Medallion

The Aztec Medallion is an ancient medallion that is the key to finding the Gold of Juarez. It serves as a major plot device in Call of Juarez and Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood.

Background
In 1520, after the Aztec conquest, a conquistador had created a medallion made from brass that enabled the Spanish to access the Gold of Juarez. However, it was lost, and ended up in the hands of a priest in Mexico hundreds of years later.

One day, the priest was captured by Apache warriors. In exchange for the Apache to spare his life, he gave them the medallion. The Apaches took the medallion, believing it to have great power. Soon, an epidemic spread through the Apache village, and a group of survivors headed for a Navajo village. There, they traded the medallion for food. Soon, the Navajo too conracted the illness. Believing the medallion to have dark powers, they submerged it in a lake referring to it as the "Sacred Place".

As the Navajo possessed the medallion, many adventurers for a hundred years tried and failed to look for the Gold of Juarez. The treasure was soon believed to be cursed, and that all who attempted to find it would only find death and insanity. This madness was referred to as the "Call of Juarez".

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood
In 1864, two Confederate deserters, Ray and Thomas, along with their brother William, fled their home in Georgia to evade Ray and Thomas' commanding officer Jeremy Barnsby. The brothers traveled through many towns before settling in Fort Smith, Arkansas.

In 1865, Ray and Thomas were fighting over a girl. However their heated argument was cut short as the girl's father Mike, the town sheriff and U.S. Marshal, demanding to know which of the brothers "touched his little girl".

Thomas admitted to it, but Ray lied saying it was him as well. One of the brothers engaged in a fight, and killed Mike. A riot ensued, and the three brothers fled the town. Ray revealed to his brothers that he had heard tales of Aztec treasure buried in the foothills outside Juarez. The brothers agreed to head for Mexico.

In the year that followed, the brothers lived in Abilene, Nebraska, and Texas where they ran cattle over the border.

In the summer of 1866, the three brothers were relaxing in a cantina in San Lorenzo. A woman entered the cantina, and talked with the bartender. As the woman left, she was harassed by two other men, one of whom, Ray shot. The other man took Marisa, and fled the saloon.

Ray and Thomas pursued the man and killed him, rescuing the woman in the process. However, the woman's husband, a notorious outlaw named Juan Mendoza, came upon the scene. He liked the brothers, and hired them to work for him.

Their first task was to remove a man named Devlin from San Lorenzo, who was also searching for the Gold of Juarez, as was Juan Mendoza, known as "Juarez". The brothers then headed to Raytown, Arizona and fought off the Pinkertons and local law enforcement, rescuing a gun runner. The brothers' goal was to trade 300 rifles to the Apache village in exchange for the medallion.

The brothers went to have a meeting with Mendoza, only to find him gone. The gun runner revealed himself to be their commanding officer, Jeremy Barnsby who subsequently captured them and interrogated them. William McCall revealed to Barnsby their plan, and in the process, Barnsby revealed the rifles were useless (Specifically, they were rusty rifles used by Union forces, Ray and Thomas killed at their home).

The brothers managed to escape their captors, and rendezvous with Mendoza. The group was to be guided by an Apache brave named Seeing Farther, however during the night he fled (William had told him the truth about the rifles). The group navigated their way through Comanche territory, but where ambushed by the Comanches. During the fight, William and Marisa were carried away by their wagon that had become a run-away.

Ray and Thomas split up, Ray rescuing William, and Thomas rescuing Marisa.

Ray and Thomas rescued their brother and the woman, and reunited with Juan Mendoza. However, the Comanches stole a wagon of rifles. The group chased after them and retook the wagon. The group then fled the area with Comanche warriors on their heels.

The group made it to Apache territory, where they were held at bowpoint by Chief Running River. Running River canceled the deal, saying the rifles are useless. Running River demanded that Mendoza handed over Marisa. Juan, believing Marisa had told Running River of the rifles, agreed, and left.

Running River spared the brothers lives, and let them stay at the village. The next day, Seeing Farther took Ray and Thomas to the Navajo village to get the medallion. As the Apache were sworn enemies of the Navajo, they had to sneak through the village.

However, this proved to be futile as the trio was spotted by a Navajo guard. Ray and Thomas fought through the village, blowing up a dam in the process. The dam drained the lake, and revealed the Sacred Place. Seeing Farther grabbed the medallion and the brothers escaped.

Later that afternoon, Ray and Thomas got into a fistfight when Thomas revealed he was in love with Marisa, and Ray was too. The fistfight however enabled Seeing Farther and William to take Marisa and flee the village to meet up with Ray and Thomas later.

However, the fight was cut short as Jeremy Barnsby and his troops invaded the village. Together Ray, Thomas, Running River, and his braves fought off the Confederate rebels. However, it was without a heavy cost. Running River's entire village was wiped out.

Hours later, Barnsby demanded that Running River hand over the medallion in exchange for his son Seeing Farther. Running River agreed to meet Barnsby at a nearby ghost settlement.

The next morning, Ray and Thomas realized that if Seeing Farther didn't make it to the waterfall they were going to meet at, William and Marisa must have been killed. Ray and Thomas entered the ghost settlement, and opened fire on the Confederate rebels. After one of the brothers dueld a fellow seargent in a duel, Barnsby shot Seeing Farther. Ray and Thomas fought off the remaining troops, and captured Barnsby, handing him over to Running River. Seeing Farther revealed to his father he took Ray and Thomas to the Sacred Place and that they were captured by the "Mexican bandit, and he had traded Seeing Farther to Barnsby for horses. Seeing Farther then passed away.

Ray and Thomas left as Running River drew his knife on Barnsby. Ray and Thomas both decided to head to Mexico to retrieve William, Marisa, and the medallion.

Days later during the night, Ray and Thomas stormed Juarez' alcazar, Thomas stealing horses, and Ray finding Marisa and William. Marisa believed William to have been killed, and begged Thomas to flee as she had the medallion. Reclutantly, Thomas left his brothers behind.

Ray meanwhile, saved William from death, and stormed the mansion. However, Ray and William discover Thomas missing. Angered, Ray and William fled through an underground tunnel, where they encountered Mendoza who challenged Ray to a duel.

Ray shot Juan who fell into a pool of water, and the brothers fled. William told Ray how the medallion worked and they discovered the entrance to the underground temple that housed the Gold of Juarez. Ray and William found Thomas and Marisa. Ray and Thomas got into a standoff, and William intervened. Threaten to "draw on three" (Earlier, William had shot a bandit in self-defense). Ray panicked and shot William.

However, William had only pulled out his bible. William and his bible fell to the floor, the bible landing at the feet of Barnsby. Ray and Thomas engaged in battle with Barnsby, and one of the brothers killed him.

Thomas, Ray, and Marisa left the temple, knowing the Gold to be cursed. Afterwards, a pregnant Marisa wore the medallion as a necklace and married Thomas, with Ray (now a reverend) hosting the wedding.

Later Years
In 1867, Marisa gave birth to a son, whom she named William. When he was a child, she gave him the medallion. However, as Billy's father was Juan Mendoza, Ray and Thomas particularly didn't like him.

In 1882, William, (known as "Billy Candle" due to the appearance of the medallion), fled home, after Thomas insulted his friend Suzy. Billy went to find the Gold of Juarez. During his expedition, Billy worked at a ranch owned by a man named Ferguson. While there, Billy fell in love with Ferguson's daughter Molly. However, Ferguson didn't approve of the relationship, and fired Billy.

After two years of searching, Billy gave up, and headed home.

In 1884, Billy returned to his home town of Hope, Texas. Upon enterting Thomas' ranch, Billy found Thomas and Marisa dead. Ray having been told of commotion at the ranch, discovered Billy. Believing him to be the killer, Ray chase after Billy, but the boy escaped.

Ray then donned his gunfighter outfit, and pocketed his bible. Ray chased after Billy, and at one point almost captured him. A week later, Ray came across four men who identified themselves as Texas Rangers. The leader, Tom Manson informed Ray, they were looking for Billy, and needed him to help them. Ray agreed, and the men stormed Ferguson's ranch (where Billy was also located).

Ray chased after Billy, and shot the boy, plunging him into a river.

Days later, Billy woke up to see a Native American man standing over him. Billy discovered his medallion was missing, and asked the man if he had taken it. The man told Billy he did not steal anything from him. Billy realized that he had lost his medallion in the river.

The man, whose named was Calm Water, tasked Billy with various quests to prove his bravery. After completing his final quest, he returned to Calm Water, only to find him dead, and a man wearing an eye-patch, standing over his body. Billy tried to leave, but was knocked out by a Mexican bandit.

Billy woke up tied to a pole in a cell. A man standing in front of him. The man revealed himself to be Billy's father. Angered, and thinking Billy was lying to him about losing the medallion, Juarez told Billy to find the medallion or he would give Molly (whom he had also captured) to his men for their "amusement".

Billy left the alcazar and, came to a cemetery. There a boy promised Billy that he would give him 100 pesos to bury his father. Billy agreed, and afterwards, the boy admitted he had no money, but he had the key to a church. Billy took the key, and went into the church, head outside behind the church, Billy found three gravestones. Billy realized they were the three graves that revealed the location of the Gold of Juarez.

Billy exposed the entrance to the Aztec temple and entered it.

Poem
A poem was often told to the children in Juarez about the legend. The poem is as follows:

There is one candle, but three graves.

The Gold of Juarez belongs only to the brave.

In the first grave, a bad man sleeps.

He might wake up so shhhh.

In the second grave, a rich man with a heart of stone slumbers.

For him the gold will not be enough.

In the third grave, a beggar lays.

Light a candle for him, because a little warmth means a lot to a poor man.

He will give you the gold, for the poor are more generous than the rich.

There is only one candle, but three graves.

The Gold of Juarez belongs only to the brave.

Trivia

 * It is unknown where the location of the medallion is in Call of Juarez: The Cartel, although it is believed to still be in the river.

* Call of Juarez:
 * While it is currently unknown who is buried in the graves, they could represent some of the characters in the series:

* Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood:
 * Bad Man- Juan "Juarez" Mendoza
 * Rich Man- Clyde Forrester
 * Poor Man- Arturo

* Call of Juarez: The Cartel:
 * Bad Man- Jeremy Barnsby
 * Rich Man- Devlin
 * Poor Man- Running River


 * Bad Man- Juan Mendoza
 * Rich Man- Michael Duke
 * Poor Man- Kevin Donleavy