Snow falls

Chapter 1: A man and his drink

Snowfall is a town on the southern part of New America. I'll only tell you this story because you bought me this drink but remembering some of the details may be a little rough around the edges. I heard this story from another fella. But no story like this can't start without a stranger in a bar having a drink talking to nobody.

I sauntered into this wooden shack they called a saloon and made sure the bartender filled me up. "A cold one ain't it Blair?" A man I recognised to be Stanley said to me from across the saloon. "Wasn't expecting to find you here!" I retorted. "I've been trying to find this place for ages and this extra snow wasn't helping!" He yelled back. "They don't call it snowfall for nothing," I said to finish it off. I sat down at the bar next to the stranger and looked over at him. He was a thin man of many colours, he wore only black clothes. His poncho covered most of his body but I could catch a glimpse of his black waistcoat with a white undershirt which made him look almost like a banker. The bandana around his face had a grey flower-like pattern that looked almost like two roses intertwining. His black classic cowboy hat concealed the rest of his face. "Must be hard to drink with a bandana on." I mockingly said to him. The saloon went silent, the stranger turned to me slowly and looked at me with a fire in his eyes. "Oh I'm very sorry sir if I did something wrong" I stuttered trying to take back whatever I did wrong. "You should be, it's your lucky day I'm feeling nice" she said back. "Oh, you're a woman?!" I proclaimed as I had never met a woman who wasn't married to some rich banker. That was my last mistake, she whipped out her gun and had it faster to my head than I could even react. "What did you say?" She said sneering at me hate now in full bloom through her words. "I.. I just s s said that your outfit looks quite brooding" I stammered as fast as I could. The silence was tangible for a couple seconds as I sweat profusely. She pocketed her gun, the whole saloon now looking at us sitting at the bar as If it were like some kind of show. "Your quite cowardly for a man of your looks, I'll let you walk another day. But I warn you, make that mistake again and the only word you'll be needing is help." She said before walking out the saloon into the dark and snowy night. The saloon stared at me with as shocked a face as mine and then went back to talking. I finally got over how scared I just was and went to finish my drink. "You don't even have a gun do you?" The bartender asked me. "Nope" I said back as I put my money on the bar and walked out after her into the white night, but she was gone. The saloon was covered in snow on the outside and for as far as the eye could see in the dark night, a couple inches thick. The light coming from it was pleasing and comforting so I went back inside. "Whatcha doin out there? You looking for her? If so you ain't gonna find her!" Another man yelled half drunk from across the room. "Why so old boy?" I yelled back, half-jokingly. He looked me dead in the eye, "because she's the Devils shadow... A force to be reckoned with, unkillable" he stayed ominously. Just as he finished another man spoke up and I turned to him "I saw her fight 5 men in a standoff and won, untouched! If I ever see the devil it was then." Everyone in the bar tipped their heads down and hats lower almost like they were respecting the dead men from those fights. A third and final man barked up "worst part is she isn't alone, she has a partner, dressed in opposite colours who kills without ever being seen" then he slammed his drink on the table and walked out grabbing his coat from the rack before heading into the gloomy night. As I watched him head into the night I felt slightly responsible for the mood now floating around the room. I finished my second drink, payed and left the warm glow of the building. My poncho and waistcoat with my undershirt were keeping me warm as the harsh blizzard storm pounded at my chest. I couldn't see far in front of me and I had to walk about a mile to get to my house out of town, I wasn't gonna make it.