Nick Peron

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Two-Gun Kid #34

Two-Gun Kid

The Two-Gun Kid rides into the town of Gunstock Range and witnesses an ugly scene: Moose Miller forcing Ben a foreman for a ranch owner named Stella because he intends to marry her and incorporate her land into his. Despite the fact that Ben climbs onto a stagecoach and leaves town, the Two-Gun Kid can't stand for a man forcing his will upon a woman and challenges Moose. Seeing that the Kid is seriously standing up to him, Moose lets it go and orders his men to ride back, warning the Kid to watch his back in the future. Impressed Sally offers the Two-Gun Kid the job as her foreman, and he takes it. He goes to the ranch and finds that the only people that haven't been run off by Moose Miller area gang of wild young men and an elderly man named Yuma.

The Kid takes command and assigns Yuma as the straw dog, the next morning the Kid pulls out work the cattle at dawn, leaving Yuma behind to look after Miss Stella. After the Kid leaves, Moose Miller and his gang show up on the ranch and Moose once again demands that Stella give up and marry him. When Yuma gets between them he is knocked out, but Stella still refuses and orders Moose off his land. She then rides out and tells Two-Gun what happened. The Kid rides back to the ranch to check on Yuma, telling the ranch hands move the cattle closer to the ranch. Left alone with her hands, Stella convinces one of them to run the cattle over the south cliff, telling him to blame it on Moose Miller and tell the Kid that, but keep her plan a secret. The man does as ordered and when he tells the Kid that Moose Miller ran the herd off the cliff, the Kid decides that enough is enough and is about to go and confront him when he notices that they are on their way. The ranch hand tells Stella that Moose and his men caught them and the rest of the ranch hands scattered after they killed the herd.

During the ensuing clash Stella's confederate is wounded by a bullet, but the Kid forces the outlaws off. The ranch hand tells the Kid how Stella manipulated him. The Kid goes off an confronts Moose Miller anyway and forces him and his gang to clear out of town. Thanking the Kid for his help, Stella asks him to stay on as his foreman, but the Kid angry at being manipulated by her, sternly refuses her offer and rides off.

Recurring Characters

  • Two-Gun Kid

  • Cyclone

Fighting Chance!

The Two-Gun Kid spots a stagecoach being attacked by some bandits and comes to its aid. Before he can drive them off, two of the men takes one of the passengers and flees. The Kid learns that they grabbed Rocky Steele a boxer who was due to fight in Rimrock against Gunner Mack. Rocky's manager asks the Kid to ride aboard and along the way, the manager stops the stagecoach at a telegraph station briefly before arriving to Rimrock.

In town, Rocky's girl asks the Kid to pretend that he is Rocky Steele. Getting kissed on the cheek, the Kid decides to play along. The Kid is then rushed into the arena and laced up with gloves. As he is being led to the ring, he bumps into the sheriff who recognizes the Kid for who he is. Two-Gun explains that he is posing as Rocky Steele after he was kidnapped on the stagecoach. With the crowd getting rowdy over the match, the Kid asks the sheriff to bring his guns to the side of the ring just in case there is trouble.

During the fight, the Kid begins to win against Gunner Mack. Prompting Gunner's manager to ask Rocky's manager why "Rocky" is winning. During the next break, Rocky's manager puts ammonia on the sponge and temporarily blinds the Kid. Two-Gun still manages to hold his own, and when his vision restores he just barely manages to avoid a shot fired from the crowd. At that very moment Gunner Mack steps into the path of the bullet and is killed by the shot. Getting his guns from the sheriff, the Two-Gun Kid and the sheriff go after the shooter and finds both of the managers trying to rob the box office. They stop them, the Kid learns that they tried to get Rocky to throw the fight, when he refused they tried to replace him, and when thy failed they tried their other dirty tricks. Thanking the Kid for helping, Rocky's girl kisses him on the lips just as Rocky himself arrives back in town. Thinking that the Kid is trying to make time with his girl and punches him in the face, blacking his eye. The Kid rides off and thinks that while the kiss was worth it women are nothing but trouble.

Recurring Characters

  • Two-Gun Kid

  • Cyclone

Two-Gun Kid

The Two-Gun Kid rides into the town of Lodestone and just barely manages to avoid getting gunned down by the locals who briefly mistake him for one of the "Border Wolves" led by an outlaw named Quantrelle, and that his gang want to raid the town. The Kid learns that the miners left town leaving the other locals to fend for themselves. The Kid and his local friend Gus rides off to confront the gang, but find themselves outmatched and are forced to run back to town.

Recalling how the miners left some supplies and learns that there are kegs of dynamite and gunpowder that were left behind. The Kid then orders the locals to start spreading it and rigging up explosives around the town. Gus tries to warn the Kid but he ignores it, deciding a single cigarette will be all that it takes to force Quantrelle and his minions away. That night when the gang comes to take the town they find the Two-Gun Kid smoking a cigarette around barrels of gunpowder. With the threat of being blown up along with the town, Quantrelle and his men surrender and turn themselves over the locals. Later, Gus tells the Kid that he took a massive gamble using the gunpowder, explaining that a recent flood made it useless.

Recurring Characters

  • Two-Gun Kid

  • Cyclone

Crossfire!

The Two-Gun Kid is riding along the range when he comes across a barbed wire fence and is instantly attacked by men with guns. The Kid rushes his horse Cyclone over the fence and rides off. One of the men yells out at the Kid to tell his "employer" Cossard that he and the other ranchers won't let him cross over into their land that is lawfully theirs. As he flees the Two-Gun Kid crosses paths with an outlaw named Ben Pardee. Ben tells the Kid that the men who ran him off were local ranchers who who bought land in the valley from the government. They are currently in dispute with King Cossard a local cattle king who decided to claim the entire valley for himself, causing trouble for the small time ranchers whenever he could. The ranchers then put up the barbed wire fence but King Cossard can form an entire army. Ben has been helping the ranchers by going outlaw and raiding Cossard's herds.

Suddenly, King Cossard and his men begin riding toward them and Ben takes that moment to flee. Cossard confronts the Two-Gun Kid demanding to know what he is doing on his land. They get violent when they learn that he was just with Pardee, but the Kid easily shoots the guns out of their hands and rides off. Even though the ranchers had attacked them earlier the Kid decides to go and try to help them fight off Cossard and his private army. He meets up with Ben Pardee and the two arrive just as Cossard and his men attack. With the added fire power of both Ben Pardee and the Two-Gun Kid the ranchers are able to force King Cossard's army to abandon their leader and flee, ruining Cossard's ambitions and securing the land for the ranchers.

Recurring Characters

  • Two-Gun Kid

  • Cyclone