As if on cue, a bullet whizzes past Clyde's head. Everyone ducks. More castor gunfire as a man holding a bloody hand to his throat reels out the door of the nearby saloon, his gun firing wildly like a sputtering engine before he pitches face onto the sidewalk, dead. Immediately two more man appears: a staggering drunk with a bullet hole in his shoulder: and Ikee Katchin, a leathery plainsman with his castor gun at the ready. A crowd forms as the drunk raises his pistol, bellowing. "You son of a bitch!"
"That is right, keep coming, keep coming..." Ikee said as Fred Luo turns to Clyde. "Very cosmopolitan."
"I know him. That is Ikee Katchin." Gene said.
Suddenly a third man, Shimi, long-haired, hawk-nosed, appears, pistol at the ready, keeping bystanders at bay. "Easy, gentlemen. Private affair..." Shimi said as he spots Gene. "Gene! Fred! Hey!"
"Shimi..."
"Yeah, good. Right about there."
"You bastard!" The drunk now has raised his gun to where it is almost level and Shimi fires. The drunk drops in a heap. Shimi spots Gene. "Hello, Gene! Hi Fred!"
"What was that all about?" Gene asked.
"Drunks. Crawfished a bet, called him a cheater. I saw the whole thing." Shimi answered as Fred turns to Clyde.
"Sheriff, may I present a pair of fellow sophisticates, Shimi and Ikee Katchin? Watch your ear, Shimi." Fred Luo points to his bloody ear. Shimi touches it, sees the blood, gives a silent start. Just then Gilliam arrives, looking weary, facing Ikee and Shimi. "I am afraid I will have to have those castor guns."
"Fair fight. We were legal." Shimi said.
"Sorry, boys. I got to take you before Judge Nubaso Kunono." Gilliam said.
"Well law and order every time, that is us." Ikee said as they hand over their guns while James Hawking looks at the 2 dead men lying in the street, shaking his head. "What kind of town is this?"
"Nice scenery." Shimi said. They look and see a stagecoach stops in the street. Valeria Marcus looks out the window, her little white cat under her chin. She and "Wyatt" Gene Starwind spot each other instantly, both impressed at each other. "That must be the theatrical troupe. There is a show tonight at Sentinel III Hall." Clyde said.
"Hey, Gene, are you going to the show? Maybe we will see you there." Ikee turns to Gilliam. "Will we not?"
"Yes, probably." Gilliam said as he leads them off to jail. Gene and Valeria hold each other's gaze as the coach drives on. Fred Luo smiles.
"Well, an enchanted moment."
Swanzo and Mikey watch as the actors exit the coach for the hotel. Valeria Marcus turns to the first pretty actress. "Interesting little scene. I wonder who that tall man with the scar was."
"Typical frontier type. Long and slim. And those red eyes. Like a wild coyote. You see quite a few of his type out here." The actress said.
"Oh, I want one." Valeria said.
The actors enter, going to the desk while Valeria looks for a place to sit. A slim, well-dressed easterner with a newspaper sits nearby, ignoring her. Seeing this from outside, Mikey instantly barges into the lobby, hoists the easterner out of his chair, and hurls him bodily out into the street. Valeria nods her surprised thanks. Mikey tips his hat shyly, exits as the first actress returns her key as they exchange looks.
A full house, pandemonium. Marx, Terry, Leo and their Kei Pirate entourage from a block in the center rows while Tobigiera, Clyde's bespectacled, slightly effeminate little Deputy makes his timid way down the aisle, looking for a seat midst the off fist-fight and yelling match. Two young cowboys, Hanmio and Yase, call out to him: "Hey, sissy boy!"
"Shut up, Hanmio. Sit here, Tobigiera." Marx beckons. Happy as a lark, Tobigiera takes the seat next to him. Up above, the Starwind group sit in a box, the women are thrilled. "This is so much fun! We have not been to a show since forever." Hilda said.
"I hope they are good." Melfina said.
"Lady, they better be good." Hitoriga shouted from below. "Doc" Fred Luo enters with Twilight Suzuka on his arm. The women exchange uneasy nods. "Suzuka, you know the Starwinds." Fred said as they sit and Gilliam enters with Mayor Horis and his wife. "Gene, this is Mayor Horis and his wife."
"Your reputation precedes you. I wonder-"
"Not a prayer. Nice meeting you." Gene said. While the orchestra tunes up and the crowd's excitement rises. Gilliam sits next to Gene, pointing out the Kei Pirates and giving a thumbnail sketch of each one. "Well everybody is here except Old Man McDougal. Got the claw, Hanmio, Yase, Rob and Butch Kane, Harry McDougal is the youngest. Wild one. Then there is Unak. They all hate breeding, but he hates them special. Hitoriga, Unak. That is Clyde's little deputy Tobigiera. Follows the Kei Pirates around like a bitch. And the big boys: Marx, he is McDougal's nimrod, the one that looks like an actor, that is Ron McDougal. Best Gunman and oldest McDougal alive they say. He is kind of different. Ron is the only one he talks to. I mean they are all rough boys, but Ron... I do not know. I really do not." Gilliam said. The house lights dim. The audience hushes. A spotlight hits easel at the end of the stage: "Professor Hazanko and his ballet of gravity." Out in the audience, Yase groans. "Professor Hazanko? Oh hell, I seen him in Blue Heaven. He catches stuff." The curtain goes up. Professor Hazanko, a first rate juggler in a cloak steps out and starts tossing axes in the air. The audience starts cheering but the Professor's rictus-like smile never changes. Having seen enough, Unak stands up and shouts. "Hey professor! Catch this!" Unak raises his castor pistol and fires. An axe explodes in the Professor's hand. Screams and scattered laughter in the audience. The Professor Hazanko is frozen in utter shock, staring at the bullet graze on his hand and saying out loud: "They shot me! I do not believe it!" A chord of music and the curtain drops like stone. Applause...
The other actors hustle the Professor off the stage, appalled. The first actress turns to the handsome, slightly raffish classical tragedian. "My goodness, they are shooting at us!" The first actress said.
"The only thing we can do, dear--be good. In any event, at least we will not have to wait for our notices. Exciting is it not? Now this is theater!
More music and another card reads: "Selections from the Tragedian in Excelsis" The curtain rises and the Tragedian steps out, a blue velvet cloak wrapped resplendently about him like a toga. In the audience, Harry McDougal's mouth drops. "Prettiest man I ever saw." The Tragedian throws open his cloak, revealing his lithe form in doublet and tights. The whores in the gallery hoot and cheer. The Tragedian bows. "How come he is not wearing no pants?" Unak asked as Yase points to the whores. "That is how come."
"Ladies and gentlemen, the introduction from Romeo and Juliet. Two households, both alike in dignity in fair verona. Where we lay our sins from ancient grudge to new mutiny. where civil blood make civil hands unclean-" Another gunshot and a bullet spangs into the column next to the tragedian with a shower of plaster. Without missing a beat, the tragedian casually flicks a chunk off his shoulder and continues. "From forth, the fatal lines of these two foes. A pair of star crossed lovers take their life." In the audience Unak holsters his smoke castor pistol reflectively. "He has got nerve, I will say that. What do you think, Tobigiera?"
"Oh, he is wonderful!" Starry-eyed Tobigiera answers without thinking. "Uh-oh, looks like somebody is in love." Raw laughter from the other Kei Pirates. Tobigiera sinks in his seat. "Let him alone." Harry McDougal said. On stage the tragedian is in full cry, giving the local a slice of the ripest ham. "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers: For he today that sheds his blood with me, shall be my brother: be he never so vile. This day shall gentle his condition: and gentlemen in now a-bed shall think themselves accurs they were not here. And hold their manhood cheap while any speaks. That fought with us upon that day!" Wild applause and cheering. The tragedian bows with elaborate modesty. "That is great! That is our kind of stuff!" Harry McDougal said. The curtain falls. Another card: "The Devil's Bargain" and the orchestra whirls into "Rise of the Valkyries" by Richard Wagner, the rising curtain revealing a wild pained backdrop, all black and red, covered with weird, Beardsley-esque designs and images of death and damnation. A light comes up, revealing an ancient priest sitting alone with his books and documents. Then a hooded man dances across the stage, slender and lissome in paned black doublet and breeches and black hose, tempting the old man with images of wealth and youth in the form of a shimmering blone ballerina. The old priest succumbs, signing the hooded man's contract. The audience watches in rapt attention, especially the Kei Pirates. "He is going to sum up short on that one." Jukai said.
"You know what I would do? I would take the deal then crawfish and drill that old man in the ass. How about you, Marx? What would you do?" Harry said.
"I already did it." Marx answered. The hooded man makes a flourish. A flash-pad explosion transforms the old priest into a young pope. The ballerina flits by. The pope offers her gold. They dance, swirling about the stage in a mad waltz with the hooded man hovering behind them, mirroring their every move like a puppet master. Finally, having gotten all his gold, the ballerina drifts away leaving the young pope alone, lost in bitterness as he changes back into the old priest sitting with his books and documents. The hooded man appears over him, exultant and triumphant, ready to collect the debt as the curtain falls with a final crashing chord. Thunderous cheering and applause. The curtain rises again and the performers come out for bows, all except the hooded man. "Very instructive." Fred Luo said.
"But who was the hooded man?" Gene asked. Suddenly the hooded man bounds out, removing the hood. It is Valeria Marcus. "It is that woman from the coach!" Aisha said.
"Well I will be damned..." Gene muttered. Valeria spots Gene's box and smiles. Fred Luo raises an eyebrow. "You may indeed. If you get lucky."
After the show and theatergoers, including the Starwind group, stroll homeward arm-in-arm down Sentinel III, all looking up at the clear night sky above. At the Crystal Palace Gene stops, turning to James Hawking. "Coming to the Crystal Palace, Jim?"
"Not tonight! Tonight me and Jimmy are going to have some fun. Get moving, Jimmy boy." Hilda said as she laughs, shoving Jim Hawking down the street. "I better go with them, Melfina. Here is where I leave you." Gene said as he kisses Melfina. She grabs Gene's hand. "No, stay. Please stay with me."
"Dear, I got to start making money."
"Oh, all right."
"Well I guess I do not have to go right now. I guess I could stay a little while."
"No, no I do not want to keep you."
"No really, I can stay for a while."
"Just go. It is all right. Gene, really. Work well."
"All right, well, good night." Gene gives Melfina another kiss and heads for the Crystal Palace with Aisha Clan-Clan. Melfina walks on after the others, fishing through her bag for her bottle of laudanum...."
The Crystal Palace Saloon is pack. Track along the bar at floor level past a wild array of high-button shoes, patent leather pumps, and stack-heeled boots with jingling silver spurs. Track again at shoulder level past an equally wild array of slouch hats, pork-pies, derbys, and wide-brim sombreros. "Wyatt" Gene Starwind sits against the wall, dealing faro with "Doc" Fred Luo and Twilight Suzuka at his side, Aisha Clan-Clan on lookout while a sweaty overdressed high rolling pimp makes bets, gnashing his teeth and drumming his fingers in a fever of impatient greed: "All right, I am on fire! Black Eight, nine stinking spades. Let us go!" The high roller said as Gene deals the cards. "I am your man... You win again. Well played, sir. You are on fire."
"Told you, I am red hot, I am Blazing! Now, red eight. Ten stinking diamonds. Look out! Seven Thousand! Let us go!"
"Awful lot of money."
"I Cannot take the heat, get out of the kitchen."
"You are the doctor." Gene said as he deals the card. "Sad news, friend."
"Damn! All right, wait a minute..." The high rolling pimp lays a set of deeds out on the table as a break in the game. Gene studies the deeds as Aisha and Fred look on. Suzuka sits to one side, contentedly studying the deeds. "So now we are in the mining business. Turning into regular tycoons. I am going to call this one the Melfina Blaylock. Melfina will get a kick out of that, it is her maiden name." "And what a maiden, pure as the driven snow, I am sure." Fred said.
"Hey Fred! Come on now." Aisha said.
"Just his style, Aisha. Does not mean anything."
"So tell me, Gene. I am curious do you actually consider yourself a married man? Forsaking all others?"
"Well yes. Pretty much. I mean I was no angel when we met but people change Fred. I mean sooner or later you got to grow up."
"I see. And what would you do if "she" walked in here right now?"
"'She?'"
"You know damn well who I mean. That dusked-hued hooded lady."
"I do not know. Probably ignore her."
"Ignore her?"
"I would ignore her. People can change, Fred Luo."
"I will remember you said that." Fred as he pointed to Valeria who has just walked in with the other actors. "Oh, hell..." She spots Gene and starts towarding him but he looks away, as if ignoring her. She stops. Clyde steps up to her, tipping his hat, very gallant. They move toward the bar. Gene turns to Fred. "Satisfied?"
"I stand corrected. Gene, You are an oak." Fred said. Valeria and Clyde chat at the bar. Gilliam nudges Iris. "Since when did you start serving ladies in here?"
"Actresses. It is different." Iris answered. The tragedian enters, dramatically gotten-up like Lord Hazanko. The whole bar bursts into applause. He bows. Tobigiera jumps up from his table, excited. "Here, have this table." He seats the tragedian near the faro game and gets him some wine. "Oh, thank you. You are very kind."
"I have got to tell you, that is the most wonderful thing I ever saw. What was that?"
"Romeo and Juliet is all right but they are no match for my talent." The tragedian sees Tobigiera's confusion. "Hamlet, dear friend, the supreme role of any actor worth his salt."
"Here is a man you should meet. Excellent character study for you, the real-life actual hamlet." Fred said as he leans in, pointing to Gene."
"Indeed, sir? How so?"
"Well he hems, he haws, he talks out of both sides of his mouth--but all on a very high plane, just like Sir Hamlet."
"Getting drunk, Fred Luo." Fred Luo chuckles as Ron McDougal looms over the faro table with Marx and a drunken Harry McDougal. ""Wyatt" Gene Starwind, huh? I heard of you." Ron McDougal said.
"Listen, Mr. Farfallas Law-dog. Law does not go around here. Comprende?" Harry said.
"I am retired." Gene said.
"Good. That is real good."
"Yes, that is good, Mr. Law-dog, because law does not go around Sentinel III."
"I heard you the first time."
"Shut up, Harry." Ron said as Marx steps up to Fred Luo.
"And you must be "Doc" Fred Luo."
"That is the rumor." Fred said.
"Are you retired, too?" Marx asked.
"Not me. I am in my prime."
"Yes, you look like it."
"And you must be Marx. Look, Suzu, Marx. The deadliest castor pistoleer since Vash the Stampede, they say. What do you think, darling? Should I hate him?"
"You do not even know him." Suzuka said.
"Yes, but there is just something about him. Something around the eyes, I do not know, reminds me of... me. I am sure of it, I hate him."
"He is drunk." Gene said to Marx as he and Fred begin battling it in languages.
"In vino veritas."
"Age quod agis."
"Credat Judaeus Apella."
"Ecentus stultorum magister."
"In pace requiescat."
"Come on now." Gilliam said as he enters, appeasing the two. "We do not want any trouble in here. Not in any language."
"Evidently Gilliam, Mr. Marx here is an educated man. Now I really hate him." Marx looks at Fred, holding his gaze while suddenly whipping out his .45. Everyone but Fred flinches. Marx does a dazzling series of twirls and tricks, his nickel-plated castor pistol flashing like a blaze of silver fire, finally slapping it back into his holster with a flourish. Cheers and hoots. Fred Luo rolls his eyes, hooks a finger through the handle of his silver cup, then launches into an exact duplication of Marx's routine using a cup instead of a gun. The room bursts into laughter. Fred Luo shrugs. Marx lets a strange little hint of a smile cross his face then exits with the others. Gilliam exhales, turning to Gene. "See what I mean about it getting spooky?"
"Ron McDougal, huh? Who was that other idiot?" Gene asked.
"That would be Harry McDougal, Old Man McDougal's eldest son and Ron's younger brother. You know he does not got the stuff, it makes him miserable."
"Yes, and dangerous." Sitting up on the bar to see the show, Valeria turns to Clyde. "The man dealing faro. Who is he?"
"That is "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. He made quite a name for himself as a peacemaker in Farfallas." Clyde said.
"A peacemaker... Impressive man." Valeria said.
"Yes, very. And very well married."
"Oh, so that is it..."
Ron McDougal steps out with his brother Harry and Marx. He looks around the town. "I feel like doing something. I am getting woolly." Ron looks up. "Hey, chinky! Come here a minute..." An old japanese man minces by and Ron McDougal dashes after him..."
Later. Fred Luo is at the piano, drunk as a lord but playing Arai flawlessy. Suzuka pours him another drink. "That is my loving man. Just cannot get enough."
"Enough? Never." Fred said as now the high roller comes reeling up, loud and gratingly drunk. "Hey, is that "Adesso E Fortuna"? sounds like "Adesso E Fortuna.""
"Pardon?"
"You know, Sherry. "Fantasia of the Wind", Stinking Sherry!"
"I see, well this happens to be a nocturne." Fred said.
"A which?"
"You know, Akino-fucking-Arai." Fred Luo plays while Valeria leaves with Clyde. "Now that wounds me. Little tin swain walking off with that white beauty. I mean it is not right." Aisha sighs. Gene grunts and nods, perturbed. Outside the others mount up but Ron McDougal stands drugged-up in the middle of the street, arms out, head back, eyes closed, luxurating in the moonlight. "Boy, I feel great! Full of that hop I got from chinky. I feel just capital! You boys go ahead. I am going to stick around for awhile and howl at the moon." The other Kei Pirates shrug and ride off. Ron McDougal pulls his pistol, spinning it. Back inside the Crystal Palace it is late, few patrons remain. A few beats then suddenly everyone jumps as gunshots echo from outside. Gilliam goes to the window, looking outside. "Ron McDougal. He is over across the street shooting out the lights."
"This is great, this is just great." Horis said as Clyde dashes in, Gilliam as a sheet, Valeria in tow. "Have you been out in the street? Somebody has got to do something."
"I believe you are the sheriff."
"It is not county business, it is a town matter." Clyde said. Outside Ron McDougal starts taking potshots at a passerby's feet, making him dance down the street and scurry for cover. Ron cackles. Inside Gilliam turns uneasily to Gene. "Why do you not just leave it the hell alone?"
"No, I got to do something. I do not suppose you would --" Gilliam said.
"None of my business, Gilliam." Gene said as he keeps dealing, Fred keeps playing. Gilliam draws himself up and exits. Outside, Ron McDougal reloads and keeps shooting. Gilliam steps out into the street. He feels a sense of inverted terror as he draws his gun and sees that his hand is trembling. He crosses the street, coming up behind Ron McDougal. "Hey, Ron? Come on now, boy..." Ron spins around as Gilliam's gun stares him in the face. "Well, hello, Gilliam!" Ron said, while back in the bar, Gene puts his cards down, looking over at Fred. "Maybe I should go out there."
"You will or you will not. Do not look at me. I am going to sleep." Fred said as he lays his head down on the keys and passes out. Gene frowns for a moment. Finally he stands, turning to Morgan. "Go wake up Jim. Iris, lend me a sidearm, will you?" Iris hands Gene a castor sidearm from under the bar. Outside Gilliam covers Ron McDougal, trembling harder now. An adrenaline rush in a man Gilliam's age is hard to look at, he seems so frail, so vulnerable. Even his voice has a quavering edge to it. "Hand that over. Come on now."
"Why sure, pops. I am only having fun. Here she is." With a reassuring smile, Ron McDougal holds his pistol out butt-first. Gilliam reaches for it, visibly relieved. But quick as a cheetah Ron spins it around and fires point blank in Gilliam's chest, blowing him over backward, the blast so close it sets his clothes on fire. Ron McDougal turns just as "Wyatt" Gene Starwind flashes in and and slams him over the head with his sidearm barrel, laying him out in a groaning heap. Gene glances at Gilliam lying semi-conscious in the street, chest heaving, eyelids fluttering, making little bird-like sounds, smoke rising from his smoldering shirt and vest. A few patrons run and sees the marshal dead. "Get a rope! Strangle him!" an old patron said.
"Nobody is hanging anybody." Gene said.
"He just killed the marshal."
"He will stand trial for it, now get back!" Gene said as Mayor Horis runs up. "Put his clothes out." Horis pats the embers out in Gilliam's clothes but as Gene starts to haul Ron McDougal up he suddenly finds himself surrounded by Harry McDougal, Yase and two other Kei Pirates. "Turn him loose." Harry said.
"He just killed a man." Gene said.
"He said to turn him loose." Yase said.
"Well I am not so go home."
"I swear, lawdog, if you do not step aside, we will tear you apart." The Kei Pirates tense up, ready for action. Gene holds his grounds, his hard, steady gaze zeroing in on Harry. "You. Come here a second." Harry steps up, full of brass. Without warning Gene jabs the muzzle of his pistol into his forehead, snapping his head back. Gene cocks the pistol. The other Kei Pirates hush. Harry freezes. Gene's eyes bore into him. "You die first, understand? Your friends might get me in on a rush but not before I turn your head into a wheel barrel. Understand?" Harry stands stock still. Yase steps forward, undaunted. "He is bluffing! Let us rush him!"
"No, he is not bluffing."
"Not as dumb as you look, Harry. Now tell them to get back." Gene said.
"Go on!" Yase takes a step forward. "Yase! He will kill me." The Kei Pirates poise themselves, ready to start. "And you, music lover, you are next." Again a hush. Fred Luo stands behind Gene with Twilight Suzuka, still drunk, but with his .38 trained on Yase. Yase sneers with his hand on his knife, tucked into his black sash. "Hell, the drunk piano player. Fred Luo is so drunk he cannot hit nothing. In fact, he is probably seeing double." Fred Luo pulls out his .45, training it too, on Yase. "I have two castor guns. One for each of you." Yase pauses, chastened. Suddenly a castor flare is shot in the sky as James Hawking and Aisha Clan-Clan bull their way through the crowd from behind with shotguns. "All right, look out! Break it up. Go home, all of you, go home now..." This breads the group's will and things suddenly calm down dramatically as the Kei Pirates disperse. Gene lowers his pistol, having a sigh of relief as he pulls the still-groggy Ron McDougal to his feet and hauls him reeling toward the Sentinel III jail. "Come on, you..."
"Crack me back of the head like some damn bull. Hell, you are not no fighting man, you are just a damn cop."
Later. As the Starwinds and Fred Luo step out on the sidewalk they can see the semi-conscious Ron McDougal through the front door of the jail laying in one of the cells, holding a bloody hankerchief to his head. Gene closes the door, locks it, gives Horis the keys. "There. He will keep until morning." The street is quiet as they start back toward the Crystal Palace. Jim and Aisha following at a discreet distance, smirking. "Keep your eye on that brass ring. Do not let anything side-track you." Jim said.
"I know, I need a keeper." Gene said. Meanwhile across the street at the hotel Valeria turns to Clyde. "Well I guess you can see, never a dull moment. Maybe you should stay around to see what happens next. Who knows? You might find a future here."
"Maybe even my destiny." Valeria said.
It is dawn now, Sheriff Clyde, opens Ron McDougal's cell, The Kane Brothers approach to his cell, and wake him up. "Ron, Come on." Death Rob wakes his boss up. Ron still wooly from last night, gets out of the cell and outside the sheriff's office. Butch Kane in furious mood, walks up to Clyde. "You give Ron back his castor guns."
"Not until he sobers up." Clyde said.
"Wearing that badge, does not make you right. Who the hell do you think you are?" Death Rob said as they both walk out of the office. Ron mounts on his horse, while the Kane Brothers bump into "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. "Watch the way you walk, you ignorant bastard!"
"Easy, kid. I am sorry." Gene said as Death Rob walk in his face.
"I am not your kid, and I am not sorry. You take sorry and shove it up your ass." Gene stands steely-eyed at Death Rob Kane, he opens up his coat, to reveal that he is unarmed. "I will fight you right now." and with swift action, Gene grabs his sidearm and slams him in the head. and in a bad mood, Ron McDougal approaches to Gene in a furious mood. "God damn it. You are going to bleed. You got a fight coming.. Coming real soon. Hyah!" The Kei Pirates ride off back to their camps. to begin preparations soon. "Bastard! It is coming!" Butch Kane shouted.
In the Crystal Palace Saloon, Aisha's hound sleeps in the corner while Jim Hawking and Aisha Clan-Clan shoot pool. Gene looks on. "...but he says did I actually see it happen and I said, no, when I arrived Gilliam had already been shot. So the judge said, you cannot have a murder without a witness--case dismissed. Can you beat it? After all that. Oh hell, who cares, none of my business anyways." Gene said as Horis enters, frowning and anxious, just as Aisha sinks a shot. "Damn, I love this game. When we are finally set we got to each have a billiard room in our houses."
"Excuse me, Gene, just a moment, please I wanted to try and reason with you. We still have not found a marshal and--"
"Come on Mayor, he already told you no." Jim interrupted.
"What about you, Jim? You were a lawman."
"I am busy. We are all busy. Sorry, Mayor, but you are really barking up the wrong tree." Jim said.
"You tell them, Jim." Gene said as Horis exits shaking his head. They keep playing after a single beat. "You know I was thinking, maybe we should open our own place. That is the real money. Build it up, milk it for all it is worth, then sell it off for a bundle and breeze out of this burg with more money then Roger Smith and ready to live like kings. Let us you and me take a walk around town, Jim, see if we can scout us out a couple of nice lots." Gene said.
"I cannot hardly believe it. It is working out just like you said, Gene. We are looting this burg six ways through wednesday." Jim said.
"Pretty fun too, is it not?"
"Kind of, actually, yes. I got to admit."
James Hawking and "Wyatt" Gene Starwind walk down a quiet, tree-shaded lane on the outskirts of town. Suddenly a rubber ball rolls into their path. A small youngster plays in the front yard of a nearby cottage. Gene and Jim approach as Jim returns the ball to the kid. "What are you up to today, son?" Jim asked the kid. he stands stock still, staring at the men in silence. "Cat got your tongue?" Gene asked. He turns and walks back to the street without another word. "Wait a minute, Jim! Where are you going?" Jim keeps going. Gene starts chasing after him, leaving the mother and child in confusion.
James Hawking hammers down a law notice of using deadly weapons in the town. Aisha Clan-Clan stands next to him helping Jim put them down on several parts of the city. Jim finishes, hands Aisha the hammer as the citizens shout and yell at them, each one with a castor rifle, pistol, etc. They both walk toward the citizens and announces to them about the new law. "Hold on a minute! Wait a minute, calm down and listen to me." the citizens paused and listen to what James Hawking has to say. "Nobody is saying you cannot own a castor gun. Nobody is even saying you cannot carry a castor gun. All we are saying is you cannot carry a castor gun in town." The citizens of Sentinel III continue yelling and arguing at Jim and Aisha. "That is not so bad, is it?" Jim said as "Wyatt" Gene Starwind rides down on his stallion to where his friends are. He dismounts and marches towards them. "Listen, Mayor Horis, I have to talk to you about this." Clyde said.
"No, we do not have to talk. You can read, can you not?" Horis said. "It is a town matter, not county."
"What the hell are you doing? I told you we were not getting involved." Gene said.
"You got us involved when you brought us here." Jim said.
"Now, you hold on a minute, Jim!"
In tight on a gleaming silver shield, "Town Marshal, Sentinel III, A.T."pull back to reveal it pinned to Jim's breast. He sits by his parlor hearth with Aisha at his side. Gene sits opposite with his head in his hands. "Hold on, nothing. I could not help it, Gene. I looked at that woman and it was just like somebody stabbed me in the stomach. I mean these people are afraid to even walk down the street and I am trying to make money off it like some kind of god damn vulture. That is not me, that is somebody I do not even know. If we are going to have a future in this town... it has got to have some law and order."
"Jim, please. Do not do this to me." Gene said.
"It has nothing to do with you, Gene. It is---" Before Jim could finish Gene interrupted.
"Nothing to do with me? I am your partner and friend for christ's sake. God, I do not believe this." Gene said and turns to Aisha. "Talk to him, will you? or at least hit him in the head." there was no answer from the Ctarl Ctarl and Gene pauses in shock. "Oh no, do not tell me... not you too." Aisha looks down in silence. then she pulls back her coat, revealing the marshal's badge on her vest and Gene began to groan.
"Like you said, "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. We are partners and friends. You got to back your friend's play. Just like I figured you would." she said.
"Listen to me, both of you. This is no good. This is trouble we do not need. For the first time in our lives we got a chance to stop wandering and finally be a family. Do this and you throw it all away. You saw what happened to Gilliam."
"Come on, we are not about picking fights. Just gonna keep a little law and order, that is all." said Aisha.
"Yeah, and?" Gene asked.
"Like you said, just we got to know how to handle them. Old Gilliam was not up to it. We know what we are doing, Gene."
"All right, say you are right, say you do not get yourselves killed. There is something else." he then turned to Aisha, "It is too late for Jim, he already rolled his bone. But it is not too late for you, Aisha."
"What are you talking about?" Aisha asked. Gene exhales wearily then crouches down in front of his friend, looking deep in his eyes, his voice soft, plaintive.
"All the years I been into bounty hunting, I was only ever mixed up in five shootings. Just five. three men lost their lives. It was not my fault, just doing my job. I do not even know if it was my bullet that dropped them, but... I do not know, it is sort of hard to explain. At first I just felt funny, you know, kind of clammy inside. But when it finally sunk in what I would done... Believe me, girl, you do not ever want to feel that way. Not ever." Gene paused for a moment, removing his belt with his castor pistols and bullets of his waist, handing them over to Jim and continued. "I did not even make a dent, did I? and you two are making a big mistake."
"That is right, keep coming, keep coming..." Ikee said as Fred Luo turns to Clyde. "Very cosmopolitan."
"I know him. That is Ikee Katchin." Gene said.
Suddenly a third man, Shimi, long-haired, hawk-nosed, appears, pistol at the ready, keeping bystanders at bay. "Easy, gentlemen. Private affair..." Shimi said as he spots Gene. "Gene! Fred! Hey!"
"Shimi..."
"Yeah, good. Right about there."
"You bastard!" The drunk now has raised his gun to where it is almost level and Shimi fires. The drunk drops in a heap. Shimi spots Gene. "Hello, Gene! Hi Fred!"
"What was that all about?" Gene asked.
"Drunks. Crawfished a bet, called him a cheater. I saw the whole thing." Shimi answered as Fred turns to Clyde.
"Sheriff, may I present a pair of fellow sophisticates, Shimi and Ikee Katchin? Watch your ear, Shimi." Fred Luo points to his bloody ear. Shimi touches it, sees the blood, gives a silent start. Just then Gilliam arrives, looking weary, facing Ikee and Shimi. "I am afraid I will have to have those castor guns."
"Fair fight. We were legal." Shimi said.
"Sorry, boys. I got to take you before Judge Nubaso Kunono." Gilliam said.
"Well law and order every time, that is us." Ikee said as they hand over their guns while James Hawking looks at the 2 dead men lying in the street, shaking his head. "What kind of town is this?"
"Nice scenery." Shimi said. They look and see a stagecoach stops in the street. Valeria Marcus looks out the window, her little white cat under her chin. She and "Wyatt" Gene Starwind spot each other instantly, both impressed at each other. "That must be the theatrical troupe. There is a show tonight at Sentinel III Hall." Clyde said.
"Hey, Gene, are you going to the show? Maybe we will see you there." Ikee turns to Gilliam. "Will we not?"
"Yes, probably." Gilliam said as he leads them off to jail. Gene and Valeria hold each other's gaze as the coach drives on. Fred Luo smiles.
"Well, an enchanted moment."
Swanzo and Mikey watch as the actors exit the coach for the hotel. Valeria Marcus turns to the first pretty actress. "Interesting little scene. I wonder who that tall man with the scar was."
"Typical frontier type. Long and slim. And those red eyes. Like a wild coyote. You see quite a few of his type out here." The actress said.
"Oh, I want one." Valeria said.
The actors enter, going to the desk while Valeria looks for a place to sit. A slim, well-dressed easterner with a newspaper sits nearby, ignoring her. Seeing this from outside, Mikey instantly barges into the lobby, hoists the easterner out of his chair, and hurls him bodily out into the street. Valeria nods her surprised thanks. Mikey tips his hat shyly, exits as the first actress returns her key as they exchange looks.
A full house, pandemonium. Marx, Terry, Leo and their Kei Pirate entourage from a block in the center rows while Tobigiera, Clyde's bespectacled, slightly effeminate little Deputy makes his timid way down the aisle, looking for a seat midst the off fist-fight and yelling match. Two young cowboys, Hanmio and Yase, call out to him: "Hey, sissy boy!"
"Shut up, Hanmio. Sit here, Tobigiera." Marx beckons. Happy as a lark, Tobigiera takes the seat next to him. Up above, the Starwind group sit in a box, the women are thrilled. "This is so much fun! We have not been to a show since forever." Hilda said.
"I hope they are good." Melfina said.
"Lady, they better be good." Hitoriga shouted from below. "Doc" Fred Luo enters with Twilight Suzuka on his arm. The women exchange uneasy nods. "Suzuka, you know the Starwinds." Fred said as they sit and Gilliam enters with Mayor Horis and his wife. "Gene, this is Mayor Horis and his wife."
"Your reputation precedes you. I wonder-"
"Not a prayer. Nice meeting you." Gene said. While the orchestra tunes up and the crowd's excitement rises. Gilliam sits next to Gene, pointing out the Kei Pirates and giving a thumbnail sketch of each one. "Well everybody is here except Old Man McDougal. Got the claw, Hanmio, Yase, Rob and Butch Kane, Harry McDougal is the youngest. Wild one. Then there is Unak. They all hate breeding, but he hates them special. Hitoriga, Unak. That is Clyde's little deputy Tobigiera. Follows the Kei Pirates around like a bitch. And the big boys: Marx, he is McDougal's nimrod, the one that looks like an actor, that is Ron McDougal. Best Gunman and oldest McDougal alive they say. He is kind of different. Ron is the only one he talks to. I mean they are all rough boys, but Ron... I do not know. I really do not." Gilliam said. The house lights dim. The audience hushes. A spotlight hits easel at the end of the stage: "Professor Hazanko and his ballet of gravity." Out in the audience, Yase groans. "Professor Hazanko? Oh hell, I seen him in Blue Heaven. He catches stuff." The curtain goes up. Professor Hazanko, a first rate juggler in a cloak steps out and starts tossing axes in the air. The audience starts cheering but the Professor's rictus-like smile never changes. Having seen enough, Unak stands up and shouts. "Hey professor! Catch this!" Unak raises his castor pistol and fires. An axe explodes in the Professor's hand. Screams and scattered laughter in the audience. The Professor Hazanko is frozen in utter shock, staring at the bullet graze on his hand and saying out loud: "They shot me! I do not believe it!" A chord of music and the curtain drops like stone. Applause...
The other actors hustle the Professor off the stage, appalled. The first actress turns to the handsome, slightly raffish classical tragedian. "My goodness, they are shooting at us!" The first actress said.
"The only thing we can do, dear--be good. In any event, at least we will not have to wait for our notices. Exciting is it not? Now this is theater!
More music and another card reads: "Selections from the Tragedian in Excelsis" The curtain rises and the Tragedian steps out, a blue velvet cloak wrapped resplendently about him like a toga. In the audience, Harry McDougal's mouth drops. "Prettiest man I ever saw." The Tragedian throws open his cloak, revealing his lithe form in doublet and tights. The whores in the gallery hoot and cheer. The Tragedian bows. "How come he is not wearing no pants?" Unak asked as Yase points to the whores. "That is how come."
"Ladies and gentlemen, the introduction from Romeo and Juliet. Two households, both alike in dignity in fair verona. Where we lay our sins from ancient grudge to new mutiny. where civil blood make civil hands unclean-" Another gunshot and a bullet spangs into the column next to the tragedian with a shower of plaster. Without missing a beat, the tragedian casually flicks a chunk off his shoulder and continues. "From forth, the fatal lines of these two foes. A pair of star crossed lovers take their life." In the audience Unak holsters his smoke castor pistol reflectively. "He has got nerve, I will say that. What do you think, Tobigiera?"
"Oh, he is wonderful!" Starry-eyed Tobigiera answers without thinking. "Uh-oh, looks like somebody is in love." Raw laughter from the other Kei Pirates. Tobigiera sinks in his seat. "Let him alone." Harry McDougal said. On stage the tragedian is in full cry, giving the local a slice of the ripest ham. "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers: For he today that sheds his blood with me, shall be my brother: be he never so vile. This day shall gentle his condition: and gentlemen in now a-bed shall think themselves accurs they were not here. And hold their manhood cheap while any speaks. That fought with us upon that day!" Wild applause and cheering. The tragedian bows with elaborate modesty. "That is great! That is our kind of stuff!" Harry McDougal said. The curtain falls. Another card: "The Devil's Bargain" and the orchestra whirls into "Rise of the Valkyries" by Richard Wagner, the rising curtain revealing a wild pained backdrop, all black and red, covered with weird, Beardsley-esque designs and images of death and damnation. A light comes up, revealing an ancient priest sitting alone with his books and documents. Then a hooded man dances across the stage, slender and lissome in paned black doublet and breeches and black hose, tempting the old man with images of wealth and youth in the form of a shimmering blone ballerina. The old priest succumbs, signing the hooded man's contract. The audience watches in rapt attention, especially the Kei Pirates. "He is going to sum up short on that one." Jukai said.
"You know what I would do? I would take the deal then crawfish and drill that old man in the ass. How about you, Marx? What would you do?" Harry said.
"I already did it." Marx answered. The hooded man makes a flourish. A flash-pad explosion transforms the old priest into a young pope. The ballerina flits by. The pope offers her gold. They dance, swirling about the stage in a mad waltz with the hooded man hovering behind them, mirroring their every move like a puppet master. Finally, having gotten all his gold, the ballerina drifts away leaving the young pope alone, lost in bitterness as he changes back into the old priest sitting with his books and documents. The hooded man appears over him, exultant and triumphant, ready to collect the debt as the curtain falls with a final crashing chord. Thunderous cheering and applause. The curtain rises again and the performers come out for bows, all except the hooded man. "Very instructive." Fred Luo said.
"But who was the hooded man?" Gene asked. Suddenly the hooded man bounds out, removing the hood. It is Valeria Marcus. "It is that woman from the coach!" Aisha said.
"Well I will be damned..." Gene muttered. Valeria spots Gene's box and smiles. Fred Luo raises an eyebrow. "You may indeed. If you get lucky."
After the show and theatergoers, including the Starwind group, stroll homeward arm-in-arm down Sentinel III, all looking up at the clear night sky above. At the Crystal Palace Gene stops, turning to James Hawking. "Coming to the Crystal Palace, Jim?"
"Not tonight! Tonight me and Jimmy are going to have some fun. Get moving, Jimmy boy." Hilda said as she laughs, shoving Jim Hawking down the street. "I better go with them, Melfina. Here is where I leave you." Gene said as he kisses Melfina. She grabs Gene's hand. "No, stay. Please stay with me."
"Dear, I got to start making money."
"Oh, all right."
"Well I guess I do not have to go right now. I guess I could stay a little while."
"No, no I do not want to keep you."
"No really, I can stay for a while."
"Just go. It is all right. Gene, really. Work well."
"All right, well, good night." Gene gives Melfina another kiss and heads for the Crystal Palace with Aisha Clan-Clan. Melfina walks on after the others, fishing through her bag for her bottle of laudanum...."
The Crystal Palace Saloon is pack. Track along the bar at floor level past a wild array of high-button shoes, patent leather pumps, and stack-heeled boots with jingling silver spurs. Track again at shoulder level past an equally wild array of slouch hats, pork-pies, derbys, and wide-brim sombreros. "Wyatt" Gene Starwind sits against the wall, dealing faro with "Doc" Fred Luo and Twilight Suzuka at his side, Aisha Clan-Clan on lookout while a sweaty overdressed high rolling pimp makes bets, gnashing his teeth and drumming his fingers in a fever of impatient greed: "All right, I am on fire! Black Eight, nine stinking spades. Let us go!" The high roller said as Gene deals the cards. "I am your man... You win again. Well played, sir. You are on fire."
"Told you, I am red hot, I am Blazing! Now, red eight. Ten stinking diamonds. Look out! Seven Thousand! Let us go!"
"Awful lot of money."
"I Cannot take the heat, get out of the kitchen."
"You are the doctor." Gene said as he deals the card. "Sad news, friend."
"Damn! All right, wait a minute..." The high rolling pimp lays a set of deeds out on the table as a break in the game. Gene studies the deeds as Aisha and Fred look on. Suzuka sits to one side, contentedly studying the deeds. "So now we are in the mining business. Turning into regular tycoons. I am going to call this one the Melfina Blaylock. Melfina will get a kick out of that, it is her maiden name." "And what a maiden, pure as the driven snow, I am sure." Fred said.
"Hey Fred! Come on now." Aisha said.
"Just his style, Aisha. Does not mean anything."
"So tell me, Gene. I am curious do you actually consider yourself a married man? Forsaking all others?"
"Well yes. Pretty much. I mean I was no angel when we met but people change Fred. I mean sooner or later you got to grow up."
"I see. And what would you do if "she" walked in here right now?"
"'She?'"
"You know damn well who I mean. That dusked-hued hooded lady."
"I do not know. Probably ignore her."
"Ignore her?"
"I would ignore her. People can change, Fred Luo."
"I will remember you said that." Fred as he pointed to Valeria who has just walked in with the other actors. "Oh, hell..." She spots Gene and starts towarding him but he looks away, as if ignoring her. She stops. Clyde steps up to her, tipping his hat, very gallant. They move toward the bar. Gene turns to Fred. "Satisfied?"
"I stand corrected. Gene, You are an oak." Fred said. Valeria and Clyde chat at the bar. Gilliam nudges Iris. "Since when did you start serving ladies in here?"
"Actresses. It is different." Iris answered. The tragedian enters, dramatically gotten-up like Lord Hazanko. The whole bar bursts into applause. He bows. Tobigiera jumps up from his table, excited. "Here, have this table." He seats the tragedian near the faro game and gets him some wine. "Oh, thank you. You are very kind."
"I have got to tell you, that is the most wonderful thing I ever saw. What was that?"
"Romeo and Juliet is all right but they are no match for my talent." The tragedian sees Tobigiera's confusion. "Hamlet, dear friend, the supreme role of any actor worth his salt."
"Here is a man you should meet. Excellent character study for you, the real-life actual hamlet." Fred said as he leans in, pointing to Gene."
"Indeed, sir? How so?"
"Well he hems, he haws, he talks out of both sides of his mouth--but all on a very high plane, just like Sir Hamlet."
"Getting drunk, Fred Luo." Fred Luo chuckles as Ron McDougal looms over the faro table with Marx and a drunken Harry McDougal. ""Wyatt" Gene Starwind, huh? I heard of you." Ron McDougal said.
"Listen, Mr. Farfallas Law-dog. Law does not go around here. Comprende?" Harry said.
"I am retired." Gene said.
"Good. That is real good."
"Yes, that is good, Mr. Law-dog, because law does not go around Sentinel III."
"I heard you the first time."
"Shut up, Harry." Ron said as Marx steps up to Fred Luo.
"And you must be "Doc" Fred Luo."
"That is the rumor." Fred said.
"Are you retired, too?" Marx asked.
"Not me. I am in my prime."
"Yes, you look like it."
"And you must be Marx. Look, Suzu, Marx. The deadliest castor pistoleer since Vash the Stampede, they say. What do you think, darling? Should I hate him?"
"You do not even know him." Suzuka said.
"Yes, but there is just something about him. Something around the eyes, I do not know, reminds me of... me. I am sure of it, I hate him."
"He is drunk." Gene said to Marx as he and Fred begin battling it in languages.
"In vino veritas."
"Age quod agis."
"Credat Judaeus Apella."
"Ecentus stultorum magister."
"In pace requiescat."
"Come on now." Gilliam said as he enters, appeasing the two. "We do not want any trouble in here. Not in any language."
"Evidently Gilliam, Mr. Marx here is an educated man. Now I really hate him." Marx looks at Fred, holding his gaze while suddenly whipping out his .45. Everyone but Fred flinches. Marx does a dazzling series of twirls and tricks, his nickel-plated castor pistol flashing like a blaze of silver fire, finally slapping it back into his holster with a flourish. Cheers and hoots. Fred Luo rolls his eyes, hooks a finger through the handle of his silver cup, then launches into an exact duplication of Marx's routine using a cup instead of a gun. The room bursts into laughter. Fred Luo shrugs. Marx lets a strange little hint of a smile cross his face then exits with the others. Gilliam exhales, turning to Gene. "See what I mean about it getting spooky?"
"Ron McDougal, huh? Who was that other idiot?" Gene asked.
"That would be Harry McDougal, Old Man McDougal's eldest son and Ron's younger brother. You know he does not got the stuff, it makes him miserable."
"Yes, and dangerous." Sitting up on the bar to see the show, Valeria turns to Clyde. "The man dealing faro. Who is he?"
"That is "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. He made quite a name for himself as a peacemaker in Farfallas." Clyde said.
"A peacemaker... Impressive man." Valeria said.
"Yes, very. And very well married."
"Oh, so that is it..."
Ron McDougal steps out with his brother Harry and Marx. He looks around the town. "I feel like doing something. I am getting woolly." Ron looks up. "Hey, chinky! Come here a minute..." An old japanese man minces by and Ron McDougal dashes after him..."
Later. Fred Luo is at the piano, drunk as a lord but playing Arai flawlessy. Suzuka pours him another drink. "That is my loving man. Just cannot get enough."
"Enough? Never." Fred said as now the high roller comes reeling up, loud and gratingly drunk. "Hey, is that "Adesso E Fortuna"? sounds like "Adesso E Fortuna.""
"Pardon?"
"You know, Sherry. "Fantasia of the Wind", Stinking Sherry!"
"I see, well this happens to be a nocturne." Fred said.
"A which?"
"You know, Akino-fucking-Arai." Fred Luo plays while Valeria leaves with Clyde. "Now that wounds me. Little tin swain walking off with that white beauty. I mean it is not right." Aisha sighs. Gene grunts and nods, perturbed. Outside the others mount up but Ron McDougal stands drugged-up in the middle of the street, arms out, head back, eyes closed, luxurating in the moonlight. "Boy, I feel great! Full of that hop I got from chinky. I feel just capital! You boys go ahead. I am going to stick around for awhile and howl at the moon." The other Kei Pirates shrug and ride off. Ron McDougal pulls his pistol, spinning it. Back inside the Crystal Palace it is late, few patrons remain. A few beats then suddenly everyone jumps as gunshots echo from outside. Gilliam goes to the window, looking outside. "Ron McDougal. He is over across the street shooting out the lights."
"This is great, this is just great." Horis said as Clyde dashes in, Gilliam as a sheet, Valeria in tow. "Have you been out in the street? Somebody has got to do something."
"I believe you are the sheriff."
"It is not county business, it is a town matter." Clyde said. Outside Ron McDougal starts taking potshots at a passerby's feet, making him dance down the street and scurry for cover. Ron cackles. Inside Gilliam turns uneasily to Gene. "Why do you not just leave it the hell alone?"
"No, I got to do something. I do not suppose you would --" Gilliam said.
"None of my business, Gilliam." Gene said as he keeps dealing, Fred keeps playing. Gilliam draws himself up and exits. Outside, Ron McDougal reloads and keeps shooting. Gilliam steps out into the street. He feels a sense of inverted terror as he draws his gun and sees that his hand is trembling. He crosses the street, coming up behind Ron McDougal. "Hey, Ron? Come on now, boy..." Ron spins around as Gilliam's gun stares him in the face. "Well, hello, Gilliam!" Ron said, while back in the bar, Gene puts his cards down, looking over at Fred. "Maybe I should go out there."
"You will or you will not. Do not look at me. I am going to sleep." Fred said as he lays his head down on the keys and passes out. Gene frowns for a moment. Finally he stands, turning to Morgan. "Go wake up Jim. Iris, lend me a sidearm, will you?" Iris hands Gene a castor sidearm from under the bar. Outside Gilliam covers Ron McDougal, trembling harder now. An adrenaline rush in a man Gilliam's age is hard to look at, he seems so frail, so vulnerable. Even his voice has a quavering edge to it. "Hand that over. Come on now."
"Why sure, pops. I am only having fun. Here she is." With a reassuring smile, Ron McDougal holds his pistol out butt-first. Gilliam reaches for it, visibly relieved. But quick as a cheetah Ron spins it around and fires point blank in Gilliam's chest, blowing him over backward, the blast so close it sets his clothes on fire. Ron McDougal turns just as "Wyatt" Gene Starwind flashes in and and slams him over the head with his sidearm barrel, laying him out in a groaning heap. Gene glances at Gilliam lying semi-conscious in the street, chest heaving, eyelids fluttering, making little bird-like sounds, smoke rising from his smoldering shirt and vest. A few patrons run and sees the marshal dead. "Get a rope! Strangle him!" an old patron said.
"Nobody is hanging anybody." Gene said.
"He just killed the marshal."
"He will stand trial for it, now get back!" Gene said as Mayor Horis runs up. "Put his clothes out." Horis pats the embers out in Gilliam's clothes but as Gene starts to haul Ron McDougal up he suddenly finds himself surrounded by Harry McDougal, Yase and two other Kei Pirates. "Turn him loose." Harry said.
"He just killed a man." Gene said.
"He said to turn him loose." Yase said.
"Well I am not so go home."
"I swear, lawdog, if you do not step aside, we will tear you apart." The Kei Pirates tense up, ready for action. Gene holds his grounds, his hard, steady gaze zeroing in on Harry. "You. Come here a second." Harry steps up, full of brass. Without warning Gene jabs the muzzle of his pistol into his forehead, snapping his head back. Gene cocks the pistol. The other Kei Pirates hush. Harry freezes. Gene's eyes bore into him. "You die first, understand? Your friends might get me in on a rush but not before I turn your head into a wheel barrel. Understand?" Harry stands stock still. Yase steps forward, undaunted. "He is bluffing! Let us rush him!"
"No, he is not bluffing."
"Not as dumb as you look, Harry. Now tell them to get back." Gene said.
"Go on!" Yase takes a step forward. "Yase! He will kill me." The Kei Pirates poise themselves, ready to start. "And you, music lover, you are next." Again a hush. Fred Luo stands behind Gene with Twilight Suzuka, still drunk, but with his .38 trained on Yase. Yase sneers with his hand on his knife, tucked into his black sash. "Hell, the drunk piano player. Fred Luo is so drunk he cannot hit nothing. In fact, he is probably seeing double." Fred Luo pulls out his .45, training it too, on Yase. "I have two castor guns. One for each of you." Yase pauses, chastened. Suddenly a castor flare is shot in the sky as James Hawking and Aisha Clan-Clan bull their way through the crowd from behind with shotguns. "All right, look out! Break it up. Go home, all of you, go home now..." This breads the group's will and things suddenly calm down dramatically as the Kei Pirates disperse. Gene lowers his pistol, having a sigh of relief as he pulls the still-groggy Ron McDougal to his feet and hauls him reeling toward the Sentinel III jail. "Come on, you..."
"Crack me back of the head like some damn bull. Hell, you are not no fighting man, you are just a damn cop."
Later. As the Starwinds and Fred Luo step out on the sidewalk they can see the semi-conscious Ron McDougal through the front door of the jail laying in one of the cells, holding a bloody hankerchief to his head. Gene closes the door, locks it, gives Horis the keys. "There. He will keep until morning." The street is quiet as they start back toward the Crystal Palace. Jim and Aisha following at a discreet distance, smirking. "Keep your eye on that brass ring. Do not let anything side-track you." Jim said.
"I know, I need a keeper." Gene said. Meanwhile across the street at the hotel Valeria turns to Clyde. "Well I guess you can see, never a dull moment. Maybe you should stay around to see what happens next. Who knows? You might find a future here."
"Maybe even my destiny." Valeria said.
It is dawn now, Sheriff Clyde, opens Ron McDougal's cell, The Kane Brothers approach to his cell, and wake him up. "Ron, Come on." Death Rob wakes his boss up. Ron still wooly from last night, gets out of the cell and outside the sheriff's office. Butch Kane in furious mood, walks up to Clyde. "You give Ron back his castor guns."
"Not until he sobers up." Clyde said.
"Wearing that badge, does not make you right. Who the hell do you think you are?" Death Rob said as they both walk out of the office. Ron mounts on his horse, while the Kane Brothers bump into "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. "Watch the way you walk, you ignorant bastard!"
"Easy, kid. I am sorry." Gene said as Death Rob walk in his face.
"I am not your kid, and I am not sorry. You take sorry and shove it up your ass." Gene stands steely-eyed at Death Rob Kane, he opens up his coat, to reveal that he is unarmed. "I will fight you right now." and with swift action, Gene grabs his sidearm and slams him in the head. and in a bad mood, Ron McDougal approaches to Gene in a furious mood. "God damn it. You are going to bleed. You got a fight coming.. Coming real soon. Hyah!" The Kei Pirates ride off back to their camps. to begin preparations soon. "Bastard! It is coming!" Butch Kane shouted.
In the Crystal Palace Saloon, Aisha's hound sleeps in the corner while Jim Hawking and Aisha Clan-Clan shoot pool. Gene looks on. "...but he says did I actually see it happen and I said, no, when I arrived Gilliam had already been shot. So the judge said, you cannot have a murder without a witness--case dismissed. Can you beat it? After all that. Oh hell, who cares, none of my business anyways." Gene said as Horis enters, frowning and anxious, just as Aisha sinks a shot. "Damn, I love this game. When we are finally set we got to each have a billiard room in our houses."
"Excuse me, Gene, just a moment, please I wanted to try and reason with you. We still have not found a marshal and--"
"Come on Mayor, he already told you no." Jim interrupted.
"What about you, Jim? You were a lawman."
"I am busy. We are all busy. Sorry, Mayor, but you are really barking up the wrong tree." Jim said.
"You tell them, Jim." Gene said as Horis exits shaking his head. They keep playing after a single beat. "You know I was thinking, maybe we should open our own place. That is the real money. Build it up, milk it for all it is worth, then sell it off for a bundle and breeze out of this burg with more money then Roger Smith and ready to live like kings. Let us you and me take a walk around town, Jim, see if we can scout us out a couple of nice lots." Gene said.
"I cannot hardly believe it. It is working out just like you said, Gene. We are looting this burg six ways through wednesday." Jim said.
"Pretty fun too, is it not?"
"Kind of, actually, yes. I got to admit."
James Hawking and "Wyatt" Gene Starwind walk down a quiet, tree-shaded lane on the outskirts of town. Suddenly a rubber ball rolls into their path. A small youngster plays in the front yard of a nearby cottage. Gene and Jim approach as Jim returns the ball to the kid. "What are you up to today, son?" Jim asked the kid. he stands stock still, staring at the men in silence. "Cat got your tongue?" Gene asked. He turns and walks back to the street without another word. "Wait a minute, Jim! Where are you going?" Jim keeps going. Gene starts chasing after him, leaving the mother and child in confusion.
James Hawking hammers down a law notice of using deadly weapons in the town. Aisha Clan-Clan stands next to him helping Jim put them down on several parts of the city. Jim finishes, hands Aisha the hammer as the citizens shout and yell at them, each one with a castor rifle, pistol, etc. They both walk toward the citizens and announces to them about the new law. "Hold on a minute! Wait a minute, calm down and listen to me." the citizens paused and listen to what James Hawking has to say. "Nobody is saying you cannot own a castor gun. Nobody is even saying you cannot carry a castor gun. All we are saying is you cannot carry a castor gun in town." The citizens of Sentinel III continue yelling and arguing at Jim and Aisha. "That is not so bad, is it?" Jim said as "Wyatt" Gene Starwind rides down on his stallion to where his friends are. He dismounts and marches towards them. "Listen, Mayor Horis, I have to talk to you about this." Clyde said.
"No, we do not have to talk. You can read, can you not?" Horis said. "It is a town matter, not county."
"What the hell are you doing? I told you we were not getting involved." Gene said.
"You got us involved when you brought us here." Jim said.
"Now, you hold on a minute, Jim!"
In tight on a gleaming silver shield, "Town Marshal, Sentinel III, A.T."pull back to reveal it pinned to Jim's breast. He sits by his parlor hearth with Aisha at his side. Gene sits opposite with his head in his hands. "Hold on, nothing. I could not help it, Gene. I looked at that woman and it was just like somebody stabbed me in the stomach. I mean these people are afraid to even walk down the street and I am trying to make money off it like some kind of god damn vulture. That is not me, that is somebody I do not even know. If we are going to have a future in this town... it has got to have some law and order."
"Jim, please. Do not do this to me." Gene said.
"It has nothing to do with you, Gene. It is---" Before Jim could finish Gene interrupted.
"Nothing to do with me? I am your partner and friend for christ's sake. God, I do not believe this." Gene said and turns to Aisha. "Talk to him, will you? or at least hit him in the head." there was no answer from the Ctarl Ctarl and Gene pauses in shock. "Oh no, do not tell me... not you too." Aisha looks down in silence. then she pulls back her coat, revealing the marshal's badge on her vest and Gene began to groan.
"Like you said, "Wyatt" Gene Starwind. We are partners and friends. You got to back your friend's play. Just like I figured you would." she said.
"Listen to me, both of you. This is no good. This is trouble we do not need. For the first time in our lives we got a chance to stop wandering and finally be a family. Do this and you throw it all away. You saw what happened to Gilliam."
"Come on, we are not about picking fights. Just gonna keep a little law and order, that is all." said Aisha.
"Yeah, and?" Gene asked.
"Like you said, just we got to know how to handle them. Old Gilliam was not up to it. We know what we are doing, Gene."
"All right, say you are right, say you do not get yourselves killed. There is something else." he then turned to Aisha, "It is too late for Jim, he already rolled his bone. But it is not too late for you, Aisha."
"What are you talking about?" Aisha asked. Gene exhales wearily then crouches down in front of his friend, looking deep in his eyes, his voice soft, plaintive.
"All the years I been into bounty hunting, I was only ever mixed up in five shootings. Just five. three men lost their lives. It was not my fault, just doing my job. I do not even know if it was my bullet that dropped them, but... I do not know, it is sort of hard to explain. At first I just felt funny, you know, kind of clammy inside. But when it finally sunk in what I would done... Believe me, girl, you do not ever want to feel that way. Not ever." Gene paused for a moment, removing his belt with his castor pistols and bullets of his waist, handing them over to Jim and continued. "I did not even make a dent, did I? and you two are making a big mistake."