Judomaster: The Emperor of North America (Old West tale)

[DocQuantum]

CONTINUED FROM SENTINELS OF JUSTICE: SHADOWS AND LIGHT

by Blackwolf247

PROLOGUE

1987:

"Well well well Captain Atom come on in"

"Thank you sir" The silver and blue clad hero said to the President and at the man's motioning he sat on the comfortable sofa next to the leader of the U.S.

"I understand you have some information for me Captain I am most curious indeed."

"Thank you mister President for allowing me to take some of your valuable time." The Action hero stated and President Reagan waved his hand as if to say 'Its no bother'

"Well sir have you had a chance to read our report on the situation in Maine?"

The President nodded. He loved the reports on action hero activity having once portrayed one in a movie back in his youth he felt a special bond with the unique community of masked crusaders.

"Well sir when Nightshade was asked by a couple of police officers about Judomaster she frankly was unsure what if anything to say so she basically said nothing"

Reagan nodded in understanding. That was a strategy he himself used on occasion.

"But later I talked to the men uh Durrel and O'Riley " Cap went on "And discovered they had met our missing teammate in what they believe was the Jurassic era."

The president was astounded. "How is that possible?"

"These men were part of a Marine unit that disappeared while in Nam and later turned up in Hanoi under circumstances no one could ever explain"

Reagan nodded "I see taken captive in battle?"

Captain Atom shook his head "No sir seems their unit had an encounter of the third kind and somehow ended up in the prehistoric past sometime later Judomaster showed up coming from 1985 which was to them about twenty years their future"

"I see and obviously they got to know him some"

"Yes sir and during a battle with aliens several of these Marines ended up being sent forward in time and landing in Hanoi circa 1967"

"And Judomaster?"

"They didn't know. He was alive last time they saw him but..." C.A. shrugged"I do however have the full transcript here for you sir" he handed the president a manilla envelope.

"And a new friend of ours calls himself Spookman he says he can travel in time something to do with mathematics so complex I got lost early in his explanation" C.A. added.

"So he hopes to find our missing friend then?"

"Well he's optimistic sir." Captain Atom rose followed by the President as his aide entered the office.

"Sir its time for your cabinet meeting"

"Thank you Steve" he turned to the man of atomic energy and extended a hand "Thank you sir" he said the hero shook his hand and said "Thank you mister president"

***

TIMES PAST:

Judomaster stood motionless a voice had just told him not to move and he was listening very carefully looking to move as he heard the sound of a pistol being cocked.

Then he heard a rattling sound, followed by the Carackkk of a gunshot.

He looked and saw he was right next to a by now headless rattle snake.

"Okay you move now circus man"

Judomaster turned around and to his surprise found himself facing a masked man in western clothing.

"Name's Gunmaster and you?"

[DocQuantum]

CHAPTER 1: A DAY TO REMEMBER

Judomaster looked at the assembled heroes, Geronimo Jones,Thane,Yang and of course Gunmaster and Bullet.

A young gunfighter, a man who claims to be an alien and talks like he came direct from a Shakespearean play, a Chinese son of a Mandarin who appears to be a Monk of some sort, and a pair of masked crime fighters.

"Well I have worked with stranger allies" he said to himself.

The plan basically was to take down a man who was setting himself up as The Emperor of North America and had already recruited nearly one hundred 'soldiers' for his planned conquest of the continent starting with already one old Army fort and a nearby town.

"This ain't gonna be easy" he muttered to himself.

On his mind was still How did he end up in this time frame and could he somehow return to the 20th century other than waiting around a few years for it to begin?

What Judomaster and his allies did not know was at this moment as they rode towards the town of Broken Coin was they were being monitored on a television screen something that rightly did not belong to 1887. No more than did the being watching the heroes.

***

Judomaster checked the rounds in the carbine he had been given and considered his new allies.

Yang from China he had been studying under some Shaolin monks when his father a popular and well liked Mandarin was murdered by crime lord and slaver Chao-Ku whose daughter Yin the man Yang (whose real name is Chung-Hui) was in love with and hoped to see reformed.

Yang as he preferred to call himself had been brought to the state of California as a slave to work on the railroads had busted free and was now devoting himself to capturing possibly even killing Chao- Ku even if that meant that Yin-Li hated him forever.

Richard (Rip) Jagger felt sympathy for the young Chinese man.

Now Geronimo Jones was a different matter- the youngster was barely old enough to shave, had ambitions of becoming a famous gunfighter and got his nickname because he reminded people of that young Chiracua warrior creating havoc down in Mexico and sometimes into Texas where this crew was headed.

Judomaster was glad the kid was one of the good guys considering how he was both accurate and fast with his pistols.

Thane was a complex individual the tall stout blonde man claimed he was a visitor to Earth and had arrived utilizing information gathered by an earlier visitor. Unfortunately for him times had definitely changed on Earth, that and he had no way to return to his home world.

Sighing heavily The twentieth Century action hero finished writing a letter to Captain Atom placed it into the bank vault and hoped that in about 90 years somehow it would get to the greatest action hero of all time providing he survived this upcoming mission he hoped to be rescued but if not at least he had friends here and now.

Even if two of them refused to say anything about their origins but they had loaned the master of martial arts some civilian clothes so he could come into town.

One quick trip to the mercantile and he would be rejoining his friends outside of town.

***

As Richard 'Rip' Jagger waited impatiently, the tall blond action hero reflected on the strange path that had led him to being here setting inside a small adobe cantina somewhere in Mexico, decades before he was born.

The action hero known as Judomaster a Allied hero of World War II had found himself thrust forward in time nearly forty years to fight beside such men and women as Captain Atom, The Blue Beetle (a different one then he had heard of in his own time) NightShade and others.

It was while working as an American operative in Africa he had again found himself traveling in time, this time landing in the Jurassic age fighting along side U.S. Marines from the 1960s Soviet super-soldiers from the 1980s and a eclectic group of aliens against a powerful force of extraterrestrials bent on using the forces of time to conquer Earth (or something, they seemed to be operating in both that time frame and 1985) which led to...

1868 or thereabouts with the red and yellow clad martial artist riding with Gunmaster & Bullet, crime fighting mystery men, Thane the Wanderer yet another alien this one fully human-looking, Yang a Shaolin Monk and Geronimo Jones a cocky young pistoleer.

Their mission to take down the self proclaimed Emperor of North America whose power base was not to far from where Jagger dressed like an average cowhand of the times was pretending to sip a tequila while awaiting word from the masked gunfighter.

The town barely more then a handful of building and honest hard working peons had been under the control of The Emperor until the good guys had arrived.

The door opened causing Jagger to look up, Yang gave a nod and left,Jagger followed.

Outside the tall Chinese said "Bullet says that his partner met with the current El Zorro which I understand means The Fox some sort of hereditary line of protectors of the poor and down trodden, he has some 150 men with him, further the Colorado Kid another of these pistoleers the American west is full of, has a band of his own near by so tomorrow before dawn we will be moving to attack"

"Any idea how many men this Emperor has?"

"El Zorro says only about 300 are at the fort an old one at that, most of The Emperors troops are what did he call them oh yes Bandoleros and Commancheros their out 'campaigning' which I take to mean terrorizing communities like this one."

Yang shrugged in resignation "Such a land this new world is, so unlike my own lands yet the people are so much the same, always there are those who seek to be strong by oppressing others. "

"It don't change in my time, I was fighting evil in both the 1940's and the 1980's It seems to be an eternal struggle my friend."

Yang nodded "It is the way of the world, the yin and the yang. well, get some rest my friend, for at Midnight we move out."

Jagger nodded. " See you then amigo"

Nearby a solitary figure listened and pondered what he had heard.

***

Just as Yang and Jagger were about to mount their horses a man stepped out of the shadows.

"Excuse me amigos" he said with a friendly air.

Both men whirled about and were started by what they saw.

A tall very brown complected man with a shaven head, dressed not very differently than any other average man of the western territories.

Two low hanging pistols were in holsters, his smile was warm and friendly.

"Muh name is Hawk Ah'm a friend of anyone opposed to that son of a b!+(# the so called Emperor!"

Yang nodded and Jagger studied this newcomer.

"Ah got here jus' a few minutes back and found his hired killers had diss'peared then ah heard you two hombres a talkin' so's ah perked muh ears up."

Carefully so as not to alarm the two Hawk pulled a cigar out of his shirt pocket and using a long wooden match lit it.

"Figure maybe ah could ride with you two."

Jagger looked at Yang then back at the newcomer.

"Probably would be acceptable Hawk but I think for prudences sake you'd best wait here till we clear it with our partners."

Hawk nodded. "Understand that all right, back in 'Bama where ah hail from a man's gotta be careful, same heah ah reckon."

Hawk looked around a bit then turned back to the two heroes. "Ah'll be in the cantina, tell Gunmaster Ah am heah. He done know me."

With that he sauntered off.

Yang grinned at Jagger "If he is the Gun Hawk I have heard so much about he will be a good ally to have."

"If..." Jagger answered.

***

Elsewhere a red haired young looking man dressed in blue black clothes with large shiny silver-white buttons on his shirt pushed back his white hat, patted the neck of his black stallion and sighed. "Way I figure it boy me an' you we'er as likely to ride outta here together as muh pal Colt's got a gettin' a Federal Marshall badge."

The red haired man chuckled then continued talking to his horse. "Course ol' boy we have rode into scrapes as big as this one now haven't we?"

With that his horse snickered. "Right way I figure it Blacky ain't a man alive can kill the Colorado Kid!"

***

Jagger and Yang met Gunmaster en route to the encampment Bullet had told them about.

The masked man was quite interested in hearing about Hawk, so he sent the two on to camp as he went back into the town Hawk was waiting.

Else where a pair of adventurers were themselves doing some scouting.

"Look it Jeremiah some sort of group o' folks having them a camp fire."

"Seems to me the Boss man will want to know 'bout this!"

Jeremiah had been described as a walking Scarecrow while his companion Deke had a more refined civilized air about him.

Appearances can be deceiving though.

Deke tilted his hat back grinned at his companion "Bet I can hit that big Johnny Reb from here."

Jeremiah snorted "He a big ol' boy for sure, an lookin' at his face, killing him could be a Godly thing ta do, but Deke shouldn't we just tell the Captain 'bout them?"

"Maybe we should, cuz I just recognized that little red haired guy as The Colorado Kid!"

The two toughs prepared to slip out of their hiding spot to return to their base when both heard the clicks of pistol hammers being pulled back.

"Reckon you boys are invited to dinner." This from a slender blond young looking man grinning from ear to ear. "Reckon you be right Colt, hope we got enough beans for two more."

The second speaker was a fiftyish grey-brown-haired bearded man holding a massive Navy Colt revolver on the two captured spies.

Nearby an owl hooted. All four men were startled by that.

[DocQuantum]

CHAPTER 2: Showdown

Colt and his Companion looked around carefully, then relaxed when they saw the tall man in Confederate gray come out of the shadows.

The war between North and South had been over for some years but not every one had let go of it, including the man who lived with half a face due to cannon shot near the end of the war.

"Reckon you two caught us some visitors" growled the newcomer.

"Reckon so" Colt responded brushing his long blond hair aside. "Smiley caught whiff of these two varmints and we found them by their smell"

The Confederate guffawed at that "Yep them boys must be Yanks sure as hell smell bad enough. Come on Colorado's waitin' on every one."

Else where Gunmaster introduced Hawk to the other members of his troupe, "Yang and Jagger you met, Bullet you know, Thats Geronomo Jones over there and this one here is called Thane, or Wander depending on who you ask."

The handsome extra terrestrial nodded "Called myself Wander when I first arrived on er in America Thane's my real name" He said warmly.

Thane was actually about as close in English as one could get to pronouncing his real name but that part wasn't mentioned.

Hawk nodded "Way ah figure it, this heah Emperor fellah's in foh a heap a hurtin'"

Gunmaster nodded "We do aim to end his crazy plan seeing as how the Federales are busy elsewhere."

With a yawn Bullet said "Guess I am getting some sleep, who's got first watch?"

***

In his own camp The Colorado Kid was not at all happy about the two men who had been captured.

"Oye I got it!" He said snapping his fingers. "When we move out in the morning, these two will ride with us, hopefully thier friends will think they joined us."

The two captives looked startled. "But we'll be killed!" one of them exclaimed.

"If yer lucky that'll be the least of yer worries sonny!" The old man called Smiley joked.

"Course we could leave em here an if the sun, scorpions or the ants don't get em, maybe we can pick em up on our way back." The exConfederate Soldier said. "Don't make me no never mind either way."

The Colorado Kid chuckled "Of course that is depending on do we survive the attack or not"

One of the men then had an idea "Look we aren't with those yahoos that serve the so called Emperor why don't you let us join you?"

"Cuz we don't trust you boys none, I reckon" Smiley said.

Colt seemed to consider it "You'll ride with us, but you won't be allowed no weapons until we know for sure we can trust you."

Stretching broadly the Colorado Kid stated "Sounds good to me Colt meanwhile tie em up so we can get some rest. Jonah you got first watch, Smiley gets second"

Every one knew this could well be their last time together, their last night alive, but then again the possibility of death had never fazed any of these heroes.

Morning would come mighty early and with it battle.

***

For a number of people somewhere in Mexico the morning started quite unusually- that is to say with cannon fire.

"That'd be Zorro's Legion!" Gunmaster said as he and his crew positioned themselves.

"El Zorro told me there would be several rounds then everyone's to move in" The masked pistoleer added.

Putting his red and yellow mask on Judomaster said a small prayer in anticipation of possibly not living through the day.

Nothing new for a man who had begun his action hero career fighting the Japanese in WWII, but then again he had never anticipated dying a few decades before he was born.

Yang was himself making his morning meditations. How he felt about the possibility of dying so far from his homeland of China he had kept to himself.

To Yang to die was the same as to live. A part of the cycle of life, that everyone could look expect to participate in sooner or later.

Nonetheless he passed on taking any firearms when Bullet offered him several choices.

"I do not see the need for your western weaponry." Yang said as he pulled a pair of nunchakus out of his gear.

"I shall use what I have been trained to use as a Shaolin monk."

Judomaster himself checked the rifle he had taken. A trained member of the U.S. Army he had no hesitations over shooting to kill in battle. That was all part of his training.

Still looking at the fort the heroes would soon be attacking he nearly choked in laughter.

He had been expecting a large stone or pueblo fortification what he saw below the ridge looked to be little more than a walled in village.

That and thanks to the cannonry the members of Zorro's Legion had brought along were quickly decimating what walls there were.

Silence hit like thunder, as the cannons stopped.

"All right girls time for us to play now!" The GunMaster said mounting his horse, everyone in his team followed suit.

"See you at the pearly gates God Willing" He stated before raising his hand.

Swiftly the hand came down he charged forth followed by Geronomo Jones,Thane,Hawk,Bullet Judomaster and Yang.

***

Nearby The Colorado Kid and his team rode forth, complete with two unwilling members of his party.

On another side of the fort El Zorro clad in black led his men forward.

The battle had begun!

The real battle had now begun.

***

The man who would be Emperor paced aggravetedly as he listened to the sounds of battle coming into his cabin.

Having been awakened by the sounds of cannon shot rendering the walls of his fort into splinters, followed by the screams and moans of wounded men and animals.

"What by Jove is happening?" He wondered aloud.

His two bodybuards looked at each other and shrugged.

While each of them had debated internally whether it would be better to seek escape or surrender both now knew for certain that they had signed onto a doomed cause.

A ferocious knocking on the door caused the two gunmen to look at each other with puzzlement.

"Well answer the door!" The Emperor growled "Our attackers won't be so polite as to knock!"

The Emperor who fancied himself a taller lookalike to Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte looked to the Heavens for morale support. None was forthcoming.

Through the door stumbled a bloodstained man. "JT!" Exclaimed the would be world ruler as he ran to his closest friend.

"I got that masked idjit the Tombstone Kid him and his pal Bam Bam or whatever he calls himself."

J.T. said gasping down a shot of Tequila. "Most of this blood ain't mine but frankly we had best get out of here before we end up dead."

With that he collapsed, as blood flowed freely from his back.

"He ain't gonna live long enough to make it to the tunnels" One of the bodyguards said examining the fallen redheaded gunfighter.

With tear stained eyes the fallen Conqueror nodded.

"I see what I must do!" he half whispered half moaned.

Cautiously he opened a large wooded trunk. "You boys take the tunnels and make a run for it if you want."

Behind him J.T. moaned one last time and expired. His eyes gazing on the Pearly Gates.

***

From out of the wooden trunk came a strange metallic purple colored object which to the two gunnies resembled a large awkwardly handled pistol with a square box on the barrel.

"This here is something I found on an expedition down south of here, it's some sort of weapon fires lightning causing what I aim at to just up and vanish."

Lighting a long black cigar the Emperor paused a moment then reflected.

"Who ever comes through that door gonna be in for a surprise."

Both of his men again looked at each other.

"You boys go now, make a run for the border. Here." he handed each a small bag made of hemp. "Thousand in gold each, now go!"

***

Yang and Judomaster fought their way towards the main house, a wooded cabin that looked incongruous amidst the adobe buildings.

The reason they had chosen that building had as much to do with JT's blood flow as the flag in front of the building.

The flag was French with the red and blue transposed, Judomaster told Yang he felt that would be where thier main target was.

They were almost there when a big gray uniformed man with the disfigured face fell to the ground near them.

A scrawny fierce looking man waved a shot gun at them frantically trying to reload Yang leapt from his horse landing on the attacker swiftly subduing him.

"Don't know who this man is" Judomaster said "But may he rest in peace." He stated covering the big mans face with a gray Confederate cavalry hat.

The door of the cabin burst open as a wild eyed man in what looked to the time-tossed action hero of World War II like a silk bathrobe holding an improbable looking weapon in his hands.

"Die circus man!" The Emperor yelled pushing a button on his weapon.

Judomaster was immediately surrounded by a strange yellow light, he felt his skin tingle like a million wasps were stinging him all at once.

Yang pulled from his jacket a pair of heavy looking footlong rods attached to each other with several inches of chain. A nunchaku as it was called in his native China.

Rotating one stick in the air he struck the weapon from the hands of his foeman it shattered as it hit the ground.

"NO!" The emperor gasped dropping to his knees. He raised his hands in surrender.

Yang looked around him but there was no sign of his American friend, only a spot of burnt sand where Richard Jaeger had stood moments before.

"You will pay for your crimes This I swear!" Yang said coldly, raising his weapon.

"But!" He lowered it again "The Buddha has not made me to be your executioner. I shall let the laws of this land deal with you."

Around them the sounds of fighting were winding down.

Bullet trotted over, wiping at some blood on his forehead where a bullet had grazed him.

"Looks like we won Yang!" The teen aged crime fighter exclaimed happily.

Then he saw the fallen Confederate. "Lord have mercy!"

"That makes four of our companions I know of. Say where's Judomaster?"

Yang shrugged "Only the Buddha knows."

He indicated the remains of the alien device the surrendered villain had used. "He is now in the hands of the all compassionate Buddha."

Later as Zorro's men led the captured remains of the Emperors army away Gunmaster gathered friends and allies for a vigil for the fallen.

"The Tombstone Kid, Boom-Boom, Jonah Hex, Dull Knife and Judomaster have died to end the danger of a new tyranny. May the Lord Jesus grant them rest in his Heavenly kingdom and may the Lord hasten the day when evil is abolished from the land Amen" "Amen" everyone echoed.

The Colorado Kid began a Hebrew prayer for the dead as near by Yang said softly a Buddhist prayer.

The remains of the capitol of the North American Empire were put to the torch and silently the heros rode off into the setting sun.

Oh Well...

[DocQuantum]

Author's notes:

No one tried to figure out who was who in my western series, so I'll tell you who I snuck in.

The Colorado Kid- a man of short stature, red haired and Jewish. The Rawhide Kid. However I do remember a character by this name in a real old Charlton western.

Colt- his blond friend and fellow gunslinger-Kid Colt

The Tombstone Kid- a masked gunfighter from Tombstone -The Two Gun Kid

Bam-Bam- close friend of the Tombstone Kid -Boom Boom Brannigan.

Dull Knife-The chapter with him got lost, so he only appeared as a name in the finale, Dull Knife was a friend of The Outlaw Kid.

Jonah (D.C.'S Jonah Hex who on Earth 4 suffered a bit more damage to his face than on Earth 1.

Gun Hawk- while an original character was inspired by a short lived Marvel western hero who was one of two ex-Confederates [and yes he was black and yes free blacks did enlist in the Confederate Military); this pairs name escaped my memory.

Now remains-What happened to Judomaster?

Well... that story is coming...

I promise!

[dans]

I'll take a stab at proofing this one.

[dans]

I think Wolf never met a comma he really liked! He was a very good storyteller, though. Here's another proofread story from the annals of the time-tossed JudoMaster

Judomaster in the Wild West.docx (31.82 KB)