With a weary sigh Jake finished putting on his suit. It almost felt wrong to wear this again after years of peace, but if what PuppetMistress was saying proved to be even partially true, the city would soon have need of its heroes again. The first thing that drew his curiosity was the rift she had mentioned. A rip into reality that led to a different universe. He could only marvel at the possibilities. Perhaps it was the location of the ring she couldn't detect. Before he left his lair, Birdboy made sure to send a message to Beth, in case she was keen to investigate all this herself. He went to where PuppetMistress had told him the rift was. When he arrived he felt a wave of uncertainty wash over him.
Before the superhero stood a strange, swirling portal. It seemed almost alive, shuddering and resonating as he stepped closer. It stood no taller than 8 feet, hovering a little off the ground. The subtle glow didn't show him anything, but there was a strange, dusty smell emanating from the gateway. Birdboy cautiously stepped closer until he was stood within touching distance. As he reached out, the mysterious energy tried to reach out to him too. Before he made contact he pulled back his hand.
"Alright Jake, do it for the city. Do it for Courtney, PuppetMistress, for Beth and everyone else." He whispered to himself, steeling his resolve and taking the final steps into the unknown.
The journey through the gate was as quick as it was harrowing. His every sense was utterly distorted. He felt hot, cold, wet and dry all at the same time. His nose smelled every smell and his mouth was filled with every taste imaginable. Thankfully it only lasted a few seconds before throwing him into a surface of loose sand. The hero stood up, surveying his surroundings. He was in a narrow gorge, two towering red-brown rock walls on either side concealing the rift behind him. The fine sand was warm and the air felt dry. As he walked out from the gorge his initial suspicions were confirmed. Before him stretched a vast plain. A sea of sand with small patches of burnt grass and and hardy little bushes. The classic backdrop to so many of the westerns he'd seen growing up. The rugged landscape showed few signs of civilization, bar a post not too far from him. It stood on a road leading along the rocky hills behind him, a path splitting off and leading up into the hills.
"Gold Springs ->, Gold Hills <-" It read. Beneath it was a faded pamphlet, nailed to the post. It spoke of a saloon called the Crushed Weasel, with the best drinks for miles. With a relieved smile he read that this saloon, and by extent the town, were only about a mile away, probably hidden just behind these hills. If his mission to explore this strange reality was going to offer any success, meeting up with the locals seemed like a solid start. Just to be on the safe side he left a tracking beacon by the portal. He also took a moment to memorize his surroundings, should he ever need to get back to the portal in a hurry and not have access to his tech. He couldn't be too careful. Who only knew what mysteries this world still held.
After a short trek in the hot sun he saw the first buildings emerge from behind the hill. It looked like a town lifted straight from one of his westerns and he quickly approached. But as he drew near enough to see the first few citizens he realized something was off. More than a few of them seemed to have... odd colors. As he wandered closer he saw it wasn't just that. Their skin was covered in fur and their faces adorned with muzzles of all shapes and sizes. It dawned on him that every last person in this town was an anthro animal of some kind. As he reached the outer edge of town some of the townsfolk had spotted him too. They stared with disbelief at Birdboy, who began to feel a little awkward. He was no stranger to anthro animals, as more than a few of the supervillains he fought were part animal. But it quickly dawned on him that he might be the first human to step foot in this universe, and he was dressed up in a superhero suit to boot.
"Fear not citizens, I'm not here to hurt anyone." He said with his best heroic voice, but the strange looks didn't dissipate. One of the drunks stumbling out of the saloon glared at him, then back at his bottle, wondering if this odd hairless thing was just a figment of his imagination. Birdboy began to feel increasingly uncomfortable, but in all this there was one small relief. As he heard the citizens of Gold Springs whisper to eachother about him, he could discern that they at least spoke English. Of all the issues that might present itself, at least translation wouldn't be one.
"Howdy there, partner." A voice rang out. A red fox woman stepped closer, waving her hand. She was roughly the same size as him, with a bushy tail and a fiery red hairdo. Her curious eyebrow was raised high enough to nearly pop off her face and her hand hovered over the holster of her revolver.
"Hello." Jake politely replied. "Don't worry, I don't mean anyone any harm." He hastily added, easing her nerves somewhat.
"Ah'll say, ah ain't ever seen somethin like you walk into town. What's yer name, stranger?"
"I am Birdboy." He stammered, knowing how crazy it must sound.
"Bird... boy? You from the circus or somethin?"
"It's a long story." He sighed wearily. He was going to get this from a lot of people here, he could already tell.
"Well, ya should tell me sometime along with a drink. Name's April, April Briggs. Ah'm the deputy of the sheriff in these parts. Ya might've heard of her. The name Texas Stanton ring a bell?"
"Sorry, I'm not from around here, but if she's with local law enforcement I might have a few questions for her."
"Hah, and ah bet she's got more than a few for you too." April laughs. "Sheriff's office is down the street, ya can't miss it. And since yer new in town, lemme give you some quick advice. First, get yourself a weapon, 'cause walkin around unarmed is a good way to get robbed."
"Trust me, miss April, I'm well capable of defending myself." He replied confidently.
"If ya say so... Anyway, there's some folks ya wanna keep an eye out for around here. First's Georgia. She's a big ol' horse woman with a temper like a rabid wolverine. She's an old deputy of Texas that got kicked out, and she's still grumpy about that. Unless you're lookin to get squashed underneath her ass, steer clear of her." The hero sighed a little. Of all the things this place could have in common with his home town, why did it have to be evildoers that like to use their butt?
"Next is Vivian, the mayor. Don't trust her honeyed words. Not gonna say more, 'cause she got ears everywhere." Birdboy noticed a couple of individuals trying to stay unnoticed as they were listening in on the two of them. He just nodded, prompting April to continue.
"Lastly there's Roxxie Roo. She rolls into town every so often to try her luck at robbing someone. Do not get in her way. Bigger folk than you have tried and she's dragged them all off to her lair in the hills. Most o' them we never saw again. Ain't many fates more cruel than endin up as her plaything. There's also Smiling Jacks and her gang, but unless you're a cow or someone tryin to stop them from stealin cattle, you ain't gonna notice them."
"Is that all?" He asks, trying to hide his sarcasm. For having such a supposedly famous sheriff there sure was a lot of crime going around. He began to wonder why this Texas was so popular around here.
"Yeah, that about covers it, welcome to Gold Springs, Birdboy." April said with a small giggle as she tried to keep a straight face when saying his name. She gives the hero a mighty smack on his back before continuing on her way.
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