Moe Jedd" Winterborn Part Five... The First of Seven.

 

Men like Moe Jedd had always learned to trust their gut, when it came down to people, and especially when it came down to following trouble, and what moved below them was trouble of the worst kind. The wind was lashing out at them then, and it felt as though the mountain were alive, blowing its icy cold breath in their faces, driving the snow from the tree limbs creating heavy flurries that would hinder their vision. Still, though, Moe would push them up and along the Grayspeak trail for the better part of two days, being ever so careful to keep a safe distance from their quarry below, as to not alert them to their presence. They would fight them on ground of their own choosing. 

The wind began to pick up in the late afternoon, and the snow flurries intensified coming at them from the east and began to hamper visibility even more than before, forcing the team to take refuge in the thick treeline and underbrush, they chopped down limbs and built a shelter for themselves and their animals just in time to feel the winds increase even more lashing angrily at them, they were forced to shelter in place until the weather the following morning would break, when Moe would venture to the cliffs edge to check on the location of the Seven. They were nowhere to be seen. Moe had the team mount up, the wind had died down enough to push onward, there still wasn't much snow accumulated along the trail so they managed to cover three full miles or so before he brought them to a full stop, his gut was telling him once again that something was wrong. 

He turned in his saddle studying their surroundings, he saw the flash of gray just as an animal leapt out of the treetops taking Matilda out of her saddle, Moe saw it at just the right time and swiveled in his saddle shooting it through the neck, it reeled and turned toward Moe before he put a second shot right through the head causing it to keel over. in turned immediately to ice and crumbled, Mordecai and Scarlet saw to Matilda while Preacher and Moe went to investigate the animal which Moe guessed was a large sized Lynx, he bent down and picked up a large marble like object, it was black as coal. Moe looked up at Preacher.

"These were its eyes, They did this." He slowly rose to his feet, looking over the trail below them. "They know we're following them, we're going to have to keep an eye out."

Matilda's pride was more hurt than she was physically, no cuts, no blood, so no one seemed surprised when she stubbornly refused help when she pulled herself back up into her saddle and slowly pressed onward. The snow continued to blow down from the tree tops creating a foggy haze but still, they followed the path winding its way down toward the lower trail and daylight slowly turned into failing light, just when Moe swung down from his saddle to inspect the trail once again, for whatever reason the snow never covered the tracks, and although he couldn't outwardly tell how old they were he knew in his gut, the Seven were not that far ahead of them. Preacher appeared over his right shoulder.

"I think it might not be as difficult a task as we first assumed, take the head and body will fall, or in this case turn to ice dust. However, they, like their counterparts in the Desolation Sands, they will not make it easy for us Moe." He said.

Moe Jedd turned to face him.

"No, his lessors will surround and try to protect him, We take them out first, and then we take him." He returned his attention to the trail. "Whatever they're looking for Preacher, we can't let them find it." His eyes once again returned to the trail ahead. 

"There was a cave set back in the side of the cliff, above the last turn we took on the trail, we're gonna have to shelter the horses in there and sleep with our backs to the rocks. If they know we're even remotely close, they may take a run at us in the middle of the night. They'll have a go at the horses first." Moe said.

He turned to fully face Preacher, who was now joined by Mordecai, Scarlett and Matilda. 

"Two man watch, for as long as it takes, someone watches the horses, I'll take the cliffs, Scarlett you and Matty fill your bellies and get some sleep, we'll stand watch."

Mordecai scratched his whiskers thoughtfully, his own sharp gaze roaming over the entire party. A slight smile appeared, lighting up his round face.

"I reckon my sleep'll keep Moe Jedd, I'll watch the horses." He said.

The cave in the cliffs was deeper than they thought, and after they led the animals in single file, they found that there was enough room for them to shelter for the night. There were already chopped bits of tree limbs to make a proper fire, which Mordecai would stoke while he kept watch over the horses as the rest of the team rested, they feasted themselves on jerked beef to keep the hunger away and settled in for the nights rest Moe sat at the edge of the cave and stood watch. Nightfall spread quickly and mostly proved uneventful, until the first hints of dawn came creeping throughout the cave.

It came the new morning when three gunshots jolted them from their sleep. Preacher was first to make it to the cave mouth with his weapon drawn followed by Mordecai and both squinted against the early light to see Moe Jedd standing over a fallen figure in the snow both men appeared at his side and were surprised to see the pale icy light blue figure that Moe Jedd had pinned beneath his boot. The right arm was completely shot off as well as its left hand and there was a hole in its side, all without blood. it twitched and squirmed beneath Moe's boot, and it snarled like a wounded animal, its cold dead eyes staring up at them. Moe raised the pistol and pointed it at its head, when he squeezed off a round, just like the sand harvesters, it exploded violently, its body immediately turning to an icy crystal like powder. Moe looked at Moredcai and then Preacher.

"Now there's only Six." He said solemnly.

~Scratch.. A.B.T. Copyright © 2024~

 

Moe Jedd... Part Four: Onto The Grayspeak Trail.

 

She sat down and removed her tall flat brimmed hat, resting it on the table, followed by her long black coat, she was adorned in a black cotton blouse and trousers with knee-high riding boots and strapped with one navy colt hanging on each hip.  Moe took notice of her immediately, she had long flaming red hair that fell well past her shoulders, electric blue eyes that seemed to take in everything all at once, was tall, fit and seemed to brim with a confidence usually not found in a woman of the time. It stuck him that perhaps they were looking at the mysterious tracker that had been following the seven, but it wasn't until she rose from the chair and approached their table that his suspicions were confirmed.

"You Moe Jedd?" She asked.

He nodded to the affirmative.

"The same Moe Jedd that hunted the harvesters across the Desolation Sands beneath Flaggs Peak, and rode with a man called Preacher?"

He leaned back in his chair and eyed her carefully and again nodded.

"You ever come across a cavalry captain named Alexander Grimm?" She asked.

"Rode scout with the 6th cavalry, That Captain Grimm?"

she nodded.

"He was my father, Preacher is my uncle, may I sit with you?"

He nodded to an empty chair.

"My name is Scarlett Grimm, these things that you've been tracking, they first showed up on the Oregon trail three weeks ago. Preacher came across them after you and he separated in Vertigo Washington, He showed up at Fort Walling and tried to warn my father, they led a detachment to investigate near Tardswood the Seven killed the whole lot of them, including my father, only then they had another on their tail, he was just like them, when I caught up with them, I found Preacher wounded but alive, took him to the nearest doctor, he gave me a direction and told me he would catch up when he was well enough."

Moe sat up straight, now interested.

"Preacher is here?" Moe asked.

"He was behind me, at least four days back, that's who I thought you might be until I saw the three of you ride into Dryhorn, I believe, the Seven are headed to a place called Northwind bay, on the other side of the mountains, Preacher says they're looking for a particular soul, lost, someone who came to earth ahead of them.  Preacher thinks they're hunting for dark souls, like the harvesters you and him killed in the Desolation Sands. and I think he's right about them being Harvesters. I took out the one that was riding at the rear of their column with a headshot, dropped him instantly. I got close a couple of times, but never caught up with the other seven."

Mordecai sat up straight, and cast a concerned looked at Moe Jedd and then at Scarlett.

"Northwind Bay is a coastal city, why would they be heading there?" He asked.

Moe Jedd had the waitress bring a bottle of whiskey, and he considered Mordecai's question carefully as he poured them all a glass. His eyes slowly raised to me, Mordecai's.

"Because maybe the one soul they're looking for isn't here, maybe they need to look somewhere else."

Scarlett offered her own theory.

"Well, unless they head due north after they reach the coast, they're going to run out of land. Fort Ashford is due north of there, maybe they are headed there." She said.

Moe raised the whiskey glass to his lips and took a drink.

"Maybe what they're looking for is across the water, maybe they're going to Northwind Bay to get a boat." He said.

The hostess brought them a pot of lamb stew and bread with an extra bowl for Scarlett at Moe's request, they dined in mostly silence, each lost in their own thoughts, none of them noticing the lone figure on horseback passing by the large bay window in the street outside. They finished their meal and Moe paid the hostess. As they stepped out into the street, a strange fog seemed to roll in, and it carried with it an eerie cold, The kind that could freeze a man to the bone, and make him forget who he was. Down the wooden plank sidewalk, the door of the Jacob Fander's trading post swung open, and a lone figure stepped out and loaded down with some supplies and began to load them into the saddlebags of an appaloosa tethered in front of the trading post. Moe smiled at the sight of the animal, as he walked up behind the lone figure.

"You're a bit far from home, ain't you, stranger?" He asked.

Preacher turned on his heels as he heard that familiar voice, the two old friends shook hands, and Moe filled him in on everything that they knew about The Seven, in which direction they were headed, and then Preacher agreed to ride with them as they picked up the trail. Mordecai knew of a way they could close distance on the seven quickly, if they went through a path along the Grayspeak trail where the towering trees kept the snow from socking in the trail leading through the thick woodlands. As they followed the winding trail, they quickly put Dryhorn behind them, moving cautiously, single file onto the path, they could gain ground quickly. They turned due north, the snow below the treeline was fairly sparse, everything around them drew quiet, and three hours into the ride, Moe held the team up as he slid down from his animal. There was movement a full two hundred and fifty yards below them. They were above the seven.

~Scratch.. A.B.T. Copyright © 2024~

Moe Jedd... Part Three... Into DryHorn

She had gone back in to the other end of the saloon where she tried to warn the barkeep, when the sudden sound of gunfire in the Wild Rose as they tried to fight back against the seven that drove her to hide in the closet. The fracas was brief however and after the room had fallen into a chilling silence, she had crept over to the door and peered through the small sliver of light in time to see the leader bend down and touch one of them, their skin turned to a frosty shade of death as their eyes slowly faded to black, the female followed behind checking each body before they all left single file. The girl herself, hiding in the closet, seemed to be of no great concern to the seven ominous strangers. Once the last of them left the saloon, she scurried through the open door and hurried to grab a pistol that lye on the floor, still in the first dead cowboy's hand. The smell of gun smoke still in the air told her that he had at least gotten one shot off before he was killed. It didn't even slow them down. 

Then there were two new strangers standing before her, unlike the others these seemed to be worthy of trust, she told them that her name was Matilda Albright, and she was 16 years old. She had lived in the tiny community of Boon her entire life and unlike her parents had one year ago, she never left. They went from one building to another, finding no other signs of life, and instead finding two more bodies at the livery. She had known Ted Childress who owned the trading post, and since there was nobody, it seemed unlikely that he would return, but still there being a chance that he was somewhere nearby hiding until it was safe to come out of hiding, they resupplied their dry goods, ammunition and some oats for their horses, and Moe after consulting with Matilda, since she had at one time worked there, he left the appropriate amount of money on the counter with a note for the goods. They loaded up and rode until the picked up the trail, unknown to them at first, with young Matilda following behind in tow.  

Moe knew as did Mordecai that the girl was following behind them, and knowing the determination of a feisty 16-year-old girl to impose her will, they both decided that given the circumstances, they would pull rein and wait for Matilda to catch up, before continuing on their way.  she finally caught up with them some ten minutes later, ending up riding in between them, however it was not long after when the trail took an unexpected turn. Moe slid out of his saddle and bent down to inspect the fresh tracks, Mordecai soon joined him, he motioned to a row of hemlocks, Moe turned from the trail and followed to a fresh set of tracks trailing behind the seven. Moe stood and returned to his saddlebag removing the spyglass, he scanned the shallow valley below he easily picked up the trail of the seven and the fresh tracks following at a safe distance.

"They're headed north, somebody is following them." Moe said.

"North?" Mordecai asked. "That's moving away from Havenwood, that's in the direction of a small mining camp called Frost Hallow."

Moe turned to face him.

"How many people there?" He asked.

Mordecai scratched his beard thoughtfully.

"Near abandoned, last I heard, maybe five or six people that I know of."

The trail took them up along the sides of the mountains through winding paths where the snow was thinner, below the trail Moe kept an eye on the tracker that was staying above the seven, the way they kept a constant distance from the seven, told Moe that the tracker had been at it for a while, and the way they were staying above them, they decidedly knew exactly the proper distance to maintain from their targets until they were ready to attempt an attack. they were no longer following the seven but rather the tracker following behind, the tracks moved through the snow up the side of the slope until they were directly ahead of Moe, Mordecai and Matilda. They had put six hours between them and Boon, The trail of the seven moved back to the northwest away from the township of Dry horn and up in the direction of Frost Hallow. They needed food, so they took their chances with Dryhorn and decided they would make up ground and ride through at least some of the night.

Dryhorn offered a saloon, a trading post with a dining room, a jail and a livery.  upon arrival, they were surprised to see everyone alive and well, but disturbingly oblivious to the danger that lurked close by. They decided to try the dining hall first to satisfy their hungry bellies.  it was a well maintained two-story building with a hotel and bath house upstairs. the dinning hall was rather large and well-kept. Moe still had a good supply of money and paid the hostess for a nice table where they would sit and dine on fresh lamb stew and root vegetables, with loaves of fresh baked white bread and beans. The tall, striking well armed red-headed woman that entered the dining hall behind them did not go unnoticed, by Moe or Mordecai. The hostess seated her, two tables from Moe and his companions.

~Scratch.. A.B.T. Copyright © 2024~

Moe Jedd... Winterborn Part Two: Book of The Fallen.

 

Northwest Territories…  58 miles, Southeast of Havenwood, November 5th, 1871.

They followed the trail of the strange horseshoe patterns until they rose above and over the crest of Grave's Peak and slowly labored along the downward slope toward the out cropping of buildings in the small valley below. Moe Jedd pulled rein and removed the spyglass from his saddlebag and began to scan the settlement for movement. Nothing moved, nothing stirred, the whole scene looked abandoned, Moe Jedd collapsed the spyglass and returned it to the saddlebag. A growing feeling of uncertainty began to rise up in the pit of his stomach, his eyes carefully scanned the scene below, when he slowly turned in his saddle toward Mordecai P. Lovecraft.

"Nothing's moving, they have a saloon, what looks like a trading post, tack store, a hardware, a gunsmith, a sheriff's office, and a livery. Nobody outside, probably in the saloon." Moe told him. "If they're still alive."

They rode until they reached the edge of the settlement, to where they found a wooden sign half covered in snow that read: "Boon." they rode toward the center of the buildings, both Moe and Mordecai carefully surveying both sides of the street leading to the Wild Rose saloon. nothing moved, and aside from a slight wind lapping at their backs, the entire scene grew eerily silent. They stopped in front of the saloon, both men sliding out of their saddles, and tethering their animals to the hitching post. Both unstrapped their pistols as they cautiously stepped up on the wooden sidewalk and moved toward the open doors of the Wild Rose. There was still nothing but the eerie silence and still nothing moved, it was either that the people had dropped everything and left in a hurry or there wasn't anyone left alive.

Moe stepped up to the doors of the saloon and slowly pushed them open and peered inside, with each step he took, the soft clunking sound of each bootfall echoed through the empty room. He upholstered his pistol as Mordecai entered the room behind him, Moe silently turned to face him, he raised two fingers and quietly motioned to the bar as Mordecai nodded in agreement. He moved up to the counter where several half drank glasses of whiskey lined its length. Mordecai moved around behind the bar while slowly removing his pistol from its holster. Face down, behind the counter lay a still, half frozen dead body, Mordecai carefully moved up beside it and putting the toe of his boot under the side rolled the dead man over on his back. Two opened black eyes stared up at him.

A similar scene awaited Moe behind three tables where playing cards lye strewn across the tops with some poker chips and glasses half full of whiskey. Two bodies lye dead and frozen on the wooden floor, each with black eyes. Off to his right down a short hallway Moe saw a partially open door, he pulled the hammer back and cocked one of the pistols as he carefully approached the door, he slowly pushed it open with the toe of his boot, training the barrel on the floor as it swung open, off in the corner a young girl sat trembling with her own gun drawn in her trembling hands. She stared up at him, the cold breath escaped her lips, Moe slowly raised his empty hand while lowering his pistol. She swallowed hard, her eyes never left him as he slowly, cautiously, stepped forward.

"Easy now, we're not here to hurt you," He said helping her to her feet. 

He walked her back out into the main room, sat her down and poured her a glass of whiskey. Her eyes nervously shifted back and forth between Mordecai and Moe, and then around the room, shaking, she pulled the whiskey glass to her lips and gulped it down before returning for another. she drew in a deep breath, Moe grabbed a warm coat from the back of one of the empty chairs and wrapped it around her shoulders. He set two more glasses across the table from her and filled them both with whiskey, he and Mordecai sat down across from her. Mordecai looked curiously at Moe and then the girl, He had taken notice that she was beautiful, and her long reddish blonde hair softened her looked some, but both men could tell that she had been through a great deal, and had a hard look to her.

"Can you tell us what happened here?"  Mordecai asked softly.

She looked at Moe and then Mordecai, before pouring herself another whiskey.

"They came riding in this morning, there were seven of them, I was standing on the sidewalk when they first rode up, right away I could tell they weren't right." She said.

"What do you mean they weren't right?" Moe asked, curiously leaning forward.

She looked at Moe and then back to the open doors as her hazel eyes narrowed.

"They were all already dead. Least that's how they looked."  She answered.

Mordecai sat upright abruptly, his eyes widened.

"What do you mean they were already dead?" He nervously asked her.

She raised her eyes to meet his stare.

" They're skin was light pale blue, and when the leader walked by me there was a coldness, that seemed to follow him, he looked right at me, his eyes were a strange color, almost a shade of red. They all went in the saloon, they felt dead." She raised the whiskey glass to her lips.

Moe Jedd raised himself up from the chair, slowly he started walking around the room, studying everything in the room carefully. She watched him with growing interest. He walked to the doors and stared out at the falling snow for a time before walking back out to his horse, returning moments later with the small leather-bound book. He sat back down at the table and poured them all another whiskey, he untied the bindings and began leafing through the pages, stopping to read through one passage in particular. Moe slowly closed the book, solemnly staring at the glass of whiskey, both Mordecai and the girl eyed him curiously. He stood once again and began pacing impatiently back and forth, becoming more and more lost in his own thoughts. finally he turned to face them. he returned his attention to the girl.

"And there were seven you say?" Moe asked.

She slowly gave him a nervous nod. Mordecai was now fully aware that something had triggered Moe's alarm.

"I was in a town across the border from BC called Tamnet, something akin to this happened there, only most of the people weren't there save a small church congregation. Maybe four people including the padre were left behind, he was different from the rest, unlike all the rest someone tortured the padre, but not before he wrote a message in his own blood. he wrote: "The fallen have returned, may God help us all." about twenty-five miles later I find what I'm guessing is another member of that congregation, frozen like the others. in his possessions I found this book."

Mordecai sat up straight.

"A bible?"

Moe shook his head.

"No... It's a journal of some type, in it, the writer speaks of seven angels banished by God to hell, for committing sins, against humanity. according to this book, upon arriving in hell the devil sent them back to earth, to find dark souls. I have seen such soul harvesters when I was traveling through the Desolation Sands, we stopped those by shooting for the head. These are different somehow, they're not supposed to thrive in the extreme cold."

Now the girl sat up straight and showed new interest.

"Wait-when the male killed them, the female began checking the bodies, and then they all just left. like-like she was looking for something." She told them.

Moe's eyes narrowed, his stare returned to the door once again, looking out at the snow. 

"They aren't looking for dark souls, they're looking for one in particular."

Then Mordecai rose from his chair, slowly walking up beside Moe Jedd.

"And they won't stop until they find it."  Mordecai said.

Moe turned to face him.

"Or WE stop them."

~Scratch.. A.B.T. Copyright © 2024~

Moe Jedd.. Winterborn... Part one... The Fallen 7.

The air had turned a bitter cold and the ground an icy white, the snow then falling at an alarming rate, grew deeper and deeper, she drew an icy cold breath deep into her lungs, still, her legs tried to steady her in the deepening snow drifts, and though she through force of will, pushed forward, her pace slowed to almost a walk, until finally she staggered forward and fell to her knees. She looked back behind her and through the blinding snow, then could only see one of the seven riders that had been fast on her heels. The leader closed distance as she tried to stand, and young though she was, her legs beneath her now felt old and frail, she had covered too much ground, too fast, the burning in her lungs slowed her breath and her tired legs could no longer support her weight, all she could do was lay there and wait for the inevitable. He was now upon her.

The animal beneath him was quite large, larger than any she'd ever seen in her life. The rider, in appearance, was terrifying. He was quite tall and broad shouldered, with hair of the brightest yellow that fell past his shoulders, his eyes seemed to glow a haunting hue of blue, his skin frosty white gave him the look of death. The animal snorted, and slowed to a stop, the rider studied her carefully, he cocked his head to one side slowly pulling himself to one side, off of the saddle. She tried to crawl away from him, but it was far too late, he stood over her, removing the black leather glove from his right hand, he gently brushed his cold fingers over her cheek, and starting at her feet, she felt her legs begin to stiffen, her skin grew colder than before as she felt the blood in her veins slowly turn to ice and her eyes finally grew still and turned white as the snow. He released his grip and turned to the other six riders coming up behind him. 

He re-mounted and turned in the saddle on his animal to look at the lead rider who had drawn closer, his cold eyes seemed to roam slowly over the scene as the heavy falling snow silently lashed at the cold icy ground. He raised his gaze to meet hers.

"Is it done then?" She asked in a cold raspy tone.

He returned his gaze to the form of the young dead girls frozen body.

"Yes... She is gone... Like... The others... Strip away what isn't needed... Mine the soul... Like.... The others... We... Will move on... There are... Many others... To... feed on here." He hissed.

The other six riders circled the dead girls body and stopped, the female, got off her horse, and knelt down beside of the girl and inspected the body, she returned her eyes to the lead rider who was watching her every move. She slowly stood up.

"There is something to be taken her Gideon, but I fear... She is not the one."

He leaned forward in the saddle.

"Take what you can get... Leave... The Flesh... To... Rot..." 

He turned away and returned to the trail. the rest finished their deed and followed along behind him.

Northwest Territories…  62 miles, Southeast of Havenwood, November 3rd, 1871.

There wasn't much to see nor tell along the way, to speak of, he'd come all the way from the dusty valleys of the Desolation Sands, across raging rivers, and over the highest mountain tops finally dropping down into the old Oregon Trail, which he would follow all the way through British Columbia into the Northwestern Territories, he rode for days and nights on end, until the ground itself had begun to turn white, and the frost had covered his wake. The trees became thicker and the path up into the snow top mountain of Blackmoon rise, a trail of a different type caught his suspicious eyes. He carefully studied the tracks until finally pulling the small leather-bound book from his saddlebag. On the third page was a hand drawn picture of a horse shoe with strange small cross patterns along the whole edge of the shoe.

He prompted the horse forward, following the trail of the odd horse shoe prints in the snow, stopping when he saw the body of the young girl lying still, half covered in snow. Her eyelids were still open as she almost seemed to be staring up at him, her eyes themselves bloodless, lifeless, black as coal.  Moe Jedd's eyes began to study the skies around him, more cloud black, almost as black as the dead girl's eyes he thought, another storm was moving in, and it was looking to be a bad one. He would be needing to find shelter soon. He headed straight up to the mountain side until he reached a series of jutting cliffs reaching straight up toward the sky, he followed the face around a bend in the rocks until he came upon what he was looking for heading west. A small but fairly deep hollowed out area in the cliff face, big enough for his animal and him. 

He was able to gather enough wood in the underbrush of fallen trees to strip down to build a nice fire, killing two hares looking for shelter in the process. He brushed and bedded down the horse, feeding him a small bag of oats hanging from the saddle. The animal went down to his front knees and lye down by Moe, Moe smiled, petting the side of his neck gently.

"Young feller, you've been with me for over a year now, I reckon you've lasted longer than some of my friends. I've been thinking about calling you something other than horse, I reckon Shadow will do. What do you think, handsome boy?" 

He walked back to the fire and turned the roasting hares, when he heard the sound of muffled falling hooves. He pulled the Sharpes from the scabbard and was waiting when the rider rounded the bend. He cocked the rifle when he heard the soft mild pitched southern drawl cursing softly against the falling snow, atop the white speckled stallion sat a round, older fellow with long white hair adorned in furs with a wolves head for a hat. His eyes moved back and forth between the fire and Moe Jedd. 

"Mind if I sit and warm my old bones by your fire, young feller?" He asked.

Moe Jedd replaced the Sharpes back into the scabbard but kept the two army colts handy. He nodded to the other side of the fire, his eyes never leaving him, passing him a skewer of cooked hare.

"Much obliged, pilgrim," he said. "You happen upon a young girl dead in the snow, did you?"

Moe Jedd looked out at the snow.

"Found four more just like her at the bottom of the eastern slope bout five miles out, same trail I followed up here." Moe said. "Same trail I've been following since British Columbia."

"How many folks they bag in B.C.?"

"Seven others."

"Left them lay, did they?"

"Same as these, same black eyes." Moe studied him.

"Didn't seem like she was shot pilgrim, how do you reckon they killed 'em?"

Moe's eyes squinted.

"From the inside out, from the looks of things, the same way all of them died."

Moe's eyes drifted back out to the snow and then back to the old man. 

"You got a name, old timer?"

He looked up from his dinner and smiled slightly.

"Mordecai P. Lovecraft." He said.

Moe extended his hand.

"Moe Jedd."

~Scratch.. A.B.T. Copyright © 2024~

Moe Jedd: Ending... Soul Harvesters.

 

They made their way down along the winding rocky trail being ever so careful as to not kick up a lot of dust, thereby attracting the unwanted attention of the three Harvesters, they were not yet in position to face them on ground of their own choosing. The riders off in the distance were moving slowly to the western Desolation Sands they were closing distance, but it was slow-going, they stayed the paced steadily making up ground until they were on the valley floor directly behind them. once they were out in the open, all that it would take is for one of the Harvesters to turn back in their direction, thus picking up their scent and coming at them head on. only now there were only two, one had trailed off somewhere, the one Moe Jedd was guessing was Slackjaw Hatton, He and Preacher both decided to pull rein behind a small group of Cactus to check their weapons. Moe made sure both army colts were loaded, while Preacher busied himself with reloading his own. They picked up on the trail and paced them to the west until the rider on the left slowed to a stop and began to turn his animal back in their direction.

Moe and Preacher both slowed to a stop studying his movements very carefully soon the other Harvester followed suit and turned to face them, Moe Jedd motioned him back toward the rocks up and behind them, he figured that Slackjaw used a dust cloud for cover to double back and to get in behind them, and if they could get above them, they might have a shot at not only the two in front but if they were lucky enough, they might actually catch Slackjaw trying to out flank them to their right, they broke loose and rode hard and fast back up onto the rocky peak when they moved up over the top of the peak, Moe Jedd leapt from the saddle pulling the sharps free, he mounted the rear sight carefully and then slid in the first cartridge. Preacher loaded his Winchester and watched the rocks off to their right flank to ensure that Slackjaw wouldn't be sneaking up on them. Moe Jedd raised the barrel of the Sharps and waited for the first rider to close within his range. the wind began to pick up and shift to the western direction, but it would be at Moe Jedd's back when the first rider closed to within 500 yards Moe Jedd shot the animal beneath it in the head, it keeled over to the left and quickly turned to dust. One of the Harvester's was now on foot. 

Moe Jedd quickly reloaded the Sharps and returned his attention to the Harvester that was now on foot. He slowly pulled the hammer back on the rifle, he drew in a deep breath through his nose and held it until he had a clear shot. He lined up the sight onto what he thought was the skull of the Harvester. When he squeezed the trigger and saw it fall over backwards, but when it turned to dust, Moe Knew his shot was true. He reloaded and set his sights on the second animal, again controlling his breathing he squeezed the trigger and his next shot tore through the animal's skull, dropping it instantly, the 2nd Harvester tried to hurry up the side of the hill while Moe Jedd hid patiently, watching it from behind cover, when it came within range he abruptly stood and fired both Army colts taking its head off. Slackjaw wherever he was, was now alone. Moe turned to join Preacher he knelt down beside him his eyes carefully studying the landscape, dust billows began to rise behind them as the hellish form of Slackjaw Hatton appeared over the peak to the left with guns blazing, his first shot struck the ground by preachers feet the 2nd went through his shoulder. Moe pulled him behind two large rocks.

"MOE!! JEEEEDDDD! Yooouu Musssst DIE!!"

Moe looked down at Preacher.

"For a dead guy, he sounds kinda angry!"

"Hey Slack! why don't come over here and get me, you piece of rotting shit!" Moe yelled back.

"You... Lefffft... Me... To... Diiieee." He hissed.   

"You shouldn't have tried to rob a bank in a town with twelve deputies... You Dumb sonofabitch!"

He fired four shots at the rocks that Preacher and Moe were using for cover. Moe, pausing to listen, counted Slackjaws footsteps as he drew closer. He came out from behind the side of the rocks where the Harvester was approaching, as he jumped out from behind the rock and surprised, SlackJaw turned toward Moe Jedd and fired early and struck him in the side, Moe didn't break stride and came at him low, he hit him full force and knocking him off of his feet and backwards down the into the rocks. SlackJaw tried to recover, but when he raised his gun, Moe was standing defiantly above him with both colts drawn.  

"The Devil's.... Waiting... for you, Moe." 

"Yeah?"

Moe looked down at him.

"Not so easy to kill a man when he's lookin you in the eye, is it Slack? And that ol Devil that sent you? You tell him to come here and do it himself next time."

Moe fired both Colts and emptied both barrels into SlackJaw Hatton's skull, he stood and watched quietly as the body slowly turned to dust. 

"That was for Cobb, asshole."

After they discovered that both bullets had gone all the way through both of their wounds, Moe Jedd and Preacher Built a small fire in the rocks and took turns cauterizing each other's wounds with fire. They sat with their backs against the rocks and rested as they chewed on the last of some jerky that Moe had left from O'Malleys. After resting, they caught up with their horses who, eating dry desert grass at the bottom of the peak, they both saddled up. Preacher turned to look at him.

"You know Moe Jedd? You're pretty good at killing these damn things." He smiled. 

Moe turned in his saddle to face him.

"Preacher? How many of them damn smelly ol things do you reckon are still out there?"

Preacher thought about it for a moment and shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't rightly know Moe Jedd, Hundreds? Maybe thousands?"

Moe took in a deep breath, and his picked up the reins and looked back over at Preacher.

"Well Preacher... They ain't gonna kill themselves, So I reckon we'd best be getting to it then."

Preacher nodded.

"Reckon so Moe Jedd."

They turned and began to ride to the Northeast, they decided to head back to O'Malleys in Bullwark. They were going to be needing supplies soon... Lots of supplies...  

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Moe Jedd: Part Five... Devil's Forge.

At first, he wasn't certain if Moe had picked up a trail or a scent, but he followed willingly, knowing in the back of his mind that somehow Moe Jedd's tracking skills were as other worldly as the prey that they were tracking. In the short time span that Preacher had known him, Moe Jedd had gained his unwavering confidence. Blood Rock Canyon was now a full five days ride behind them as they followed the trail of the Harvesters across the wide expanse of the Desolation Sands. The wind at their backs had become a constant to them although blowing much softer than the hellscape from before that they had left behind them, when all at once Moe Jedd once again pulled rein on his animal and lowered himself from the saddle. Unsheathing the field glasses, Preacher watched him curiously as he walked up to the peak of the rock and sand hill in front of them, he looked through the glasses slowly panning from left to right until something in the far distance caught his eye. He turned to look up at the lowering sun, and then returned his attention to Preacher.

"We have some bodies ahead of us, not sure who they are though or how many. We should probably go take a look see, and then we'd best be finding cover for tonight, before this wind starts picking up again." He told Preacher.

He pulled himself back up in the saddle and led them down the other side of the rocky peak, they strayed slightly west as Moe drew his attention on where he saw the bodies lying on the desert floor, they rode around a small cluster of barrel cactus through a dried out creek bed and up the side of another hill until they came upon the bodies of three men, both Moe and Preacher got off their horses to inspect the bodies, until something in the distance had caught his eye pulling Preacher's attention some fifty yards away at the base of another group of cacti. The three men had been dead for a few days, their bodies dried out by the baking sun, Moe recognized one as a wanted outlaw named Jedediah Clay his brother Otis lay twenty feet away, the hole in Otis's forehead spoke to him of Slackjaw Hatton's handy work, Slackjaw wasn't much for face to face confrontations, but put a rifle in his hands from long distance and he was deadly accurate. He rose to his feet turning toward Preacher who was walking back toward him, Preacher jerked his thumb in the direction he came from.

"There's one more over there Moe Jedd, only that one's a female."

"Blonde? kinda short?" 

He nodded.

"Yep, Emma Clay, more than likely, these two here are her brothers Jed and Otis, not right sure who that third feller is though. I ain't never seen him before."

For all the bad deeds that the Clay family had left in their wake, Emma Clay was known to be far more bloodthirsty than her two brothers ever could hope to have been. They had cut a bloody trail of death and plunder within a five hundred-mile radius, that is, until they got the attention of the three Hell Harvesters. Moe Jedd took off his hat for a minute wiping the sweat from his forehead, Preacher and he both were surveying the area and sizing up the situation, against Preachers better judgement they decided that there wasn't going to be enough time to bury the bodies before the wind came at them again, so they opted to find shelter in the direction of a small deserted settlement that had a water well behind the buildings that lie at the base of rocky hills that was known as Devils Forge. Moe had been to the broken down deserted settlement of Long Tooth on many occasions and the buildings were still strong enough to withstand a pretty strong wind and there would even be cover for the horses. 

They rode over hills and rocks and found themselves riding into Long Tooth just before the wind picked up and began to whip through the rocky walls of Devil's Forge, they bedded down the horses in the small covered stable beside the largest structure still standing in Long Tooth. They closed the shutters on the outside of the building and went inside to find some wood stacked near a wood stove there was one table and the rest of the room was empty. In the morning Preacher stirred just before dawn, he looked over to find Moe Jedd wasn't sleeping on his blanket, he stepped out the front door the sun still had not yet risen, at the end of the street he could make out a figure walking toward him. At first, he held his breath thinking that perhaps Slackjaw Hatton and his two accomplices had caught up with them, but upon closer inspection the closer they got he could see that it was Moe Jedd, and he was carrying two by animals by their rear legs. He was going to the back of the building to see if there was indeed fresh water in the well, when Moe Jedd stopped him and for the first time Preacher saw him smile.

"Already filled up the trough for the horses and got us a fresh bucket next to the stove. there are some matches next to my bedroll, if you build us a fire in that there wood stove, and I'll clean these two rabbits, and we can have ourselves some breakfast before we get on our way."  

Preacher went back inside and shaved some kindling and lit it in the stove slowly adding wood to build the fire, he retrieved a frying pan from his saddlebag and Moe had a half a jar of lard in his gunnysack attached to his saddlebags, moments later Moe Jedd appeared in the door with the two cleaned rabbits, he gave them to Preacher and went back down to the end of the street to an old barn that still had some things in it that they could use, most notably there was a prairie chicken nest with eggs in it, and in a wooden barrel he found some oats that he scooped into a wooden bucket to carry back for the horses. he fed the oats to the animals and took the eggs back inside to where Preacher fried them with the rabbit. After breakfast, they loaded the rested horses back up and prepared to get back on the trail, the wind once again slowed to a soft breeze that lapped at their backs as they headed out across the rocky passes back out into the Desolation Sands. it wouldn't take Moe long to pick up the trail of the Harvesters.  

The morning part of the ride was slow and tedious the terrain became rocky and treacherous even for seasoned animals such as the ones they were riding, finally just before mid-morning the rocks returned to hard packed sand, much easier terrain for the horses. the morning air still an autumn coolness to it, but the higher the sun rose in the sky the hotter it was going to get so they picked up the pace and made it all the way to the bottom of Ruby Ridge by noon, the area was a steep incline straight up into the rocks the trail itself was still sandy, but they were surrounded on all sides by Cactus, sagebrush, and small patches of dry desert grass. the rocky tops of Ruby Ridge towered above them as they made their way up to the shade. Something tugged at Moe Jedd's mind, once at the top of the ridge he dismounted and grabbed the field glasses case and pulled them from the leather sheath, mindful to stay out of sight in the rocks, he surveyed the valley below them and when he saw the three figures on horse back two miles ahead of them he drew in a deep breath. They had found the Harvesters.   

 

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Moe Jedd: Part Four. Flagg's Peak

On to Flagg's Peak.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 At first glance it looked like a tall pile of rocks sitting in the middle of a small forest of various Cacti, there were organ pipe, saguaro, and cereus surrounding it, it wasn't until they rounded the top of the hill that they saw the small outhouse sitting out by itself that they realized that the structure was indeed man made, and when they saw the strange looking animal sitting alone twenty feet away they knew for certain that there was a Harvester nearby. Preacher rode around the back of the small building while Moe Jedd opted for the more direct approach, he got off the horse and approached the opened front door, when he looked inside he saw a dead body lying on the floor face down, and over in the corner was the Harvester bent over what Moe could only guess was the dead persons belongings. Outside, Preacher wondered to himself while he rode back around to the front of the building how would Moe Jedd react when he saw a live Harvester for the very first time, and as he rounded the corner of the front of the building he could hear the roar of Moe's army colts come to life, the body of the Harvester came flying out the front door turning to dust as it landed. Moe Jedd appeared in the doorway with both colts drawn, the smoke still rolling from the barrels. Moe turned to look at the animal as it walked toward them, he raised the Army colts once again and fired two rounds into it's skull, it slowly keeled to the side and fell to dust. he replaced the colts into his holsters and turned to face Preacher.

"Well, if there was someone living here there has to water nearby, I'm going to go find it, we'll bury that feller inside when I get back, this will give us some shelter for the night, and give the horse a chance to rest." 

He set out to find some water while Preacher unpacked the horse's for the night, once he found the spring some fifty yards away, he went back to the rock cabin where they found some wooden buckets to retrieve water with. They rested through the night with Moe Jedd sleeping off and on keeping an ear out for other Harvesters. They both woke before dawn and returned to the trail before sunrise. The sun began to pull up over the horizon as the sky began to glow gold and red, they came to within six miles of Flaggs Peak when Moe picked up the trail remnants of three different sets of horse tracks headed due west, the tracks were old, Moe figured them to be at least three weeks old, Preacher rode up behind him and dismounted.

"You think it's them Moe Jedd?"

Moe rose to his feet, staring off into the desert.

"These tracks are more than three weeks old, the winds coming out of Dry Gulch should have blown them away by now." Moe said.

Preacher looked down at the tracks.

"So why didn't they?"

"Because the tracks have turned almost glass like." Moe answered.

Moe climbed back up into his saddle and removed the field glasses from their leather case and began to lookout over the sands. there were no signs of movement save for the wind which was beginning to pick up. Moe Jedd put the field glasses back in their case, he turned to Preacher, there was a look of concern on his face. They would have to ride hard and fast across a part of the Desolation Sands called the Narrows, or they were going to get caught in the middle of a severe sandstorm, they pushed their animals almost to the point of dropping dead, when they'd reached the shelter of Blood Rock Canyon the sand was blowing so hard they couldn't see two feet in front of them, they took the animals into a natural rock cave above the creek bed that flowed down from the Timberlines. In the shelter between the narrow canyon walls they were spared from the worst of the sandstorm, the wind was still whipping through, but there wasn't as much sand so it was safe for the horses to drink from the creek. Meanwhile, both Moe and Preacher weren't convinced they were completely alone in the canyon, in fact Moe was more convinced that two riders going full out trying to outrun a Sandstorm had attracted the wrong kind of attention. Moe had his back up against the eastern wall of the cave while Preacher was across from him, both had their weapons drawn.  

The first shot ricocheted off the entrance of the cave, the second grazed preacher in the left thigh, Moe raised the army colts hesitating until the right time his first two shots tore through the chest of the first Harvester the second came walking through the sand and wind like death itself, it was the tallest one Preacher had seen to date, well over six foot tall, the flesh falling off its skull, it's long brown leather coat had blood stains all over it, it's first two shots tore chunks of stone and rock out of the cave wall, undeterred, Moe Jedd's next shot hit it right between the eyes, it reeled backward and let out a blood-curdling shriek, it turned to dust before its body hit the ground. Moe put the neckerchief over the bottom of his face and stepped out of the cave, the first one that he took out was lying on the ground, its body still intact, he turned to face Preacher.

"I only hit it in the chest, you got any rope left?" He shook his head no.

"Well, we're going to have to try something else then."

He gathered sagebrush and dried twigs and made a deathbed on the other side of the creek in a long hole in the side of the canyon wall, he drugged the Harvesters body across the creek and lay it on the dried sagebrush and twigs he lit a match out of the wind and ignited it, within minutes the Harvesters body was engulfed in flames. They watched from across the creek in the mouth of the cave as the blaze slowly turned the body to ash. Preacher's wound turned out to be nothing serious, the shot had barely grazed his thigh, just barely breaking the skin

.

"Do you reckon those two fellers were the ones we're looking for?"

"Naw, their animals left different tracks. Slackjaw and his boys are still out there somewhere. And if we're within five miles of him he'll be on our scent real soon." 

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Moe Jedd: Part Three... Stone Cold Dead.

Stone-cold Trail.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 Although it wasn't rundown, O'Malley's wasn't a fancy saloon either, it was simply well maintained and well stocked with enough whiskey to wet the dry lips of any cowboy or trail bum that would stumble in. O'Malley saw him come through the doors and nodded him to the side of the bar, it was almost as if he was expecting him, Moe obliged the notion and leaned against the bar. O'Malley set up a bottle of whiskey with a glass, he poured Moe Jedd a drink.

"Figured you'd be headed this way, Moe, at least I was hoping that you would."

"Why is that O'Mall?"

"You heard about Cobb, Big John and Kyle getting themselves shot above Flat Nose, no doubt?"

"Yeah, Hetty told me."

"Did she tell you there was a witness?"

Moe Jedd's eye's narrowed.

"No, she left that part out."

"Jeb Coring was up in the rocks above the fresh water spring where they were shot lad, There were three, He was watching them, he saw Cobb, Kyle and the kid all three shot by the same guy, Jeb saw his face, half of it anyway."

"Half of it?"

"Yeah, Well, half of it was falling off of his skull, The other half looked like Slackjaw Hatton."

"Slackjaw's dead O'Mall' I saw him die."

O'Malley's face turned white.

"Kyle plugged him twice, and he didn't even slow down. He IS dead Moe, and them fella's with him too, no doubt, and you? you gotta kill him again. Look Moe, we've lived here our whole lives, we all know what lies between Heaven and Hell, and we all know whatever is in the Desolation Sands ain't of this earth m'boy, and we don't need the devil's kin riding hell all over this land."

Moe didn't answer. O'Mally motioned him toward the back room.

"You're going to be needing a bigger gun, Moe, I've got just the thing."

He pulled out a long rifle and laid it on the table.

"It's a 44-77 Caliber Sharps Buffalo gun, most barrels are 26 inches long, This one's a bit longer, rear sights, single shot cartridge, I got you two boxes of shells and a scabbard, it won't do you much good if you get in close. what kind of Pistols you carrying these days Moe?"

"44 caliber Army colts." He answered. 

"Yeah, those will take a fool's head off up close. And you're gonna have to take his head clean off."

He handed Moe Jedd a Leather case containing a set of field glasses, Moe nodded, He turned and opened the back door and they both walked out stopping at the southwest corner of the building, he turned to Moe Jedd.

"I can put you on their old trail, Moe, but it's probably gone cold by now."  O'Malley said.

Moe Jedd hoisted the Sharps over his shoulder and grabbed the scabbard, attaching it to his saddle. He pulled himself up on the horse, and turned to look down at O'Malley.

"A cold trail ain't gonna be no problem, O'Malley." He said.

"How are you gonna find them?"     

"They're dead O'Mall' all I gotta do is start at the beginning and follow the smell." Moe said.

"Well, They were up at Flaggs peak, and they were said to be heading west, that was what? A month or so ago? you could probably save yourself some time by skirting around the bottom of the western end of the Timberlines and when you come out you'll be coming out at the northwest corner of the Desolations, you should be able to pick up a better trail there. Just head due west from there, get behind them Moe, you don't want to be in front of these three. Godspeed my friend."

"Thank you, O'Malley, you're a good friend. Be seeing you again."

   

He rode along the bottom ridges of the mountains and as it turned out O'Malley had given him sound advice, for a completely different reason. He was still eight miles from the northwest corner of the Desolation Sands when he felt the air turn colder, winter had come early to the upper elevations of  the Timberline's and more than likely if he had taken another overland route he would have frozen to death before breaching the summit. He rode through most of the night, the full moon offering him more than enough light, by the time the sky became slightly paled in color, he found himself once again on the cliffs edge that overlooked the Desolation Sands, as the light slowly spread across the vast desert, soft hues of green and gold began to take shape. It almost looked peaceful, but underneath it all he knew all too well that it was a ruthless unforgiving place, He rested for over an hour in the rocks above the valley before riding down the rocky trail into the Desolation Sands. He had put a full mile behind him as the sun began to rise at his back, in the distance he began to see patches of various cactus appear, he turned along the trail and there against a large rock was a body.

He got off the horse to see if it was someone that he knew. The name carved on the handle of the dusty rifle read property of Buzzard Jim, he had been dead for a while given the stench he had probably baking in the sun for at least three days, what the vultures didn't eat was left to rot. He slowly stood up, his attention now fixed on something in the distance. He could hear a voice softly echoing from across the sand, he pulled himself back up in the saddle and headed in the direction of the voice. It slowly became louder until he could see a figure in the distance cursing out loud. He was of a man of medium build perhaps five foot eight or nine, He wore a long black coat, and he spoke in a raspy thick southern accent. He didn't even hear Moe come up behind him as he busied himself with digging a hole. Off to his left, he saw a pair of boots lying in the dirt. Moe rode up to them, there lying on the ground was a decaying corpse, with straggly brown hair, black clothes and a pair of shiny silver pistols that he didn't recognize strapped to his hips. Moe silently watched him as the man stopped digging and joined him near the corpse.

"Foul smelling beasts aren't they, though?" He asked.

Moe turned to look at the strange new face, his feeling of disgust slowly rising in the pit of his stomach.

"What in the hell is that thing anyway?" Moe asked.

"That my friend is what they call a Harvester, least that's what I call them.  A denizen of Hell, walking this earthly plane, sent directly by the devil himself, to spread death and plague upon this earth. Soul Harvester. But it ain't just any souls that they're after, only the worst of the worst will do."

He turned to face Moe Jedd and extended his hand.

"Oh, do forgive me, I didn't mean to be rude. I am Gabriel Bishop. But you may call me Preacher."

"Preacher?"

"Yes. I once even had my own church not more than twenty miles from this very spot, until a couple of these heathens burnt it to the ground."

He looked Moe Jedd up and down, slowly pulling the gloves from his hands.

"Well then, now you know who I am, so who pray tell are you?" He asked.

"My name is Jedd, Moe Jedd, I believe I'm tracking some of his friends." He said, nodding toward the corpse. 

"How many... Exactly?" 

"I hear tell there's three of em. one of them used to be a saddle buddy of mine. Until he got himself shot dead during a bank robbery gone bad."

"Well now, that could be a problem."

"Why's that?"

"The most I've ever seen in one place is two, three means it's a hunting team, they're looking for someone in particular." Preacher said.

Moe Jedd took a deep breath.

"Well, I reckon that would be me."

"You? Moe Jedd?"

"These three things, killed a friend of mine and some of his friends, right below Flaggs Peak, wrote my name on a rock... in his blood."

"Well now... That's sounds personal. You ever kill one of these things Moe Jedd?"

"Nope, don't reckon I ever even seen one til now." He answered 

"Well, I've been at this for over a year and a half now, and I've killed three dozen or so. You won't find them on the mountains, they don't appear to like the cold much, but the Desolation Sands? They're crawling with them. This here is a big desert, two thousand square miles of rock and sand. Here, help put him in the hole."

Moe Jedd helped Preacher put the body in the hole, Moe found it curious that he had bound the body with arms at its side with rope. They threw it in the hole face down, and Preacher began shoveling dirt back in on top of it.

"What's the idea, you tying the body up?" He asked.

"Well you shoot them in the head, the body turns to dust right away, you shoot them in the chest they don't die right off, unless you shoot them more than once, when they do die, tie the arms to the side bury them, face down, they seem to stay nice and dead that way. The first couple that I killed dug themselves up, and I had to kill them again. Like anything else, it's a learning process."

Preacher finished burying the body and put the shovel across the back of his saddle. Moe Jedd watched him curiously as his mounted the Appaloosa. He started to ride away but stopped and turned in his saddle to face Moe.

"Are you coming then Moe Jedd?" He asked. 

The curious look on his face had not left him since he'd first met the man he now knew as Preacher.

"Where are we going?"

"I think a good place to start as any would be Flaggs Peak."

They turned away from the sun and begun to ride across Desolation Sands, Flaggs Peak was still thirteen miles out. 

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Moe Jedd... Part Two. Bore's Tusk.

Back Jumpers.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It took them a lot longer with Moe, longer than it did with many others, at least. Most of the Harvesters prey were just common scoundrels of the lowest sort and were as easy to find as night and day, but Moe Jedd proved to be craftier and more elusive than most. They would track him across the highest mountains, to the lowest valleys, across the great plains and through the hottest deserts on any continent. Moe Jedd was just cut different, he'd been shot, time and time again, left for dead countless times, and then as though through the will of some dark god he would appear yet again to wreak havoc on all those who dare try him. In spite of his current condition Slackjaw Hatton knew that Moe was not cut from the same cloth as normal men, and when the time would come for him to stand face to face with him Slackjaw knew that he could ride with all hell at his back and Moe Jedd would still find a way to cut him down. Still, he would not relent. He and his minions would follow the trail of Moe Jedd right on through until winter would come.

Thursday, October 28th 1869, 10:00 am.

He rode for five days straight through Desolation Sands, considered by most normal folks a death ride across a literal wasteland. And yet Moe Jedd had done it several times and knew what it took to survive in the unforgiving wilderness. He lived on Barrel Cactus innards, knew where to find water, and cooked and ate lizard and rattlesnake meat, as he rode he kept the sun in front of him, there was a single rider on his heels, Moe wasn't wanted so he took him for a scrounge who was looking for easy prey and when he got within range his aim was to kill Moe and steal his gear. He rode around a crest of rocks and hid his animal, letting the rider close the distance, The scrounge had his rifle drawn when he rose over the rocks, he opened fire and there was no one there. Moe had flanked him to his right and the first shot from his Army colt ripped his belly open and took him clean off his saddle, he landed in the hot sand with a gaping hole in his side, he tried to sit up while trying to hold his guts in, Moe's second shot ripped a second hole in his stomach, he could almost smell the stench of his own fresh gushing blood cooking in the desert sun, Moe's third shot took half of his head off. He calmly walked over to the scrounge's horse and grabbed the reins, it didn't offer resistance, he walked back over to the body leading the horse along, Moe took all the guns and checked his pockets there were a few coins and not much else, He stared down at the now lifeless body of the scrounger.

"See what you did? You went and turned ME into a scrounger. Damn back jumpers." 

He returned to his own animal and tethered the scrounger's to his saddle and headed to a part of rocky peak called Flat rock there was shade and a small fresh water pool there, and a place to build a fire, Moe decided to rest there for the night. He would wipe both animals down with cool water and let them free to drink in the fresh water pool while he went through the scrounger's saddlebags, where he found another bag full of coins a tobacco pouch, some jerky, and a bag of oats that he would feed to the animals.  He decided that the rifle was worth saving, the two Schofield pistols would need some cleaning, but he could more than likely trade them for dried goods, the animal was well-kept so it would be useful. He would trade the guns after a good cleaning at the next trading post, and maybe the horse as well.  He made a fire in the rocks and slept off and on during the night uncontested.  The next morning, he loaded both animals back up and filled two canteens with fresh water. and when he rode out the other side of Desolation Sands he rode up into the higher elevations, before eight o'clock he rounded the upper peak of the Timberline mountains and could see nestled amongst tall pine trees was the tiny dusty mountain settlement of Bore's Tusk. 

There were all in all four buildings, it was just more or less nothing but a place to get a drink maybe shelter and supplies before travelers would press on with their journeys, Bore's Tusk was little more than a saloon, a tack and livery stable a trading post and stage station. There was no sherrif and no law to be had but what they made for themselves. He rode in mid-morning, quickly attracting unwanted stares. Although Moe had been there before, most folks that passed through didn't recognize him. He sat tall in the saddle, his blonde hair was long dirty and shaggy, with the two Army Colts strapped to his hips, Moe Jedd held the appearance of a menacing man, broad shouldered muscular and strong, he was quite the imposing figure. He kept the scrounger's animal in tow and pulled rein in front of Madam's Daiquiris Big Tooth saloon, Moe climbed down from the saddle and tethered both horses to the hitching post. When he came walking through the double swinging doors the older woman behind the bar's face lit up, Hetty Grainger was well-kept with slightly graying black hair, which she kept up in a bun. She was a pretty woman with kind eyes, but the shotgun she kept behind the bar hidden from view allowed her to get nasty whenever the need should arise. 

"Why, as I live and breathe, Moe Jedd." She smiled.

He walked up to the bar and placed three coins on the counter, she pulled a small glass from the shelf along with a half full bottle of Whiskey, she uncorked it and pour him a glass, while eying him curiously.

"I've been hearing things about you, Moe." She said.

"Like what things Hetty?" He asked flatly before taking a drink.

She leaned forward slightly, her voice softly falling into a guarded whisper. her sparkly hazel eyes danced around the room nervously.

"I hear tell, there's some feller's lookin for you Moe, real nasty fellers. Over near Flat Nose I hear, on the other side of the desert. Sherrif of Flat Nose Abe Rosen and three of his deputies found the bodies of Kyle Cole, John Booth and Cobb Farris up in the rocky hills at Flagg's Peak, and there was some young feller riding with them, he got himself expired too. Somebody done wrote your name on a big flat rock in Cobb Farris's blood. Sherrif Rosen figures since you and Cobb used to ride together and all, they would be comin for you next."

Moe Jedd shrugged his shoulders.

"Hell Hetty, I reckon there's always somebody lookin for me, I'll probably be meetin up with them sooner or later, Let em look I ain't hidin nowhere." He finished his whiskey and she poured him another.

"Damn Moe, no offense, but you look like you could use a bath, and a shave too."

"Yep, I've been ridin for a bit, probably got enough trail dust on me to make my own sand dune. I'll be headin over to Henry's tradin post next, maybe get me some dried beans and a chunk of dried bacon. maybe a bar of soap, I got some things to trade, and then I'll be headin up to the Hot Springs near Marmett, I reckon I'll be able to scrounge me up a rabbit or two while I'm there."  

"There's some wild hog up there too this time of year." she added.

He took another shot of whiskey and nodded to Hetty Grainger, and turned to leave when she called to him a last time.

"Moe?"

He turned to face her.

"You reckon them three fellers will come this far north to look for you?" She asked.

"I guess we'll find out together, Hetty."

He went into the trading post and was met at the door by the proprietor Henry Wilcom, who agreed to take the guns and extra horse off of his hands. He traded for some dried beans and rice, lard, salted pork, potatoes and a bar of soap and two clean towels which he would keep rolled up in his bedding along with a change of clothes and a pack of matches. Henry who really liked Moe even gave him a couple dollars extra, due to the extra large size of his saddlebags Moe was able to carry a little bit of everything, He loaded up his supplies and set out for the Marmett hot springs. Marmett was a deserted old mining camp that sat a bit higher up in the Timberline's where the edge of the snow would fall, there were two broken down old buildings up there that nobody used anymore, one of them was good enough to keep the cold nights at bay and it even had a wood stove, a place to sleep and a table. He arrived at Marmutt just before dusk after he unpacked his gear he had just enough light left to gather some water from a nearby stream and enough wood to start a fire in the old stove before he would bed down for the night. Through the night full of thinking about the death of his old friend Cobb Farris and the wonderings about the who's and why's of who would do such a thing and why. His sleep would be slightly troubled. In the morning on his way to the hot springs he found a nest and shot a prairie chicken, he bathed in the hot springs dried himself and changed his clothes before heading back to the mining shack to shave and prepare his breakfast.

By late morning he was dining on fresh prairie chicken, and eggs he collected from the nest, and for the first time in many months, Moe Jedd was starting to once again feel human. As he sat in front of the mining shack his thoughts once again returned to the fate of Cobb Farris, Cobb was smart, he always knew the angles ahead of time, it would take someone special to get up on him the way Hetty said. He would spend two more days and nights in the shack plotting and preparing for his next move. Two days after arriving he packed his provisions and decided that the best idea would be to ride overland across the Timberline's south before the deep snow had a chance at settling in, and then heading due west. If he rode steady he could be at Flagg's peak above Flat Nose in just under a week. And as he rounded  the top of the last peak of the Timberline's He stopped for the night in a hollowed out cave on a lower shelf, started a small fire and allowed his animal to rest, Flaggs Peak was still a day and a half out to the west. Come morning he would take the time to clean both of his weapons, and take stock of his ammunition, deciding that he had a abundant supply, he reloaded both Army Colts before returning to the saddle the next morning and heading west, He would stop one more time between The Timberline's and Flagg's Peak at O'Malley's, a saloon in Bullwark Station another Stagecoach watering hole along the way. He made it and rode in the next day just before high noon.

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