Episode Five - Up Devils Creek Without A Paddle
From Black Country Role Playing Society
Of course, when somebody starts shootin’ at yer a body can get a get a mite nervous, however, when it’s a confederate ironclad, well I hope yer wearin’ yer brown pants. Our boys found these Johny Rebs loading gold onto their battleship in an underground canyon, and boy, are they givin’ em hell. All the soldiers outside the ship is either dead or in hidin’. But then the big gun opens up. There is a enormous explosion behind them and rocks start to fall. Tony Hart needs no more encouragement. He dives into the water, hopin’ to catch the confederates nappin’. He has also spotted his friend, Si Findley tied to a chair on the gun deck. Meanwhile, Nameless, Diamondback Jack, and Ace Hart board the ship via the gangplank. Si topples his chair and finds a sharp edge to loosen his bonds, but Tony frees him before he gets a chance. Nameless clears the decks by the liberal use of Dynamite, Diamondback Jack shoots any rebels left standin’.
It turns out that Si Findley is a medical man, and from his outrageous accent it is clear he is Scottish. Tony Hart is overjoyed to be reunited with his friend, meanwhile the others are counting up the gold, and a tidy sum it is too. There are also documents tellin’ of the confederate plot to raise money to fire up another rebellion. Nevertheless, there’s no stopping greed, and Tony has a plan to make the gold multiply, he means to buy some land and then claim he found the gold there. The value of the land should increase magnificently. Ace and prospector Pete go back through the tunnels to get the horses and the wagon. Then they all ride back to Tombstone.
Nameless feels honour bound to visit the sheriff to tell him about the confederate plot and give him the documents. The others go to the saloon. Tony Hart asks the barkeeper if he knows of a property dealer in the area. He points out a smart lookin’ slicker drinkin’ whisky in the corner. The dealer has some land to sell, but asks Tony to come round in the morning to finalise the deal. The land in question is called Devils Creek, and it lies in the general direction of Black foot territory. This suits the Doctor because he believes the Blackfoot have kidnapped Rebecca, His sister. By midday Tony has the deeds, and the boys are setting out on the trail to Devil’s creek.
When they arrive, they can see that there has never been such a godforsaken place. The creek is a narrow gorge, with high walls on both sides and a meagre steam running through it. The boys proceed to fire nuggets of gold into the bed of the stream. Pete pans out the gold, but progress is slow. After a couple of days The boys go back to town, but only manage to get $150 for their trouble. Part of the problem is the small size of their equipment (Oooh-er!), so they buy the biggest pan they can lay their hands on, and go back to Devil’s Creek.
They get back before nightfall, Nameless and Diamondback Jack bag a brace of buzzards for supper. Watches are set for the night. During Nameless’s watch, he hears a rustling sound in the bushes. Its not a cowboy wearing a brown paper suit, but instead a tiny but perfectly formed horse. Being Nameless, he shoots it. When hes got the critter hog-tied, he hands it to the Doctor to fix it up.
The next day the boys follow the little horse’s tracks down the valley. To their surprise the valley opens out and becomes lush and fertle, and many more little horse tracks are there to be seen. Purty soon they spot another one grazing on the bushes. Diamondback Jack takes off after it and attempts to rope it with his lasso, but only succeeds in fallin’ off his horse. Undeterred, he tries again and this time he has it trussed up like a thanksgiving turkey. Jus’ then he hears a tremendous roar. He turns around and, to his amazement, sees a huge lizard. This thing ain’t just big, it’s the size of a small house. Pausing only to yell “Monster!”, Jack runs away like a spooked mustang, wishing he was wearin’ his incontinence pants………..
TO BE CONTINUED...
On to Episode Six - A Blast From The Past?
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