Werner has a minion!

Rustle the Cow-Cow

Nobody ever came out to Defiant Rock. Well, not unless you were lookin' for a new start. Most of the town was made up of abandoned or runaway pets, their spirits beaten into the dust and dirt from countless mistakes in their old lives. Blood and sweat built our town, and the bones of those who settled it made up the crusty earth beneath our paws. Most nobody was born here, we all came from around Subeta to drop off the face of the earth and make a living in the dust. Not much here for the cityfolk, except a tourist spot in the colder weather. And most often none of them stayed. It was all just "passing through, thank you very much" and averted eyes from the starvin', black eyes of the townsfolk. Not sayin' that some didn't try to stay, aw no, there were a few here and there that came around to try their luck in the mines and search for gold, but most of 'em went back to their old lives broken and empty handed within a year.

Johnathan and I were one of the few pups born here, our parents two of the few that elected to stay once they set their paws on movin'. True, my father had been a respectable Telenine here and my mother a right queen bee, but they were oddballs in this town of misfits and criminals. My mother had taken up hand sewing for the town, fixin' up torn hats and clothes for the pets and people that made their home out here. My father had been a deputy, the townsfolk trusting his good judgement right from the start. Things were decent for them, despite the rough and tumble life the West was known for. It was good for a while, me and Johnny learning right from the start what it meant to be kind and smart, even if Johnathan was always more responsible than me. That was probably why Pa took a liking to grooming my brother to be deputy when Pa had to step on up the food chain.

I was the risky pup out of us two brothers. I always wanted to sneak up to the top of the clock tower, or steal a mouthful of candy from Doc's. I was the one who set my eyes on any pretty pet that came strollin' into town, and who got my nose licked in every fight. Johnny was the one who kept his mouth shut and stitched me up, all the while reminding me that I somehow had somethin' in me that was bein' held down by my actions. Johnathan was a good nut, but he didn't understand that the life we were livin' was meant to be enjoyed with roughhousin' and adventure. We wouldn't be western boys with anything less.

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Credits
Reference image by Tennie
Werner color reference
overlay by evrott
profile, story: Tennie
Werner artwork by saleau
western art purchased from filkusto on vector.com