Belle Book
"A Tale of Two Outlaws"
by Belle Book
Part Eight
(Author's notes: This part will involve
another duel, only this time, I do not
plan on having any deaths. I also hope
to put in more details during this duel
than I did during the one I did earlier.)
The bottom of Canon Perdido
Zorro had left his horse near the
way out he'd found earlier, and had snuck
down to where Don Luis was watching over
Victoria. Now, he was only a few feet
away.
Don Luis then asked nobody in par-
ticular, "Where is Zorro? He should be
here by now."
Turning to Victoria, he said,
"Yes, I'm waiting for Zorro. As soon as
I hear his horse's sound, I'll hide and
wait for him to climb down to check on
you. Then, I plan to attack him and van-
guish him. I will gain my revenge on him
for what I have lost. And when he's de-
feated, nobody will stop me!"
"You have to defeat me, first,"
said Zorro.
Don Luis turned around, and saw
Zorro standing a few feet away.
"What -- how did you get down
here without me hearing you?" sputtered
Don Luis.
"That's my little secret, senor,"
said Zorro, grinning his roguish grin.
Don Luis looked at Victoria, then
approached Zorro. When he was about two
feet away, he drew his sword.
Zorro drew his sword, smiling as
he did so. But inside, Zorro was barely
holding his temper.
Don Luis had kidnapped the woman
he loved, was trying to use her as bait
to entrap him, and was willing to loose
chaos and devestation in order to gain
his purpose. The only reason Zorro was
able to keep his temper was because he
knew that if he lost his temper, he'd
probably lose against Don Luis.
he
reminded himself.
So Zorro stood still and waited
for Don Luis to come to him.
______________________________________________________
Don Luis was even more furious
now than he'd ever been. He thought
he could hear Zorro coming and take
him by surprise. However, Zorro had
taken him by surprise. This time, the
masked menace would pay!
Both he and Zorro got in the
en guarde position. Then Don Luis at-
tacked, lunging at Zorro. Zorro re-
treated.
Don Luis pressed him back a
few feet, then Zorro stopped. The
attack had run its course.
Don Luis attacked again, but
his blade was neatly parried this
time. Zorro grinned at him. This
enraged Don Luis.
Don Luis kept attacking El
Zorro, but El Zorro parried every
lunge, thrust, and cut effectively.
However, during the duel, an
odd feeling kept nagging Don Luis, a
feeling that this man's swordfighting
style seemed familiar. But where had
he fought a man with a similar style?
Then Zorro parried his blade
and allowed Don Luis to crash right
against him. That's when the light
came on in the man's brain.
He was back in the University
of Madrid, fighting a duel with Don
Diego de la Vega. Don Diego had pre-
vented one too many duels, so he was
now in a duel with Don Luis. And one
of Don Luis's thrusts had been trap-
ped -- by the same move!
That's when his thoughts were
interrupted -- by a black boot thrust
at his stomach! Don Luis fell back.
Fury at having been thrown
back so easily was probably responsible
for what happened next. He yelled,
"So! We meet again, Diego de
la Vega! Only this time, you'll lose!"
Zorro's eyes flickered.
____________________________________________________
While Zorro and Don Luis had
been fighting, Victoria had watched,
hoping that Zorro would defeat Don
Luis.
About a minute after the duel
began, she had felt the gag being un-
tied from her mouth. When she looked
to her right, she had seen Carmen San-
diego!
"Ssh!" Carmen had whispered.
"I came here to rescue you while Zorro
is busy fighting Don Luis."
Victoria had nodded, and al-
lowed Carmen to untie her bonds. A-
nother minute later, she was free.
That's when Don Luis had ad-
dressed Zorro as Diego de la Vega!
thought
Victoria. She was about to deny it
to Don Luis, when she felt a hand on
her mouth.
"Ssh!" Carmen whispered. "I
don't think it's a good idea to let
Don Luis know I took off your gag!"
Victoria whispered back, "It
can't be! Diego can't be Zorro!"
Carmen whispered, "Are you
so certain Diego couldn't be Zorro?"
Victoria frowned. Then she
remembered the look on Carmen's face
when Don Luis had made his statement.
There was no surprise on her face.
Memories came back to her, in
bits and pieces. There was the time
two bandits who robbed the military
payroll escaped and kidnapped her.
During the rescue attempt, a
bandit had held a knife on her and
ordered Zorro to turn around. Zorro
did, and the bandit had begun to
walk with Victoria, only for Zorro
to whistle. Don Diego's horse had
reared and knocked the bandits out!
Zorro had told her that it
appeared Diego had been training his
horses to respond to a whistle. She
had later told Diego not to imitate
Zorro.
She also remembered the time
when she had accompanied Diego on a
trip to meet with the Royal Spanish
Emissary. They had spent the night
together because of a storm, and he
had quoted poetry to her -- a quote
that Zorro later echoed!
Finally, she rmembered how
Resendo had threatened to seize the
church and its property, and would
not use the de la Vega funds to pay
the war tax. Zorro had arrived with
the de la Vega money, which he had
stolen -- or so she thought. Now,
all was clear. Zorro had been Diego
all the time!
Turning to Carmen, she whis-
pered, "It's true? Diego is Zorro?"
"Si," said Carmen. "I've
known that for quite some time. I
have another secret for you as well.
It concerns me."
"What?" whispered Victoria.
"I'm from the future," whis-
pered Carmen.
_______________________________________________
When Don Luis had addressed
him as Diego, Zorro knew that unless
Carmen had gotten Victoria out of the
canyon, Victoria knew the truth. But
he put the thought out of his mind.
He had to concentrate on the duel.
So, while Victoria had come
to the realization that Zorro was in
fact Diego, Zorro kept on defending
himself against Don Luis.
By the time Victoria had dis-
covered the truth about Carmen, how-
ever, Zorro knew that Don Luis was
beginning to tire. It was time to
go on the attack.
So, Zorro changed from a de-
fensive position to an attacking one,
lunging forward and forcing Don Luis
back.
Don Luis tried to parry him
as best he could, but he'd lost much
of his wind attacking Zorro earlier,
and therefore wasn't in much of a
position to defend himself well.
Now Don Luis and Zorro were
fighting right in front of Victoria
and Carmen. Don Luis was near the
end of his strength.
Desperately, he called up
his last reserves of strength --
and made one mistake in his exhaus-
tion!
Zorro saw his opportunity,
and with a simple thrust, tore Don
Luis's sword out of his hand! Then
he placed the sword against the ex-
haused man's heart.
"Go -- go ahead and kill me,
Diego!" Don Luis gasped.
"Murder is a coward's solu-
tion," Zorro said. "Senorita San-
diego, where is the rope that was
used to tie up Victoria?"
"Here it is, Zorro," said
Carmen. "I'll tie him up. I be-
lieve you've got some explaining
to do to Victoria."
Seeing Victoria's stunned
face, Zorro had to agree. "I'll
do so as soon as you begin tying
up Don Luis. Once I'm finished
talking to Victoria, I'll take
Don Luis in, and you take Victoria
back to the tavern."
Carmen approached Don Luis,
and began tying him up. Zorro
dropped his sword and approached
Victoria.
_____________________________________________
Victoria stood still, at-
tempting to comprehend what she
had just learned.
Diego de la Vega was El
Zorro. He had deceived everyone
into thinking he was weak-willed,
too studious, unskilled with a
sword. But he was Zorro. And
he was the man she'd fallen in
love with. Yet, why had he ne-
ver told her?
Zorro now stood in front
of her, awaiting her response.
"Diego?" she whispered,
approaching him.
Zorro didn't move. In-
stead, he stood still. Victoria
felt her hands move toward his
mask, untying it, then pulling it
off.
Diego stood in front of
her, his face showing his nervous-
ness.
"Diego," she said. "It's
you."
"Si," said Diego. "I've
always been Zorro."
"Yet you never told me,"
Victoria said. "Why? You said
you loved me, yet you never told
me who you were."
Diego bowed his head. A
minute later, he looked up and
said,
"It wasn't because I did
not love you that I didn't tell
you. I didn't wish Alcalde Ra-
mone, and later Alcalde DeSoto,
to have any excuses to move a-
gainst those I cared about. So,
I hid my face behind a mask --
and my true self behind one, too.
"For years, only Felipe
knew. He can hear, but he pre-
tended not to be able to, so as
to help me. But after Resendo's
death, I had to tell my father.
He knows the truth now.
"I felt I had to protect
those I cared about. Will you
forgive me for deceiving you?"
Victoria thought for a
minute. She was willing to for-
give, but she mischevously decided
to let him sweat it out for a
minute.
"Victoria --" Diego be-
gan again, pleadingly.
Victoria looked up at
him and smiled, then said, "I
forgive you. You did what you
felt you had to do. I --" At
that moment, Diego kissed her.
They kissed for awhile,
then separated.
Victoria said, "Did you
know Senorita Sandiego knows who
you are?"
"And that she's from the
future?" Diego asked. "Si. She
told me."
He then turned to Carmen,
who was watching with a smile on
her face. Don Luis was bound.
"He's ready, Diego," she
said.
Diego put his mask back
on, then handed Victoria to Car-
men. He whistled for Tornado.
A minute later, Tornado
appeared. Diego, now Zorro, took
Don Luis, placed him on the stal-
lion, then mounted and rode off.
Carmen took Victoria and
used a hook and line to get them
both out of the canyon.
_________________________________________
The pueblo, a few minutes later
Sergeant Mendoza had been
inside the cuartel when the sounds
of a horse galloping into the plaza
alerted him.
He would've gone searching
for Don Luis near Canon Perdido, but
had gotten a message sent by Corporal
Sepuleveda. The Governor had been
in Santa Barbara when the corporal
arrived with the bad news about the
Alcalde, and the Governor was coming
to put a new Alcalde in charge. Be-
sides, Mendoza didn't want to face
a furious Don Luis.
When Mendoza looked out, he
saw El Zorro galloping toward the
cuartel with someone tied up!
The soldiers would've shot
at Zorro, but Mendoza said, "No!"
Zorro said, "Gracias, Ser-
geant." He dismounted, and threw
his prisoner at the feet of the
soldiers guarding the cuartel. It
was Don Luis.
"Here's your prisoner," he
told Mendoza. "Keep a good eye on
him until he can be sent to the
Governor."
"The Governor's coming to
Los Angeles," said Mendoza.
"Really?" said Zorro. "I
did not know that. He will know
the true state of affairs here ve-
ry soon, then. Adios, Sergeant."
Zorro saluted, then got on
Tornado and galloped off.
The soldiers would've shot
at Zorro, but Mendoza said, "Take
Don Luis in. He's under arrest for
murder, kidnapping, and conspiracy
to smuggle in weapons."
The soldiers frowned, then
approached Don Luis and sent him
inside the cuartel.
______________________________________________
The following day
Carmen accompanied the de
la Vegas and Felipe to the pueblo
to meet the Governor. Maybe at
last justice could come to Los An-
geles, without violence.
She had taken Victoria back
to the tavern, then galloped back
to the de la Vega hacienda, where
she learned from Diego that the
Governor was coming to Los Angeles,
no doubt to appoint a new Alcalde.
Maybe she could help in that mat-
ter.
As she arrived in the plaza,
she saw the Governor arriving with
an escort and being greeted by the
Sergeant. Among the people in the
crowd, she saw the Padre, Ivy, and
Zack.
she
thought.
Her thoughts were inter-
rupted by the Governor.
"Sergeant, I am glad that
you have the murderer of Alcalde
DeSoto in jail. When I return to
Monterey, I will deal with him.
However, you say that El Zorro is
responsible for his capture."
"Si, your Excellency," the
Sergeant said. "He is an outlaw,
but he is a good man. He has cap-
tured many bandidos, and has not
done any harm to the people."
Car-
men thought.
"Zorro only rides when
there is injustice being done to
the people," Mendoza continued.
Victoria stepped forward
and said, "The sergeant tells the
truth. Zorro only rides to de-
fend the people. If there was
justice here, he would not need
to ride out."
The crowd agreed. The
Governor looked around.
"If this is true, then I
believe we need to appoint an Al-
calde who knows the needs of the
people, and is willing to help
them.
Carmen then spoke. "I
am a newcomer, and I have spent
my time here with Don Alejandro
de la Vega. He is an excellent
man, truly dedicated to helping
the people. And he's lived here
most of his life. Who could be
a better Alcalde for this pueblo
than he?"
Victoria and the rest of
the crowd joined their voices in
support. Diego looked at Carmen
and smiled. She smiled back.
The Governor asked, "Who
are you, senorita? Senora?"
"I am known as Senorita
Carmen Sandiego," said Carmen.
"My true last name is unknown,
because I am an orphan."
"You have made a good ar-
gument, senorita," said the Gov-
ernor. "Don Alejandro de la Vega,
are you willing to replace Ignacio
de Soto as Alcalde of the pueblo
de Los Angeles?"
"If the people are will-
ing to let me be their Alcalde,
I am willing," said Don Alejandro.
The voices of the crowd
provided the answer. They were
willing.
"Then, in two days, Don
Alejandro will be appointed the
new Alcalde of Los Angeles," said
the Governor.
"And when that happens,"
said Don Alejandro, "I will is-
sue a pardon to El Zorro for all
his work in support of the peo-
ple."
Carmen and Victoria both
cheered, and the crowd soon join-
ed them.
____________________________________________
Two days later, inside the plaza
Don Alejandro had mixed
feelings, mostly good ones, but
a few sad ones as well.
Carmen had told him, Di-
ego, and Felipe, that as soon as
Zorro had obtained his pardon and
was unmasked, that she would leave
and go back to her own time per-
iod. He was sad to see her go,
as she had been so helpful, but
she did need to go back to her
own time period.
The sad feelings, fortu-
nately, were more than balanced
by the good ones. Justice would
finally come to Los Angeles. He
would issue a pardon to Zorro --
his son. And his son would fi-
nally be free to marry Victoria.
His thoughts were inter-
rupted by the Governor, who ap-
pointed him the new Alcalde. Be-
side him was Felipe, Victoria,
and Sergeant Mendoza. Carmen
was in the crowd. Diego wasn't
around, but Don Alejandro knew
he'd come soon.
Sure enough, a minute
later, a scout caught sight of
Tornado approaching the pueblo.
Then Zorro arrived on Tornado,
to the cheers of the crowd.
Zorro managed to get
through the crowd to the plat-
from where Don Alejandro and
those with him stood. Then,
Don Alejandro said,
"Zorro, for all your
services in support of the peo-
ple, I present you with this
pardon."
He handed Zorro his
pardon. Zorro looked at it,
smiled, and said, "Gracias,
Alcalde."
Victoria then approach-
ed Zorro. He said, "I promised
that when I took off my mask,
I would marry you. I believe
it is time."
Victoria smiled, then
reached up and took off Zorro's
mask. Don Alejandro smiled as
Diego's face was revealed.
"Diego!" said Victoria.
"It is you I love! I should've
known."
They embraced and kissed.
That's when Don Alejandro heard a
sound beside him. Looking to his
right, he saw Sergeant Mendoza on
the ground in a dead faint.
Victoria then took out
the ring Zorro gave her, a ring
that Don Alejandro recognized
as belonging to Elena de la Vega,
and Diego put it on her finger
for the second time.
___________________________________________
Two minutes later
"There she is!" Ivy whis-
pered to Zack.
They had followed Carmen
out of the crowd to the tavern,
where they saw Carmen mounting
a horse. She then began moving
toward the back of the tavern.
"We've got to follow
her," said Zack. "She's proba-
bly leaving the pueblo."
"Well, the Padre did al-
low us to use his horse, if we
promised to return it or to send
it back," said Ivy.
With that, they got the
Padre's horse, and urged it out-
side the pueblo.
Sure enough, there was
Carmen, galloping off.
"Come on, let's follow
her!" Ivy said.
They galloped off after
Carmen.
___________________________________________
At the time machine
Carmen slapped Estrella
and the horse galloped back to
the pueblo.
That's when Ivy and Zack
arrived on a horse of their own.
"We're here to do what
Zorro did to Don Luis -- arrest
you," said Ivy.
Carmen smiled, said, "I
don't think so," and took the
medicine bottle out of her coat
pocket. There had been some
medicine left.
"Catch," Carmen said,
throwing it at Ivy.
As Ivy moved to catch
it, Carmen ran to the time ma-
chine, pursued by Zack.
Carmen got inside her
time machine, set the coordi-
nates to the present, and press-
ed the button.
Within minutes, Carmen
was gone from the year 1821,
where she had helped to make
history.
___________________________________________
Acme HQ, in the present
Zack reflected on the
events that had happened.
Ivy had caught the bot-
tle, but Zack hadn't been able
to reach the time machine be-
fore it went back to the pre-
sent.
They did activate the
Chronoskimmer, but by the time
they reached Carmen, she was
leaving in her jet-copter.
With Carmen gone, all
they could do was return the
medicine to Running Brook, and
learn that Armando had gotten
the painting and sculpture
back to their rightful owners.
And think about the
strange adventure they'd had.
"So, Carmen wanted to
go back in time to discover
what happened to Zorro after
an adventure she'd read," he
heard Ivy say.
"And the medicine was
apparently meant for him," said
Zack. "That's what Zorro told
us."
"But if that's the case,
why did she steal a painting and
a sculpture? And why did she
then leave it?" Ivy asked.
Zack said, "Chief, was
there any connection between
the painting, the sculpture,
and the year we went back to?"
"There sure is," said
the Chief. "The year you went
back to was the year 1821. 'A
Shepherd's Boy' was done be-
tween 1817 and 1825. And 'Milk
Maid of Bordeaux' was done by
1828."
"Of course!" said Zack.
"Carmen stole the painting and
sculpture as clues! She tried
to tell us she was going back
to the 1820s!"
"And the thefts she did
before this series of thefts
all involved masks, like the
one Zorro wore," said Ivy.
"And we missed the sig-
nificance of the clues," Zack
said.
"Well, at least Carmen
did stop a madman from hurting
innocent people," said Ivy.
"Yes," said Zack.
_________________________________________
Epilogue
Los Angeles, two months later
Laura de la Vega was so
happy.
Today was her wedding to
Senor Carlos Martinez, and many
people were giving her wedding
presents.
Suddenly, her grandfather
came to her and said, "Excuse me,
but a mysterious woman dressed in
red sent you this gift. She said
that she was sorry she couldn't be
at your wedding, but she wanted
you to have this."
He handed her a package,
then left her alone. There was
a note attached to it.
Laura opened the letter
first. It said,
Senorita de la Vega,
I believe this
will interest you very
much. I am Carmen San-
diego, who helped your
ancestor when he was El
Zorro. I have written
this manuscript about
my adventure in the past,
and I want you to have
it.
Carmen Sandiego
Laura opened the package
at once, and began to read it.
It was entitled "A Tale of Two
Outlaws".
Once she was done, she
whispered,
"Gracias, senorita, for
the help you provided Zorro, and
for your kindness to me."
She did not notice the
shadow of Carmen Sandiego leav-
ing the scene.
The end
Final notes:
I wish to thank Ms. Ruth
Rechsteiner for providing me with
a possible motive for Don Luis,
and for inspiring me with the
scenario for the climatic duel
scene; and Mr. William Thomas
for encouraging me to write a
story based on the 1990 Zorro
series, and for providing me
with the name of Laura de la
Vega.
I'd also like to thank
them, and all the others who've
read my story while I was work-
ing on it, for their encourage-
ment.
As Carmen would say, "A-
dios, amigos, until next crime."
(
geocities.com/empressleonine5)