Zagor LU #86: Željezni narednik

Željezni narednik is a military adventure in which danger comes from both sides of the stockade. Armed through an unscrupulous trader, the Malecite threaten the region. Their advance is opposed by a fort with an unreliable garrison: men who have exchanged imprisonment for military service. Zagor and Chico find themselves among its defenders as desertion undermines resistance.

At the centre stands Sergeant Stone, a stern disciplinarian trying to hold together soldiers with little reason to trust one another. His position raises a question fundamental to the military Western: can enforced obedience create a fighting unit, and what remains of authority when fear becomes stronger than duty?

Marcello Toninelli develops a siege Western focused on character and the tensions within the garrison. Preparations for conflict, weakening defences and uncertainty over who will stand firm provide the suspense. Francesco Gamba’s artwork keeps the action clear while allowing room for confrontations between the characters.

The adventure begins in the closing section of Sramotan sporazum and concludes in Noć krvoprolića. Together, the issues explore responsibility, fear and the possibility of rising above a troubled past.