Chapter 11 Red River

Mark was fighting someone, this man he was fighting looked to be extremely muscular, he also wore a skull on his head. "HA HA HA HA HAHA! IT IS I! THE NEW STRONGEST MAN OF THE WEST! WITH THESE NEW WITCH POWERS I AM UNSTOPPABLE!" It turns out that this man had a huge amount of strength, he looked to be on the same level as the Bounty Hunter Behemoth. This criminal happened to have a bounty worth 50,000$ for destroying towns for no reason. "Man, you guys can get annoying the stronger you get, especially if you get powers from the old woman." The strong criminal looked at Mark who looked to be unimpressed by his strength, which made him angry. "YOU WILL PAY FOR UNDERESTIMATING ME!" The criminal immediately began charging toward Mark, who stood still. Mark then began to point his finger the same way a kid made his hand look like a gun, he then smiled as the tip of his finger began to start creating static. 'Alright, just like Sam taught me.' The criminal kept running like a Rhino attacking his prey. "YOU'RE DEAD!" Just before Mark could make his move, a man appeared directly in front of the criminal with his fingers in a similar way to Mark's, except instead of being at a distance he was directly in front of the criminal. The man proceeded to touch his pointer finger directly into the chest of the criminal, which didn't pierce through or anything, but as soon as that finger touched, the criminal froze like something had hit him and he fell to the ground, knocked out. "HEY! I HAD HIM!" The man who defeated the criminal was silent, he wore the same clothes as the First Sheriff, except he didn't have the badge or the hat yet. The man turned around with a smile on his face. "Yeah right, I taught you that you should only use that if the enemy is tired enough so that he would be an easier target, the attack takes too long to charge, and eventually he would have slammed into you before you could use it." Mark looked annoyed, but he decided he couldn't stay mad at his comrade. "Sam, I can't stay mad at you. Thanks for saving my life." Sam looked disappointed at first but grew a smile as soon as Mark said that. "Yeah, since I'm the one who helps you out most of the time." The both of them started laughing like old friends, mainly because they were.

The two were in Red River, Sam had been dragging a sled with a tied-up criminal on it, he looked back at the criminal and thought to himself. 'Is this wrong?' They proceeded to bring the criminal into a bar and handed him to a bartender. The bartender had a handlebar mustache, a normal bartender outfit, black spikey hair, and always had a suspicious-looking grin on his face. "50,000? Alright, I've got your money from the big boss." The Bartender slammed a bag of what sounded like gold on the bar, which Mark took. "Now you gents be on your way unless you wanna take a look at the board." He pointed toward a bulletin board with many WANTED posters. Which Mark and Sam walked to. "Thanks, Dug." The Bartender said nothing as Sam thanked him. They looked at the bounties, there were at least 40 bounties on the board, with names like Lone Stranger, Frowne the Jester, Ghost, The Headless Horseman, and the last name that caught the eye of Mark, Billy the Kid. "I ain't crazy enough to go after Billy The Kid," Mark remarked. "I don't even think I'm that brave." They both chuckled a bit. "Alright, I think we're done for the day Sam, let's head out." Sam agreed, and they both walked out of the bar. Little did they know, a muscular man whose face was hidden in the shadows was enjoying a drink and listening to their entire conversation. The man in the shadows pulled out a WANTED poster to confirm the suspicion he had. 'Sam No last name aka the Blue Terror, WANTED ALIVE, Bounty: 1,000,000$.' He then gave a smug look, like he was about to try something crazy. "They call him the untouchable, but I'm about to be the first to touch him."

Meanwhile, Sam and Mark had been sitting on a fence that surrounded Red River, while many noises could be heard in the background like glasses smashing, gunshots, explosions, laughing, and just really bad shit. "We're a great team Sam, I thank fate that has brought us together. Now we're one of the most feared bounty hunting duos in the west, not even the government would challenge us." Sam was silent for a second, he just looked at the ground and thought about being a bounty hunter. "Mark, have you ever thought that there is more to life than Bounty Hunting?" Mark stopped smiling and started looking at Sam like he is a crazy person. "What do ya mean?" Sam went on. "Well, this world is a bit broken, if you haven't already noticed." Mark agreed, the government was absolutely disgusting. "I'm not gonna say you're wrong. But look at it like this, the government brought this upon themselves! They don't help those that need help! They execute people because of stupid things! Just to stay in power! I think it's fair to say that in order to survive in this world, we need to be as bad as the government." Sam didn't agree with that statement but kept that to himself. "What if we lived in a world with a stable government, we wouldn't have to capture people or take lives. We could fix the world-" Mark stopped him there, he looked angry. "You're talking crazy Sam. That could never happen, this world is already broken enough and just like I said the only way to survive in a world with monsters is to become a monster yourself." Sam stopped speaking, he clearly could see that Mark didn't agree and wouldn't listen to what he was saying, he then gave a fake smile. "Alright, you're right. I was speaking out of terms, I'm sorry. Friends?" He held out his hand, Mark looked at it and gave a smile of his own. "Friends." They then took hands, while smiling at each other.

In the Future

It had been a thunderstorm with lots of rain, both Mark and Sam were in the middle of what looked to be the middle of a town. Both of them stare at each other with nothing but anger, as if they were about to kill each other. "Please Mark, I don't want to fight you. You're my friend." Mark said nothing, he just looked angry. "You mean we were friends, you asshole!" Mark then took out his hunting knife. "IF YOU'RE NOT GONNA JOIN ME! THEN I'LL KILL YOU MYSELF AND TAKE THAT BOUNTY!" Mark then rushed toward Sam who proceeded to make the gun hand sign and made the tip of his finger have a bit of a static, he also proceeded to charge toward Mark. 'Fine, I'll fight you. But I won't like it." They both charged at each other, looking as if they were going to fight.

Present Day

Mark had been walking with Gabe and Leroy by his side, they were close by to Red River and Gabe was as excited as ever. "What is it like in Red River? Is it fun?" Mark looked unenthusiastic. "Yeah, sure. It's a land with lots of Bounty Hunters who typically want nothing more than money and fame." Leroy said very cockily, but little did Mark and Gabe know, he was still shaken up about his arm. Even though Leroy's arm was healed and didn't look burnt, it still looked like a giant scar for an arm. Leroy had also been upset with the information that The Lone Stranger gave him about Renroy, his words echoed through his head. '"One minute he shot one fire blast out of his hand toward the village, the next minute the village was gone and turned into dust, along with all his inhabitants."' Leroy thought that a power like that would only exist in fairy tales, being able to destroy stuff with ease, and no consequences like being burnt. "Leroy? You alright after what happened?" Leroy didn't want to answer Gabe, but all of a sudden felt the urge to actually do something different for a change. "A little." Gabe was shocked Leroy answered, but decided not to go too much into it as they were near Red River.

After a tiny bit more of walking, they finally made it. They looked at it from a distance, it looked like an ordinary town...At first Gabe was disappointed. "THIS IS RED RIVER!? IT LOOKS LIKE EVERY OTHER TOWN THAT WE'VE GONE TO ON THIS ADVENTURE!" Mark sighed. "That's because it is on the outside, but wait till we get into town." Just then, a smash was heard from the distance that they were. "Woah what was that?!" Mark knew that this was Red River immediately when he heard that noise. "That Gabe is the sound of a town that is filled with bounty hunters and violence." Gabe immediately got so excited that he ran down as fast he could. "Ugh. What an idiot for moving too far ahead…" Leroy thought as he began running after Gabe, Mark then chucked at them for acting like this. 'Energetic kids.'

Gabe ran into town with excitement, but just as he got in the middle of the town, he saw something amazing. A man had been slammed to the side of the house, looking as damaged as ever. "IS THAT ALL YOU GOT? STRONGEST MAN IN THE WEST MY ASS!" The Bounty Hunter Behemoth had been fighting another man that looked to be much bigger than Behemoth was, he proceeded to walk out of the wall like nothing had happened, with no scratches or scars on him. Gabe was amazing by this man, he looked like a god when it came to his muscles, he had a six pack, no shirt on, black pants, black boots, and a belt that looked to have the mount olympus logo on the buckle. The man also had slightly long orange hair that flowed behind the back of his head, he also had a short orange beard on his face. The man looked like he was serious, he didn't look angry or upset, just serious. "WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO!? HUH?" Behemoth yelled with no care in the world, but that was his mistake. "You want me to do something?" The man asked, even though Behemoth wasn't serious. "BRING IT ON OLD MAN!" Behemoth pulled back his fist, only for the man to appear in front of him and uppercut him in the stomach. The uppercut was so powerful that it immediately made Behemoth throw up lots of blood, it also made him go flying and smash into another house. Inside the house, Behemoth was knocked out, completely baffled by what just happened, along with Gabe. The crowd surrounding the man was shocked by this site, they then cheered for him. "IF HE'S NOT A GOD I DON'T KNOW WHAT IS!" Gabe was shocked by this man, he looked to be at least 10 feet tall. As soon as the crowd cleared, the man stood in the middle of town, alone. He proceeded to walk toward the bar of the town and went inside. 'Who was that guy? How was he so strong?' Gabe thought. "Hey! Idiot!" Gabe turned around to see Leroy running toward him. "Leroy. What's up." Leroy looked disappointed. "Why the hell did you run into town? Someone could have recognized you and probably captured you." Gabe laughed. "Nobody would recognize me in this clothing, besides I saw some cool big strong guy who punched another big strong guy so hard that he made him throw up blood." Leroy at first didn't believe Gabe, until he saw the hole that was made from Behemoth falling. Leroy also immediately recognized Behemoth who was knocked out, he then thought to himself. 'Who the hell could be strong enough to one shot behemoth? Unless…' Leroy was now shocked. 'THERE'S NO WAY HE IS HERE!' Leroy needed answers now. "Tell me, what did the guy who punched Behemoth look like?" Gabe thought about it at first. "Wait who's behemoth?" Leroy sighed, he knew Gabe didn't know that, but forgot. "Behemoth is the guy who got smashed into the wall, now who smashed him?" Gabe immediately answered. "It was a big tall guy who wore black pants, black, boots, and he also had a weird symbol on his stomach. It looked like a lightning bolt coming from clouds." As soon as Leroy heard that, his suspicions started to come true. "Last question? What color was his hair?" Gabe smiled. "Orange." Leroy instantly knew his suspicions were correct. "Gabe...you just met the strongest man in the world...Red Hercules…" Gabe was shocked. "RED HERCULES!?" Mark had just shown up, and was shocked. "Alright boys, change of plans. We're going to make you official bounty hunters, and then leave!" Gabe had no idea the man he just witnessed was Red Hercules. "Is he really that strong?!" Leroy turned to him in terror, showing that Leroy was even afraid of him. "Let's just say he didn't get the title of Hercules by accident." Gabe immediately wanted to meet this Red Hercules and ask him how strong he was. "Gabe, where did you see him go?" Gabe pointed at the town Bar. "Alright then, we are going to go inside the Bar, but with a plan to make us not look suspicious. Leroy and Gabe, stick close to me." Just when Mark finished with the plan, he noticed that Gabe was gone and the Bar doors were swinging. 'He went inside a bar with many dangerous bounty hunters...including one of the most dangerous men on the planet….' Leroy and Mark immediately ran in after him.

Red Hercules was drinking at the booth, he looked to be drinking a big jug of whiskey. "Put it on my tab Dug. Like usual." For the most part he was minding his own business, when all of a sudden he noticed a kid sitting next to him who was creepily smiling at him like how a girl would. "Who the hell are ya kid and why are you looking at me that way?" Gabe said nothing, he just smiled. "Alright kid you're starting to creep me out…" Gabe then spoke. "Are you really the strongest man in the world?" Red Hercules gave a cocky smile. "Well kid, you tell me. If ya saw that fight out there, could you tell me if there is anyone you know who could pull something like that off in one punch?" Gabe knew the answer to that question. "No, not even close." That's what Red Hercules thought would be the answer. "Well, that's your opinion kid." Gabe was confused. "What do you mean? Doesn't everyone consider you the strongest?" Red Hercules laughed. "Well, you see, kid. Everyone in the world has their own opinion, whether it be that something is the best, or not. In the end though, an opinion is never right or wrong and is only as right as you make it out to be." Gabe started to understand. "If you think I'm the strongest man in the west then that's fine, but that doesn't mean it's always true." Gabe smiled. "You're smart for a big strong guy like yourself." Red Hercules then smiled. "I like you kid. You're interesting." Red Hercules was so generous that he decided to buy a small shot glass of beer for Gabe. "Aren't I too young for this stuff?" Red Hercules laughed. "Did ya know kid that the first people who came to the west by boat didn't have water on their ship? So the kids had to drink wine. I'm pretty sure you can handle it." Gabe then took a sip of the shot, he then began to cough like he choked on it. "TOO STRONG!" He then fell out of his seat and Red Hercules began to laugh. Gabe then proceeded to get up and act like nothing had happened prior, which made Red Hercules impressed. "I've gotta hand it to ya, you've got guts kid." Both of them smiled at each other, meanwhile Mark and Leroy had been watching their entire interaction and Mark was now relieved. 'Thank goodness they got along, and in some ways I'm not surprised they did. They both have lots in common.' Just as Mark thought that. "HEY! I KNOW YOU'RE HERE AND LISTENING! NOW GET OUT HERE!" Mark was now shocked and afraid. 'Shit.' He then came out of hiding with Leroy, who had been slightly hiding behind Mark. "Well if it isn't the Red Terror himself." Mark walked up to both Gabe and Hercules and sat in the chairs next to Gabe. "So, that kid is with you?" Mark nodded. 'So the rumors were true, The Blue Death is dead.' Red Hercules thought. "It's a shame he isn't here, I would have loved to fight him again after all these years." Gabe was shocked. "YOU FOUGHT THE FIRST SHERIFF!?" Red Hercules wondered who he meant, but then remembered. 'So the rumors were also true that he founded his own town.' Red Hercules smiled. "Yup, he was one of the only people I fought who actually stood a chance against me." Gabe was intrigued. "One day I came across him and asked to fight, if I won then he would gladly come with me to get his bounty, and if I lost he would do what he wanted with me. When we did fight, I couldn't lay a single hit on him, but he wasn't strong enough to actually damage me, so it was an even match, a shield versus a sword." Gabe was engaged to the story, he liked to hear more about the First Sheriff as hearing more gave him more confidence in himself. "Eventually, we had been fighting all day, until the sun was just about to go down. I had been extremely tired, and he hadn't broken a sweat. I then dropped to my knees and admitted defeat, but just then, he said he'd given up as well." Leroy and Gabe were confused, why would he do that? "I asked him why he would give up, since he obviously would have won if he hadn't. He explained to me that there is no shame in defeat, that it will make you stronger." Gabe didn't understand what the First Sheriff meant, at least not now, so he decided to keep listening. "He also said that he would spare my life since he had no reason to kill me or turn him in, and then he walked off into the sunset. I never knew why he didn't do it, but I knew what he meant when he said defeat would make me stronger." Gabe then took the opportunity to ask. "What does it mean?" Red Hercules was silent for a bit, and after a sip of whiskey, he answered. "That is for you to decide yourself. If everything is handed to you in life, you won't be able to manage yourself, so figure that answer out yourself and you will become unstoppable." Gabe stood up on his chair, looking serious as ever. "I promise Mr. Hercules! I will figure it out and become as strong as you!" Red Hercules smiled. "Aim higher kid, have more self confidence." Gabe smiled. "I WILL BECOME STRONGER THAN YOU AND ANY BOUNTY HUNTER THAT EVER LIVED!" Red Hercules kept that smile going. "Good kid, now keep that promise." Red Hercules got up from his chair, dropped a small sack of coins on the booth table, and began to walk out of the bar. "I look forward to meeting you again kid, see ya on the flip side." He then walked out and into the desert. 'He has a lot of confidence, what an interesting kid.' Red Hercules then went into his pocket and took out a WANTED flyer. "I'm coming after ya." On the poster it read one name. 'Billy The Kid.'

"Alright Dug, are there any bounties?" The Bartender immediately looked at Leroy and Gabe, he kept giving off a creepy smile that would haunt every child till the day they died, which creeped Gabe out. "Before anything, I need you to explain who these kids are right now." Mark panicked, he knew that Dug was one of the most untrustworthy people on earth, so instead of lying he decided to give him a half truth. "Well ya see, they are my students. This here is Gabe and the other one is Leroy Suden." Dug peeked out from the back of the booth to see Leroy up close. "That kid is a Suden?" Leroy nodded as if he didn't care about the face, when in reality he was weirded out by the face inside. "Yes, the son of Renroy Suden." Dug didn't look surprised, he just went back behind the booth and began to wipe wet glasses. "Well then. What's the other one's last name?" Mark hesitated, he didn't know what to say, but Gabe on the other hand did speak. "I've never had one sir. Since the day I was brought to this world." Gabe said, looking very glum. Leroy and Mark both looked at Gabe with sympathy, especially Leroy who felt extremely bad for someone to be brought into the world with no parents, no family name, and had to start out life alone. "Well then. Shouldn't you think of one? If you're gonna be a famous bounty hunter one day, you should probably think of a name before you eventually get a nickname." Gabe thought of a name, he couldn't. "Umm...Vochinch?" He just thought of a random word, which made Leroy and Mark confused. "Alright then, Gabe Vochinch. I like it, it's unique and nobody probably has that last name." Leroy and Gabe both registered as Bounty Hunters by giving their names to Dug, to which Dug gave them special cards with their information on them. "Alright then, you'd better be off on your way." Dug kept that same smug look as the group walked toward the Billboard with bounties.

The group looked at the many WANTED posters, Gabe pointed out funny looking people and they laughed a bit at those ones, but Leroy immediately stopped laughing when he saw one poster. 'Renroy Suden, 20,000,000$, WARNING EXTREMELY DANGEROUS.' This angered Leroy even more, he then began to clench his fist. Gabe noticed this and put his hand on Leroy's back. "It's ok buddy, I know you'll beat him one day." Leroy turned around when Gabe did this, he then unclenched his fist and looked at Gabe in a way he never did before. "Let's, just find a bounty and get out of here." For the first time ever, Leroy didn't insult Gabe, he didn't taunt him, he didn't brag about his power, and he didn't resent Gabe's comfort. Leroy just looked at him in a way that gave off a respect vibe, and Gabe loved it. The group then proceeded to look at other bounties, a guy named teleport for 40,000$, a guy named frost for 36,000$, and finally another guy that Mark ripped off and had his eyes on. This person was no bounty hunter, in fact it was just a bounty for the entire purpose of capturing someone. David Ramsey, 100,000$. Mark decided to go after this person, but first he had to ask Gabe and Leroy. "Hey Gabe and Leroy? Wanna help me go after this guy? He's got a high bounty and it turns out he isn't a fighter. Someone just wants him captured." Leroy nodded with a smile and Gabe jumped in excitement. "Let's do it Drunken Master!" Mark smiled. "Alright kid, let's do it!" The 3 walked out of the bar and began to walk out of town. "Drunken Master? Why did we go all the way here? Isn't there bounty flyers in other towns?" Mark smiled. "Well kid, you see I was thinking of camping out nearby from now on, kind of like we live here, except we can't live in town since it is way too dangerous." Leroy was confused about one thing. "But we are still near the town? Wouldn't it also be a risk if we were nearby? Also didn't you think that other bounty hunters would have the same idea?" Mark answered. "Well, you see, kid. My idea was to move to a different spot every night, and no, I've done this for many years and I can safely tell ya that nobody has ever tried this. All other bounty hunters don't have to protect something other than themselves if they have bounties, so they do take the risk of staying in town since they could most likely take care of themselves. If we do it like this, we could go into town as little as possible when it comes to getting bounties, food, water, and other supplies." Leroy thought that he should take this opportunity to get new clothes, since of course he had been toppless since his fight with the Lone Stranger. "Master? May I go buy some new clothes?" Mark thought it would probably be a good idea, so he pointed to the nearest clothes store. "Yay Leroy is getting new clothes like I did!" Mark shushed Gabe since he had been screaming too loud in the middle of town. Leroy then headed for the clothes store and walked inside. The store clerk had been an overweight man who looked similar to the last clothes store who gave Gabe his new clothes. "Good day sir, may I help you?" Leroy said nothing, he just looked around and ignored him. The clerk tried to get his attention again. "Um...do you hear me?" Leroy turned to him. "Yeah I heard you, but I don't want your opinion. I only want my own opinion." The clerk officially decided he didn't like Leroy and let him just do his own thing. The Clerk was also a bit suspicious when he saw the scar on Leroy's arm, but he knew this town was a bounty hunter town so he didn't look too much into it. Leroy looked around and saw many clothes that looked tasteless and what the kids normally wear at his age, at first he saw nothing he liked, he tried to think of the last time he got clothes. From his mother.

Leroy had been a little boy, his mother led him into a small clothes shop. "Hello there young man. Would you like to buy some clothes today?" the Clerk asked, Leroy smiled. "Yes Sir, I would like the best clothes you got." Leroy's mother winked at the Clerk, basically implying that she wants the Clerk to buy what she wants. After Leroy got dressed in a small boys suit to fit inside, he then looked in the mirror. "This looks stupid." Leroy remarked. The Clerk at first thought that Leroy would be a brat the entire time they were fitting, but his mother had other plans. "Well Leroy, you see, that suit looks really handsome on you." Leroy looked back at the suit in the mirror. "I think if you wore that suit, all the girls would go crazy over you." After hearing this one thing, he decided his opinion. "Alright, I like it. We could get it." Leroy's mother smiled. "Thanks Honey, I bet when the entire family comes over for christmas, they will love it." Leroy smiled at his mother, and she smiled back.

Leroy hadn't bought any clothes by himself in years. After his family died, he took it upon himself to dress in what was left from the fire of his old clothes, along with his brother's. He decided that if he were to get clothes, it would be something unique to him, and not something that someone else wore or told him to wear. He then saw something he thought would fit him best.

Gabe and Mark had been buying food in the next door market for the trip, waiting for Leroy. "He's taking forever!" Mark normally wouldn't care how long something takes, mainly because he believes everything eventually happens, but he was getting a bit annoyed now. A door swung open, both Gabe and Mark looked up as the door swung open, only to see Leroy standing at the door. He had been wearing black boots, black pants, a black belt with a silver buckle, a gray shirt, and a black trench coat that looked to be as long as Leroy's ankles. "WOAH!" Gabe admitted Leroy looked awesome. "Let's just be off." Leroy said as he walked past Gabe and Mark. "He looks pretty damn awesome." Mark admitted. "It's made of aquayester, which is a rare clothing material found in the ocean, and it's basically immune to catching fire. Mark thought it was smart for Leroy to think ahead about his fire, and was proud. "Alright then, we've got the food, we've got Leroy a new outfit, I think we should be on our way." Gabe cheered. "ALRIGHT! LET'S GO GET THAT BOUNTY!" Both Leroy and Mark shushed Gabe for being too loud, he apologized and they were on their way to catching David Ramsey.

Meanwhile, the guy named David Ramsey was in a stagecoach, driving in the desert. He looked a bit paranoid, sweating as he looked at his pocket watch. "Can you hurry it up!" He yelled to the driver from outside the window. "I need to get to Springville, now! My boss is expecting me for a meeting!" The stagecoach driver was confused. "And who exactly is your boss? Because I'm pretty sure however mad he gets, he won't scare me." David said nothing at first, as he didn't want to frighten the driver. "If I said who, you really would be afraid." This made the driver confused, but he just kept driving.