Rivals Become Friends
His head laid on the shrouded body. His eyes stared at the stars above him.
"Is Cort staring at the same sky as me?" he wondered.
Closing his eyes. His mind drifted. Fire crackled in his ear. His nose detected smoke. His hat tipped over his eyes. His eyes were closed, but ears remained opened. His ears detected two voices over the fire. He laid undisturbed. Two voices, a man and woman, belonged to Cort and April.
They were having a palaver around the fire. She was asking questions. They were about him.
"How long have you rode with Rath?" she asked.
"He didn't tell," answered Cort.
"All he ever mentioned was he was an orphan."
"Well, before Terra, I lived in Gilead."
"What does this have to do with Rath?"
"To know his history is to know mine."
He lit a match. Sulphur blew in Rath's direction. Burning tobacco followed the sulphur.
Taking a drag, Cort continued, "Fardo, my father, is the training gunslinger in Gilead. He trained me since I came from my mother's stomach. I reached the age of trouble making. My father sent me to Terra. To control my impulses."
"Let me guess a woman was involved."
"Correct. So at Terra, I was under the training of Thorth."
"Not Cob?"
"That came later. Anyways Thorth bullied his apprentices. Both physically and mentally."
"Didn't Cob know?"
"Two reasons. One he wasn't the Dinh Gunslinger yet. Second no one knew. Thorth scared silence among us."
"Why didn't you do anything?"
"Didn't know any better. Plus I didn't have any friends. The other apprentices concerned me a brat cause of my father being atraining gunslinger,"taking a dragfrom a new cigarette.
"Here," he said properly offering April a cigarette.
Both took a drag of tobacco.
"Well it wasn't easy. Rath appeared. Like God sending a judge during troubled times. St. Edwards gave Rath to Cob. That didn't please Thorth."
"Why?"
"It skipped the drawing. Rath had no drawing. Thorth begun believing Rath was a spy."
"What would Rath be spying for?"
"To uncover Thorth mistreatment. Remember Tzu saying that a guiltily mind will trap your foe."
"Yes, plus it makes one's mind clouded. Therefore making mistakes."
"Correct. Thorth's guilt made him try to destroy Rath."
"How?"
"Rath was attacked consciously by Thorth's apprentices including me. It made my stomach turn."
"What did Rath do?"
"He fought back. That was what broke Thorth's hold on us. Little by little. More we assaulted Rath, more Thorth's control slipped away."
"What did he do?"
"Ruin Rath's chances of graduating to gunslinger and I lost the stick vote," he said stroking the flames.
"The shortest?"
"No, longest."
"How were you post to do it?"
"You're thinking that Rath had to do hand to hand combat like us. He didn't. Running an obstacle course was his way of graduating. My job was to make sure he failed. A leather strap was tied around his right wrist and my left wrist. We ran down the canyon route. I pushed him in every object along that route. He held his angry. Finally we came to the rope bridge. I tripped him. Before he went over I was post to cut the rope. That way he was disqualified from graduating. His momentum surprised me and I followed him over th rope railing. He hooked his arm around the railing. He ordered me climb up the rope then him. After returning on the bridge, I had him. Cut the robe and break his grip. My mission would be successful. "
"You had a change of heart."
"Correct, and I helped him back onto the bridge. Tried apologizing, but he said, '"You can be sorry later. Let's finish this course."' and we did. Thorth wasn't happy. He challenged the result."
"What next happened?"
"Rath in turned challenged him to hand to hand combat. It never happened. I confessed to trying to ruin Rath. Also Thorth's part in the affair got exposed."
"Well?"
"His apprentices started to tell all the abuse Thorth did."
"All well, ends well."
"Not quite. There were still loyalists to Thorth. They jumped me. Even Thorth was there. They few licks in before Rath showed up."
"Both were able to beat them."
"No, their numbers were too great and we were not the polished gunslingers we are today. "
"Well?"
"Well Thorth had a shooter pointed at us. He was going to make it look like we killed each other. Me trying to ruin Rath's chances of graduating and Rath gaining vengeance. Cob saved our hides. Thorth and his loyal apprentices were sent out west."
"So that was the end of him?"
"No, he tried to raise a rebellion. Cob smashed it. That was how Cob became Dinh Gunslinger,"
Standing up and popping his lower back, "Get some sleep, April. You'll have to replace Rath on night watch."
Sitting on a rock, Rath stared at the night sky. He replaced Cort for night watch. Soon he'll be replaced by April. Feet moving closer to him. Their were close behind. Quickly he drew his shooter, spun around, and aimed at a blanket wrapped April.
"Almost shot your foolish pretty head," he said reholstering his shooter.
"You like my pretty head too much to shoot it."
"Why are you up? Couple more hours your shift begins," returning to sit on the rock
"Figure you needed company," standing in front of him.
"What kind of company do you think I need?"
"The female type," opening the blanket.
Staring at her naked body, he commented, "You're going to get cold dressed like that."
Wrapping the blanket around both of them as she sat on his lap staring into his face, she remarked, "Sharing body heat will keep me warm."
"How about sharing life stories?" he asked.
"You were not a sleep."
"A light sleep. Enough to do this shift. So what did you get out of the palaver."
"You don't talk about your past much."
"It remains unknown until skeleton hunters appear."
"So I'm a skeleton hunter," she said getting up.
His hands around her waist stopped her from rising.
"No, just a curious panther," he said slipping off the rock.
He pulled her on top of him.
"So what are you doing?" she asked as he joined her under the blanket.
"Taking a risking gamble," he kissing her lips.
Staring up at the starring sky, a smile appeared across his blistered sun baked lips. The memory blocked out the slight pain.