The Kidnap of the Governor’s Daughter Part 7

The dashing rogue known as Zorro comes rushing through skies to help save the kidnapped governor’s daughter, but is there more to kidnapped than the dapper hero knows?

Oh, Vanessa would now make it her life mission to kill the masked hero named Zorro after he left her on the side of the road. Once they got away from the battle and the Warring Hooligans, he pulled her out of the cockpit, kicking and screaming at him, and cut her loose at gunpoint. She hissed at him, and all he did was smirk at her jumping back into his plane. Off he went into the air heading back to the fight while Vanessa stood there, throwing stones at the black and red devil.

                She hiked to the closest town, finding her a V8 to steal. The driver of the car rushed out of the diner, screaming at her as she pulled away heading back into the desert, trying to make it back to the train. She didn’t care a bit anymore about keeping the Duke safe or his stupid soon to be wife. She was a fool to fall so heavily in love with a man like the Duke in the first place. Any man, if you asked Vanessa, love was a foolish thing, that only got you killed.

                The White Wolf, a lone wolf, and the old proverb were dead wrong; the lone wolf dies alone; at least this one, didn’t die. But she did once love a man, and now she wore three bullets under her right breast where the damn b*****d tried to kill her. It didn’t matter now, the b*****d was dead, his throat cut by her after she crawled back to life. She hunted the man down, kill him, and vow to never love again.

                Something this imbecile young girl would soon find out if she lived long enough. There was a good chance she would catch a bullet or walk off the edge of the Flying City.

                But none of this matter now, all that matter was the utter death of Zorro for kicking her out the plane like she was an imbecile herself. No, man, no matter how many times they have saved her life �"

                And the list was starting to grow with Zorro

                Treated her the way this masked man had. She would make him pay. He had to pay for what he did, but something lingering in the air as she drove toward the black Anaconda slithering into the blue sky �"

                Could she help Zorro, for saving her life a few too many times, save Dagmara before killing him?

                Or, just shot the masked man right in the back?

                She was leaning more toward the latter than the former.

                The car roared over the hill, with Vanessa seeing a battle raging at the bottom. There seem to be a few Marines still alive from the two attacks ship, which was burning heavily on the earth. The Duke’s Marines were fighting those who were pulling themselves out of fires while at the same time fighting a new airship hanging in the air. This ship looked to be from the Texas Rangers mixed with regular army, and they were not here to lose. Vanessa guessed Dagmara’s father wasn’t playing around anymore. He sends out the dogs of war, and they were raining down hell now.

                The high powerful car roaring right for the train pulled the wrath of the Marines on both sides, raining their bullets down onto it. The bullets forced Vanessa to duck behind the wheel smashing into train, not seeing it. The hit tossed her forward, but she had lower herself from all the bullets crashing into the car. Someone quickly realized what was going on and shouted for them to stop firing at her.

                Vanessa rolled out of the car with a few of the Marines coming over to her, using the car, and some boulders for cover against the attackers. “Ma’am, sorry we didn’t kno---”

                “It doesn’t matter,” she hissed back, glancing around. “We have lost do what you must to get everyone to surrender.”

                “Uh, ma’am, are you sure?” The other Marine asked.

                Vanessa wrenched a rifle from his hands, storming into the train,” Stay here and die if you want. I don’t care.” She headed for the back of the train knowing the Duke would be hiding from all the fight. And yet, the fight outside was traveling down train wounding many for his Marines, shattering the glass under her boots, but she didn’t care about the combat.

                They had lost. The plan was over, and Vanessa was going to get her revenge. She kicked in the door to the last car of the train only to find Zorro standing there with his sword at the ready and the Duke holding Dagmara by the throat. There was a gun to her head and tears descending her sweet face. She didn’t at first understand what was happening, but when the hammer was pulled back on the gun everything came to sight.

                “I’ll blow her head off,” the Duke must have been yelling over the gunfight outside.

                “Why are you doing this?” Dagmara shouted back.

                “Shut your mouth,” the Duke snarled at her with Zorro glaring.

                “It is over,” Zorro told him. “You have lost, let her go.”

                “No. Back off or she gets a bullet in the head.”

                But when Vanessa kicked herself into the room, everyone stared at her. Zorro’s sky-blue eyes showed no worry about the new foe entering the car. He wasn’t sure if he would now have to battle her and the Duke all at the same time, but if he did, then the challenge would be taken with glee. Dagmara was still crying with terror, and the Duke was breaking a smile across his face.

                “Kill him,” the Duke ordered, and Vanessa tossed the rifle up, aiming dead at Zorro. He steeled himself ready to make a move. “Do it, and I’ll pay you double.”

                “Do it,” the Duke instructed.

                Vanessa sighed deeply, shaking her head at Zorro. In a flash the rifle holler knocking a bullet straight through the back of the Duke’s skull. He crumbled on top of Dagmara, who was screaming like a child afraid of the dark. Vanessa tossed the rifle at the feet of Zorro pointing at him and snarling, “We are even now.”

                Zorro grinned, “Yes, I guess we are, the one and only White Wolf.”

                “Whatever,” Vanessa spun on her heels, storming back out of the car, making her getaway while the Marines surrender to the Ranger and the Army. Zorro moved the Duke’s body off of top of Dagmara and left her there with him while the Army came rushing in. He had moved on to the next mission and the White Wolf looking for new prey to hunt.   

Author's Note

I found out, not too long ago, that Zorro was public domain and was like well, why not use him? Thus, this short story was born. I wanted to put him in my steampunk world, which meant I had to change a few things here and there, but I think it holds true to the heart of the character. Another thing I did in this story which you will soon see, is you never know who the masked hero is, in fact, most of the story is from other people’s point of view facing Zorro.

Artwork: Cover to Dynamite Entertainment's Zorro #2 (March 2008) by Mike Mayhew