Tex Taylor #7

Trapped in Time's Lost Land!

Tex Taylor and Alkali Ike are riding through the range, Ike is telling his usual stories and telling Tex about how gold can really change a man. Suddenly they are caught in a sand storm and forced to seek shelter in a nearby cave. Inside the cave, Tex saves Ike from a rattlesnake. The two discover a rich vein of gold, and once more Ike warns about how gold can effect people. Tex promises his sidekick that he can be trusted and they both agree to sent Tex out to town to claim the gold stake. Before Tex leaves, Ike tells his partner that if he can't trust Tex then he doesn't want any gold or to go on living either.

Tex rides into the nearby town of Canyon City, where he is watched going into the filing office by Danny Sawtell and his sidekick Creepy. They both find Tex rather interesting and listen into his conversation. Tex talks to the filing clerk and tells him about the gold prospect and stakes his and Alkali's claim, showing him a chunk of gold he brought along. The clerks tells Tex it'll take 20 minutes to write up the claim papers and warns him about Sawtell and Creepy. After Taylor leaves, the two men get the drop on the filing clerk and try to force him to reveal the location of the mine. The clerk refuses and tires to flee and Creepy throws a knife at him killing him by mistake.

When Tex Taylor returns he finds the clerk dead and Sawtell and his men ambush him from behind. A gun fight starts and ends quickly when Tex is creased by a bullet and passes out. Sawtell and his men then take Tex out of town and revive him. To their dismay, they find that Tex has been stricken with amnesia. They convince him that they are all partners in the gold stake, and that Ike is trying to claim it all for himself and convince Tex to go back to the mine and kill Ike. However, Tex refuses to believe it and Sawtell and his men tie Tex up. That night, Tex has his bonds chewed open by Fury and he recovers his guns. When he runs into Sawtell's gang he quickly guns some of them down. Realizing how fast he was at drawing his guns, Tex decides to believe Sawtell's story and agrees to find the mine and kill Ike.

Tex manages to relocate the mine and goes inside alone to confront Ike. When faced with the fact that Tex has come to kill him for the gold, Ike's worst nightmare is realized. With no more will to like Alkali lights off some TNT. However the resulting explosion does not kill either men. Instead it jars Tex's memory back and uncovers a tunnel. When Ike explains everything that happened, Sawtell and his remaining gang members try to gun them down. Fleeing into the tunnel, Tex and Alkali are shocked to find a lost world filled with Dinosaurs hidden beneath the cave. They are attacked by a saber tooth tiger which Tex quickly kills. With their enemies on their trail, Tex and Alkali lead them into the prehistoric jungle they have uncovered. They get a Tyrannosaurus Rex to chase them back to the cave entrance where Sawtell and Creepy are just emerging. While the two outlaws are busy with the Dinosaur, Tex and Ike flee out the tunnel. Ike then blasts the tunnel shut to trap the Dinosaurs on the other side. The resulting explosion causes the cave to start collapsing and Tex and Ike flee outside to safety.

In the aftermath of the explosion, Ike is upset that they lost the gold, but is content with the fact that Tex is still his friend.

Recurring Characters

• Tex Taylor

• Alkali Ike

• Fury

• Jenny

The Invaders!

Diablo the bear is hunted by the owner of Rolling-9 Ranch. The bear is chased into a cattle pen where Diablo fights the bull to the death. This causes a stampede that knocks the owner of the Rolling-9 off his horse and gets him trampled. Diablo makes his escape back into the wilderness. When the own of the ranch comes out of his coma his assistant offers to back out hunting for Diablo when he gets well, the man declines. Telling his ranch hand that Diablo never bothered them to begin with.

Recurring Characters

• Diablo