EL PRIMER ENCUENTRO: El Matador de Toros contra El Toro
Original Characters by Zyp; Story by The Atomic Punk
It was a wonderful afternoon at the plaza in Ronda. Droves of fans and a hundred more women rushed to greet their hero El Matador de Toros. He was to speak on behalf of EuroXyne Pharmaceuticals. The company promised a revolutionary treatment – a new era in gene therapy.
El Matador stepped to the podium. There was thunderous applause. Patiently he waited for the olés to fade before he would make the announcement. The audience finally settled. As he began, “Ladies and gentlemen, please, let me first say…” the crowd began clapping anew. “Please, please… this is muy importante. If you could hold your applause until the end of…”
The noise grew louder. El Matador realized that it was not the crowd cheering. Suddenly, there was an explosion at the EuroXyne research center across the plaza. A fireball that once was a vehicle launched high into the air. A car bomb! No, there was more rumbling. As if something was bearing down on them.
From the smoke and flames stepped a large man wearing a horned helmet. “¡ Soy El Toro!” he exclaimed. “I will stop your unholy experiments!” El Toro rushed toward the crowd. Tossing aside carts, street lights, anything that was in his way. Smashing everything in his path as if it were made of balsa wood. Without taking a single step, El Matador launched himself over the crowd to greet his new adversary.
As the public ran every which way screaming, El Matador steeled himself. Yet he stood gracefully like a torero with his muleta draped over his forearm. El Toro played El Matador’s game and lowered his head. In true bullfighter style, El Matador spun away from the charge, blinding El Toro with his cape. El Toro stumbled and smashed into the plaza’s fountain.
The two fought a pitched battle from late afternoon until early evening. El Matador leapt atop a three-story building to gain the high ground. To his surprise, a crowd had gathered on the roof to watch the epic contest.
“¡Idiotas!” shouted El Matador. “This is no fútbol match! Leave now!” The spectators dropped their party drinks as they fled. El Matador stepped to the ledge. El Toro had disappeared. Without warning, a large chunk of the broken fountain fell from the sky. The massive slab would have killed an ordinary man. A blast from behind knocked El Toro to the ground. Two Centauro B1s had arrived.
Though not a direct hit, the 105mm shell was enough to distract El Toro. El Matador was able to free himself from under the concrete. El Toro had succeeded in destroying the research lab and several scientists. Still, he wanted to eliminate EuroXyne’s abomination. The Bull cursed his enemy then retreated to fight another day. A smartphone user captured the now famous image of an exhausted but triumphant El Matador de Toros glaring at the raging bull.
NATO’s Centauro B1 Anti-Tank Vehicle
