BILLY STEELE CHAPTER FIVE: MENACE OF THE MOLE PEOPLE

"The West will worship you, Billy Steele," Agar declared, "But I will hold the power! After some exposure to the force that built our kingdom, you, Billy Steele, will resemble my followers."

Billy feared that Agar would turn him into a mutant, mole creature like he had threatened to do to Cassidy. His blue eyes and blonde hair would be eradicated and he would be a hideous half human. Even worse, he feared his soul and mind would fall victim to Agar's claws, his free will would be gone and he would be a helpless pawn in Agar's plan for conquest. And without the power of the Lightning Warrior, he trembled inside at the thought of the mole people's superior technology vanquishing the power of magic and Nature.

"It is time to unleash our forces upon the upper world, "Agar commanded. A monitor's silver screen showed Billy and his loved ones the mole people's terrible invasion of the Wild West paradise.

As Billy and his loved ones watched horrified, the ground beneath the town of Paradise Valley, Billy's beloved community, began to rumble and roar as the mole people began their attack. The terrifying tremors of terror sprang from their underground chambers to assault the unsuspecting townspeople. The conquering worms used their massive, slithering structures to devastate the town's buildings. Innocent men, women and children ran for their lives as the creatures lunged for their bodies and souls. Billy saw his classmates and schoolteacher, Miss Cartright, scatter as these monsters continued their rampage. As the town trembled and shook, the feisty schoolmarm shielded her students from falling debris until all were safely outside the building.

The men of Paradise Valley again took up arms against horrific invaders. Farmers, storekeepers and cowboys saddled their mounts and used their tools, rifles and six guns to retaliate against the worm creatures. But these brave souls were ill equipped for the horror to come. An army of mutant mole people advanced on the town. Each of Agar's fanatical followers opened fire on the townsmen with their sleek ray guns. Six guns and pitchforks were little defense against weapons that discharged bolts of energy more forcibly than a thousand lightning storms.

Next, the monitor televised the cavalrymen of Fort Yuma racing to the town's rescue. Strong mounts and saber wielding soldiers galloped dutifully towards the danger. As the soldiers used their blades to try and disarm the mutants, they were greeted by the awesome danger of humongous metal tanks, land roving vicious vehicles, that pointed their spike shaped cannons at the cavalry crusaders and their horses.

Boom! Boom!

The mole creatures' armored, reviling ramblers opened unmerciful firepower on the super troopers. Quickly, the cavalrymen leaped from their mounts and stayed close to the ground to elude the death rays. But the cavalrymen found themselves to be the prey of the worm monsters. The troopers became trapped between the mole creature's mechanized tanks and the conquering worms. "Retreat," was never uttered or thought by any cavalry crusader as they fired their carbines at the metal rovers and sunk their sabers into the slithering creatures' impregnable skin. The Earth's soil that could grow the grain to feed the nation became scorched and victimized by the blazing battle

Then, the unthinkable happened!! The ground beneath Paradise Valley and Fort Yuma began to tremble violently, like a thousand earthquakes shaking the universe loose. The mutant, mole people army used their advanced weaponry to slowly, painfully pull the entire township and fortress down to below the Earth' s surface.