Red Dead Revival

by Crimson_Moon

A Gunslinger Without His Gun...(part 1)

After the "Pink Incident" I like to call it, things turned mighty untrustful for me when it came to this...Eccentric town. I feared just about every corner, every alleyway, every colorful balloon and streamer. Now, don't get me wrong, I like parties as much as the next one, but when you run from the law so many times, a birthday party may as well be a death sentence. It sure was a close call when we celebrated my 20th at Dutch's request, that's for Damn sure! Wasn't the Pinkertons that early in our running, but it was a rival gang out to make a name for themselves.

They weren't the brightest, but they were responsible for chasing us towards New Austin... Towards Blackwater...

...Damn Micah. Never left anything alone from day one. I hope he's rotting in hell somewhere. Either that or an unmarked grave.

Anyways, enough about the past. This entry is about the day I got my guns... And my Cutie Mark...

A few days passed at the farmstead, with Arthur learning more and more about homesteading, and incidentally, bulking up a bit to Applejack's demise. The mare couldn't even stand near him without getting all hot and bothered! At some point, you gotta man- er, pony up and tell her you ain't interested. The brown stallion noticed a grin on Granny and Mac's face after Applejack rushed off. Might wanna approach them first. Let them know of my intentions...

Shaking his head, Arthur continued tilling the fields. Almost a week went by and there was still no sign of Bloom. It worried him to no end, but the rest of the Apple family assured him she was just on a field trip and he had nothing to worry about. Suddenly, the dinner bell rang, jolting the stallion, and upon reflex, reached for his gun. Unfortunately all his hoof met was an empty duster still too long for his body. Still, he managed to keep it in good condition for working in, save for the bullet holes. At first he treated them as remnants of his violent past, but the more time he spent here in Equestria, the more they represented healed scars and old memories.

The weekend was approaching and still no sign of Applebloom. Mac and Granny started getting worried at this point. "Y'all seen Bloom?" Arthur called out, turning in the leash he borrowed from Big Mac so he could till some fields. "Is she back yet, I missed her terrib-" Suddenly, he came face to face with that same pony that banished the nightmares from his dreams. He collapsed to the floor, his muzzle white as snow. "No, not her..."

"Hello, Arthur." The midnight blue unicorn with wings spoke. Alicorn is what he heard Big Mac call them. "I believe we have already had the pleasure of meeting. My name is Princess Luna." She held out her hoof, a serene smile on her face, only, he's seen that smile before- It was the same smile Dutch had when he wanted to keep something secret.

Shakily, Arthur steadied himself. "H-how long?"

The Alicorn blinked. "Well, you might not have remembered it, but since a few months ago-"

"NO GODDAMMIT, NOT ME!" He yelled at the top of his lungs, shocking everypony in the room. Sighing, he took a deep breath to calm his nerves. "I already know who y'are. Don't rightly forget someone such as yourself, what with the gargantuan height and the wing and horn combo." He gently pushed her hoof down, saving proper introductions for later. "I'm talking about the kid." He met Luna's eyes, a brief understanding flashing between them.

"...We suspect for a few days now." She sighed. "Our suspicions arose after their teacher, Ms Cheerilee, missed attending Book Night with Twilight Sparkle."

"Makes sense." Mac spoke, Granny Smith nodding alongside.

"Now how does that make sense?!" Arthur exclaimed.

"If you knew our Twilight, you'd know nopony dare miss Book Night." Mac explained.

"Indeed, Twilight Sparkle would tear the world asunder if anypony is even remotely late." The midnight blue Alicorn paused for a moment. "There is one other thing We need to inform you of." She sighed. "It seems, no matter how many times my and mine sister's Guard have scoured Equestria, she is nowhere to be found. It might be best to consider she may have been foalnapped along with her entire class." Silence hung in the room. "I am afraid to admit, We will not be of use any more than we are now..."

"...So what do we do now, Princess?" All eyes turned towards her, the same question ringing through their heads. "Will she be alright?" Applejack asked, finally speaking up.

Luna sighed. "Our sister is much better at this. I'm not used to...comforting Our subjects. We normally are the ones who head into battle, not win the hearts and minds." She looked to the floor, observing it's scratches and wear. "We inflict wounds, not heal them..."

Silence echoed through the house. It was as if it was already mourning Applebloom like she wasn't coming back. It pissed Arthur off to no end.

"Much as I care to admit," the Brown stallion spoke up, stretching out his limbs and straightening himself out. "I'm used to fightin' battles and licking wounds." He tightened the rope around his hat and shook the dirt off his battlescarred duster. "That, and there's one thing I neglected to tell any of y'all about me-" he patted the saddlebags hoisted around himself, the guns rocking inside. "I'm an outlaw from where I come from." Everypony gasped.

Looking himself over at a nearby mirror, a pony looked back. His face was grizzled, with a bit of stubble growing, despite how odd it looked to him. Tired blue eyes stared back at him, and for once in their life, not because of running. Smiling, he looked back at everyone. "Always have been, 'cept when I came here. Bloom is like a daughter to me. She was the first pony I saw when I came here, and I'll be damned if she was the last."

"Luna, right?" Arthur asked the Alicorn. She nodded. "If'n it won't get me in trouble, I'd like to form a posse and gallop out to find her."

"Absolutely not! An entire army of Royal Guardsponies could not find them! What makes you think it would be any different?!" Looking around her at all the faces of desperation, the blue Alicorn relented. "Very well. My resources are at your disposal. Tell us what it is you need."

"No Princess, this ain't how it works. No knights in shining armor, no pockets lined with money. If we do it, we do it my way." Arthur explained. "That means no outside help. You are just there to make sure we don't get arrested."

"Arrested?!" Applejack exclaimed.

"Yeah, arrested!" He bore through her, stomping his hoof in anger. "This kind of job, it relies on us breaking...the...Law. We ain't heroes. We're just ponies tryin' to survive. All we need from her-" he pointed to Luna. "Is amnesty. The rest is gonna be on the gang to handle."

"So, who's going with ya?" Big Mac asked. "Yer in charge, the way I see it."

"It can't be anypony well-known. Which means I can't bring almost half of Ponyville unfortunately, though I do have some ideas..."

"Like who?" Applejack asked, hopeful he'd ask her to come with him.

"Well, before I get started with building my posse, I need just one thing:" he gazed at his saddlebags once more.

"I need my guns."

Author's Note:

Its been building up to this point. The adventure begins after part 2.

My friend decided he had enough of being friends so another thing to add to my growing list of stresses. Yay *cue sarcasm*

Anyways let me know if you like/hate it. Right now, I just need to keep writing to distract myself from the pain of losing a friend.

Comments are optional.

Comments

[Bronycommander]

Love it! Arthur gonna be honorable!

[Gearsmash King]

"Feed people as need feeding, save people as need saving, kill people as need killing." I believe that was what Dutch once said.

[DoomGalPony]

you all can't tell but if you could see my face you would see the murderer is green after he said the last line "I need my guns." best. line. ever.

[IZ_LINKS]

Insert American venom

[Six String]

9722349 Don't forget "Boop pony noses as need boopin'."