//------------------------------//
// New Face, New Hope 
// Story: Wild West 
// by Prismfire Productions 
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Joseph was about ready to pull his mane out. Almost immediately after posting the open deputy position on the community message board, effectively every crazy and trigger-happy Sagiville resident had lined up. From a unicorn that was too quick on the draw, to an unhinged and mentally unbalanced sheep, each and every applicant was verifying his gut feeling that it had been a bad idea in the first place. The last applicant that had come in, an overly twitchy donkey that clearly just wanted a gun, almost blew off his own hoof and made Joseph consider giving up.

It was far from how he wanted to spend his afternoon, considering he still had to go help Hazel with the stew for Billy, but after dropping off the items from the store a new request had been brought to him by Mrs. Penelope the school teacher. She had asked him to come to help the school house set up their new bell, something that he knew would delight the youngsters due to how well he got along with them. Alas, dealing with every wacko that stepped through his office door had put him in a considerably more sour mood, but with only applicant left he knew the torture would soon be over.

"Can't I get one normal person who isn't insane?!" Joseph groaned as he massaged his temples. By this point, he had a strong headache and his patience had reached the end of his rope, making him look in the drawer under his desk at his whiskey. The dark brown liquor sloshed in its bottle like an amber sea, trying to coerce him like a siren with its enchanting aroma, but he shut the drawer before he could give in. "No, I don’t need that yet. I may be stressed, but I ain't stressed out enough for a shot of liquid courage…. Yet."

The brief lull in applicants made him turn to old breathing exercises he had learned from his father. Closing his eyes and turning his focus inward, he set out to slow down his heart rate to more relaxed levels by slowing his inhales and exhales. Five seconds in, five seconds hold, five seconds out, repeat. Little by little his composure relaxed and his stress started to melt away like butter in a pan, his headache diminishing and muscles starting to feel heavy from the tension being released. Drowsiness soon set in, and as he rested his muzzle on the desk with his hands acting like a makeshift pillow, a knocking on the front door stirred him from the brink of slumber.

“I really hope this doesn’t go like the others,” Joseph muttered, slightly annoyed that he had been dragged from sleep by another potential ‘gung ho’ citizen. Taking a moment to shake off the whispers of the Sandmare from his vision and mind, he straightened himself then cleared his throat. “Door is unlocked, you may come in.”

The door carefully opened, revealing a tall unicorn stallion with a red coat and mustard yellow horn, mane and tail. Joseph could tell right off the bat that this candidate was different from the others that had come before him, with a reassurance in his gait that showed his confidence and determination. The stranger’s white fingerless gloves and overshirt had a fine layer of dust, no doubt a result of having to wait outside for so long and the breeze whipping the fine particles into the air. Underneath, a brown shirt with gold trim was visible just, as a pair of blue shorts could be seen under his worn chaps. The Colt 45, with a custom cherry-red grip, that was in its holster on his right hip gave the frustrated shariff a renewed surge of hope. The stallion having a custom piece showed that he was probably experienced in the art of the firearm, but he still did not allow himself to be overly optimistic.

"You look like you have had a tough time,” The stallion said, looking around the interior of the office/jail. Spotting the sink, he walked over and poured two glasses, downing his before handing the other to Joseph. “Why the long look Sheriff, is it because you haven’t found anyone good enough to become your Deputy?"

“If I did, I would have been out of here by now,”  Joseph said, letting  out a rather frustrated snort before calming himself down. He was a stallion of principle, and knew the value of first impressions. He had seen deals go sour over that very thing, so he knew to bury the aggravation or risk running the promising candidate off.  "Half of the people that came in just wanted a gun to shoot instead of helping protect the town, the other half I wouldn’t even trust to handle a wooden dagger."

“The former are the kind of folks that piss me off the most,” The stallion said, shaking his head before letting out a sharp exhale. “Psychos who are more interested in abusin the law for their own gains rather than upholdin’ it. It is a damn shame really, nobody is above the law, even the folks back on Capitol Hill but some just don’t get the memo.”"

“Tell me about it,” Joseph released a slight neigh in agreement, the fact that he shared a similar viewpoint as the stranger on fueling his hope that this was going to put an end not only to the search, but also Hazel’s complaints. "How about we start simple then, what's your name son?"

"Name’s Depp Ryder, but I prefer to just be called by my last name.” Ryder said, looking down at Joseph and extending his hand, which Joseph gladly shook. “Moved into town two days ago.”

“Pleasure to meet ya Ryder,” Joseph knew the faces of everyone who had permanently settled down, so for his potential deputy to be soon new it did not surprise him that he had not recognized him at first glance. “Well, I am sorry for not recognizing you sooner, but rest assured it won’t happen again. Whatcha been up to since you decided to settle down in our sleepy little town?”

“Been mostly keepin’ watch over the mine.” Ryder said, getting comfortable by sitting in the chair across from Joseph’s. “I just want to ensure that McDougal doesn't get too… ‘Zealous’ and accidentally blow himself up."

“Him? Blowing himself up?” Joseph chuckled, letting out a mix between a whinny and a laugh and began to flap his wings as a result. “That explains why his explosions have actually been quieter today, must have given him quite the speech to get him to back off a bit. A welcome change for sure if he keeps it up, but rather unexpected to say the least."

"He needs to lay off the explosives, plain and simple." Ryder’s face turned up into a bemused smirk, his mind replaying how the stubborn goat had turned white as freshly brushed teeth after he got through with him. “I suggested he back off the explosives, he said no, and then we argued for a bit. Finally I made him cave when I brought up how too much explosive could collapse the whole shaft or even the entire mountain side and risk killing him in the process. He paled and quivered like a leaf at the thought of not being able to blast, but if it was up to me, I would take his dynamite away entirely until he agreed to only blast on certain days. With supervision of course.”

"Impossible, trust me I've tried.” Joseph sighed, his wings ruffling a little from all his failed attempts to get the old goat under control. “Trying to remove dynamite from him is like trying to remove mine and my wife’s wings. An extremely painful procedure that has no positive outcome and very likely to get him to bite you. Before you ask, McDougal has bitten someone before, the poor colt had a pretty bad finger for a while and it never did set back properly. Goats have always had strong jaws ya know."

“What…” Ryder said, raising an eyebrow as his mouth opened slightly in disbelief. "How has McDougal not been fined at the very least?!"

 "Hell if I know.” Joseph shrugged, unsure himself of why the mayor put up with the miner’s antics. However, when it was made clear that the colt had trespassed and provoked, he felt it had been justice served. “Anyway, I believe that we have gotten off track a tad, so why do you want to be my Deputy?"

“Thought you’d never ask,” Ryder said, cracking a smile as he straightened his posture. "Despite only bein’ here for a few days, I've grown quite attached to the people here. I love the tight knit community y'all have and I love how diverse it is here. You don't take any shit from the humans that come here and try to stir up conflict, then you end any potential scuffle that may occur before it has a chance to start. From what I've seen with you, you're an honest hard workin’ stallion, with a beautiful mare back home."

“Using flattery to win me over are ya?” Joseph started making a sound that was a chuckle mixed with a neigh, impressed by Ryder’s tactics. “I'm gonna say now, it's working. But should a conflict arise, can I trust you to help defend Sagiville?"

“Yessir,” Ryder nodded, firing off a salute with his left hand while his right rested on his holster. "I am willin’ to do what must be done to help defend the town."

“Oh really?” Joseph asked, staring at Ryder dead in his eyes as his facial expression and tone turned serious. "Even if that means taking a life?"

"If there is no other option, I will." Ryder  said solemnly, his eyes taking on a tint of sadness. "Killing should only be used as a last resort, but if it means protectin' the civilians, I won't hesitate to fire a kill shot."

"Glad to see that me and you have the same line of thinking, that will make things a lot easier." Joseph said, opening a drawer in his desk and pulling out a shiny silver star. "By the authority that was invested in me by Mayor Mary, consider yourself deputized to protect this town and its citizens. Should anything bad happen to me, you are to take my place as Sheriff to continue on in my hoofsteps and keep the peace."

"Thank you sir,” Ryder took the oath to heart, knowing that he had a great responsibility to not only keep the civilians safe, but also Joseph as well. It steeled his resolve
knowing the task at hand, and after spending the last few hours seeing applicant after applicant being turned down he knew that he was the only hope the town had at having a Deputy. “I will not let you down, I swear on my life."

"That I am certain of,” Joseph chuckled, being relaxed for the first time since lunch. “Say, just out of curiosity, would you like to join me and my wife for dinner tonight?"

"I would be honored sir," Ryder said, dipping into a slight bow of appreciation at the act of kindness. “You don’t have to do that just because I signed on to be your Deputy, how am I repaying you and the missus?”

“Backin’ me up to keep my hide alive seems like a good ‘nough payment.” With business settled, Joseph took the opportunity to get up and stretch, a few light pops occurring as he did. Ryder, to his credit, could not help but chuckle at the answer, laughing to the point the wall was the only thing keeping him upright. "Glad that got a rise outta ya, please come to the Saloon about fifteen minutes after it closes and we can have a nice little chat. We normally close for the night 'round ten, if that isn't too late that is."

"Kind of is sadly," Ryder said, sighing as he looked out the open door, a few kids running by playing a game of tag before zipping into the bookstore. "I try to be in bed by nine, at the latest, so I keep my sleep schedule in check. 'Course, I make exceptions for duty and if I need to do a special patrol, but otherwise I don't intend to deliberately stay up late."

"I see," Joseph mused, scratching his chin in thought as he thought over alternatives. With Ryder now his Deputy, he wanted to make sure that everyone in town knew it, something he made a quick note of to do the next day. However, he also knew that the Saloon was normally packed in the evenings, which made a few gears click in his head. "Well, in respect to your schedule, meet us there round seven, that is when it is at it's busiest and I can introduce you to most of the town then. Two birds, one bullet, does that sound more acceptable?"

"Yeah it does boss," Ryder nodded, heading for the door. "Well, I better go get ready then. Seeing as how Ah'm now your Deputy, reckon I go get a room at the inn and take a bath to look presentable."

"You kiddin'? Joseph snickered, giving Ryder a friendly slap on the back as they exited the building, shutting the door behind them. "I'm sure most of the ladies will swoon over ya at one point or another, but enough talk for now. While you go do your thing, in the meantime, I've got to take the job posting down. See you tonight."

"Looking forward to it." Ryder said, giving a friendly wave as the two went their separate ways. Glancing around, he saw a few of the townsfolk looking at him, talking in hushed whispers below his hearing range. There was no doubt in his mind what they were probably gossiping about, which he was fine with, and it brought a smile to his face when a young lynx child stopped to tip her cowgirl hat at him before scamper it off towards the school. "Looking forward to it indeed…"