About
Chapter 1 introduces the core conflict that sets the entire story into motion.
In 1865, renegade Confederate Captain Mark Smith leads a band of deserters plotting to conquer Texas and rule it as a dictator. To begin his takeover, Smith captures and murders Colonel Marcus Jeffries—the newly appointed Finance Commissioner—and then assumes Jeffries’ identity to gain political control.
A group of Texas Rangers enters the territory to investigate, but Smith’s henchman Joe Snead lures them into an ambush by Smith’s disguised troops. The Rangers are nearly all killed, but one injured survivor remains. This survivor is found and nursed back to health by Tonto, who becomes his trusted ally.
Swearing to avenge the massacre and stop Smith’s tyranny, the survivor later becomes the masked Lone Ranger. To protect his identity, he operates under an assumed name, joining a small group of Texans resisting Smith’s rule. Smith’s men suspect five individuals—Allen King, Bob Stuart, Bert Rogers, Dick Forrest, and Jim Clark—but only Tonto and the Rangers themselves know which one is truly the Lone Ranger.
