"" "Space... the final frontier." "In the 21st century... a series of accidents in a program of orbital stations... makes the North American government... withdraw for good from any further... space research project." "On a self-contained planet, technological developments... focus on large megalopolis separated by... vast barren regions." "In this third world, forgotten by time... powerful landowners control the local police departments... levy taxes, and make... their own laws." "Hi, Douey." "What's up?" "Let's see..." "Hands up!" "Well, well." "What a nice kid." "I'm sure the Judge will like him." "THE MEN" "Tell me, Galactus... how long must I live on this savage planet called Earth?" "In the Universe, there's no conviction crueller than mine." "But, yes... there is..." "The terrible agony of who has never attempted it." "Who, for fear of failing, or out of indifference... doesn't dare lift the veil that covers the abcolute." "The terrible agony of who has never attempted it." "Today I see everything differently... through other eyes, as if this were the first time." "Lennie, come on." "Stop being a jerk!" "But I won't be here next week." "I'm coming!" "I'm coming!" "Damn it!" "I'm coming!" "I'm coming!" "I'm coming, damn it!" "Who the hell...?" "Yes!" "Yes!" "But..." "You've got shit in in your ear." "Madden." "I said yes." "Everything will be ready by 4 o'clock." "Yes, what's your hurry?" "Are you bored, Madden, you son of a bitch?" "All right." "Yes, but don't know how it'll go." "Can't you hear?" "Today they're restless." "Looks like storm is coming up." "All right, damn it!" "No, of course, I'll be there." "It's all ready for this afternoon, Judge." "Old Stampy is ready too." "Shut up, you fool!" "Fine." "Fine." "That's it." "That's it." "The kid is photogenic." "Want me to give him a good screwing, Judge?" "They say the Texas Rangers... can hit a prairie dog between the eyes at a 100 yards... without the automatic setting." "Realy?" "So they say." "The Rangers are an unscrupulous bunch of mercenaries but... they're the only decent police left around here." "They're well trained and know what to do." "You'd have to go far to find people like that." "By the way Nick." "there's something I want to talk to you about." "It's Vince." "Sorry to bother you, Sheriff, but I've been out here." " a long time and..." " Hi, Sheriff." "The Sheriff here." "What is it Mrs. Hannisses?" "It's Billy." "Yesterday." " he didn't come home." " Fuckin' shit!" " Billy's only 6 years old!" " Yeah." "It's not the first time, Mrs. Hannisses." " I brought you a picture." " Leave it at my." "office, go home and calm down." "Go on Mrs. Hannisses." "Fuckin' shit!" "Hell, Sheriff." "Looks like the coyotes are... a little nervous lately." "Yeah." "More than a whore in church." "Good God it's Darlene!" "God no!" "Not today." " Good morning, Mrs. Wedley." " All right, Nick, I confess." "I was depressed and had a few drinks." "So, you'll have to make me blow... for the breath test, won't you Sheriff?" "Yes, Mrs. Wedley." "One thing has always intrigued me, Sheriff." "Has the Judge's wife always been like that?" " Ever since...?" " Listen," "Get this into your head." "Judge Wedley wants only the best." "Understand?" "The best." "Darlene isn't a bitch." "Darlene was the biggest whore east of Pecos... always was and always will be." "And tried to keep it that way." "It's best not to let her down." ""People from the East will come without trumpets of war... but will make you adore their idols and kneel before... their dark and decadent altars"." "Turn away from the infernal Japanese influence... and the Japanese antichrist..." "This isn't a good day for the fight." "A storm is coming up." "Listen to me." "All those electronic devices... we've bought from that race of yellow rats... since the death of General Douglas McArthur... about 100 years ago... had been predicted." "In every transistor, every refrigerator... every motor, every video, this diabolic race... thrown up from the very center of hell..." "Now tie its paw." "Well, you've caught a roadrunner." "Yes." "That race introduced... this." "A component that look as... harmless as a pumpkin seed... the radiation of which... imperceptible to our native technicians... has annulled, and still annuls, the energy of a race that..." "Hey, you." "Yes, you." "Yes've got 20 minutes to get out of town." "Sure, Sheriff." "I was just passing through." "I was talking to some friends to make time for my horse... to rest a while, and refresh this old man's..." " throat." " Shut up!" "You heard me." "Ladies and gentlemen... you heard the Law." "I'll be brief." "Just long enough to remind you..." "What's wrong with you, Lennie?" "Lately you're more of a jerk than usual." "...horrible calamities." "Someday you sinners..." "What a character!" "Where'd he come from?" "He got here this morning." "He gave me this bracelet." "Says it cures rheumatism." "He'd better leave soon." "The Judge doesn't like strangers." "Yeah." "Today is a bad day." "He looks sick... and that's a bad sign." "So Ismael is under the weather." "Yes, for a few days now." "He must be in love, he doesn't eat." "Ismael." "The same old story?" "There's more interference lately than ever before." "The video and jukebox don't work either." "Maybe that preacher is right about the Japanese." "I'll see you later, at the Judge's junkyard." "There's a fight today." "Yes." "Yes, damn it." "Another kid was taken from town this morning." "Six years old." "That old goat." "Thó older he gets, the queerer he is." "He'll never change." "He likes to be... well attended to before each fight." "You just relax, girls." "Good morning, Mrs. Wedley." "Well, we have to go." "This is shit." "There's no more." "I swear it on my kids." "Business was bad this month." "The Judge will understand." "Things have changed." "There are few clients." " The Judge will understand." " Let's hope so." "The girls are honest, hard-working." "Well... almost all of them." "What do you mean?" "It's Vicenta." "She's holding out on us lately." "Fuckin' shit!" "Hey, Benito!" "Why don't you take that disgusting thing off... the inferno where your clients have to drink?" "Hi, Sheriff." "Those beasts disgust me." "Hi, Lennie." "I'm letting Thelma and Louise get some fresh air." "They're nervous." " So is Ismael, poor thing." " Poor thing?" "Shit!" "The weak shouldn't be allowed to live." "The weak and the handicapped." "That's a good law of nature." "Things are livening up, Mr. Wedley." "Here comes your lovely wife." "Sheriff, I want to tell you that..." "Later, kid, later..." "Where'd you hide it, you bitch!" "Where is it?" " Answer me, where?" " Down there." "Fuckin' thief!" "...that terrible Japanese radiation... and help you if you suffer from... arthritis, rickets, impotence." "You coward, you'll never change!" "All you do is beat up on women and drunks!" "Well now, Sheriff." "That's a nasty accusation." "Buy them and your children will be protected against... the mysterious influence of those Japanese." "Did you tell him?" "No." " When will you?" " I don't know." "This afternoon, at the fight." "Then I can also get the Judge's permission." " They're not going to like it." " I know." "Me either." "Don't fuck with me, Vince." "You still don't get it." "Look around you." "You can walk for miles." "Look around, and what do you see?" "More miles." "Is that amusing?" "Well." "I like it." "Shit!" "Everyone thinks they have the best... because that's all they've got." "Remember Azucena Thompson." "from school?" "Yes." "The only decent white girl." "Everyone wanted to lay her." "Not me." "Everyone but you." "She was tired of doing it with her father and 5 brothers... and got no pleasant feelings from it." "Shit, there must be a place where things aren't like that." " Then, nothng happened?" " What could happen." "Vince?" "Nothing's happened here for 200 years." "This isn't the world." "There's nothing here." "Look, you can't get out of life more than you put into it." "And I want to start putting something into it." "They're not going to like this, not at all." "You're a son of a bitch, Sal." "You said it would be ready this week." "I need you to operate on me as soon as possible." "Don't you get it?" "If you don't fix... what you've done to my face." "I'll kill you." "I couldn't, Mrs. Wedley." "My pulse won't let me." "You heard me, you disgusting drunk!" "The third one emptied his glass into rivers and fountains... and they turned into blood." "And the angel of the waters said: "You're just... because they shed the blood of the saints."" "Good God..." "I've received the sian!" "Fine, let's go inside a while." "Come on, it's time to get your rocks off." "Don't you like her?" "Ask for something special." "The Avenger!" "What's the matter, are you afraid of me?" "Come on, let's get it over with!" "Come on." "Come on, Mr. Wedley." "Don't worry, you'll be fine." "You should rest a while... save your energy for this afternoon." "It's true, we had never talked about that." "It was different then." "We kids all knew it would be our turn someday." "It was like a medical examination." "Once in a while, it was also the girls' turn." "But we were a little older, not like now." "My God, the one taken today isn't even 7 years old!" " Benito!" " I'm coming!" "Benito!" "I've heard you have something special." "I need something special." "That's not enough." "That's better." "Stampy, get the Colonel ready." "We're on our way." "Antonia, Dolores, the old man's getting the Colonel ready." "Take care of the preacher, I'm going to see the Judge." "Back then, the Judge's bodyguard was a nice guy." "He gave us candy and treated us well." "To me that was..." "What can I say?" "Weird, but pleasant." "Madden was still a kid." "A kid... but a real murderer." "Believe me, he was as crazy as his Indian mother." "My brother Bob and I hung around with him." "He made us stick our fingers in the fan." "He tried to poison us with cabbage and molasses." "Kids' stuff." "The Junge stayed alive thanks to a spectacular iron lung." "He was about 150 years old, more or less." "5 years later, when he got the new iron lung." "Sal arrived." "Then they hired Madden." "Madden, that son of a bitch." "I have no pleasant memories of the ranch." "I only went twice but..." "I'll never get it out of here." "Yeah." "That's not pleasant for a kid." "We didn't like it either." "No one likes the way things are here, Lennie." "But they're like that for hundreds of years now." "And they'll stay that way, believe me." "Maybe." "I think so but, I don't know." " We should try." " I never mentioned it." "Look." "Once... many years ago, a stranger came through here." "She was researching for the government." "She was to stay just a few days... but stayed much longer." "Two weeks." "One night, she asked me to run away with her." "I was to meet her at the Coyoteville crossing, at dawn." "But there was a fight with one of the Judge's men." "I didn't get to see her, and I was lucky." "We belong here, Lennie." "That's the way it is, for some reason." "THE DOGS" "That's still here?" "Yeah." "Since then, no one contradicts Darlene." "Madden doesn't let anyone touch it." "Sheriff..." "I've been wanting to tell you something for days." "But..." "I couldn't find the right moment to..." "Spit it out." "I taught you to get to the point and not babble like an idiot." "I'm leaving." " What?" " Truthfully... maybe it's a mistake but..." "I want to go to the Police Academy... in Los Angeles and, well..." "I've been admitted." "When?" "Next week." "I thought I could request the Judge's permission today... because of the fight" "I knew this be a terrible day for that damned fight." "She kicked the bucket while she was giving him a blow job!" "Her mouth shut like a trap!" "She choked to death, and he bled to death like a pig!" "Life is short." "You have to burn your bridges fast... and get your rocks off whenever you can!" "Well, here's our courageous long arm of the law." "How are you, Madden?" " Hi." " Hello." " Is that any good?" " The best." ""The Silver Star"." "Text by Stan Lee and drawings by Jack Kirby." "It's old." "I found it." "I used to read "Sons of the Avengers", "The New X Patrol"." ""The New Generation"." "But all the action takes place in the East." "Do you have anything against that?" "I'm from there." "Now that I'm going to California." "I started this one." "He surfs through the Universe." "I'm getting ready." "Well now... where did you get that absurd idea?" "You haven't had an attack for some time now." "Yes, for a while... but I've had two this week." "Must be my nerves." "I never mentioned it but..." "I've researched and... epilepsy has been frequent around here for centuries." "Through all these years I've developed a theory on that." "I'll tell you about it some day." "It's very interesting." "I want to be somebody, understand?" "Somebody." "Stop drinking, you know it's no good for you." "Well, well, it's been a long time." "What brings you here?" "To say good-bye." "He's leaving next week." " Well, well." " Yes." "I've been admitted to the Police Academy in California." "I'm very happy for you." "Very happy." "Nick says it's necessary to pay your respects to the Judge... when you arrive as a stranger, and when you leave." "Exactly." "Mr. Wedley likes to know... what is going on in his community." "But now... enjoy yourself." "Enjoy your last days in Atolladero." "Where the hell is....?" "Hey, be careful with this box or your pretty... little ass will be blown sky-high!" " All this is dynamite?" " It sure is." "I still have a couple of tons left over... from the era of the oil wells." "I wanted to talk to you." "I'm leaving next week." "I'm young and have a full life ahead of me." "I have a lot of years to try, I'm still young." "Shit!" "I'm happy for you, I realy am." "Stop by my place... and I'll lend you one of my girls. free." "No thanks, Benito." "Thanx, but no thanks." "I wouldn't go with any of your whores now even if you paid me." "Although, the last time... who really fucks" "I'm not impotent, handicapped or anything like that I'm not impotent hand pped" "What a son of a bitch!" "Come in." "Let's go, we don't have all afternoon." "I'm sorry to bother you, Mr.Wedley." "You like this smell, don't you, you bastards?" "Now they'd bust their balls to get at the female!" " I bet 50 on Saddam." " And I 50 on Satan." " I'll see you." " I cover it, plus 100 more." "What the fuck is with them?" "Damn it!" "I knew this would happen." "It's that damn storm." "It's been coming up for days." "All the animals are" "They've gone crazy." "For over a week now... they're all hysterical." " I told you..." " Just shut up... and do something about it!" "Yeah, let's get to work." "Someone has to go and motivate them again." "Someone has to move their ass... and get them hot again." "Why don't you do it, Stampy?" "Fuck you!" "I wouldn't go down there for a million dollars!" "Yes, yes." "Enjoy yourself, darling." "enjoy yourself." "Well... you can't go very far for now!" "Look at him!" "Come on, it's over." "What's the matter, Colonel?" "Come on, you bastard, come on!" "What are you waiting for?" "Do it!" " Fuckin' shit, it's jammed!" " Look east." "We're fucked, it's a tornado!" "Come on, let's go!" "There were earthquakes... and bolts of lightening like never since the birth of man." "And God remembered Babylon and gave them... the bleeding goblet of his rage." "And the angels said:" ""So be it, so be it!"" "On your knees and repent!" "Halleluiah!" "Yes, Mr.Wedley... that bastard's also killed that fuckin' stranger." "Which way?" "Are you sure?" "He's wounded, but... he could still cover quite a few miles." "Well, Sheriff, what conclusion have you come to?" "He went that way." "You heard, the party has begun." "Judge Wedley wants a saddle made out of that bastard's hide." "We'll skin him and then hang him." "He'll wish he was never born." "Make out the report, just the way I taught you." "Then take some pictures." "And I want no mistakes." "THE GUNS" "This is great." "There's nothing like a good gun in your hand." "Man is made of iron." "You're dying to get this going aren't you, Madden." "You love the smell of blood." "Stop drinking, you're making me sick to my stomach!" "Over there!" "He's going northwest... at about 530 yards." "The caloric radar has lost him." "These rocks absorb a lot of heat... but I'm sure he's here, behind one of them." "We won't get anywhere at night." "We'll wait until tomorrow, and get well organized." "It's not that easy, Nick." "Madden wants to go all the way." "So there you are, you son of a bitch." "Over here, that bastard got him!" " Where the hell is he?" " Shoot low, I want him alive!" "Where is he?" "I can't see a thing." "You guys shoot with your ass!" "He has to be over here!" "Fuckin' shit!" "Let's get organized this is ridiculous." "Damn it, I told you so!" "It's those damn oil pipelines!" "Those damn pipelines!" "This desert has holes like a Swiss cheese... due to hundreds of pipelines." "Years ago the crude oil was piped directly... to the Gulf of Mexico." "But now..." "Now he has no way out." "does he?" "He's trapped." "I wouldn't be stupid enough to go down there, if I were you." "There are miles of rusty pipelines... that intersect hundreds of times." "You could spend the rest of your life down there... without seeing shit." "It's all metallic and too damp." "All detecting systems are useless, except for one thing." "Don't worry, we've got him." "He can't get away." "He's trapped like a rat." "We must hurry, Madden." "The car batteries can... keep him going for another 4 hours, maximum... but we also need fresh supplies." "We'll use this." "It hasn't been used for quite a while, but it'll work." "The hunter's knowledge is much more... patience than knowledge." "This is stupid." "This damn thing isn't worth shit." "We could take hours to find him." "There he is, we've found him!" "You've got him!" "He's right there!" "Damn it!" "Get him!" "Damn it!" "It won't leave a trance!" " It's ripping him apart!" " It's got him!" "Yeah, and it's about time!" "You idiots!" "I agree, Madden, he has to be near." "But you've been looking for hours." "Someone can stay, be we must get back to the ranch." "Now we have to get back." "The batteries are on reserve." "That's dangerous, Madden." "Anithing can happen if we don't get back now." "This is the Sheriff." "Damn it Vince, wake up!" "Nick, do you have anything to drink?" "I need a drink." "I know you've got a flask in there." "There he is again!" "Southwest about 10 miles away!" "Please, Nick." "Just one swig!" "Don't fuck me up!" "Is there anyone there?" "Shit, I must have been dreaming." "You weren't you idiot." "Now do exactly as I say." "I liked that poor devil... but you can't piss all over everyone." "You can't knock everyone progress." "We'd all like to leave." "Why don't we?" "'Cause this is our place." "where we belong." "We'd all like tp get out of this shit and do better things." "That's true, Sheriff." "Yeah, but where, what things?" "I never told you because I knew you wouldn't understand." "But 99%% of your brain... is reptilian." "Just over the local average." "Madden scares me." "I don't like riding shotgun for him." "He's out of his mind." "For years I've dreamt I kill him in a showdown." "Don't make me laugh." "Have you ever seen him blink when he shoots?" "His blood is colder than a snake's." "Wait." "Don't shoot!" "We've got him." "Shit, he's dying!" "The Judge is dying!" "You disgusting drunk, do something." "The Judge is dying!" "You have to do something!" "I can't, Madden, I'm in bad shape." "Get him in the back." "There's no time to lose." "A swig." "I know you have a flask." "Just a swig." "That's better." "What the hell...?" "Forget that, stupid!" "Come on, you have to think of something!" "You have to think!" "The batteries have stopped.... feeding the peripheral system." "A sharp electric discharge... would deactivate the circuits." "But that's one chance in a thousand." "There's the old condenser." "Stampy got current out of it." "But, we'd need a special transformer." "Maybe not." "The car batteries have a special transformer." "We could open a circuit... between the car and the chair." "They want to electrocute me!" " You'd better go with him." " Sure." "I've got some tequila left." "I've always wondered how this old drunk... could get through this mess... of cables and buttons." "Believe it or not..." "Sal was a first-rate biomechanical engineer." "He worked in a hospital in the East." "I'm sure he was great... one of the best." "But, something happened." "He designed a retractible prothesis that... grew along with the cartilage of children." "He cured many kids." "But, a year later, it started to fail." "Thousands of kids died in terrible pain." "That's why he came here... to get away from his shame and guilt." "He says that in the silence of the night... he can still hear how... he little victims scream." "Now it's important to pinch artery 143." "You heard him." "Watch the neurometer." "I'll try to stabilize the radioisotope regulator..." " with injections of..." " Shit, a purple hemorrhage!" " It's flooding everything!" " My God!" "I told you to pinch that damn artery!" "I've pinched it!" " I've pinched it!" " I said 143... of the parietal circuit!" "That's it." "I think that's it." "I was able to stabilize that... damn regulator." "Now... we're ready to connect." "I'll do it." "I knew it wouldn't work." "Wait." "Try again." "My God, it worked!" "I did it!" "We did it!" "Listen." "don't you have any whisky around?" "We're partners now." "That dirty bastard!" "They'll die very slowly." "Those two bastards will die... very slowly." "THE REPTILES" "Shit!" "It's the electric circuit." "Let's go, they're right behind us!" "I had heard about this place, but I had never been here." "It's the Indian reservation... of the last of the Osages." "This is the cemetery, a sacred place." "Listen..." "I don't like this." "This place is called Chirokaw... which I think means:" ""tomb of the men of iron"." "In commemoration... of a victory... over a patrol... of Spanish conquerors... in the 16th century." "They were looking for..." "El Dorado... a city of gold and found... the most savage and bloodthirsty tribe of American history." "There they are!" "Poor people." "I understand them." "They were the first to arrive in Atollagero... but were unable to leave." "There they are." "There he is, Nick!" "Sal!" "Great!" "Now you've got him!" "Shoot!" "Don't be a fool, shoot!" "Now listen to me, and pay close attention." "Go on alone." "You won't make it with me." "I deserve this... but you have to get out of here." "Get rid of those bastards and get away." "You have to keep running." "They'll never let you go." "Don't you get it?" "If they did... they would be accepting a cruel and relentless truth... of theirs." "If they let you go... it would be like accepting their own death." "One of us should go up while the rest cover him." "Everyone should do this their own way." "I know you bastards are up there!" "Come on out, you rats!" "Did you ever hear about the limbic zone?" "The limbic system... is the most ancient part of the human brain." "It developed over 130 million years ago... when the reptiles ruled on Earth." "Originally... it controlled our sense of smell... but later it went on to control... our most primitive functions." "Rage and fear... lechery and hunger... advance and retreat." "The avcient reptiles... like the lizard... had nothing else... to direct their conduct." "Man's cerebral cortex evolved... around the limbic brain... that remained unaltered." "That cortex had to learn... to love in harmony with... the reptile brain it contained." "At times... that harmony snaps." "What happens to you... when you have an attack... is that your reptile side... takes over intermittently." "I don't know why but... the longer you are... in this disgusting corner of the planet... your mind gets sick... and the reptile in you... governs your life... and adjusts you to this heat." "The heat of our own shit." "We're reptiles, Lennie." "What are you waiting for?" "Run!" "Good-bye, Doc." "Good-bye, kid." "What a shame it's come to this, Sal." "The Avenger!" " What's the matter?" " He's here!" "Benito!" "Benito!" "Benito!" "That bastard's killed them both!" "First Sal, then Benito!" "It busted them apart." "It doesn't make sense." "I'm going back." "The Judge is dead." "People won't know what to do, and they'll be trouble." "Besides, this isn't my jurisdiction." "Now you're nobody, Madden." "The Judge is dead, and you're nobody." "Where do you think you're going?" "Come back, Nick!" "Let's get this over with!" "This is the Atollagero police departament... calling all outer perimeters." "This is an all points bulletin, code Z." " I repeat, code Z." " Come here, or I'll shoot." "Hi, Vince." "Shit, Lennie, what's going on?" "Everyone's looking for you." "They've blocked the roads, and I was posted here." "Don't worry, Vince, it's all over." "Listen, do you have any fuel?" "Sure." "I'll take it." "Lennie..." "I'd like to tell you something before you go." "This may not be the right time." " You see..." " What is it, Vince?" "I'd better tell you now." "Nick has sent out an A.P.B. to the outer perimeter." "And, well, I was in the car and... on screen, I saw the showdown between Nick and Madden." "I don't know what happened, but, the thing is that... everyone from here to San Antonio is after you." "What are you going to do?" "Nothing, don't worry." "I've been thinking a lot, and the think is that... since you're leaving, and after Nick's thing..." "I've come to the conclusion that... the Judge will need a new Sheriff." "The Judge is dead." "Well... that doesn't matter." "Well, it does matter but, it's better this way." "They'll need a new Sheriff... and, since I'm staying..." "I thought that..." "I could get the job." "Look, it's occurred to me that... well... if you were to shoot me in the arm, or something... people will think we had a shoot-out and... even though... you got away, I tried and... that would help me... to get the job." " Must it be now?" " What worries me... are the Rangers." "If they get the message, they act fast." "Vince." "Vince, come back!" "Take cover, Vince!" "Take cover!" "Shit!" "Fuck!" "Shit!" "Lennie!" "Lennie... listen to me and pay close attention." "Never fight clean with anyone." "Get behind him... and shoot when he least expects it." "Always be sincere with yourself... but never with others." "If you tell people what you know... everyone will know as much as you do... but you'll only know... what everyone knows." "And, above all... never get involved with a decent woman." "She'll bind you to something... of which you'll never break free." ""