Hero Of The Wild West

by LoneUnicornWriter

Chapter 3: Eyes In The Shadows Of The Kart

Wildflower sat alone on a wooden chair inside Cornflower's now torn down kitchen.

She gazed at the claws marks on the walls and looked back down at her hooves.

"What have I done? I let my only best friend be captured by some strangers I really know nothin' about."

Wildwood slid off from the chair, took up her guitar, which had been laid next to the damaged table, and exited out the house.

"Celestia knows where my friend could be.” Wildwood said. She observed the damaged wooden stairs. She slowly trotted down them.

When she got to the last wooden stair, she looked out at the orange evening skies. The image of her best friend having her eye bleeding out in the grip of the Draconequus made her angry.

Her eyes widened when she remembered looking into his eyes and began to shiver. Wildwood stomped her hoof trying to keep back tears of frustration but couldn’t.

Who are they? Where are they? Wildwood crumpled to the ground and just thought away. “I don’t know where to find ya, but I have to start today, now!” She rose up strong to her hooves and galloped off to the city.

She went through everypony ignoring their questions till she ran into Sheriff Silverstar.

“Sheriff, I need to talk to you."

Sheriff Silverstar turned from his assistants to her.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Ms. Flower. How can I help you?”

"I'm going to find her. Do y'know where they are?"

The two assistants and the sheriff himself gasped.

"You can't find her. She's in the cider gangs hands now. No possibility of getting her ba-"

"Yes. There. Is."

The Sheriff went silent looking into her eyes, which were burning with vengeance and rage.

"I am and I will get her back, you understand me?" Wildwood leaned in closer and the Sheriff fell back on his rump. "Tell me where they are, now.”

"They, umm, they reside in Manehattan. It's said the top members, even the leader himself, lives there."

Wildwood turned towards the station.

"But you can't leave this town! Who will take care of the citizens of Appleloosa? Without your protection, we don't stand a darn chance against them pricks."

Wildwood stopped and looked at the ground. He’s right. Who’s gonna protect the town? Who’s gonna protect the whole West if I’m not here? At that split moment an image of her friend screaming for help entered her mind.
She immediately stomped her hoof and galloped away from the Sheriff and the town. She got to the platform and tears began to fill the corners of her eyelids.

“I must… I must find her,” Wildwood said, resting her loin against the wood wall, sliding to the ground on her rump.

“She’s countin’ on me, and I won’t let her down.”

Wildwood waited in the cold, alone. One of the Sheriff’s assistants caught up to her and handed her a bag of bits.

“The Sheriff said for you to have this in case you’re in need of food or water.”

“But I don’t need this many bits for a night’s trip to Manehattan.”

“A commoner doesn’t need this much at all to get to Manehattan, but knowing a bit of history involving the cider gang the Sheriff could be doin’ ya good by givin’ this much,” the assistant trotted off in the shadows of the station leaving her alone again.

Wildwood dropped the pouch besides her and grabbed her guitar. She shook the guitar and a photo slipped out from within the hole. Wilwood picked up the old photo and placed the guitar on her side to give all her focus to the photo.

Wildwood stared at the photo of two ponies standing over a grassy field with Cornflower, Wild’s friend, holding a hoof around her neck. The more she looked at the photo, the more memory of that day came to her mind.

“Wildwood, hurry up. The stallion here is waitin’ to take the picture.”

“All right, I’m comin’,” Wildwood ran up next to Cornflower. “Make it quick,” she told the stallion taking the picture.

“Alright, smile now,” the photographer was preparing for the shot.

Cornflower quickly wrapped her hoof around the back of Wildwood’s neck. Wild eyed her as they took the picture.

The thundering sounds from the train arriving at the station in the middle of the night shattered her memory. She looked on as the doors of the train opened and found no pony had walked out.

Maybe nopony was awake tonight for the train, she thought taking up her guitar and bag, boarding the train.

Wildwood placed down her guitar next to an empty and neatly made bed that she claimed her own for the night.

“Well that's mighty strange," she watched all around the other beds in the cart. She noticed that all the other beds were unmade which doesn’t happen if there were no passengers on the train.

She trotted two beds down from her bed and looked at a bed that had a big blood stain just below the pillow with big claw marks along the bed.

“What happened…” Wildwood lifted the blinds beyond the bed and found that the window had been broken. She also saw the blood and pieces of clothing on its sharp edges. The wind was passing through strongly, so she let go of the blinds and walked over to the otherside.

But it wasn’t blowing... only until I had pulled the blind did it do so, she thought trotting over to the bed right across from it.

Wildwood came along the side of the bed when she stepped on something smooth and scaly. She looked down to and raised her hoof while watching at the scaly piece of some tail that was on the floor painted in blood. In moments the the piece she saw slid back under the bed and the banging sounds travels to the back of the train car.

It was very dark and Wildwood had a bad feeling something was beyond the darkness. She went back to her bed and grab up her guitar. She then looked on at the darkness the end of the car.

“I know somepony is there, show yourself!” There was no response. “Now,” Wild said.

There was still no response. The train car had remained quiet. Wildwood still kept on looking.

“I know somethin’ is there and if you don’t come on out, you’ll be sorry if I got to use this thing to make you come out.”

A pair eyes green reptilian eyes appeared and glowed out of the darkness.

“Oh, no!” The creature said in mock fear.

“Then show yourself,” Wildwood replied.

“Make me come out.” A large figure came walking from out of the shadows. First, the snout became visible, and then the rest of the creature revealing it to be an alligator. “No no, little pony. Your guitar wouldn’t get me out.”

“Who are you? What do you want?”

“The name’s Strong Jaws, and I want vengeance,” he walked a little closer and glared down at Wildwood with great terror.

“I want to get revenge for my cousin’s death. He was close to me, you know? And you just took away my happiness, well, besides getting and drinking up some good apple cider.

“If boss wasn’t beating the life out of your friend, I wouldn’t have to break your bones in such slow and painful ways. I’ll guess wherever this train is going is going to be a long way. So I’ll just take some time to explain in more detail of what I do as a top member of the ‘Apple Cider Gang’.”

Strong Jaws smirked and continued.

“As a top member, I’m tasked to take out all opposers to the way we do things. In fact, it’s my specialty because I get an extra meal.”

“E-extra meal?” Wildwood’s body began to shiver a little. She didn’t want to think that he could be saying that she was his next meal.

“Yes. I do get starved when there’s not a lot of opposers going around, so I’m just forced to eat those little rats and drink cider. It’s annoying.

“But that’s besides the point of why I’m here,” Jaws grinned, showing his sharp teeth. He charged forward, Wildwood moving back with her guitar to keep the distance.

Jaws made his first swing, but Wild ducked and bucked him back onto a bed. She then galloped into the next car.

“I would fight him, but these cars are too small for a safe swing. Definitely not with all these beds lying around,” she said to herself.

Racing from car to car, Strong Jaws gained speed behind her. She looked back and watched in fear as the alligator snapped his mouth open and shut, revealing his sharp teeth.

“Don’t think you can outrun me for good, missy.”

If I don’t think of something quick, I’ll be his midnight snack! Wild thought.

“Wait, why didn’t you eat the others?” Wildwood stumbled into the front car and slid near the lever, the guitar landing behind her back.

“I don’t eat non opposers. If they are in the way of my target, I just bite their heads off and throw their bodies elsewhere. Not only for sport, but it would do us much better if we didn’t have so many witnesses.”

“Now that’s just cruel of you apple cider drunkards.” Wildwood says, taking up her guitar. Jaws clenches his fist and moves in on her.

Wildwood backed up near the fiery furnace.

“So, hero, ready to die like a sorry sap and end up within the bowels of my “drunkard” mouth?”

Wildwood swiftly swung with her guitar, breaking two sharp teeth out of Jaws’ jaw.

The gator went flying back into the door. He slowly got to his knees and wiped the blood that dripped from his mouth away.

“I’ll take that as a yes.” Jaws growled and charged once more at Wildwood. She was about to prepare for another swing, but Jaws’ tail quickly wrapped around the guitar and pulled it away. “Let’s see how well you do without it.” he taunted.

He went for a punch, but Wildwood ducked down and he went inside the furnace. Jaws yelled out in pain as tumbled backwards, holding his hand out and letting loose of the guitar.

Wild quickly grabbed hold of the instrument and went to deliver the final blow, but Jaws kicked her back into the lever, making the train go faster.

“I may have underestimated you this time, hero. But I promise you that the next time we see each other, I will gladly sink my claws into your flesh. Don’t think you are in any way winning against us. This war is just getting started. Archie!”

A space was broken out from on top the car, revealing a blind unicorn wrapped around in black bandages.

“Yes, Boss?”

“Get me the hell outta here!”

“Sure thing, Boss. Next stop is Trottingham, little mare. Buckle up, because the crash might be a little catastrophic by how fast the train is going now. Ta ta!”

A blinding flash of light took place and both the unicorn and Jaws had disappeared.

Wildwood ran back and tried pulling the lever, but it was jammed.

“Oh no, this can’t be good. What do I do?”

In a sudden moment, the car had become lopsided, and the amazing force had knocked Wildwood out cold.

Author's Note:

Sorry it to so long for this chapter to come out. Just recently had the inspiration to continue it <:) Hopefully the next chapter for this will be soon. <:D

I would also like to give great thanks to Mr. Aleyado and GallopfreySurvivor for editing this chapter. If you liked how this chapter was read please give them the praise for making the chapter read smooth.

Till then, see you guys :)