Scrivenings of the King-Beyond-The-Wall

Western World #26

The sun dipped below the horizon, staining the dusty landscape of Rust Town a deep orange. Nestled on a harsh and arid planet, this frontier town was a hodgepodge of wooden saloons, metal shacks, and advanced technology that could do just about everything except control the weather. Yet, despite these capabilities, the town bore the gritty heart of the old West, with outlaws, sheriffs, and standoffs. Only these standoffs involved plasma pistols and body armor.

Sheriff Ada Cole leaned against the frame of the Horsehead Tavern, her laser-revolver holstered at her side. Her gaze swept across the street, watching robotic horses tied to posts whirr quietly as their owners gambled and drank inside. Ada had come from Earth, a planet now mythic in its beauty, to uphold peace in a town where the law was as malleable as the red clay ground.

As night came and stars blinked into existence, some flickering as ships passed by. Ada's peace was interrupted by the clatter of approaching footsteps. She straightened as a figure emerged from the dimming light, his silhouette edged with the glow of a fading sun.

“Sheriff,” greeted Eli, a young prospector who mined quantum crystals beyond the ridge. “We got a situation out at the mines. Something... unearthly.”

Ada’s eyebrow raised. “Unearthly in the alien sense or the ‘beyond my pay grade’ sense?”

“Might be both,” Eli replied, his face taut with concern.

Minutes later, Ada’s hover bike kicked up a storm of dust as she followed Eli out of town. The sky was now a tapestry of celestial brilliance, galaxies swirling above like the twirling skirts of a cosmic dancer.

Arriving at the mines, Ada dismounted, her boots crunching on gravel. Before them, the mine’s entrance yawned like a portal to another world, bathed in an eerie blue light emanating from within.

“That’s new,” Eli pointed out needlessly.

Inside, the usual gray walls of the mine were veined with glowing blue lines, pulsing gently. Ada touched the wall, feeling a slight vibration under her fingers. The hum of energy felt alive, almost sentient.

“They appeared today,” Eli whispered, his voice bouncing off the mine’s walls. “Dug out a new shaft and found this… glow. Then it spread.”

Ada followed the luminescent veins deeper into the mine until they reached a cavern. Here, the source of the light revealed itself. A crystal, larger than any Ada had seen, pulsed at the cavern's center, its facets throwing light like a sun.

“Never seen anything like it,” Ada muttered, her hand instinctively going to her revolver.

As if in response, the crystal pulsed rapidly, and a holographic image flickered to life above it—a star map, constellations unknown to any earthly astronomer.

“Is that a map?” Eli asked, squinting.

“Looks like it. This isn’t just a power source. It’s information, maybe a message,” Ada said, her mind racing through implications. If this were true, it was the first proof of extraterrestrial intelligence, and it was sitting in a mine under her jurisdiction.

“But why here, why Rust Town?” Eli wondered aloud.

Ada considered this. Rust Town, for all its rough edges and wild lawlessness, was a place of convergence—the old world meeting the new, the past clashing with the future. Maybe, she mused, it was the perfect spot for new beginnings, a gateway not just between eras but between species.

“Maybe because it's a new frontier,” Ada suggested. “Not much different than explorers landing on a new planet. Unclaimed territory.”

They secured the area, Ada making plans to contact higher authorities, knowing this discovery could change everything.

But as the news spread across the cosmos, Rust Town became a focal point not just for scientists and government officials, but for treasure hunters and mercenaries. Within weeks, the town transformed. Temporary camps bloomed like metal flowers. Researchers mingled with adventurers. Bars were as likely to serve quantum physicists as they were drifters.

Through it all, Ada kept vigilant watch over the mine, ensuring the crystal remained undisturbed. Yet, she knew the true challenge lay ahead. With the star map’s origins and purpose still a mystery, factions formed—some believing the crystal should be used to advance technology, others fearing it could lead to catastrophe.

One evening, as tensions neared their peak, a meeting was held in the open expanse outside town, under the blanket of stars and swirling galaxies. Ada stood before the gathered crowd, her voice carrying clear and steady.

“This crystal, this message, it’s not just for one person, or one group. It’s for all of us. We must decide together how to approach it,” she declared.

Debate raged under the stars. Arguments flew, passionate and heated, but Ada moderated, her presence a calming force. Eventually, a consensus was reached—to study the crystal collaboratively, ensuring its secrets would benefit all, not just the highest bidder.


Rust Town grew into a full-fledged city, a central hub of prosperity for the region. And at the heart of it all was the Sheriff who had protected a star’s gift, ensuring that in this corner of the universe, at least, the future was bright and shared.


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(850 words)


Prompt: Write a Western-inspired story in a new genre or setting (e.g. a space western, fantasy western, etc.)