The Mars Cowboy

Part 4: The Sky

He had a thought while standing on the 108th floor's balcony, and gazing up at the sky where the stars swaddled an icy blue planet, wrapped in rings of flaming orange. He thought that the sky was complete, but perhaps more importantly he thought that the sky wouldn’t be as beautiful without that exact amount of stars. Without that exact planet and those rings, and in the day, without that exact sun. He related this thought to himself. He explained to himself that he was not complete, he was missing something, the way an empty sky was missing something. He felt it right between his sternum and his third and fourth rib. A big gaping Something.

They say the Guardian is coming, called out a voice behind him. She spoke distracted. She was focused on the stars too.

The balcony was made out of gray stone squares, and extended about 20 feet from the building. He was at the edge, and she was somewhere behind him, there was no railing. He leaned over the balcony, and a railing materialized under him. He crossed his arms on the new railing. He spit out over the side of the balcony. Who is the Guardian?

Oh she has a name, but I forget it. Names don’t matter.

This city would eat her alive, he said.

Wouldn’t be the first time this city ate a savior. Would it, Cowboy?

They said nothing. He could hear her walk towards the railing. Her steps were accompanied by the sort of swish that said, I paid a lot for this fabric. I’ll tell you what, she said.

What?

She got to the railing and leaned on it, right next to him. She was green, and she wore a long-but-tight navy blue dress. When she leaned on the railing her dress changed from navy to white. He realized with some astonishment that she was Gilea. Unarmed, and unaccompanied, leaning up against his arm.

“Your name matters, Excelsior Tanner, the Mars Cowboy.” she said his name like she was knighting him. “Just because you don’t want it to. It matters.”

He decided he’d kill her.

He turned so that his back was on the rail, and he was facing in. Towards whatever was in the building.

“Do you know your brother is here? In the city? I think you do. He’s a doctor now, just like your parents wanted him to be. Just like they wanted you to be too actually. Do you still carry them with you? Your parents? Do they still matter to you? She moved her head so she could be staring right at him. Would I love to pick your brain.” She let that sentence dance on her tongue, and flashed him a little smile. He flipped his poncho over his shoulder. The lights from the stars projected the shadow of his hat down onto his gun belts, and to the balcony behind them.

“Anyway,” she continued, “I thought you would want to know that I hired some Dogs to kill your brother. I think you already know where he’s staying, she slid a photonic into his gun belt.”

“Why warn me like this?”

“Because I hate you,” she said like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “I’ve got to be going. I’ve got some business to attend to, and… I think you do too. You’ll be seeing me Cowboy. She began walking away. As she walked her dress changed from white to rusty-brown. She stopped. “Don’t shoot me, Cowboy,” she said.

“I’m not from Mars,” he called after her.

“Aren’t you though?” she said. She kept walking, and he didn’t shoot her.

He stood up from the railing, which once more disappeared, leaving the platform extended into the night with nothing to support it.