16.
Mr. Smith moved his
legs due to the cold morning air while he looked at the group of Natives
Indians discussed there. He had ridden with Red Horse and then stumbled on a
hunting party. It was all talk and then the scouts were sent out to the other
nearby clans. Within an hour, there were five clans there with their warriors. It
looked like Red Horse held some influence over the Apaches. He saw then call
was made out to the warriors. The paint was passed out for them to draw their
war cries.
The cavalry of the
Apache was moving to battle.
“Mr. Smith, we will
ride now. The clans will assist. We will ride for the Lone Ranger.” Red Horse
did not wait for the reply and mounted the pinto offered to him. Once he was
seated on the bareback of the pinto, Red Horse was no more the elderly man but
the Chieftain of the Apache. Mr. Smith looked at the departing Chieftain
followed by over a hundred young warriors. He mounted his own horse and joined
them. They arrived at the edge of the town and heard the bulge sounds. To the
seasoned warriors, they were familiar with it. It was their call to charge
instead of being charged.
The Apaches tactic for
battle was swift and surprise. The warriors trained from young to ride without
holding the reins and then taught to shoot while riding. The assorted rifles
rang out like the thunder before the lightning. The Apaches were heading for
the main street and were shooting at the uniformed there. The Apaches spread
out with each warrior have a clear field of fire. They rode in hard and soon
were among the army personnel there. Some dismounted and moved in on the close
kill. Mr. Smith saw one of the young Apaches leaped off the horse onto two army
figures. His tomahawk went out and took its kill on the first soldier in the
head before it impacted on the second soldier. He then stood up to tuck the
tomahawk into his waist. He leaned down to pull off the gun belt and slung it
across his chest. He pulled the Navy Colt and cocked it. He trained it at the
nearby shooting uniformed Army and smiled. The gun unfamiliar to his hand had
dropped the shooting man. He trained it on the others and took down two more
before he was host at the left leg. He dropped down on his knees and then
crawled for cover. His enthusiasm with the gun had shadowed his skills. He
aimed the gun at the soldier who shot him but he was shot again in the face.
The Apache fell down on his back with his mind calling for the Great Spirit to
forgive him.
The battle was ongoing
with the more experienced Army personnel from the Union Army. They were trained
in the fight with the Apaches before. They have reacted well with their firings
but the others which were from the other continent had never fought in that
manner. They were shot when they tried to shoot back with their battle tactics
by forming blocks. The battle took a turn then when the explosions were heard
on the trains.
“Secure the trains.”
The command went out but more explosions were heard. The explosives were let
off in series and with each one, more damages appeared. The Napoleon cannons
blown off their metal holds on the planks of the wagon were extracted with force and tossed high. The cannon barrel came apart from the wooden casing and
went separate ways. One cannon barrel was tossed forward like a swinging dagger
and stabbed itself into the side of the shop on the street. The barrel did not
stopped there while it tore with impunity across the shop. It smashed the
furniture and the pillars that held the shop roof up. The trail of the barrel
collapsed the shop to its foundation.
Another barrel was seen
swinging not vertically but horizontally to smash into a group of army
defenders. It rendered wounds that the soldiers had hoped more merciful. The
barrel smashed into the soft flesh of the body and decimated the bones that
once lent structure to the body. The bones broke and with its splinters pierced
the flesh and spurt the blood out from the skin. It was an agonizing death but
such was the fate of one in the path of the bronze projectile. Not only were
the defenders killed by the explosions but also the invading Apaches.
“Yee-Haw!” The apaches
had ridden for the block of defenders. The shots came whining past their ears
and yet some fell from the hail of bullets but the horses they rode galloped
on. Some of the Apaches were killed but the others rode into the Army
formations. Just when the battle tide was going to turn, the new group of
fighters arrived. It was the town folks of the mixed descents which took on the
army there. They have breached the barricades and grabbed the dropped rifles to
shoot. The group of eight surviving warriors slammed into the block of
defenders and the fight then was bitter. It was the drawing of the blood with
the swinging tomahawks or the butt of the rifle. It was not needed to reload
for there was no time to do so. Any item wielded in the hand was a weapon. It
can be the lapel of the shirt to blind the opponent eyes with the strike of the
edge. The Apaches which survived had moved to kill more of the others.
It was the way of the
war.
“Win back our town.” It
was an elderly colored man holding the rifle. The man stopped and raised the
rifle to his shoulder before firing. He must have been a soldier for he shot
with practiced stance and aim. He was joined by the Mexican who was more
familiar with the rifle. They had their back to each other and backed each other.
“Sanchez, you have any
more ammo.” The colored man called out to his partner while he kept the soldier
at the box down.
“I am empty.” Sanchez
ran forward to grab some ammo. It exposed the colored man on the flank and that
was the fatal move when the colored man got shot. The colored man went down
with a bullet in the back. Sanchez rushed over but he was also shot in the
back.
It was a slaughter but
they were there to determine to win back their town,
It was then Mr. Smith
saw the Lone Ranger with his partner heading towards the Main Street. The two
figures looked like legends then with their drawn guns and rifle. He in turn
had drawn his rifle and was shooting at the army personnel. He saw then the
second train pulling off from the other tracks. It was not seen for it was hidden
behind the train workshops. It was a mistake of the Lone Ranger and his
adversary was escaping. The second train was shorter with five carriages and three
wagons. It was the wagons that were feared. Two of the wagons displayed the
Gatling guns that spew death on the town including the Army and the town. There
was no discrimination between allies and foes then. The Apache had seen the new
threat and withdrew with their fast gallops but not the town folks. The
Mexicans, the colored and the whites were all bloodied red with their bodies
riddled with bullets. Mr. Smith prayed for mercy for the dead. He then saw the
Long Ranger who had jumped flat on his face to avoid the spewing bullets. He
crouched up to fire at the shooters but the train was leaving fast.
Tonto who was close
behind was not so lucky for he went down with a bullet in the chest. He aimed with
his rifle and shot at the departing train but it was out of range then. He fell
down to his knees clutching his wound. It was not fatal but the bleeding have
to be stopped. Then the bigger explosions were heard. The shops in the town
were the source of the explosions. The shops were trapped with explosives and
it was triggered. It blew up the wooden structures to smitten. It was a ploy by
Hawkins to destroy the evidence of the town. The surviving defenders of the
town and the army were the ones badly hit by it. The Apaches have withdrawn by
then with half their numbers alive or wounded. There were more explosions and
then silence except for the sound of the wounded and then collapsing
structures. There were not much to be seen for there was smoke everywhere and
ashes from the burning. A single horse was seen galloping away without it rider
but there was concern on look at Mr. Smith face.
The Lone Ranger was not
to be seen and so was Tonto.
Mr. Smith wished then
he had not joined the Pinkerton. He felt useless and such scene was not to be
seen by any man.
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