Paco Valdez

You awaken to a piercingly bright beam of sunshine attacking you from the window. Your head pounds so hard you fear it may burst, and Gus hollering your name isn't helping things.

"Get up already, you lout," comes his gruff voice. "Annie's already getting' the horses. Get up and get out there." With that, he spins on heel and walks out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Slowly, you get to your feet, steadying yourself on the nearby bedpost as you rise on weak legs. You're still a little drunk. Riding your horse ought to be a real treat, you muse.

You stumble out of the room, pulling the door closed behind you as you exit. You follow the end of the hall and descend the carpeted staircase, finding yourself in the empty barroom where you drank so much the night before.

Gus and Annie are mounted up and waiting for you in front of the saloon, your horse shifting feet impatiently as you approach. With as much grace as you can muster, you hoist yourself onto Betty's back.

Annie kicks her horse and begins riding off, you and Gus following suit.

The sun beats down on you relentlessly from above, as though the astral entity has some sort of vendetta against you. You mop the sweat from you brow often, taking from the canteen more regularly than typical of your traveling. Gus and Annie seem untouched by the onslaught of heat.

It's probably just that you're a bit hung-over, you realize. The sweat, the body heat, the dehydration; you should have listened to Gus and cut yourself off sooner.

Each gallop of the horse sends a jarring pain through your head and you battle the urge to vomit. The longer you ride, however, the better you get. The headache has dulled to the point of being bearable, and the queasiness has subsided entirely.

It isn't long before the three of you reach the railroad tracks. Gus leads the two of you along the tracks until you come to a more secluded area, massive wild shrubberies lining either side.

"Well," Gus says, "this is probably gonna be the best place to make our stand."

Gus goes over the details of his plan with you and Annie. The plan involves two of you on one side of the train, and one on the other. You and Annie will board the train and take it over as quickly as possible while Gus takes care of the horses.

It's a simple enough plan, really, the only detail that has not yet been determined is which side of the tracks you will be on? You have the option of being on the side with Gus, or alone accross from Gus and Annie.

Which do you decide?
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