Wild West #1

Marauders On the Range!

Two-Gun Kid is riding through a ridge when he spots a young boy with a shotgun and approaches him. Seeing the boy is in tears, the Two-Gun confronts the boy and disarms him when he threatens to shoot. Getting the boy to talk, the Kid learns that his family ranch, the Circle-T has been robbed by horse rustlers calling themselves the Phantom Raiders. Introducing himself as Ted Tennyson, the boy takes Two-Gun back to the ranch where he meets his sister and offers his aid in stopping the rustlers. When learning what has been happening he learns that their father had apparently been crippled during an accident and has secluded himself in his room and refuses to let any of the family see him out of shame. Two-Gun pays a visit to the old man and promises to stop the Phantom Raiders, but Mr. Tennyson has doubts that one man can stop an entire gang of horse thieves.

In order to entice the Phantom Raiders to come back, the Two-Gun Kid has Ted ride his horse Cyclone into town and brag about how great a horse he is in the hopes that the Phantom Raiders will try to steal the horse later. Sure enough that night, the Phantom Raiders come to the Circle T ranch and steal Cyclone. The Tennyson siblings are shocked when Two-Gun chooses to do nothing and allows the thieves to steal his horse. When the Phantom Raiders take Cyclone to their hideout, they leave the horse penned in unattended. Cyclone then jumps the fence and rides back to the Circle T ranch. Two-Gun then mounts his obedient horse and it leads him to the Raiders camp. Arriving at the Raider's camp, the Two-Gun Kid then releases all the stolen horses that starts a stampede that sends the Phantom Raiders fleeing. As they do, the Two-Gun Kid rounds them up. Their leader then attempts to shoot the Two-Gun Kid down, but the Kid is a faster draw and takes the Raiders' leader prisoner as well.

When he returns from the Circle T, the Two-Gun finds that the Tennyson's brought the sheriff. The Kid then unmasks the leader of the Raiders, and they are shocked to find that it is apparently Mr. Tennyson. However, the Two-Kid reveals that this too is a disguise and the leader is really local horse trader Ace Biddle. As an added surprised a stage arrives containing the real Mr. Tennyson who reveals he was captured by the Phantom Raiders and escaped and found by the Two-Gun Kid who arranged the carriage for him. With the Phantom Raiders turned over to the authorities, the Two-Gun Kid rides off.

Recurring Characters

• Two-Gun Kid

• Cyclone

Arizona Annie

Needing to re-shoe her horse, Arizona Annie and her companion Slim Smith ride into a nearby town. As they go to Pete Grimm, the local blacksmith, Slim warns Arizona that Grimm is a woman hater who refuses to service horses owned by women. She tries anyway and when Pete refuses to re-shoe her horse an argument starts. It's abruptly cut short when some thieves arrive and rob Pete of his gold. Shockingly, Arizona Annie convinces the gang to let her accompany them, feigning interest in the thieves, much to Slim's dismay.

The gang rides off with Arizona Annie as their new companion. When the gang sets up camp for the night, Annie convinces one of their number to spend some "private time" together over the hill, pretending to have developed an interest in him. However when they are away from the others Arizona Annie knocks him out. She then repeats the process with the next two members of the gang. But, when she attempts to trick the gangs leader he sees through her deception and grabs her hand before she can strike him with the butt of her gun. She bites his hand and easily subdues him as well.

Shortly thereafter. Arizona Annie returns to the blacksmith with the captured gang, much to the surprise of Slim and Pete Grimm. Arizona Annie and Slim then turn the gang over to the authorities. The following day as they leave down, Arizona Annie and Slim pass by Pete's blacksmith shop and see that he has changed his opinion of women and is now offering free shoe changing for the horses owned by women.

Recurring Characters

• Arizona Annie

• Slim Smith

Law of the Smoking Guns!

In the small town of Wishbone, Texas, Sheriff Jeb Calhoun is playing poker with a bunch of the locals when suddenly a man bursts in and tells him that Tex Taylor has returned to town. Not afraid, Calhoun leaves in order to deal with Taylor. Outside, Tex Taylor catches up to Calhoun and calls him out for killing his father after forcing him to sell his land. Witnessed by some of the locals, they fear that the Sheriff will squeal to Tex Taylor about the truth and shoot the sheriff in the back. Suddenly, Mayor Grey and some locals confront Tex and accuse him of killing the Sheriff and orders Tex arrested.

However, before he can be apprehended, Tex grabs the mayor and holds him hostage in order to escape. Tex, realizing the Mayor is new in town tells him about his past: That his father was the greatest cattleman in the state. One day Tex and his father were confronted by Jeb Calhoun -- before he was sheriff -- who offered him a cattle protection service for $500 a month. Tex's father refused and ordered Jeb and his posse off the property. Tex then explains that he was sent off to serve in the army. While there he eventually received a letter telling him that his father had died and that he had sold the property to Jeb Calhoun. Tex had come rushing back suspecting that Jeb had killed his father. After hearing the story Mayor Grey tells Tex that he believes his story and insists that he still stands trial to prove his innocence.

Tex complies, but at the court case he finds that the witnesses are all fingering him as the person who shot Jeb -- apparently in cold blood. Realizing the court is stacked against him, Tex struggles free and shoots out the lamps in the court house and manages to flee on his horse. Hiding out in the darkness and waits for those in the courthouse go out searching for him. When one man rushes out of the courthouse to a nearby shack, Tex follows and bursts his way in. He clashes with the men inside, shooting them down, but their leader had fled out the back. Tex catches up with him and snags him in a lasso. Turning the man around Tex reveals his identity as Mayor Grey. Grey denies being involved in the "sale" of his fathers land and subsequent murder. However, Tex insists that Grey is the leader and killed his father because the land was rich in gold deposits. Finally the mayor admits to this and attempts to kill Tex by throwing daggers at him, but Tex manages to shoot them out of the air. Ironically, one of the knives is sent flying back at Grey, fatally stabbing him.

In the aftermath, Tex rides off to clear his name and reclaim his fathers property and vows to use the wealth from the property to help fund his crusade to fight lawless men like those who killed his father.

Recurring Characters

• Tex Taylor

• Fury