Jose Solo And The Coronado Mercenary Guild

Chapter One : Cold Desert

                                                         September 27th, 1888 

A Twenty-Three-Year-Old Jose Williams Got Off The Stagecoach And Hesitantly Walked To The House. He Looked Upon The Dying Crops And The Broken-Down Fence Around The House.

As He Arrived At The Porch, An Elderly Man Came Out With A Shotgun Aimed At Jose's Chest As The Old Man Said "I Told You To Stay The Fuck Away From Here!" 

The Young Survivor Said "Good To See You Too, You Old Coot." As The Elderly Man Said "What Are You Doing Here!" Jose Said "This Is My Home...Or Are You Gonna Deny Me Of That Too?" 

The Elderly Man Put His Shotgun Down And Said "You Come Here To...Clear The Wind?" Jose Said "That All Depends On You." 

As He Said "It Wasn't My Fault, Son. I Tried To Save Him...But That Boar Was A Strong Bastard. He...He Was Already Dead By The Time I Got To Him." 

Jose Said "Bullshit, Elmer. Just Like Every Other Time I Heard It. It's The Same Hot Air You Were Spewing Not Twenty Years Ago!" 

Elmer Said "You Still Blame Me, Even After All This Time? Your A Stubborn Bastard, I Thought The Army'd Clear Yer Head...But Obviously I Was Wrong." 

The Young Survivor Said "You And My Father Weren't Friends. You Wanted Him Dead, But Mother Loved Him...And You Didn't Want To Break Her Heart Outright. You Wanna Know What I Believe? I Believe You Killed Him." 

The Old Hunter Said "You Can Blame Me All You Want, For What That Boar Did To Him...But If You Wanna See The Truth, You Got To Be Ready To Move On And Show Some Respect To Your Elders While Yer At It!" 

As The Ex-Army Man Said "I Don't Think I'll Ever Move On. As For Respect Goes...You Can Earn It Like Everyone Else." 

Elmer Said "Then I'm Afraid You Aren't Welcome Here." Suddenly, A Middle-Aged Lady Came Over To Investigate The Commotion When She Said "What's All This Fuss About? Jose? Is That You?" 

A Brief Silence Passed Before Jose Said "Martha, It's Good To See You." Martha Said "Oh It's Been A Long Time, Elmer's Not Ideal Company, Ha Ha." 

The Ex-Army Man Said "I Can Imagine." Martha Said "Well Come In, Come In, I Got A Stew In The Pot And Not Enough Mouths To Feed." Elmer Said "Jose's Not Coming In. Boy's Got No Respect!" 

Martha Said "Oh Elmer! He's Family. Your Blood, If You Don't Let Your Grandson In, I'll Roast Your Pelt And We'll Feast On Ya! And I Told You About That Shit With Demanding Respect!" Elmer Grumbled As He Hesitantly Set His Shotgun Down And Said "Fine." 

They Both Walked Into The House As Martha Helped With Jose's Possessions While Elmer Grumbled Back To His Bedroom. Jose And Martha Sat Down Before She Said "I'm So Glad Your Back. I've Missed You So Much." 

After A Moment Of Silence, Jose Said "Seems Like Your The Only One." Martha Said "Well, Elmer Still Blames Himself For Your Father...It Doesn't Help That Arthur's Out Hunting In Tumbleweed." 

Jose Said "What's He Hunting? Gila Monsters?" Martha Said "Bounties...He's Hunting Bounties." The Ex-Army Man Said "Arthur's Bounty Hunting? He's A Bit Young For That, Ain't He?" 

The Housewife Said "Well, What Else Is A Boy Coming Of Age Going To Do With His Life. He's Having A Hard Time Finding His Feet." Jose Said "Maybe I Can Help Him Find It." 

As Martha Said "Oh, No You Don't Have To." Jose Said "I've Already Lost Family Once. I'll Bring That Boy Back...Maybe Give Him Some Tips On Not To Get Himself Killed Out There." 

A Moment Of Silence Passed Before Martha Said "So What Are You Going To Do, Now That Your Out Of The Army?" Jose Said "I Don't Know...It's Not Like I Have Anywhere To Be. I Figured I Could Try And Broker Peace With Elmer...But I Don't Think That's Happening Anytime Soon." 

The Housewife Said "You Know It Wasn't His Fault For What Happened To Your Father. They May Have Always Been At Each Other's Throats...But That's Just How Family Is Sometimes...They Show Love Differently." 

Jose Said "Even As A Child, It Was Clear To Me That They Did Not Like Each Other At All, Let Alone Show Love. Either Way, I'll Find Out What Happened. If Elmer Did Kill Him, I'll Do What I Have To, But If He Didn't...Then, He'll At The Very Least Treat ME With Some Respect. That Asshole Didn't Fight In Any Wars, He Just Sent Me Off After I Called Him Out For Being An Obnoxious Piece Of Shit!" 

Martha Said "Okay. If That's Where Your Hearts At." As Jose And Martha Continued Catching Up, Elmer Was Eavesdropping On Every Word.