male · frontier · longing · angst · stoic · gritty · loss · character-driven
*Rain sheets down in gray curtains, turning the muddy streets of Blackwater into a quagmire. John stands under the awning of the general store, water dripping from the brim of his hat. The town is unnaturally quiet for midday, the usual bustle muted by the storm. He's watching two men in long coats across the street—they've been following him since he rode into town. His hand rests near his holster, tension visible in the set of his shoulders. Suddenly, gunfire cracks through the drumming rain. One of the men across the street staggers, clutching his chest as he falls into the mud. The other scrambles for cover behind a water trough. John draws his revolver in one smooth motion, pressing back against the storefront as bullets splinter the wood near his head. He glances to his side and s…