DESPERADO'S RUSSLE

"Al"bert Hute ("The Desperado") was the best of the supervillains. He didn't agree in unproven boasts; this was fact. Josiah "Shark" was something of an electronics genius; but without his electro-mechanical tub toys, he was a gurgling weakling; a fish out of water. Dr. Luthor Vanderice, the "master of cold," could have been a threat; he dressed way too garishly to be taken seriously. Dr. Eclipso couldn't rightly threaten all of Teen Justice when he was so obsessed with fighting Solara; and the Lazer was little more than a thug for hire. "The Desperado" was the sole villain with real super powers (albeit, they were speed and power detection). That made "Desperado" important enough that he surrounded himself with a gang of his own. If Simon, the sinister AI, were paying a speck of attention to the villains in the way that T.J. directed, and monitored, Teen Justice, it would know that...

The money train was broken down in front of the farmer's barn. It was just how "The Desperado" had planned it. Now, he and his gang had work to do. "Wild" William Canard had dynamited the tracks perfectly and now, he and Bandito were busily gathering up the sacks of cash. "Bull" Nash stood behind Desperado as if waiting for something to happen. Finally, don Ferdinand came strolling up again.

"It's ready, boss." Ferdinand declared. "The famer's bull already knows that we're here. It's big, it's protective, and it's ornery."

"So we'll be gone before it can bother us." Desperado retorted. "In the meantime..."

Suddenly, Desperado trailed off midspeech and seemed to glance up to the sky. Meanwhile, the air around him seemed to shift. If don Ferdinand hadn't known his boss better, he'd have thought that he was daydreaming midspeech. Instead, before long, a cold, calculating smile spread across Desperado's face.

"Teen Justice has already alerted Mr. Nash." Desperado declared with a nod. "Bull, prepare to greet your big brother."

"Bull's" nostrils flared and he pivoted in place to march off to somehow hide his 6'2, muscular frame...

*****************************

T.J. had required a member of "Teen Justice" to go out West. He had inexplicably called upon Rex Nash ("Steelor.") The super-tough teen would have asked T.J. for a further explanation for that. Nevertheless, "T.J." was a hologram and computer program who merely monitored every situation; and he had a penchant for not being forthcoming about his assignments. Nevertheless, a job was a job and "Steelor" had a robbery to stop.

The Teen Justice strong-man and impenetrable shield materialized from T.J.'s portal. He then glanced about at what appeared to be empty space. A farmer's old barn and ranch stood to his left. An armored train was mysteriously stalled a distance ahead (as if the farmer could have done the deed!)

Then, two outlaws emerged with the strongbox in between them. Finally, Steelor saw who he was there to stop.

"Hey, YOU!" he bellowed, lumbering forward with his human frame exposed for a moment.

Suddenly, Steelor was struck from his right side by the force of a truck. His armor built up too late and he was already airborne. Steelor, a 5'9 teenager surrounded in a natural steel armor, crashed right through the farmer's fence and landed in the pen.

"Ungh!" Steelor grumbled absently as he struggled to stagger back to his feet, slowed down by his iron armor. "Baby brother did it again! I should have known before that Bull usually works with Desperado!"

Sure enough, the aforementioned "Bull" lumbered forward, his excess of facial jewlery glistening in the sun. He glared cold-hatred at his older brother.

"Welcome to Texas, shrimp!" the younger Nash brother barked. "You've got two bulls to play with today!"

There came a nearby snort and a premonition to turn around clicked in Steelor's mind. He did turn and a giant, black (real) bull was charging toward him. Don Ferdinand stood in the background now, pointing a revolver skyward.

"Great!" Steelor grunted, planting his footing as the bull (animal) charged. "And I'm just guessing that this bull is an innocent spectator here, simply protecting his yard!"

The bull's horns struck home dead-center in his chest. Steelor should have been pancaked in the middle of the yard. His supernatural armor allowed the Teen Justice hero to stand his ground. He then stepped to one side, reached around the startled bull's neck, and grabbed the animal by both horns.

"I hate to do this to you, friend!" Steelor grunted, straining his muscles. "I'm not the bad guy here!"

Don Ferdinand kept his pistol drawn and fired at the air again. The sound of the gunshot startled the bull back into what could have been a rage. However, its weight gave way at the same time and it collapsed to its side. Steelor could see the rampaging bull collapse and he let go.

"Sleep it off, friend; you'll be okay in a little while." Steelor declared, patting the slumbering bull on its side; then, he pivoted to face don Ferdinand and his gun: "As for YOU...!"

"No!" Bull shouted, scooping the sleeping bull off of the ground and effortlessly onto his shoulders. "You came out here; YOU tangle with ME!"

Suddenly, the giant strong man reared back to throw his new projectile.

"As you wish..." Steelor answered, throwing a sudden shoulder block despite his lack of speed when in his armored state.

Bull was knocked off course and the bull went flying. Somehow, Steelor did catch the beast of burden and could calmly set it down. The bull could awaken naturally; Bull was stunned up against the fence for the innocent farmer to find in the morning; providing that the bull didn't drive him off first.

"That did it for the preliminaries." Steelor declared, coolly, as he advanced once more. "As for you, Ferdinand, I don't like gun violence and I hate those who bully innocent animals!"

Don Ferdinand panicced for a moment, then pointed the revolver forward. As the bullets ricocheted every which way off of an armor that had just stopped a giant bull, Ferdinand still ran out of bullets, then chucked away the useless gun and jumped the fence.

"Desperado, DESPERADO!" he shouted. "Steelor ain't stopping. Vamanos!"

Suddenly, Desperado appeared in a blur of the super-speed that was coupled with his heightened senses.

"Coward! I came out here for a reason; and my boys and I don't leave without loot!" Desperado declared.

"Desperado!" Steelor bellowed, marching at the super-powered outlaw.

Desperado exchanged a glance with don Ferdinand and they both began backing away.

"Bandito, Wild Willy, drop the cash; we're scrambling!" Desperado bellowed. "We'll get Bull later!"

Bandito glanced up at his leader.

"You're joshin', right, chief?" "Wild" Willy demanded. "Uh mean, we just gathered up these here bags to up n' leave 'em!"

"It will buy Steelor time to catch us; if that busybody, T.J., doesn't send in the extra aid for him." Desperado barked. "Now, move!."

He had a good point and his gang knew it. The villains who were awake and sentient at the time scrambled for higher ground and left the money behind. Steelor could only shake his head at them.

"Pathetic!" he grunted, turning back to face where Bull was laid out and the bull still slumbered. "Well, now, Mr. Bu..."

"Hold on thar!" another voice barked as a man with a powder gun came around the corner.

"The farmer, I take it?" Steelor asked as his steel second skin vanished to reveal his human face if only to give the farmer some piece of mind.

"The same; I'm Farmer Dil!" Dil barked. "Who be you; and what've you done to Charlie thar?"

"Charlie?" Steelor repeated. "The bull?"

"The same!" Dil answered, before pointing his gun at the other human form. "And who be this guy?"

"Bull; he's one of the men who meant to rob that money train here; and he meant to use your poor bull to slow me up." Steelor explained. "The other villains got away; for now."

Dil scratched his chin as concern found his face.

"You don't reckon that they'll be back?" he asked.

"Not if we get the local police here first." Steelor answered. "He's my brother; I'll sit on him for a moment while you get the sheriff."

"Well, howdy; today I'm helping arrest a criminal-like!" Farmer Dil whistled.

"Today, sir, you're aiding and abetting Teen Justice while it counts." Steelor answered, taking his seat and scratching Charlie, the bull, on the head as Bull began to stir again.

With that, Farmer Dil scrambled for inside as Steelor tapped his earpiece communicator.

"Mission accomplished today, T.J." he declared. "Desperado got spooked off early; I'm just sitting on some rabble for the local farmer. Tell Golden Glider and the others that they didn't miss much out here..."

Steelor waited while T.J. gave an answer, then he hung up his earpiece. With that, the bull started to rise up and glance about in question again.

"Good boy." Steelor told him reassuringly.

Charlie snorted in recognition in response...