 hours. I'd say with the weather only getting worse that would be our best bet. Besides, I could go out and get us some dinner if there's nothing in the cabin for us."

Monika nodded and smiled, "Okay, I'll let the others know." She dropped back to meet up with Yuri.

Anon took a drag of his cigarette and looked at the sky. The sun was beginning to be blotted out by the falling snow.

****

	They arrived at the cabin in a clearing. The snow was untouched, showing that no one had been there. The wind was now howling and the snow was moving almost horizontally.

"Alright, you girls get inside. Anon and I are gonna get the horses to the stable." Monika said as we all met up.

Yuri and Sayori brought their horses to Monika. Natsuki jumped down from the wagon and hurried inside. Monika lead the horses as Anon lead the cart. Even though it was only about five hundred yards away, it felt like miles in the cold.

Anon and Monika returned to the cabin after a half hour of getting the horses stabled. The other girls had been busy while they were gone. Yuri had a roaring fire going, Sayori had been gathering something for dinner, and Natsuki was cleaning up the place from the last people who used it. Judging from the dust, it had been quite some time since someone had been here.

Anon sat one of the whiskey bottles on the shelf. He grabbed 5 glasses and poured them all a shot, "Come have a drink, ladies."

They all came and grabbed a glass, even Yuri. Anon and Monika shared a surprised look.

"After what you put us through Anon, I need this."

They all had a laugh.

"I'm never gonna hear the end of it, am I?"

"Probably not." Monika answered, throwing her shot back.

Sayori had found some vegetable to make a stew with. It was a shame the meat left behind had gone bad. Anon figured it might be too dangerous to go out and find deer in this weather anyways. They would just have to make due.

Soon, they were all eating and drinking. They were swapping travel stories. Monika was telling the tale of their first delivery as a group. She went on about Sayori, Natsuki, and Monika had gotten Yuri drunk and she had inadvertently caused a bar fight. Apparelty she spilled a guy drink and blamed it on another man. Yuri just sat there, covering her blushing face with a tuft of her hair.

Nastuki shared the time Sayori forgot to properly hitch the horses to the wagon before whipping them, Causing the girls to have to spend an hour trying to wrangle them bag. Sayori pushed her fingers together in embarrassment, "I thought I had it right." she said, blushing.

Monika shared the story of how Natsuki forgot her guns at home during a delivery through untamed territory.

"How do you forget your guns?! It's a tool for our job!"

Nastuki clenched her fist, "Oh, you've never forgotten anything? What about that time we didn't get paid because you forgot our copy of the contract? Where did you leave it anyways?"

Monika blushed, "I didn't forget it, I lost it on the trip."

Anon heard some noise outside of the cabin. It sounded like people. He was a little disappointed, as he was looking to some quality time with the girls. Who knows, they may only be here for a few hours.

Five men poured into the cabin. They looked familiar to Anon, but from where? He squinted his eyes at the men. He didn't need to remember, as one of the men reminded him.

"That's the som' bitch that killed the boss!"

The sound of guns being drawn and hammers being cocked filled the cabin.

The leader of this group stepped forward, "We're settlin' this once and for all. Not just you," He pointed his finger at Anon, "But all of you. We're going outside for a duel. Let's go."

Anon re-holstered his his weapon and looked at the girls. They all gave him a worried glare. They probably had little experience in a duel. It doesn't help that they had been drinking. When the men left, he motioned his head to tell the girls follow him out the door.

Due to the storm, the sun seemed to have sat sooner than normal. There was very little light from the moon, as it was being blotted out by the snow and clouds. The wind was still howling and the snowflakes were still at their horizontal pattern. All of them had set their paces and squared up.

One of the men pointed to a tree, "See that hawk? When it cries, that's when we draw!"

"Shit," Anon thought, "The time to draw isn't set. The girls will be at a disadvantage."

He had taken the center. To his left stood Monika and to his right stood Sayori. Next to Monika was Natsuki, and on the other far end stood Yuri. Yuri looked pretty calm, all things considered. Natsuki was shaking, both from the cold and the fear. Monika was pretty still except for her lip, which was trembling.

"Anon, I'm scared." Sayori said, giving him a look of Intense fear, "We've never had to duel before."

He gave her a reassuring pat on the shoulder, "Don't worry about it. I'm right here, and I'm gonna make sure none of you get hurt, okay?"

Sayori gave him a nod, trying to be as positive as possible.

Anon threw his coat off, "Just block out all other noises. The wind, the snow, everything. Just wait for the hawk to screech. When it does, don't hesitate. Grab your gun and let your hand do it's job. Squeeze the trigger and don't stop. okay?"

She gave him another hesitant nod.

Anon stood there for what felt like forever. Anon cut all sound out. The was no more wind. There was no more snow falling. There was nothing.

Suddenly, the hawk cried out, and the dead air was filled with a hail of gunfire.



END PART 3