Travelers Tales: Arizona In Appleloosa

by Slippin_Sweetie

Canyon Catastrophe

It was nearing sunset when they finally arrived back at the town, the sun sending golden rays through the sky. After settling down in the jail for a moment to rehydrate and speak, Braeburn and the Sheriff agreed it was best not to move til the next day or so, just to prepare a group to go and meet this Sha-buff.

“It’s for the best; we’ll need to rest up and recuperate from that journey earlier anyhow,” Braeburn replied, taking a nice long gulp of water from a canteen. Turning to Arizona, he remarked, “We should also go and tell your Pa; he’d like to know where you’re gonna be runnin’ off to.”

Offering Arizona the canteen, he continued, “We should also consider that these folk might not be the ones causing our issues, so let’s not run in head first with assumptions.”

Arizona scoffed, “What do you mean assume? Those two buffalo told me, and Strongheart that the Sha-buff is looking for a bunch of bulls are workin’ for some bandits! It’s pretty obvious, and why aren’t we leaving now? We got the information now, so we can at least go see if these boys are bad news.”

“Because we just went on a journey to the Buffalo tribes. Do you have any idea how far the journey to the Sha-buff is?” Braeburn replied softly, “And we can’t be jumping to conclusions either. Let’s get some rest, and in the morning, maybe we can round up a few helpin’ hooves and make our way down there. Lil’ Strongheart offered to show us the way.”

“He said north; why do we need a guide!?” sighed Arizona, “Let’s round up the posse now and put an end to the banditry; it only makes sense!” stamped Arizona.

“Arizona, it’s turnin’ dark! We can’t just run out into the desert in the middle of the night without a guide!” Braeburn replied back, “Besides, we still haven’t spoken to your Pa! I’m not leavin’ without his permission.”

She sighed, shaking her head, “Fine, fine. I’ll go home and tell pa about the plan. You go talk to Silverstar.”

Braeburn cocked a brow, unsure how to take her sudden acceptance. Taking another swig from his canteen, he shrugged and nodded. “Alright, I suppose… but don’t you get any funny ideas, got it?”

Arizona huffed, rolling her eyes, “You ain’t gotta worry about nothing; I got it!” she’d quickly gallop toward the outskirts of town where the cattle drive was.

The young heifer relayed the future plan that Braeburn instructed to her father and mother, but a new plan was concocted in her mind’s eye. She’ll catch those bandits herself– she just needed to wait.

It was midnight, Luna’s moon high in the desert sky as the stars spanned across the infinite sea of darkness. Most creatures were deep in slumber, but tonight Arizona rose with the moon like a creature of the night.

Tonight she would have her glory, the adventure of a lifetime, and finally, prove herself to Braeburn and Silverstar. Maybe even put some pep in those lazy ponies’ steps. She had geared up, saddle, munitions, and lasso at the ready. After sneaking out of camp, she now needed to head north which didn’t require any guide, just follow the north star and don’t stop til she found something.

“Now, where do you think you’re headed off to, young lady?” A familiar voice called from the darkness. Stepping out from behind a large rock, the outline of Braeburn’s stetson was unmistakable. “Just a Lil midnight stroll?”

The stallion snickered before shaking his head and lighting a lantern by his side. “Y’all didn’t think I don’t know your type? Yer just like my cousin Applejack, too impatient, always needs to get things done herself.”

“So you’re willin’ to put in the effort to stop me but not the criminals!?” groaned Arizona, “I’m going to put those bandits to justice!”

Arizona sighed, “You’re not stoppin’ me from this!”

“I’m willin’ to put in the effort to make sure you don’t get hurt and I don’t get trampled to death.” Braeburn shot back before snickering. “And I ain’t fixin’ to stop you; I’m here to help. If you’re really this insistent, I don’t suppose I could stop ya, even if I wanted to. But I can’t just let ya go off on yer’ own, now can I?”

“Wait… so you’re not stopping me?” Arizona paused, slowly scratching the back of her head as she sighed, “Well then, let’s just keep walkin’ til we find something.”

“Oh, don’t worry ’bout that; I got help.” He snickered, winking. Out from the same rock trotted Little Strongheart, the young buffalo giving the cow a cocky smile.

“Tryin’ to sneak off, huh? Well, I can’t blame you. Now c’mon, better get moving before it gets too cold.” Little Strongheart smirked.

Arizona narrowed her eyes before huffing, “This is gettin’ out of handle; who else is here!?”

Sheriff Silverstar slowly peered from the other side of the rock.

Arizona sighed, “Let’s go!”

After a long trek through the moonlit night, they could smell burning tinder from a fire. The air was thick with a smoky haze. Silverstar quickly hopped onto his belly as he sifted through the dirt like a snake, following the smell until he reached a fire pit.

The smoking logs and dying embers were all that remained; the sheriff quickly hopped up on his hooves, “This here fire’s been just put out; there are critters nearby.”

“No, really?” Little Strongheart cocked a brow, drawing out the sarcastic quip. “Well, whoever they were, they ran off quick… must have heard us coming. Although it doesn’t look like a buffalo camp, I don’t see a tipi.”

Braeburn trotted around the firepit, looking for any clues in the sand. “Looks like they left their dinner behind.” He poked what looked like a bowl of soup of some sort.

Silverstar rolled his eyes at the buffalo before trotting over to the bowl, quickly stiffing and sampling the dish, “Mhm… mhm… this here is pony food, yup. This is definitely NOT a buffalo camp.”

Arizona lifted her lantern as she examined the few scattered hoofprints that survived the many gusts of wind, “The tracks point northbound.”

“Wonder why they would just drop all their gear though…” mused Silverstar as he rubbed his temple, “You think the Sha-bull is havin’ a meeting?”

Braeburn nodded, “Perhaps, or they were frightened off thinkin’ we were bandits. I wouldn’t blame ’em; it’s a bit odd to go trottin’ through the desert at night. I just hope they don’t get lost.”

“I think they’ll be fine.” Little Strongheart replied, rubbing her chin as she mused. “Well, either way, we’ll catch up to them if we keep up the pace.”

“Well, let’s not stray behind then!” reared Arizona before she galloped after the tracks.

Silverstar sighed as he grumbled, “Kids….”

After a long march deeper into the desert, the posse could see a large canyon in the distance with several fires glowing brightly and a cloud of smog hanging high in the sky.

“Well, if this ain’t a meet-up, you can call me a zonkey’s uncle!” chuckled Silverstar.

“Looks about right.” Little Strongheart craned her neck to look down, recognizing several traditional tipis, some in different colors signifying different tribes, amongst the typical pony tents. “And there sure is Buffalo down there.”

“I reckon this is where the Sha-buff is.” Braeburn cracked a smile, looking around the canyon to find an entrance. “But how in the heck are we gonna get down there without breakin’ our necks?”

“No time for caution, hup!” Arizona quickly hopped over the edge, slamming her hooves on the side of the canyon as she slid down toward a nearby ledge. Looking upward at the posse and gesturing them to follow.

Silverstar sighed, “Let’s try to do that a bit more carefully… Let’s tie our lasso together, Braeburn, and I’ll lower you and Strongheart while I go on the lookout.”

The young buffalo lowered her head and dragged a hoof through the sand. “I ain’t bein’ showin’ up; you two find your own way down!”

Mimicking the bovine, Little Strongheart skidded her way down, trying not to show how frightened she was by the action. Her hooves may have been made for more challenging terrain, but not this.

Reaching the bottom, Strongheart stumbled just barely before landing, wiping her brow triumphantly.

Braeburn traded a look with Silverstar before sighing, “Alright, just… lower me down, and we’ll meet up soon.”

“Strongheart, you’re in charge of Arizona til Braeburn gets down there!” shouted Silverstar.

The older stallion sighed as he sat on the ground, “Alright… let’s tie knots…” he sighed, “Kids… can you believe those two?”

Braeburn chuckled softly, “Ah, I remember what it was like to be that young, full of vigor, needin’ to prove yourself. They’ll mellow out.” Braeburn began to expertly tie knots, pulling out a lasso, readying himself for a plunge.

Little Strongheart gave the bovine a grin before shrugging. “Well, you heard him; I’m in charge. Let’s go and see what we can learn while we wait for Braeburn to get down here.”

“Don’t let your head get full of air because of what that old coot said.” huffed the heifer.

As they crept down the canyon, they could faintly hear the sounds of creatures talking, their voices echoing off the walls of the canyon.

“Oh, noblest of warriors! Rise! Rise for a new dawn, an era of buffalo freedom! For tonight we will go down in history as saviors!” thundered a gruff voice.

“For too long, many of our brothers and sisters have grown content with the pony settlers who occupy our stomping grounds! For too long, they and those who propose co-existence have mocked our ancient traditions and culture!”

“But fear not, my humble flock of ye faithful and true, we will make sure that these settler ponies, these Appleloosans, will be gone, and we will convert and nudge our brother and sister tribes toward the true way of the buffalo!”

Arizona looked over to Strongheart, “He uh… speaking truth to power to yah or something?”

Little Strongheart wrinkled her nose, her ears pinned down to her skull as the words absorbed into her mind. “What… no! I wanted to co-exist all along with the townsfolk, it was just a disagreement, but we got over it! We can go through our traditional stomping grounds now, and in exchange, we get supplies like produce from the orchard. We aren’t mocking tradition, and neither are the ponies!”

At least, to her knowledge.

Arizona quickly muffled Strongheart by covering her mouth with a hoof, “Keep your head on your shoulders! We’re tryin’ to be quiet, now let’s keep listenin’; maybe they’ll talk about robbin’ folks.”

They’d quickly shuffle closer to the voice.

“The Spirits have guided me to you all, demanding that their land be liberated from the clutches of the ponies who reside there, and with the help of our undesirables for allies, we will spark a war.”

“By blowing up the train, my children, do you see? Unlike our pony allies who seek nothing more than tribute, we seek purity and the restoration of the old ways. Where buffalo roam the vast plains unopposed by the machinations of pony technology and pony authority.”

Another voice cut through the esoteric chant, “Hey, could you not call us’ undesirables’? We did get yer dynamite, after all. So will we be gettin’ the loot in the cars once we replace them with explosives, right?”

“Yes! And after that, you will leave our lands and never return!”

“Hey, I don’t give a hoot about no buffalo lands no how; all yer lands are dry as a bone.”

The first voice sighed at the second voice.

“Well, that answers our question.” Little Strongheart tore Arizona’s hoof from her mouth, giving her a dirty look. “So, what do you plan on doing? Yer’ not gonna jump up there and start a fight, are you? ‘Cus we’re kinda surrounded.”

“It’d be best if we just meet up with Braeburn and the Sheriff and tell ’em what we overheard.” The young buffalo whispered.

Arizona pressed her hooves to the sides of her head as she crafted another plan, “We… light the explosives, get Braeburn and the sheriff, then we high-tail it out of here.”

“That way, we get rid of the dynamite and these crazy creatures.”

Little Strongheart’s eyes widened, “Are you crazy? That could kill someone! We’re not gonna endanger lives because they wanna blow up a train! We take the dynamite and high-tail it outta here. Or… or we just leave, have Braeburn send a message to Canterlot!” The young buffalo tried to keep her voice down, attempting to avoid drawing attention.

“I’m no expert in buffalo culture or anything, but it sounds like that guy wants to start a war! We’ll save the lives of every Appleloosan and the neighboring towns if we just get rid of these criminals! Who cares if we blow ’em up!” The heifer fired back.

“And how do you expect us to sneak up to their stash and light it up? Neither of us got any matches, and I doubt they’re leaving it unguarded!” Strongheart hissed, feeling her hackles rise. “Don’t be so bull-headed!”

“Ah, shaddup. Let me think!” She tapped her hooves to her head before smashing a nearby stone with her head, “I got it; these guys are like zealots, right?”

“I guess?” Little Strongheart shrugged, “This is the first time I’m hearing any of this stuff, but it sure sounds like that.”

“Alright, tie me up and say yer one of them and then find the dynamite, and before you say you don’t have a match…” she’d quickly strike her horns against the canyon wall, quickly sending sparks off the wall.

“Eh? Eh? Then we high tail it out of there once you light the dynamite.”

Little Strongheart considered the plan for a second before shaking her head, “Are you insane? I’m the daughter of a Chieftan; I can’t be recognized here! It could bring danger to my tribe! Can’t we just go back and tell the sheriff before we get spotted, or do you have a death wish?!” She seemed appalled that this outsider was so gung-ho to cause mayhem, especially since it could cause injury or even death.

“You do realize they haven’t HURT anyone yet, right? They might be talking about blowing up the train, but they haven’t said anything about killing ponies!”

Arizona groaned, “Read between the lines, Strongheart. How are you gonna get rid of an entire village? Askin’ nicely? They’re obviously gonna blow them up or crush them in a war. I ain’t lettin’ that happen. Besides, I want them to recognize you; if they realize who you are, they’ll trust you more and let us get close to the explosives.”

“I don’t want another war, and I don’t want to bring any more attention to my tribe than we already have by being here!” Strongheart hissed, “Now, they might be planning something, but this gives us the advantage to build up a solid defense! If we go in heads first, we might just get caught, and the town gets destroyed! What will that leave us then?!”

“I guess you’ll just have to wait and find out.” Chuckled a stranger, a pony with a long dark duster coat and thin-brimmed hat trotted over, having overheard their conversation. “Howdy ladies, would you two be real kind and come with me, please?”

Little Strongheart gritted her teeth and traded a look with the bovine before turning around and bucking at the pony, knocking him down before she began to flee through the crowd, not looking back. With her tiny body and long legs, she weaved through the large buffalo and herds of ponies effortlessly.

The pony tumbled over, hissing in pain, “WE GOT AN INTRUDER! C’MON, FELLAS, WE CAN’T HAVE LOOSE ENDS.”

Arizona quickly lassoed the bandit as she swung him around, smashing the pony into buffalo and pony alike, “GET BRAEBURN STRONGHEART, I’LL COVER YAH!”

The calf quickly bucked a pony coming up from behind her, “RUN STRONGHEART, RUN!”

“YOU DON’T NEED TO TELL ME TWICE!” The young buffalo hollered back, putting her head down as she ran past a few dozen tents before being confronted with a roadblock of buffalo in her way. Gritting her teeth, she readied herself as she galloped faster before choosing the right moment to jump.

She soared over the group, leaving them slack-jawed at her speed before she hit the ground and kept running. Nothing could stop her now.

Silverstar could see the mob of torches and overhear the shouting as he slowly lowered Braeburn, gripping the lasso between his teeth. He’d quickly yank Braeburn back, slinging the stallion back atop the canyon.

“Braeburn, I think they were spotted; you gotta slide down the canyon and make sure those girls are okay; I’ll head to town and get reinforcements!”

The stallion groaned, rubbing his head and stomach from the sudden jerk, shaking his head as he regained himself. “Are you crazy? Couldn’tcha just have lowered me down and then go warn the town?”

Braeburn sighed as the sheriff ran off without him, rolling his eyes. Looked like it was up to him. Looking at the canyon, and with what little light he was given by the bonfire and torches, he could see several cliffs he could jump onto to get down. Readying himself and taking a gulp of air, he jumped down on the first with his eyes clenched shut… good so far.

After a few more leaps of faith, the stallion finally landed on the solid earth before, sighing in relief. Now he just needed to find Arizona.

A pony would fly past Braeburn before colliding into a nearby stone, “Ohhhh….”

Arizona was bucking and charging into dozens of ponies like a wild bull, throwing her weight around before snagging a pony with her lasso.

“I’M AT THE END,” she’d quickly smashed the stallion into the ground from left to right, “OF MY,” she dragged the pony across the dry dirt beneath her, quickly knocking the group of thieves to the ground.

“ROPE!” She’d finally slam the bound pony into the dirt burying his upper body into the ground as he helplessly kicked his back legs into the air.

Arizona panted heavily, “Alright… who’s next!?”

Braeburn trotted up, lifting his hooves to not trip over the unconscious bodies of Arizona’s victims. Approaching the young heifer, he gave her a smile.

“Well, you’re pretty good with that, aren’t ya? Seems we got somethin’ in common.” Pulling out his own lasso, he gave it a twirl, making it go faster and faster before wrapping the rope around another pony charging their way, flicking him quickly away.

Arizona smirked as she covered Braeburn’s flank, “Let’s see who can rope knock out the most bandits; the winner gets free breakfast!”

The ground shook beneath them as the thundering hooves of over a dozen buffalo rocked the canyon. Standing ahead of this mass of fur and muscle was a massive bull with a headband full of hawk feathers with the skull of a bull resting on his head.

“Your crusade ends here, outsiders, but do not despair; you have fought well. Surrender now or perish.” threatened the bull.

“The Sha-Bull…” muttered Arizona.

Braeburn gulped, feeling a bead of sweat going down his brow. He couldn’t help but feel the fear weaken his hooves, but he shook his head and regained his resolve, narrowing his brow.

“Arizona, you git to runnin’. I’ll keep ’em distracted for ya.” He turned to look at her, all seriousness in his eyes. His tone was not one to argue with, contrasting with his usually easy-going personality. “If I don’t die here, your Pa certainly will kill me if you get hurt.”

Arizona paused, seeming to process the seriousness of the situation; the cogs in her head began turning as he pupils shrunk. But despite the fear that overtook her for a brief moment, she couldn’t help but smile.

“Nah… pa will kill me if he finds out I snuck off without tellin’ him anyhow, might as well help the Sheriff and Strongheart escape.” sighed Arizona.

“Sorry, Braeburn, looks like you’re stuck with me,” smirked Arizona. She turned to the horde of buffalo, “I guess we’re fightin!”

“Very well, I can respect that you chose death over dishonor…BUFFALO, CHARGE!” roared the Sha-Bull as his buffalo began stampeding toward the two.

The calf quickly turned to Braeburn, “I got an idea.”

Braeburn sighed, shaking his head at the hard-headed calf. “Alright, but it better be good. Otherwise, we’re both gonna be toast.” His voice cracked at the end, his ears flattening down to his head as he stared at his inevitable death.

“Run for it!” The heifer quickly galloped in the opposite direction, screaming loudly.

Braeburn let out a long sigh before taking in a long breath and running in the same direction, screaming his lungs out. He galloped beside her, resorting to keeping his hat between his teeth to avoid losing it in the chase. The two kicked up sand in their wake, leaving the charge in the dust.

Comments

[Comickook]

Again, you did a really good job on the exchanges, characterizations, action and future chapter set-up here. REALLY appreciated Strongheart, Silverstar and Braeburn trying to keep Arizona from doing anything too rash in case they got their information wrong, even if, in this case, it looks like they got it right. Also really liked Arizona showing her assailants she is not exactly easy prey. And, yeah, the encounter with the Sha-Bull is a pretty good cliffhanger.

Very definitely looking forward to more of this.