July 1988
A handsome blond man in blue jeans and a buckskin jacket wiped his brow as he scrambled over a steep slope in the Western United States. He stopped for a moment to enjoy the view and then resumed his search. He was clearly on a quest for something but there were few options in this rugged section of the country. He frowned for a moment as he studied the lay of the land.
It was truly beautiful and at least partially undisturbed by the development that lay to the East. Still, such areas were increasingly rare as environmentalists battled industrialists and tourism waged war with preservation for the soul of the land.
Roger G. Parsons didn’t think of himself as a conservationist. It was a modern term in some ways and he was an old fashioned man. He loved nature and he sought to live in harmony with all of its creatures even those often troublesome types who walked on two legs and considered themselves to be superior to the birds and beasts that still live in such unspoiled spots.
He stopped and took some food out of the pouch he wore across his belt. As he ate he grimaced as he glanced through a battered paperback book called The Legend of the Golden Arrow. The book was about him but it was a terrible patchwork of falsehoods, exaggerations, and speculations. It might as well be considered pure fiction although he knew that his true origin contained events that would have fit most comfortably in the pulps of his own youth in the thirties.
Roger had been born a few years before World War I. His father Professor Paul Parsons had been a brilliant biochemist. He had developed the formula for a new gas that would have revolutionized lighter than air travel had it been mass produced. The Professor died before this could happen. In fact he and his wife Gloria had been murdered on the test flight of their modified balloon. The Parsons’ infant son Roger had survived the crash. A kindly old mountain man known as Nugget Ned Newsome had witness the assault on the balloon by thugs employed by a greedy munitions dealer named Braddock who wanted the Parsons formula for his own uses. Ned had secretly rescued Roger and raised him as his own son in a remote cabin in the mountains. Roger grew strong and swift and mastered skills including self-defense, horsemanship, wilderness survival, and above all archery. Ned revealed Roger’s true heritage and the fate of his parents upon his own deathbed. Roger recovered the formula and gave it to the U.S. government shortly before World War II would engulf the world. He brought the Braddocks to justice and became a local legend known as the heroic Golden Arrow. He continued to have adventures during the war years and even met mystery men like Captain Marvel and Ibis. After the war he was caught in a wild magical spell that placed him in a type of suspended animation for over thirty years. He had tried to adjust to the changes wrought by the passage of time but it had become too much for him. It wasn’t simply a matter of having to find his way in a world that had passed him by. Other heroes had been forced to do much the same thing due to an unrelated incident known as the Suspendium Trap but in Roger’s case things were more complicated. Roger didn’t miss the forties. He missed the 19th century!
During the forties the Golden Arrow had managed to live two lives in a manner of speaking due to an amazing accident. During a fight with a group of Bundist thugs he had received a stunning blow to the head that had left him comatose for a few days. He had recovered fully and resumed his life of peril and heroism.; however, the young champion had a secret that he had never shared with anyone. During the days in which he been comatose in a hospital room, he had also experienced what felt like several years worth of experiences in the Old West! He had no explanation for what had happened. He only knew that he believed that the things he had experienced while in that comatose state had truly happened. In some bizarre way the Golden Arrow had managed to live an active and rewarding life in the Old West before awakening to find himself back in his normal time only a few days after the initial injury.
Now, Roger had made a decision. He would return to the scene of those 19th century adventures and find out the validity of them. He would do more than that if possible. The Golden Arrow wanted nothing more than to travel back in time and spend the rest of his days as a hero of the Old West. Surely, the first step would be to find the romantic and rugged scenes of some of his exploits. If he could find proof that he had not dreamed all of those wonderful years, then perhaps, he could somehow find a way to return to the world he loved so much.
He didn’t really know how to begin. He had certainly experienced other blows to the head but none of them had ever produced anything as strange as his earlier displacement in time. He knew the nurses and doctors swore his comatose body had never stirred during in time in the hospital but he knew better. He refused to accept the idea that he had only imagined all of those experiences in some odd way.
He spotted a narrow opening that might have once been an entrance to some old mine. He crawled inside it as if some instinct guided him on his journey. Moments later he grunted in surprise as the tunnel collapsed beneath him and he plunged downward in a cloud of dust and rubble.
He choked and gasped as he fought his way to freedom. He was bruised and cut but not hurt in any serious way. He used his superior strength to shove aside rocks until he could emerge into the sunlight again.
He glanced around him and stared in shock as a strange new world came into view below his high perch in the mountain passage.
He saw a bustling city but he also saw elements of design and structure of style and ornamentation that could only be from the past he loved so much. Somehow the Golden Arrow had made his way back in time again! Again, he didn’t care how it had happened. He shrugged aside a stray thought that he had died during the cave in. In any event he ran down the steep slope and as he approached the outskirts of the community he saw a sign that read “ Utopia City.”
He slowed down and began to look around his new surroundings. He gasped once more as he saw people going about their routine business in the Old West he knew so well! He was home! This was his well-loved era! He breathed a silent prayer of thanksgiving and started to enter the city called Utopia when he was stopped by two figures from out of a nightmare. They were humanoid in appearance but they gleamed as the sunlight hit their metallic exteriors. They had flashing red eyes and their every step produced a clanging sound.
“Metal men? Robots?” he whispered.
“Ro-bots? What are you, boy? He must be some kind of loco foreigner!” said the first metal being as they blocked his path.
The second one made an unpleasant screeching noise that could possibly have been what these inhuman beings considered to be laughter!
“Don’t matter none. He looks like he can bleed just the same as anybody who crosses the Emperor Maximilliano!”
The Golden Arrow moved with his normal amazing speed and dodged the lumbering metal men with ease. He pulled his bow off his shoulder and placed an arrow in position!
He aimed and fired the arrow with astonishing accuracy and nodded in approval as it embedded itself between the edge of one of the robot’s chest plate and its heavily grooved neck.
The robotic being stopped in its tracks but did not fall. The Golden Arrow had evidently done some damage by striking at that exact spot but the impact of the arrow had failed to disable the metal being.
His second arrow shattered one of the gleaming red sensors that apparently served as eyes for the robot.
Before he could attack once more, the second metal enforcer extended his arm and it elongated as a coil that unwound from within the metal covering of its upper arm.
The extending limb narrowly missed the agile Archer but avoiding the attack also threw him off center and Golden Arrow slipped on the rocky surface beneath his boots.
At that moment two newcomers came out from behind one of the huge ridges that rose up to the left of the city limits. The two women were a startling sight to see for more than reason. The taller woman had long straight blonde hair that framed a delicate and lovely face. She wore a red walking skirt with a matching blouse but the blouse was sleeveless and its neckline made the garment more closely resemble what the Arrow had heard referred to as a bustier during his time in the 1980s. It was in no way what a woman of the 19th century would wear unless she worked in one of the dance halls or had an even less respectable profession. She also wore long red lace gloves and boots of black that reached above her knees and disappeared beneath her folds of her walking skirt. She moved with a defiant grace and calmly approached the scene of battle as if she was stepping into a stage within one of the gaudy saloons of the era. She eitherliked attention or had no interest in what people thought of her at all.
As the robotic enforcers turned to face her, she smiled coldly and produced a small gun from within the folds of her skirt. She fired at the nearest robot as he started to make a whistling sound. It never finished its mockery since a blazing bolt shot out of the weapon and immobilized the metal man. It crashed to the ground as its ally faced the second smaller woman. The Chinese woman made no sound as she casually stood her ground and aimed a stylized bow at the robot. She was dressed all in white. The sleeves of her dress were voluminous but the bottom of her flowing garment revealed matching hosiery and small white boots with ivory or pearl buttons on the sides of each boot. She released a strange arrow that struck the robot’s head and ignited in flames!
She exchanged brief nods with the other woman as they raced forward and together kicked the robot in the chest and sent it crashing down near the first automaton!
The Chinese woman stood over Golden Arrow as he regained his footing.
“You will not survive long in Utopia City if you do not practice stealth. No one enters or exits the domain of the so-called Emperor of the West without his permission …unless they do so without his awareness!” she said.
Golden Arrow nodded and said, “Thank you, ladies. I’m new here. I appreciate your help. I sure would appreciate some information. You see, this town is nothing like the place I used to know …sometime back!”
His mind raced as he tried to make sense of his arrival in the past but into a past with robots and strange weapons like the blonde’s energy gun.
“I am called the Barbary Ghost and my companion…!” began the Chinese woman before the lethal blonde interrupted.
“I don’t go by no pretty title like my friend here. My folks named me Fancy and that’s good enough for me. Fancy Lawrence is the name!” she said warily as if she was ready for the Golden Arrow to attack or defy her in some way. She seemed to have contempt either for the Arrow himself or all men in general.
She added, “The Coilers will be back up soon enough. When any of them break, new ones come a runnin!”
The Golden Arrow said, “Let’s take cover back up the range a bit. I sure would like to learn more about this place and you ladies too!”
He frowned once more as he saw a huge blimp sail into view and head toward the city itself.
This was definitely not the Old West he remembered!
As the trio crouched down behind the towering rocks a few miles outside of the town, Golden Arrow tried to take stock of his situation as the women tended to two horses they had concealed behind the rocks earlier.
“Somehow I’ve made it back to the 19th century but it is not like the West I remembered from my last trip through time. This Old West has robots and blimps and energy guns. It is like a Western movie crossed with a Buck Rogers serial!”he mused.
“My name is Golden Arrow. I am new here. Could you tell me what’s going on in Utopia City?” he asked.
Fancy Lawrence snorted in derision. “Nothin’s going on except anything the so-called Emperor and his goons want and what that bunch of jackals want ain’t good for the likes of decent folks!”
The Barbary Ghost said, “Maximilliano came from Vienna, Austria at the request of the French. They set him up as a puppet ruler of Mexico in 1864. He was ousted from his throne by the Mexicans when the French deserted him. Rumor suggested that he had died but this was not so. He survived a mob and later emerged here with a group of loyal followers including a band of hired killers. They made use of a strange science known only to his most trusted ally a man called the Alchemist who brought the metal men to life and created flying machines and other deadly devices that enabled them to take over Mesa City and turn it into Utopia City! No one enters or leaves without their permission. We have come to do just that!”
Fancy tossed her hair back away from her face and said, “Ghost is looking for her Ma. You see the Emperor and his goons kidnap poor folks and take them away to slave in their mines or serve some other unholy purpose!”
The Barbary Ghost’s normally stern expression yielded to a look of sorrow that revealed how young she truly was beneath her capable demeanor.
“My family came here from China. We left San Francisco and trouble there with others who also came from our homeland. We thought we could find peace here but as Fancy said, my mother was taken away. All of my loved ones perished trying to rescue her. I remain to free her or to avenge her!” she said.
Fancy added, “Her folks knew all about fireworks and this little lady can blow up anything she can hit with one of her trick arrows!”
The Barbary Ghost nodded slowly and added, “Fancy has been kind to me! I have not met many good people since I left China!”
Golden Arrow said, “I am sorry for that. Maybe, I can help you with your search. You see, I am a stranger but I know things like what you’ve told me about this Max can’t be allowed to go on!”
Fancy laughed and said, “What do you aim to do about them? You got a right pretty face and nice manners but I haven’t seen much else from you!”
He said, “I have had a lot of experience dealing with bad men. I may be able to surprise them …and you!”
She adjusted her lace gloves and said, “We’ll see! Like I said, actions speak louder than pretty words!”
The Golden Arrow smiled and said, “Well, I do have a way for us to get in to the city. I see a caravan coming. It looks like a circus wagon in the lead. I figure folks with our skills could earn a place in that travelling show and I wager these circus folks are going to be welcomed in Utopia City!”
Fancy pursed her ruby red lips and said, “You can see that far? All I see is dust from some kind of vehicle. Don’t appear to be a steam wagon neither so you could be right about it being an old fashioned side show type of assembly!”
Golden Arrow said, “It is. I do have very good vision!”
They guided the horses forward as they made their way toward the caravan and noticed its bright red and yellow coloration and garish images on the sides of each wagon that proclaimed the wonders of “The Marvelarium Menagerie.”
Golden Arrow smiled broadly and waved his bow as the wagons drew closer.
“I figure they’ll be willing to bring us into the city with them even if we have to feed the lions or clean up after the dancing bear!” he said.
Fancy scowled and said, “You best just speak for yourself. I don’t do that kind of thing!”
Golden Arrow started to question her about her past when he realized they were alone. The Barbary Ghost had vanished.
“Don’t worry about her. She has some real uncanny tricks all her own. She likes to stay outta sight. She’s no performing horse. I reckon she’ll keep up with us!” she said with a shrug of her bare shoulders.
An oily looking man with a broad smile and gleaming teeth looked down at them as he brought his wagon to a halt. He wore a jacket with shiny braid across each shoulder and his chest. He inclined his head in a mock bow and said, “Salutations, friends! I fear your eagerness to see the wonders of the Marvelarium Menagerie has caused you to act with undue haste but who could resist? We do not perform on the road. You will need to wait and witness our many splendid acts in yonder metropolis!”
“We surely will but we were hoping you might be in the market for a new act. I’m a marksman and this lovely lady is my assistant!” said Golden Arrow.
“What?” sputtered an indignant Fancy.
The grinning man’s smile turned into a leer as he glanced down at the emotional blonde in the revealing outfit.
“Indeed? And I’m certain she assists quite well! I am Professor Marvel. I lend my name to the show although it must seem immodest to those who do not know me well!”
He said, “We need to rest a bit before venturing into the modern Babylon ahead! Perhaps, you and your lady would be willing to demonstrate your skills…audition as It were!”
Golden Arrow nodded eagerly and said, “ That would be perfect Professor Marvel!”
They stepped aside as the wagon train drew to a stop and the colorful occupants began to tend to their animals and equipment.
Fancy poked her finger into the Golden Arrow’s ribs and whispered, “I’m no assistant! What do you mean by saying that?”
He smiled and placed an arm around her waist.
“Play along with me. I am a good shot. You can trust me and my aim!” he said.
She said, “I saw how well you hit the Coilers but I don’t like it. I swore a long time ago that Flash Lawrence’s little girl wouldn’t ever need any man!”
“Flash Lawrence? Miss Lawrence, I feel like you have a real interesting story to tell!” he said.
She frowned and flounced toward the wagons without looking back.
Golden Arrow thought, “That lady sure has a big chip on her pretty shoulders! This whole crazy experience would be a lot easier if I could make friends with her!”
If he had looked back at the wagons, he might have been more concerned about another person’s feelings toward him. A tall blond man in a white and black costume stared at him balefully.
“That young punk thinks he can shoot by the way he waves that bow around. Well, he’ll die a fast death at the hands of the White Arrow before he takes my job!” he mused.